Businesses now OK to higher registration fees

MANILA, Philippines — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and members of the different business chambers have agreed to work together and move forward with the corporate regulator’s proposed increase in registration and filing fees.

“The meeting was very positive. We agreed to move forward,” said SEC commissioner McJill Bryant Fernandez.

He said the SEC would push through with the revised schedule of fees and charges, but was mum on when it would be implemented.

Business groups earlier raised concerns on the new fees to be imposed by the SEC, saying the proposed rates are exorbitant. The business chambers include the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc., Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc., Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Management Association of the Philippines, Chamber of Thrift Banks, Philippine Retailers Association, Philippine Franchise Association, Philippine Association of Legitimate Service Contractors, Stratbase ADR Institute for Strategic and International Studies, and  the Philippine Food Processors and Exporters Organization Inc.

Under the SEC’s proposed fee hike, fees would increase to 1/4 of one percent of an entity’s authorized capital stock, but not less than P2,500 of the subscription price of the subscribed capital stock, or whichever is higher.

In their Oct. 2 letter to SEC chairperson Emilio Aquino, the business groups had said the fees must be just and reasonable.

“When the SEC increased its fees in 2017, stakeholders were able to show that the fees being collected by the SEC from stock market transactions alone were more than enough to fund SEC’s entire operations based on SEC’s requested appropriations from the GAA (General Appropriations Act), which presumably is the cost of regulations. This does not yet include the myriad of other fees SEC charges to new and existing companies for various corporate actions and document requirements,” the business groups said in their letter.

“We are aware that the current fee collections of SEC already far exceed the cost of its operations. Proofs of this include the purchase of its own building in Makati CBD reportedly costing about P2.5 billion, in addition to about 90 commercial parking slots estimated at about P1 million per slot,” they added.

In response, the SEC met with the different stakeholders toward ensuring that the new schedule of fees continues to advance the Marcos administration’s thrust of promoting business and capital formation in the country.

Following the meetings, Fernandez said the final timeline still needs to be deliberated by the commission en banc.

“There has been no discussions at the en banc yet after the meetings,” he said, stressing that the meetings with business chambers were very productive.

The SEC has said that the schedule of fees and charges was last updated in 2017, based on a proposal from 2014. This means that the current rates are based on operational and administrative costs prevailing almost 10 years ago.

Furthermore, the SEC said the new fees and charges are aimed at supporting the commission’s efforts in proactively addressing the needs of the corporate sector, giving the SEC sufficient leeway to introduce reforms and fund future innovations.