SEC, BIR push simpler corporate filings

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) are looking to establish a unified portal for audited financial statements (AFS), potentially allowing corporations to submit the documents to both regulators in one place.

The planned Unified AFS Submission Portal is among the initiatives covered by a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed by the two agencies on July 31. Under the proposal, corporations would have a single submission point for their AFS. The documents would then be securely transmitted to the appropriate receiving systems of the SEC and BIR.

The SEC said the initiative is expected to cut duplicative submissions while promoting consistent and traceable financial information.

It is also intended to help the two agencies perform their regulatory functions more efficiently and support the government’s ease of doing business agenda.

“Effective regulation is not achieved by individual agencies acting in isolation,” SEC Commissioner McJill Bryant Fernandez said.

Fernandez said closer coordination could reduce “unnecessary regulatory friction” and create a more efficient and transparent business environment.

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BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said the agreement would bring the agencies into closer coordination as they work toward streamlining the submission of AFS.

“It reflects our shared objective of reducing unnecessary duplication and making compliance easier for the business community,” Mendoza said.

The SEC said the partnership would also support efforts to deepen the Philippine capital market.