The Philippines is among the ASEAN’s most attractive destinations for foreign capital. As the business confidence is riding high the nation has seen substantial improvement in its competitiveness in the world market. For those wishing to tap into these emerging opportunities within the archipelago, many options for the market entry are available, one of them being business incorporation in the Philippines. One of the business structures that a foreign corporation can establish in the Philippines is a Representative Office.
A Representative Office in the Philippines can be only set up to promote their parent company or for conducting market research. It acts as a local liaison office for a foreign corporation that seeks to establish a corporate presence in the country without engaging in income-generating activities. A representative office does not have a separate legal personality from their parent company and is considered the extension of their foreign company.
Activities Allowed for a Representative Office in the Philippines
Under Representative office Philippines law, they are only allowed to engage in the following activities:
- Facilitate orders of customers or clients from its Head Office
- Disseminate information and conduct promotional activities about the products of its Head Office
- Undertake quality control of products from its Head Office
- Undertake other related administrative activities for its Head Office
How to Establish a Representative Office in the Philippines?
One of the important requirements for securing a license to set up a representative office in the Philippines is a proof of initial inward remittance in the amount of US$ 30,000 in any corporate bank account. Every year thereafter, the Head Office must remit the same amount of US$30,000.00 to cover operating expenses of the Representative Office. The requirements to set up a representative office are as follows:
- Secure a name reservation at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Since the company already has a name, they just have to register their name at the SEC
- Provide all the necessary documents to the SEC for processing the name registration
- Present verification of minimum paid-up capital in a non-resident account from a local bank. As mentioned earlier, you have to pay US$ 30,000 as an initial amount
- Fill the application form (SEC Form F-104) and pay the fees
- After securing Certificate of Registration from the SEC, register with the Record Division
- The next step is to file the registration with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)
- Register with applicable Government Offices (if employing individuals)
- Obtain Business and Mayor’s permit from the city of operations
After securing all the certificates, you can commence your representative office in the Philippines. The process of company incorporation for all the business entities is almost the same due to which the confusion is avoided.
Documents Required to Set Up a Representative Office in the Philippines
- Reserved Name from SEC
- Authorized Board Resolution for the creation and establishment of the representative office in the Philippines
- Audited Financial Statements of the Parent Company
- Authenticated copies of the Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws of the Parent Company (or equivalent)
- Authorized resident agent for the Philippine office (must have Filipino residency)
- Certified remittance of minimum paid-up capital to a local bank
- Obtained licenses and clearances from necessary Government offices (if applicable)
- Registration data-sheet
The processing time to register your company and secure the necessary license in the Philippines requires at least 45 working days. Establishing a representative office is beneficial for the companies who would like to register their product but not deal with distributors. If you are looking forward to forming a representative office in the Philippines, but aren’t aware of the legal norms, then we at Business Setup Worldwide are here to answer all your queries. Not just answer them, but also help you in setting up your business in the Philippines. Do contact us today, and we will guide you through the whole process.
