2018-20279. Proposed Collection; Comment Request

Upon Written Request, Copies Available From: Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549-2736.

Extension:

Form N-8A, SEC File No. 270-135, OMB Control No. 3235-0175.

Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) is soliciting comments on the collection of information summarized below. The Commission plans to submit this existing collection of information to the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) for extension and approval.

The Investment Company Act of 1940 (“Investment Company Act”) (15 U.S.C. 80a-1 et seq.) requires investment companies to register with the Commission before they conduct any business in interstate commerce. Section 8(a) of the Investment Company Act provides that an investment company shall be deemed to be registered upon receipt by the Commission of a notification of registration in such form as the Commission prescribes. Form N-8A (17 CFR 274.10) is the form for notification of registration that the Commission has adopted under section 8(a). The purpose of such notification of registration provided on Form N-8A is to notify the Commission of the existence of investment companies required to be registered under the Investment Company Act and to enable the Commission to administer the provisions of the Investment Company Act with respect to those companies. After an investment company has filed its notification of registration under section 8(a), the company is then subject to the provisions of the Investment Company Act which govern certain aspects of its organization and activities, such as the composition of its board of directors and the issuance of senior securities. Form N-8A requires an investment company to provide its name, state of organization, form of organization, classification, the name and address of each investment adviser of the investment company, the current value of its total assets, and certain other information readily available to the investment company. If the investment company is filing a registration statement as required by Section 8(b) of the Investment Company Act concurrently with its notification of registration, Form N-8A requires only that the registrant file the cover page (giving its name, address, and agent for service of process) and sign the form in order to effect registration.

Based on recent filings of notifications of registration on Form N-8A, we estimate that about 96 investment companies file such notifications each year. An investment company must only file a notification of registration on Form N-8A once. The currently approved average hour burden per investment company of preparing and filing a notification of registration on Form N-8A is one hour. Based on the Commission staff's experience with the requirements of Form N-8A and with disclosure documents generally—and considering that investment companies that are filing notifications of registration on Form N-8A simultaneously with the registration statement under the Investment Company Act are only required by Form N-8A to file a signed cover page—we continue to believe that this estimate is appropriate. Therefore, we estimate that the total annual hour burden to prepare and file notifications of registration on Form N-8A is 96 hours. The currently approved cost burden of Form N-8A is $449. We continue to believe that this estimate is appropriate. Therefore, we estimate that the total annual cost burden to associated with preparing and filing notifications of registration on Form N-8A is about $43,104.

Estimates of average burden hours and costs are made solely for the purposes of the Paperwork Reduction Act, and are not derived from a comprehensive or even representative survey or study of the costs of Commission rules and forms. Compliance with the collection of information requirements of Form N-8A is mandatory. Responses to the collection of information will not be kept confidential. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Written comments are invited on: (a) Whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Commission, including whether the information has practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Commission's estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted in writing within 60 days of this publication.

Please direct your written comments to Pamela Dyson, Director/Chief Information Officer, Securities and Exchange Commission, C/O Candace Kenner, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549; or send an email to: [e-mail].

Dated: September 12, 2018.

Eduardo A. Aleman,

Assistant Secretary.