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| SEC's electronic payment tool will be updated to accept BIR registration fee payments, simplifying and expediting business registrations. Photo: SEC eSPARC |
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is about to release an update to its electronic payment tool, which will soon be expanded to accept payments for business registration fees to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
As a result of this update, business registrations will be made simpler and more convenient than they have ever been before.
SEC stated in a report given to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III that its Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company (eSPARC) program, which was initiated in April of the previous year, presently enables online payment of SEC fees. By the third quarter of 2022, this online payment feature will have undergone additional improvements to make it possible to make a single payment that covers both the SEC and the BIR registration fees.
SEC Commissioner Javey Paul Francisco stated in his report presented at a recent meeting of the Department of Finance (DOF) Executive Committee (Execom) that the Commission has already processed 25,685 online applications for business registrations since the beginning of this year on January 1 and up until May 15 of this year.
This brings the total number of applications that have been processed through eSPARC to 69,350 since the beginning of the second quarter of 2021, when the digital tool was initially introduced.
Dominguez had previously issued a directive to the SEC and other DOF-affiliated agencies, instructing them to accelerate the implementation of their respective digitalization programs in order to guarantee the uninterrupted delivery of services to the general public during the pandemic and to get them ready for the shift to the new economy.
Earlier, SEC Chairman Emilio Aquino stated that the quickest time recorded for processing an eSPARC application after the registration fee payment was 1 minute and 14 seconds, while the quickest time recorded for processing an eSPARC application after the payment of the registration fee was 2 hours and 37 minutes.
eSPARC includes the One-day Submission and E-registration of Companies (also known as OneSEC) as one of its subsystems.
Because the vast majority of company information is already pre-filed under OneSEC, the application process for companies seeking registration requires only a minimal amount of data to be encoded online.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also introduced its Electronic System for Payments to SEC (eSPAYSEC) in March of the previous year. The purpose of this system was to make it easier for individuals to pay registration fees, penalties, and other transaction fees with the SEC online by using debit and credit cards, digital wallets, and other cashless payment options.
Electronic Filing and Submission System (eFAST) is another initiative undertaken by the SEC. This system enables businesses to file their Audited Financial Statements (AFS) electronically, General Information Sheets (GIS), Sworn Statements for Foundations (SSF), and General Form for Financial Statements (GFFS), Special Form for Financial Statements (SFFS), and other reportorial requirements. —iTacloban (Source: DOF)