Business compliance in the Philippines, how to stay valid.

Getting registered is the start, not the finish. Staying compliant means keeping each registration valid, through renewals, annual filings, and ongoing remittances. Miss these, and you face surcharges, penalties, and in serious cases the closure of your business or revocation of your corporate registration.

This guide pulls together every ongoing obligation from across the registration journey into one place, so you know what's due, when, and to whom.

This is part of our complete guide to business registration in the Philippines. It assumes you've already completed registration with the DTI/SEC, your LGU, the BIR, and, if you have staff, as an employer.

Why ongoing compliance matters

Each agency that registered you also expects you to keep your records current. The consequences of letting things lapse are real: LGUs impose surcharges and can order closure; the BIR can assess penalties and suspend operations; and the SEC can penalize and ultimately revoke a corporation that repeatedly fails to file. Continued non-compliance can ultimately lead to revocation of the corporation's registration, affecting its ability to continue operating and enforce its legal rights.

Staying compliant isn't bureaucratic box-ticking. It's what keeps your business able to operate, bank, borrow, and sell.

Your annual compliance calendar

The sections below explain each one.

LGU: annual business permit renewal

Your Mayor's Permit and Barangay Clearance must be renewed every year, between January 1 and 20 (some LGUs extend the window). This applies no matter when you originally registered. At renewal, your Local Business Tax is reassessed, this time based on your previous year's gross sales or receipts.

Miss the deadline and you'll face a 25% surcharge plus 2% interest per month, and operating on an expired permit risks a closure order. A valid Fire Safety Inspection Certificate is also required before your renewed permit is released. See the LGU Permits guide for the full requirements.

DTI: business name renewal

If you're a sole proprietor, your DTI business name registration is valid for five years and must be renewed through the BNRS portal to keep your name protected. You can renew as early as 180 days before expiry; late renewal carries a surcharge. (Corporations and partnerships don't renew an SEC registration, it has perpetual existence, but they do have annual filings, below.)

SEC: annual filings (GIS and AFS)

A corporation's registration doesn't expire, but it must file two key reports every year through the SEC's Electronic Filing and Submission Tool (eFAST), which is now the only accepted channel. Email, courier, and over-the-counter filing are no longer accepted.

General Information Sheet (GIS)

Your annual snapshot of directors, officers, shareholders, capital, and registered address. File it within 30 calendar days of your annual stockholders' (or members') meeting; for foreign corporations, within 30 days of the SEC license anniversary.

Audited or unaudited Financial Statements (AFS)

Your annual financial statements. The SEC sets the filing deadline each year by memorandum circular; for corporations with a December 31 fiscal year, it falls in the months after year-end (for fiscal year 2025, the deadline is May 29, 2026). Corporations with a different fiscal year file within 120 days of their year-end.

Two recent changes worth knowing

• The audit threshold went up. Only corporations whose total assets or total liabilities exceed ₱3 million must submit audited financial statements (raised from the old ₱600,000 threshold). Below that, you may file your AFS with a Statement of Management's Responsibility instead, a meaningful relief for small corporations. Note, however, that the BIR separately requires audited financial statements if your gross sales or receipts exceed ₱3 million for the year.
• Beneficial ownership moved to HARBOR. Information on who ultimately owns and controls the corporation is now filed through the SEC's separate HARBOR registry (integrated with eFAST), with changes reported within seven days.

One Person Corporations have their own reportorial quirks, including an Appointment of Officers filing, so check the rules specific to OPCs. For a current breakdown of SEC filing deadlines, see our SEC 2026 AFS and GIS filing update.

BIR: ongoing tax filings and bookkeeping

Your Certificate of Registration lists the taxes you must file, and those filings recur on their own schedules, most commonly income tax (quarterly and annual, with the annual return due April 15 for calendar-year taxpayers), VAT or percentage tax (quarterly), and withholding taxes. There's no longer an annual registration fee to pay each January. For the mechanics of each tax, rates, forms, and deadlines, see our complete Philippine Taxes Guide.

Keeping your books and records

Your books of accounts must be registered with the BIR before use, and manual books only need to be re-registered once they're fully used up, not every year.

Under the Ease of Paying Taxes Act (RR 7-2024), books of accounts and accounting records, including invoices, receipts, and vouchers, must generally be preserved for five years from the filing deadline (or filing date, if later) of the relevant return. This is shorter than the previous 10-year rule, though you must keep records longer if there's a pending tax case, protest, or refund claim. Records must be kept intact, unaltered, and complete.

Employer contributions: monthly remittances

If you have employees, your SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG obligations are monthly: deduct each employee's share, add the employer share, and remit on schedule. You also report new hires and update records when staff leave. For current rates and remittance schedules, see our Payroll Guide and the Government Contributions sub-guide.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Missing the January LGU renewal window. The 25% surcharge plus 2% monthly interest stacks up quickly, and an expired permit puts your operations at legal risk.
• Forgetting the GIS after your annual meeting. The 30-day window is tight, and chronic non-filing can lead the SEC to revoke your registration entirely.
• Assuming "no income" means "nothing to file." Even a dormant or loss-making business must still file its returns, GIS, and AFS. Silence is treated as non-compliance, not as an exemption.
• Letting books and records lapse. Keep books registered, keep records for the required period, and keep them intact, incomplete records weaken your position in any BIR audit.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to renew my business registration every year?

Partly. Your LGU business permit renews annually; a DTI business name renews every five years. An SEC registration itself doesn't expire, but corporations must file a GIS and AFS every year.

When do I renew my Mayor's Permit?

Annually, typically between January 1 and 20 (some LGUs extend the window). Late renewal brings a 25% surcharge plus 2% monthly interest.

What's the difference between the GIS and the AFS?

The GIS is your yearly snapshot of directors, officers, and shareholders, filed within 30 days of your annual meeting. The AFS is your financial statements, filed via eFAST by the SEC's annual deadline.

Do I still need audited financial statements?

For SEC purposes, only if your total assets or liabilities exceed ₱3 million. Separately, the BIR requires audited financial statements if your gross sales or receipts exceed ₱3 million for the year.

How long do I need to keep my books and records?

Generally five years under the Ease of Paying Taxes Act, and longer if there's a pending tax case, protest, or refund claim involving those records.

You've completed the registration journey

From structure to compliance, the full path

That's the complete path to legally setting up and running a business in the Philippines. Keep this hub bookmarked and revisit each guide as your business grows. If you'd rather have a team monitor your deadlines and handle your filings, we're here to help.

Back to the Business Registration hubBook a free consultation