Understanding the SEC eSPARC – online business registration in the Philippines for OPCs and Domestic Corporations

The SEC-ESPARC is a facility created by the SEC to help streamline the online business registration in the Philippines of OPCs and Domestic Corporations that have two (2) or more incorporators [these include natural persons, partnerships, associations, or corporations, singly or jointly with others, but they cannot exceed fifteen (15) in number].

The online business registration system allows applicants/appointed representatives to submit a company name and input details of the articles of incorporation for review by the Commission. Furthermore, the program also allows for applications for the recording of partnerships and licensing to do business for foreign communications.

Those who register with E ePARC would only have to wait for three (3) working days to get their approval if no further comments from the SEC evaluator. Using this system will also exempt the application for registration/licensing of Partnership, Lending, Financing and Foreign Corporations during uploading of documents process.

However, it should be noted that the submission of four (4) sets of required documents to the selected SEC processing office must be done within thirty (30) calendar days from the payment date of the registration fees.

What is eSPARC

The eSPARC is a system for online business registration in the Philippines implemented in 2021 as a replacement for the SEC’s past Company Registration System (CRS). Its creation aimed to fulfil the various corporation’s need to be able to register their establishments efficiently without going through face-to-face interactions.

Eventually, eSPARC was integrated with the Philippine Business Hub (PBH), an all-round online government portal that allows businesses to register with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Local Government Units (LGUs), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and other social service agencies (Security System [SSS], Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF), commonly known as the (Pag-IBIG), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth)).

Thanks to the integration, applicants can directly move from E-SPARC to the PBH, the information given in E-SPARC will carry over to the PBH, speeding up the registration process for the other agencies. For more details on how the transfer works click the following link HERE.

E-SPARC Registration Options

eSPARC provides two registration options depending on what kind of establishment is being registered to the SEC.

The first option, Regular Processing, should be selected if the company is a:

• OPC
• Foreign Corporation
• Domestic Corporation (including stock and non-stock) with two or more incorporations.
• Partnership/Association

The second option, OneSEC Processing (One-day Submission and E-registration of Companies), lets individuals/businesses receive a faster one-day review of their application after completing their submission. However, this option is only available to domestic corporations that meet the following requirements:

• Has a proposed corporate name with a name descriptor according to its industry classification.
• Has a proposed corporate name that does not contain a Trade Name or any set of letters that act as an acronym, and is not subject to any name appeal
• Has an All-Filipino company classification, meaning that incorporators, directors, and subscribers of the corporation are natural persons and residents of the Philippines.
• The company is not located in any economic zone.
• The company is in a perpetual corporate term of existence.
• The company can pay registration fees immediately in the SEC Payment Portal.
• None of the company officers or members have pending/convicted criminal cases, administrative cases, or government sanctions.

eSPARC for Corporate Secretarial Requirements

Naming your company

eSPARC can help you finalize your company name. The program will require you to submit certain information to move forward with your application, among the requirements needed is your Company Name and Type of Company it is. Applicants should plan ahead before settling on a name for the application.

If you have difficulty choosing an appropriate name, you can check the “SEC Corporation Name Guidelines” for reference. Upon entering your name in the text box, the system will then inform you if the name provided is usable or not, depending on whether someone has already used it or if it’s compliant with the SEC’s guidelines.

Requirements for generating Corporate Secretarial documents

eSPARC can also generate certain documents to help applicants fulfil Corporate Secretarial (CorpSec) requirements, however, the applicant must first submit the following information:

• Details on the company’s representatives [Names, position, TIN, and contact details of the person filing the SEC registration]
• The company type, classification, and industry
• Their address, purpose, fiscal year details
• The company’s total term of existence [The establishment’s total number of years in operation]
• The company’s capital structure [Their total amount of shares/ authorized capital stock.
• A list of the company’s directors, incorporations, and/or subscribers

Generating the Corporate Secretarial documents using eSPARC

The applicant needs to submit soft copies of the required documents to complete their online business registration with eSPARC. These will vary depending on what kind of application was processed using the system.

Furthermore, eSPARC only accepts documents submitted in a PDF file format – their name must also match the content of the document being submitted.

The eSPARC can generate various documents to complete the online registration and gather requirements for CorpSec and help the applicant complete their registration. However, some still need to be gathered from other sources.

The documents are as follows:

• Articles of Incorporation or Articles of Partnership
• Cover Sheet
• By-Laws
• Secondary Licenses
• Endorsement from Government Agencies
• Name Appeal [Note that this document for appeal only applies if the applicant failed in the name verification portion of the application but still wishes to proceed with the trade name]

Registering with the SEC provides many benefits since it provides definite proof that your business is legitimate and conforms with the SEC guidelines. This opens many opportunities for business since other entities will be more willing to collaborate with them.

The eSPARC provides business owners with a more convenient way for businesses to attain the benefits stated earlier. By using this online business registration system in the Philippines, business owners from all over the country can easily finalize their SEC registration. 

Corporate Secretarial Services in Forvis Mazars

Forvis Mazars allows for a low-risk way to grow your business. It keeps your financial exposure to a minimum and enables you to draw on the specific skills and expertise you need, when you need them. We hold a solid track record in helping businesses internationalise.  Our outsourcing services are flexible and scalable, enabling you to react quickly to changes in your business or market.  

For more information on corporate services to Forvis Mazars in the Philippines simply follow the attached page below. You'll find information highlighting our outsourcing services, alongside explanations of the tools and methods utilized by our firm to ensure the efficient completion of our objectives.