Search Philippines SEC + DTI: Verify Any PH Business in 2026

TL;DR. The Philippines has two official registries: the SEC for corporations and partnerships, and the DTI for sole proprietors. Basic name searches are free with no account required. Certified document retrieval costs PHP 50-500 (~USD 0.90-8.70) per document and needs a registered account. Foreign buyers can register without a Philippine identity document. The Philippines was removed from the FATF grey list in February 2025.

What is the official Philippines business registry?

The Philippines operates two parallel company registries depending on entity type.

SEC Philippines governs stock corporations, non-stock corporations, partnerships, and foreign branch offices. It operates under the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines (Republic Act No. 11232), which took effect in 2019. The primary public-facing portal is the SEC eSEARCH system, accessible via sec.gov.ph. The SEC also maintains eFAST (Electronic Filing and Submission Tool) for registered users needing document retrieval and filing submissions.

DTI Philippines governs sole proprietorships and business name registrations. It operates the Business Name Registration System (BNRS), accessible at bnrs.dti.gov.ph. BNRS allows name availability checks, registration, renewal, and certificate requests.

Foreign corporations operating in the Philippines must register both with the SEC (for the foreign branch/representative office) and may also register a business name with the DTI if operating under a trade name different from their corporate name.

All registered corporations are assigned a Company Registration Number (CRN) by the SEC at incorporation. Sole proprietorships are assigned a DTI Business Name Certificate number.

What can you search?

SEC eSEARCH supports:

• Company name search (partial match supported)
• Company Registration Number (CRN) lookup
• Search by registered agent or incorporator name in some contexts
• Entity type filter (stock corporation, non-stock, partnership, foreign branch)

Data returned in a basic search includes: registered company name, CRN, company type, SEC registration date, and current registration status (active, revoked, expired, dissolved).

For deeper data, paid document requests through eFAST yield: articles of incorporation, general information sheets (GIS, which disclose officers and stockholders), audited financial statements for publicly listed companies, and SEC certificates of good standing.

DTI BNRS supports:

• Business name search by exact or partial name match
• Search by DTI Certificate Number

Data returned includes: business name, DTI certificate number, registration date, expiry date, owner name, business address, and business nature.

Neither portal offers cross-entity director searches or beneficial ownership disclosures in the free search layer. UBO data is only partially available through the GIS filing, which sole proprietors and smaller corporations may not file consistently.

How much does it cost?

All prices are approximate as of May 2026. PHP/USD conversion used: 57.5 (approximate; verify at point of transaction). The SEC fee schedule is set by SEC Memorandum Circulars and is subject to periodic revision.

Online payments are accepted via GCash, online banking, and credit card for most electronic transactions. In-person requests at SEC offices accept over-the-counter bank payments.

Do you need a local account or ID?

Free name searches on both portals require no account. To request certified documents via eFAST, a registered user account is required. Registration requires an email address and basic contact information. No Philippine national identity document (e.g., Philippine National ID, Passport) is required for the account itself, but some document request workflows may ask for a purpose statement or authorization letter.

DTI BNRS document requests similarly require an account registration. Foreign buyers have successfully registered using international email addresses and non-Philippine contact details.

For compliance workflows requiring notarized or apostilled documents, additional steps involve the Professional Regulation Commission or DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs), which do require identity verification.

Is the website in English?

Yes. Both SEC eSEARCH and DTI BNRS are fully in English. All search interfaces, document descriptions, status labels, and form fields are in English. The Philippines’ government digital services follow an English-first policy, reflecting the country’s use of English as an official language.

What’s the turnaround time?

Basic name searches are instant on both portals. Document requests via eFAST are typically processed in 1 to 5 business days for standard requests. Certified true copies of SEC filings are delivered electronically as signed PDFs once processed.

Express processing is available for some document types at SEC offices for an additional fee, reducing turnaround to same-day or next-day for walk-in requests. For compliance-grade work where document authenticity must be verifiable, the SEC-issued signed PDF is the standard output.

DTI certificate requests follow a similar timeline: online requests typically complete within 2 to 3 business days.

Note that the SEC has ongoing digitization efforts. Records for companies incorporated before 2000 may exist only in physical form and require an in-person request at the SEC main office in Mandaluyong City or regional offices.

Is there an API?

No. As of May 2026, neither the SEC nor DTI offers a documented public API for company search or document retrieval. Bulk access requires either direct engagement with the SEC’s Information Technology Division for data licensing, or use of a third-party aggregator.

The SEC has announced plans for expanded digital services under its ongoing system modernization, but no API endpoint has been publicly released for external developers.

Screen scraping either portal likely violates the SEC’s and DTI’s terms of use and is not recommended for compliance workflows.

What you legally cannot do

Under the Revised Corporation Code and SEC regulations:

• Bulk downloading or automated scraping of the eSEARCH portal is not authorized
• Certified copies obtained from the SEC are for the stated purpose only; redistributing them commercially requires explicit SEC authorization
• Using registry data to compile marketing lists or for unsolicited commercial contact is restricted under the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173)
• Misrepresenting SEC or DTI document extracts as independently verified data is prohibited

The Data Privacy Act of 2012 also governs how personal data of officers and directors found in GIS filings may be used. Compliance buyers conducting CDD or AML verification are within permitted purpose, but the purpose must be documented.

Regarding FATF status: the Philippines was removed from the FATF grey list (Jurisdictions Under Increased Monitoring) in February 2025, following demonstrated improvements to its AML/CFT framework. Compliance buyers should be aware that Philippine counterparty screening requirements were elevated during the grey-list period (June 2021 to February 2025), and some internal bank policies may retain elevated scrutiny for historical transactions from that period.

Practical tips for foreign users

• Two registries, two searches. Always check both SEC eSEARCH and DTI BNRS. A business operating as a sole proprietorship under a trade name will appear only in DTI; a corporation will appear only in SEC. Missing one registry is the most common error in Philippines KYC. The SEC assigns a Company Registration Number (CRN) to each incorporated entity; the DTI assigns a separate DTI Certificate Number to sole proprietors. The two numbering systems do not overlap.
• GIS is the key document. The General Information Sheet (GIS) is the annual filing that discloses directors, officers, and top 20 stockholders. For compliance-grade verification, always request the most recent GIS, not just the registration extract.
• Registration status can be misleading. A company may show as “active” in eSEARCH but have unpaid SEC annual fees (Annual Report filing). An active status in the registry does not confirm current good standing. Request a Certificate of Good Standing for that confirmation.
• Foreign branch offices appear in SEC with a separate CRN from their parent company. The GIS for a branch will list the authorized representative in the Philippines rather than the full board of the parent company.
• Regional offices matter. For companies incorporated in provinces (e.g., Cebu, Davao), the original paper records may be at a regional SEC office rather than the Manila main office. Document requests can take longer.
• PHP exchange rates shift. The peso has fluctuated between PHP 55 and PHP 60 per USD over the 2023-2026 period. Build a buffer into any cost estimate.

Alternatives if you cannot access the registry directly

• OpenCorporates: indexes some Philippines company data but coverage is partial and lags official filings. Useful for a quick name check; not for compliance-grade verification.
• Direct engagement with SEC: for bulk data needs, the SEC Information Technology Division handles institutional data licensing. Contact via the SEC main office in Mandaluyong City.

Local data suppliers

If you need a packaged report rather than a raw SEC or DTI extract, the Philippines has a small set of established providers:

• CIBI Information Inc. (cibi.com.ph). Philippines’ first and longest-standing credit bureau, ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and SOC 2 Type II certified. Offers Business Intelligence Solutions covering company profiles, credit assessments, and background screening. CIBI draws on credit, trade, and regulatory data sources beyond the SEC registry. Use when you need payment behavior or credit risk layered on top of the official filing extract.

• TransUnion Philippines (transunion.com). TransUnion operates a credit bureau in the Philippines, covering both individual and commercial credit data. Their commercial credit reports cover incorporated businesses and can include financial statement data and payment history. Useful for supplier or counterparty credit screening alongside SEC verification.

Use the SEC eSEARCH portal for the authoritative filing record and GIS. Use a credit bureau when you need payment behavior, litigation history, or credit risk scoring layered on top of the filing extract. Both layers together constitute a compliance-grade Philippines CDD file.

FAQ

Can a foreign company search the Philippines SEC registry without a local account?

Yes. The basic name search on SEC eSEARCH is publicly accessible without any account. To retrieve certified copies of documents such as the Articles of Incorporation or General Information Sheet, a registered eFAST account is required, but account registration is open to anyone with an email address and does not require a Philippine identity document.

What is the General Information Sheet (GIS) and why does it matter for due diligence?

The GIS is an annual filing that all Philippine corporations must submit to the SEC. It discloses the current list of directors, officers, corporate secretary, and top 20 stockholders including their shareholding percentages. For compliance buyers, the GIS is the primary source for officer identity and ownership structure. It is the equivalent of a UK confirmation statement or Singapore annual return.

What is the difference between SEC and DTI registration in the Philippines?

The SEC registers corporations and partnerships. The DTI registers sole proprietors and the business names they trade under. A business you are researching could appear in either registry depending on its legal form. Many Philippine SMEs operate as sole proprietorships under DTI, not as SEC-registered corporations. Always check both.

Is Philippines company data reliable for AML compliance purposes?

The Philippines was removed from the FATF grey list in February 2025. SEC registry data is primary-source data from the government registry, which carries inherent authority. Annual filings (GIS, financial statements) are not always submitted on time by smaller companies. The registry shows a filing was made; it does not guarantee the filing is current or accurate. A Certificate of Good Standing from the SEC confirms filing compliance.

How do I verify that a Philippines company is currently active?

Search SEC eSEARCH by company name or CRN to get the registration status. Then request a Certificate of Good Standing from the SEC via eFAST. The Certificate of Good Standing confirms that the entity is currently registered and has met its SEC annual reporting obligations. This is the document most used in counterparty due diligence.

What identifier should I use to search a Philippines company?

The Company Registration Number (CRN) is the most reliable identifier for an SEC-registered entity. If you only have a company name, use the partial name search on eSEARCH to find the CRN first. For DTI-registered businesses, the DTI Certificate Number or the exact business name works best since name matching is less forgiving than CRN lookup.

Does the Philippines have a beneficial ownership registry?

As of May 2026, the Philippines does not maintain a centralized public beneficial ownership registry. UBO disclosures for corporations are partially captured in the GIS (top 20 stockholders), but nominee structures and multi-layer ownership are not systematically disclosed. Compliance buyers requiring full UBO traces should combine the SEC GIS with SEC-issued beneficial ownership declarations where applicable, and may need supplementary enhanced due diligence for high-risk counterparties.

Last verified: May 2026. Source: Securities and Exchange Commission Philippines (sec.gov.ph) and Department of Trade and Industry (dti.gov.ph) via BNRS portal (bnrs.dti.gov.ph). For the full global due diligence framework, see the Global Business Due Diligence Guide.