Philippines Business RegistrationIt doesn’t not matter whether you’re a foreigner or a Filipino, it really is difficult to start a business in the Philippines.
Tips for foreigners who want to register a company in the Philippines
Do your homework! There are many restrictions on foreign equity ownership of businesses in the Philippines. The percentage of foreign ownership will also dictate the allowed number of foreign directors and officers of the company.
There are exceptions; up to forty percent Foreign ownership of educational institutions is allowed as stated in the 1987 Constitution and in the Foreign Invest Negative List; but Presidential Decree No. 176 issued in 1973 disallows any foreigner from being a director or officer of an educational institution.
The Philippines Foreign Investment List (which is revised every few years) states the restrictions on foreign ownership but does not provide any information on other restrictions which may apply to your business, such as the number of allowed foreign directors, officers, residency obligations, secondary licenses or the minimum paid-in capital requirements for certain industries.
Obtaining the necessary and correct information to register and run a business in the Philippines is a difficult task and entails inquiring with multiple government agencies with some giving outdated facts.
Anti Dummy Law
To avoid foreign ownership regulations many people try to find schemes to circumvent the Philippines Foreign Investment Act. All these schemes using nominee shareholders (anti-dummy law) or misstating the primary purpose of the business in the articles of incorporation are illegal.
Registering a Business on Your Own – Unless you’re a frequent visitor to Philippine government agencies, there is no way to be sure that the forms you downloaded from their website are current and that application processes and fees haven’t changed. The multiple visits to the SEC and frustrations will make you regret not having hired a Philippine business consultant to guide you and process your documents.
Local Business Permits
Once a business has been licensed to transact business in the Philippines by the SEC, the company must still register with the local municipality where its principal office is located (Mayors’ Permit), BIR, SSS, HDMF and PhilHealth.
The new Unified Registration Record (URR) touted by the SEC as incorporation made easier and faster does not simplify registration with any government entity as a business will still need to go each and every government office to register and process application forms. Only the government will benefit from the URR as they will use it to insure compliance in filings and payments of fees and taxes.
All businesses registered in the Philippines must comply with BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue) regulations and file monthly, quarterly and annual reports as well as an audited financial statement. Bookkeeping may only be computerized by submitting a special request with the BIR.
Payroll is quite complicated in the Philippines and it’s essential to have an extensive knowledge of taxation and labor laws to correctly compute it.
Starting a Philippine business, contact Dayanan now, to discover how we can remove the annoyances and exasperation of doing business in the Philippines.
About David Elefant
Philippines business consultant specializing in assisting companies setup their operations in the Philippines.
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