SEC sets partial reopening

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will reopen this week to facilitate company registration and monitoring applications that had previously been assessed and approved through its online channel.

The SEC said its Company Registration and Monitoring Department (CRMD) would resume work at the corporate regulator’s headquarters within the Philippine International Convention Center Complex in Pasay City starting May 26, following the easing of community quarantine protocols across the country.

The CRMD will implement a four-day workweek, from Monday to Thursday, and shortened operating hours, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., during the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ).

In the meantime, the CRMD intends to limit its operations to receiving proof of payment, signed and notarized copies of approved applications, and supplemental documents required during the processing.

The CRMD’s operations will likewise include the releasing of certificates of incorporation/ amendment and confirmation of payment, and orders in petitions to lift order of suspension/ revocation and/or correction.

In parallel, the SEC will open payment facilities both at its main office in Pasay City and at its former headquarters in Ortigas, Mandaluyong City, starting May 26. It will accept payments for registration, filing and other fees from Monday to Friday, between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. in Pasay City and 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. in Mandaluyong City.

The SEC extension offices outside the National Capital Region have earlier reopened at limited capacity.

The corporate regulator intends to operate with skeleton staff and continue alternative work arrangements while quarantine measures are in place, pursuant to the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine in the Philippines issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases. It vows to implement strict social distancing and other health protocols to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 and enforce a “no face mask, no entry” policy.

In this light, the SEC asks for patience while it works on returning to full operations. It also encourages the transacting public to utilize its online registration platforms to limit unnecessary movements amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The SEC has continued to accept and process applications for the registration of corporations with at least five incorporators and partnerships online through the Company Registration System (CRS) during the ECQ.

In April, the SEC set up an interim online registration system to facilitate applications for one person corporations and corporations with two to four incorporators.

It also continued to accept payments for registration fees through accredited branches of Land Bank of the Philippines during the ECQ. Meanwhile, the online payment option anchored on Landbank’s ePayment portal remained available to applicants using the CRS. INQ