REGISTERING A BUSINESS

Establishing your base in the Philippines requires obtaining certain licenses. You can register with the government via an online form which will issue you a business name and license.

Businesses in the Philippines need to be registered both centrally and locally. Local registration is done in local government offices where you will be issued with a permit allowing you to operate your business locally. This process takes between 8 and 12 weeks.

You may need to obtain special permits and licenses. This is only the case for government-regulated activities, our dedicated teams will assist you in obtaining these licenses.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF COMPANIES:

SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP

Registering your business as a sole proprietorship means you have full control over the company and makes you solely responsible for all profits and losses.

PARTNERSHIP

Registering as a partnership is a necessity for companies with two proprietors where both parties have liability for debts and obligations.

CORPORATION

Companies with up to 40% foreign equity can register as a Philippine corporation, companies with more than 40% foreign equity, will be considered a domestic foreign-owned corporation. The liability of shareholders within a corporation is dependent on their share capital within the company.

SUBSIDIARY

Companies where the parent owns at least 51% of the shares and has its own legal entity in the Philippines.

STOCK CORPORATION

Stock Corporation is a corporation with capital stock divided into shares.

NON-STOCK CORPORATION

Non Stock Corporation is a corporation organized principally for public purposes such as charitable, educational, cultural, or similar purposes and does not issue shares of stock to its members.

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

A Public-Private Partnership (PPP) is a mutual agreement between the government and a private firm. These partnerships usually cover projects around designs, buildings, finances and infrastructure.

Both local and national governments enter PPPs with contracts spanning from 20-30 years.

Should you consider entering a PPP in the Philippines, our government has streamlined the process into four stages: