Overview of Afghanistan Central Business Registry
What is the Afghanistan Central Business Registry ACBR?
The Afghanistan Central Business Registry is intended as a “one-stop shop” to register a business in Afghanistan. The ACBR streamlines and consolidates the myriad processes associated with registering a business in Afghanistan – whether done by business persons, their agents, or the Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA).
Business can now register, obtain a Tax Identification Number (TIN), publish their business name in the Gazette, pay one fee, and get a referral letter to any licensing agency (if needed) all in one central location. Background
The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( IRoA) faces many obstacles while supporting private sector development and providing more jobs and better products. The World Bank “Doing Business” survey ranks Afghanistan 162 of 175 countries in ease of doing business. It is critical to employment growth in licit enterprise with attendant stability that the IRoA improve this. The Corporation and Limited Liability Companies, Partnership, and Arbitration laws promulgated in January 2007 required that each business be registered in one central registration office. To accomplish this, ACBR was established. The ACBR is currently a directorate in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry reporting to the Deputy for Administration. ACBR is intended to streamline the business registration process. It will not handle business licensing. The Business Licensing Office at MoCI deals with the issuance and renewal of business licenses for traders, while AISA handles the same for investors. The MoCI licensing department and AISA follow the same steps as individual business owners with regards to registration. AISA offers a service to complete all steps associated with both registration and licensing for investors at the Commercial Court, MoF and MoJ; however, they charge a fee for this service. Through establishment of ACBR, licensing agencies will now also be able to register businesses through the ACBR one-stop shop. Business licensing reform in Afghanistan is being reviewed by the ministry advisors and other donors within MoCI. How Does ACBR Streamline Business Registration – Before & After
Businesses in Afghanistan have previously been required to physically visit a minimum of five locations in order to register their business: Commercial Courts for registration; Ministry of Interior for background check; Ministry of Finance for TIN creation; Ministry of Justice for official Gazette entry; and the Central Bank for payment of the official registration fees. Before the ACBR, registering a business took approximately 6-8 days. The old process not only made it time-consuming to register a business, but it also added opportunities for corruption as each step is paper-based, and unknown fees were often levied at each step in the process. Businesses frequently hired agents or had to seek AISA services to register businesses on their behalf to avoid the hassle. The streamlined ACBR process reduced the time to register to just a few hours. The cost is clear and consistent for all registrants: 500Afs for registration, with a corresponding gazette fee of 2Afs per character. The ACBR fees were set to cover the operating costs of the ACBR and are remitted to the Ministry of Finance. Gazette fees are consistent with previous MOJ fees. Also, the revenue department at MoF currently charge traders 1% Sukook (add on tax on initial capital); however, they are in the process of eliminating this fee. Businesses are currently required to register their business only once, unless there is a major change in business structure. For example, change of president, vice president, and business activity, type of operation, initial capital, shares and business locations. These changes can also be processed at the ACBR. Benefits to Businesses and IROA Reduced opportunities for corruption - no signatures, money changes hands once Greater access to benefits of being a registered business: qualify for bank loans, attract investment, speed up customs clearance, and receive legal protection. Meet requirements to obtain trader and investment licenses Opportunity for data collection and reporting from ACBR central database to Central Statistics Office CSO.
Roadmap for Future
The main branch of the ACBR in Kabul is just the first step for simplifying registration for businesses in Afghanistan. Future plans include: | 
