All companies (including external companies) and close corporations are required by law to file their annual returns with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) on an annual basis, within a prescribed time period. The purpose for the lodging of such annual returns is to confirm whether a registered business is still in business/trading, or if it will be in business in the near future. Therefore, if annual returns are not filed within the prescribed time period, the assumption is that the business is inactive, and as such CIPC will start the deregistration process to remove the business from its active records. The legal effect of the deregistration process is that the juristic personality is withdrawn and the company or close corporation ceases to exist.

Companies and close corporations are required to file annual returns annually, within a prescribed period of time. Companies are required to file annual returns within 30 business days after the anniversary date of its incorporation. Close corporations are required to file annual returns within the anniversary month of its incorporation up until the month thereafter. Together with Annual Returns, companies are also required to submit their latest final approved audited or independently reviewed Annual Financial Statements.

The first date of submissions via XBRL, will be the first date of submission that falls on or after 1 July 2018, irrespective of the year of their latest final approved audited or independently reviewed Annual Financial Statements.