The Central Business Portal (CBP) was rolled out to boost the Philippines’ Ease of Doing Business. CBP is a one-stop-shop for all business-related transactions such as securing business permits, licenses, and clearances. This is one of the primary initiatives of the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and other government agencies.

CBP strengthens the commitment of ARTA in streamlining and automating government services. As ARTA Director-General Jeremiah Belgica reiterated in the recent PHILEXPORT General Membership Meeting (GMM), “…streamlining is crucial before automation to avoid running the risk of automating red-tape.”, with this, the portal is being developed in phases.

Currently, users can already enjoy the following coverage:

• Registration of corporations with one (1) person and less than five (5) incorporators and regular corporations at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
• Registration and paying of fees to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
• Registration and reporting of initial employee/s list to the Social Security System (SSS), PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG.
• Application for secondary permit or license at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
• Access to business permits and licensing system in pilot local government units (LGUs).

The portal is still in its initial phase; once it is fully implemented, more features will be available, and transactions will be entirely online, allowing for faster, easier, and hassle-free business-related transactions. To use the portal, log on to http://business.gov.ph. -KJDA