In a coordinated effort to raise the country's competitiveness, the National Competitiveness Council, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Department of Interior and Local Governments (DILG), the Department of Finance (DoF), the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have come together to simplify government procedures to foster the ease of doing business in the Philippines.

By the end of 2011, 475 cities and municipalities are expected to launch systems that would simplify procedures for new business permits or annual business permit renewals. The reforms translate to single forms processed in five steps within five days, with only two signatures needed for approval.  An automation project that would make online applications possible is in the pipeline.

Mr. Guillermo M. Luz, Private Sector Co-Chairman of the National Competitiveness Council, reports that the Business Permits and Licensing System (BPLS) project will be completed two years ahead of schedule, with the first phase finishing by end-2012 instead of end-2014.

DTI, together with several agencies, hopes to launch the online Philippine Business Registry (PBR) for new single proprietorships or corporations before the end of the year.  Currently, new entrepreneurs or corporations go through the SEC, BIR, SSS, Pag-Ibig and Philhealth to register their businesses.  With the PBR, a single registration process starts online with a PBR number that facilitates completion of registration at different agencies.  Eventually, the PBR will be linked to the BPLS at the local government level to broaden service reach.

For their part, the DoF and BoC have designed a National Single Window (NSW) that bundles services of relevant agencies in a single portal that can be accessed online by importers and exporters.

Further reforms are forthcoming in the areas of property registration, tax payment procedures, investor protection, credit information, enforcement of contracts, construction permit issuance and resolution of insolvency.

Manila, 2 November 2011

Article credit: Guillermo M. Luz,  National Competitiveness Council