Philippines Guide
For Travelers, Expats and Pinoys
How to Register a Business in the Philippines
Want to register a business in the Philippines? We’ll tell you where to go and what to get when you register a business. We’ll begin with the easiest one a single proprietorship.
A simple and easy business to register in the Philippines would be a single proprietorship. It has the least amount of documents and items required.
The very first step to register a business in the Philippines would be to apply for a business name at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
The applicant should be at least eighteen years old. Sometimes they would require a certificate from the Philippine National Police or from the National Bureau of Investigation in the area where you want to start a business in Philippines.
At the DTI get an application form, remember to bring two 2″ x 2″ identical color photos and sign them at the back. These photos should have been taken within one preceding year when you register a business in the Philippines.
Another document necessary register a business with a single owner is to present proof of citizenship. If your surname or family name sounds foreign you may inspect your passport (bring it along, it might come in handy). If you register a business where you’ll be a practicing professional (medical doctor, accountant, lawyer etc.) you will be required to present a photocopy of your license from the Philippine Regulatory Commission.
If you want to register a business as a corporation we need to get a certificate of registration from the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission). A minimum of five people is required to register a business as a corporation, the maximum would be fifteen (majority of these should be residents of the Philippines).
Bring the following to register a business at the SEC:
Your cover sheet
A name verification slip
Registration Data Sheet
Bank Certificate of Deposit for your Paid-up capital
Articles of Incorporation
Undertaking to Change Name
A Treasurer’s Affidavit
Your Corporate By-Laws
Endorsements/clearances from other government agencies
Proof of remittance by foreign corporate subscribers and for a corporation with Foreign Equity
Application Form F-100, for corporations with more than 40% foreign equity
If you want to register a business in the Philippines as a partnership you would also have to go to the SEC. There should at least be two applicants. Majority of the partners should be residents of the Philippines. A partnership in Philippine law is where business partners “contribute money, property, or industry to a common fund with the intention of dividing the profits” among themselves.
Here’s a list of items you should bring to the SEC.
A Cover sheet
A Name verification slip
Your Articles of Partnership
A Registration Data Sheet
Endorsements/clearances from other government agencies
Application Form F-105 (For partnerships with Foreign Partners)
Bank Certificate on the capital contribution of the partners
Proof of Remittance of foreign partners
These are the items you need to bring with you when you register a business in the Philippines. Remember to bring every single item along so you don’t waste time going back and forth.
Applying For A Business Name in the Philippines
When starting a business in the Philippines, one of the very first things anyone needs to think about is the business name. After all, having a cool business name distinguishes your business from the rest of the pack. Other than that, a cool business name usually gives a great first impression to potential customers and lures them in. Usually out of curiosity, people would check out your business and sample what you have to offer.
So what do we need to apply for a business name? Is there an age requirement? Yes, in the Philippines anyone who is at least 18 years of age can apply for a business name. Anyone who plans or proposes to do business in the Philippines should follow the business name law.
In the Philippines the Business Name Law is also known as act Number 3883, as Amended by Act Number 41476 and Republic Act Number 863. Let’s discuss that law first.
The Business Name Law states that any business that’ll be established whether it’s a partnership, a corporation, or even simply a sole proprietorship (i.e. just one owner) should register their business names with the Department of Trade and Industry (a.k.a. DTI) before your business starts its operation.
Now the next question is what does the DTI require from us to get a business name? Here’s a list of stuff you need to prepare. First is your chosen business name. It should be unique and it will be compared with current registered business names.
A good tip would be to submit at least three business names just in case one gets disapproved you have a back up business name to get you going. If you want to check it yourself you can go online at DTI’s web site and check if your chosen business name is already taken.
After your business name is settled you need what is called a business applicant profile registration form at the nearest DTI branch. You can also download it online to register your business name.
You’ll be required to submit a Tax Identification Number (if you don’t have one you need to get one at the Bureau of Internal Revenue), your email address, and the Zip Code of your business location.
Once you submit all that when applying for a business name you’ll be given a Transaction Reference Number form. Take that document to a payment officer and pay for the application for a business name.
Now you get a certificate acknowledging the registration of your business name. Your business name registration should be renewed after five years.
These are the steps when applying for a business name in the Philippines. There are additional requirements if you’re putting up a corporation or a franchise. Remember that your business name establishes your identity in the market and helps lure in customers.
Tags: Legal Matters, Philippines, Philippines Business, Business Name, DTI
Philippine Business Name Registration Requirements
One of the first issues that one encounters when putting up a business in the Philippines is applying for a business name. The steps for applying for a business name in the Philippines are pretty easy. You just fill out a form, submit your Tax Identification Number, email, Zip Code, the business name application form, and pay the corresponding fee.
One particular item we need to discuss is the different requirements (documents, information etc.) we need to provide when applying for a business name. The list of requirements for a business name application is different for a single proprietorship (i.e. a business that has only one owner running it) and a corporation/partnership. Here’s what we need to register a business name for different types of businesses.
Let’s start with the most basic form of business, a sole proprietorship and its requirements for an application for a business name. The applicant for a business name should be at least 18 years old. The applicant for a business name of a sole proprietorship must be a Filipino citizen.
You will also be required to submit two ID pictures (size two inches by two inches, or your regular ID photo size). The photo should have been taken within one year of applying for the business name. You should place your signature at the back of each photo.
If the Filipino citizen’s name seems to be of foreign nationality he is to submit proof of his citizenship. Requirements to provide proof are documents like a birth certificate, PRC ID, and a voter’s ID. If the applicant for a business name is a naturalized citizen he must submit a Naturalization certificate and Oath of allegiance, an affidavit of election, or an ID card issued by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines or Professional Regulatory Commission.
Lastly, a business name applicant should pay a fee of Php 315 for processing and documentary stamp.
Now let’s move on to corporations, partnerships or cooperatives. Other than the above mentioned requirements, when applying for a business name we would need the following as standard requirements for corporations and partnerships. First would be a filled out application form. You would also need a photocopy of the SEC and CDA registrations. Applicants for a business name should also submit their articles of incorporation if they’re putting up a corporation, partnership, or cooperative.
You will also be required to submit a board resolution for the registration of the business name and the address of the business (i.e. if it is applicable — some businesses don’t have a fixed physical address). Lastly an applicant corporation for business name is required to pay Php 500 as a processing fee.
When putting up a business in the Philippines one must decide the type of business and submit the application requirements to apply for a business name.
Tags: Philippines, Business Name, CDA, Business, SEC, Filipino
Marriages Without License in the Philippines
According to the Family Code of the Philippines, marriages may take place without a license. And this is expounded on the Code’s second chapter. This chapter specifies the situations in which marriages could be conducted, honored, and considered legal, even without having the couple face a local civil registrar. This type of marriage is said to be performed in “articulo mortis”.
One of the first unique situations cited is when either the man or the woman, or both, are dying. Of course, few people could imagine themselves being wed a few hours before the grim reaper takes them. At any rate, the marriage remains valid, even if one of the couple, either husband or wife, cheats death.
A second situation is when it is physically impossible for both or either of the party to present themselves before a local civil registrar. This happens when there is no means of transportation available to the marrying couple. Whoever is the solemnizing officer of the marriage, he must make affidavits that indeed, the barrio where the couple is residing is inaccessible. He should also make sure that both parties are legally able (no current wife or husband) to enter marriage. Then, he must send the affidavit, together with marriage contract, within 30 days, to the nearest municipality.
An “articulo mortis” marriage may also be allowed between passengers or crew members of a ship or an airplane. This is probably one of those love-at-first, its-now-or-never things. The marriage may be solemnized by the ship captain or the airplane pilot. The marriage may take place while the ship is at sea or the plane is in flight. Or the marriage may take place during a stopover at one of the ports of call.
Marriage can also take place within a war zone. The military commander of a unit has the authority to solemnize a marriage between anyone inside the zone of military operations. By the term “anyone”, we refer to either the members of the armed forces or the civilians. The Family Code, however, does not state if a military commander may solemnize a marriage among rebels.
Among Muslims or other ethnic cultural groups, marriage can be done without a marriage license, as long as these are conducted according to their customs.
And the last situation described by the Family Code is a marriage between a man and a woman who have lived together for at least five years already. Of course, there should be no “legal impediment”, such as an abandoned wife somewhere. The process for this situation is similar to that described above in which the home of the marrying parties are not accessible to transportation.
Tags: Philippines, Family Code, Marriage, How to Get Married in the Philippines, Filipino, Marriage License, Family
Legal Separation In The Philippines
Legal separation is an action taken by one spouse who believes that the marriage has no more hope of working. There is no divorce in the Philippines, and so, to get out of an unhappy or failing marriage, legal separation is the only recourse.
A husband or a wife may file a petition for legal separation based on one or several of the reasons listed in the Family Code. The first of these refers to repeated physical violence or abusive conduct. The receiver of such violence may be the petitioner, or the common child, or the child of the petitioner.
Another reason for filing a legal separation is moral pressure of physical violence to force the petitioner to change his religion or political affiliation. Another serious reason is when the respondent (the spouse of the petitioner) tries to induce or force their child (or the petitioner’s child) to be involved in prostitution.
A husband or wife may also file for legal separation if his or her spouse has been sentenced to imprisonment of more than six years. Another reason for legal separation is when the respondents attempts to kill the petitioner, or is involved in drug addiction, habitual alcoholism, lesbianism or homosexuality, sexual infidelity or sexual perversion. Still another reason is when the respondent has abandoned the petitioner, without justifiable cause, for more than a year. Along with desertion, bigamy is also another good reason for filing legal separation. This is when the respondent marries another while still married to the petitioner.
There are also grounds that will make a petition for legal separation is denied. First among these is when the petitioner (also called aggrieved party) has condoned to the offense that was being complained of. This means that when a woman marries a man, who already confessed his homosexuality before their marriage, the woman’s petition for legal separation on the grounds of homosexuality will be denied. Another reason is when the petitioner has consented to the offense of the respondent.
To exaggerate, a drug pusher’s petition for legal separation against his or her spouse who is a drug addict will be denied. The court will also deny a petition if both parties wanted the legal separation. This will be taken as connivance between the parties.
Another thing to remember is that the petition for legal separation must be filed within five years of the occurrence of the complaint.
It is ridiculous to file a legal separation petition on the grounds of physical violence that happened ten years ago. Some would think that the process for this legal action is slow. Well, it may be slow. But Article 58 of the Family Code specifically stated that no action for a legal separation will be taken before six months have passed since the petition was filed. In the meantime, the court will attempt to reconcile the spouses.
Tags: Legal Seperation, Seperation, Philippines Divorce, Broken Family, Philippines, Family
