Davao City — As part of its mission to promote high-quality investments that support the country's economic growth, the Board of Investments (BOI), through its Legal and Compliance Service (LCS), hosted the second installment of its Compliance Information Drive series in Davao City on September 11, 2025.
Almost 80 representatives from various RBEs attended the Davao leg of the Information Drive. Participants came from various sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, real estate, information technology, and business process management (IT-BPM).
Atty. Paola Marie C. Viedor, Acting Division Chief of the Arbitration, Mediation, and Litigation Division of the BOI-LCS, delivered the opening remarks on behalf of BOI Management Services Executive Director Fe L. Del Rosario, highlighting that the session is valuable “in transforming compliance from being just a mere requirement to a culture that supports our RBEs and strengthens investor confidence in the Philippines.”
Marcia Leizl L. Contreras, Division Chief of Compliance Division A, discussed the various terms and conditions that RBEs must comply with to access incentives under Republic Act (RA) No. 11534, as amended by RA No. 12066. Ms. Contreras emphasized the consequences of failing to meet requirements such as performance commitments and reportorial obligations, and urged RBEs to stay on top of their annual compliance.
Meanwhile, Gian Carlo D. Biendima of LCS Compliance Division-A updated the participants of the BOI's new policies such as the amendments to the Socialized Housing Requirements (SHR) compliance, adoption of DHSUD Escrow mode of compliance, and clarification on local business tax exemption of BOI RBEs.
He also highlighted that while terms and conditions are imposed on RBEs for maintenance of registration, BOI issued policies that provide the equitable grant of incentives considering the actual situation of the RBE.
The BOI also announced the launch of the new Form S-1 (Annual Report on Actual Operations), which shall be effective on April 30, 2026. Mr. Wendell De Vera of Compliance Division B provided a walkthrough of the new form and highlighted its new features such as the collection of sex-disaggregated data from RBEs and a list of registered projects under one company.
Atty. Viedor also gave a presentation on the salient provisions of RA No. 12066, and highlighted the law's improvements on ease of doing business in the Philippines, more favorable incentive packages for RBEs, and enhanced transparency and predictability in the grant and administration of incentives.
The panelists and participants had an interactive open forum to further clarify the presented topics
On the other hand, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), through Jun-Jun B. Andallo, Chief of the Tax Audit Review Division, provided updates on various revenue regulations for Value-Added Tax (VAT) incentives. He also shared insights into the rules and documentary requirements for VAT remittance and payment for local sales transactions of RBEs.
The session also featured active participation from the RBEs, which raised various questions, clarifications, and insights on the presentations. The discussions included local business tax exemptions, creditable withholding tax, invoicing for local sales of RBEs, tree-planting activities, minimum investment requirements, extensions of time to provide compliance, and justifications for non-compliance with performance commitments, among other topics.
Moreover, the LCS highlighted that compliance is a continuing journey and reiterated BOI's commitment to fostering continuous support and partnership with stakeholders and facilitation towards a conducive business environment for investors.
The BOI kicked off the first Compliance Information Drive on August 19 in Iloilo City. Two more sessions are scheduled in the National Capital Region (NCR) this November. PR