We are now just about a year after the launch of the Ministry’s Ontario Business Registry and I thought it would be a great chance to revisit my previous blog on the matter.
When I first wrote about the new Registry, I mentioned the issues with learning curves and system updates. In the early days, it seemed more often than not there were issues with the site lagging, or quiet often being down and not operational.
Since the launch on October 19, 2021, I can say that using the Business Registry has become easier and more user friendly, which shows that when we were surveyed to provide feedback, the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services took us seriously and implemented changes that have made the site more efficient.
The ease of filing Annual Returns, Articles of Dissolution and Amendments makes my job to be completed without significant delays and I’m able to complete tasks without a long wait to receive filed documents back. There were times waiting more than six weeks for the filed Articles of Amendments back from the Ministry.
That said, it’s still important to know when you need your lawyer to help you. As we have always stated, it is never a good idea to incorporate without the assistance from your professionals.
Just because the Registry system has made filing more accessible doesn’t mean you should do it yourself. We are still fixing issues for clients who chose to do this, it just means we can get it fixed faster.
Christine Allan, Law Clerk