CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (PIA)--The Securities and Exchange Commission-Cagayan de Oro Extension Office (SEC CDOEO) encourages all corporations in Northern Mindanao and the Caraga Region to file for their amnesty application, especially those corporations that have been tagged as non-compliant for certain years.
This, after the SEC issued Memorandum Circular No. 6 series of 2023, extending the deadline for the amnesty application from April 30 to June 30, 2023.
Reportorial requirements
As registered corporations of the SEC, such entities are required to submit their reportorial requirements annually, which are the General Information Sheet (GIS) and Financial Statements (FS), among other documentary requirements. Recently, the Commission required all corporations to submit Memorandum Circular No. 28 series of 2020, which is a requirement to submit the email addresses and contact numbers of the corporation.
Section 177(b) of the Revised Corporation Code (RCC) provides that the Commission may place corporations under delinquent status in case of failure to submit the reportorial requirements three times, consecutively or intermittently, within a period of five years. As such, the Commission imposes fines and/or penalties on regulated entities for failure to file the required reportorial requirements in a timely manner.
Amnesty application
The filing of amnesty will provide corporations with an ample and cost-effective opportunity to update and make current their compliance with the documentary and reportorial requirements under the RCC and the rules promulgated by the Commission.
A corporation may file for amnesty by checking their EFAST account if they are being tagged as non-compliant. The tagging by the Commission will put their EFAST accounts on hold, disallowing them to submit reports unless they have complied with the amnesty requirements.
In filing the amnesty, the non-compliant corporation will be paying P5,000, encompassing all the violations covered in the memorandum circular. However, in the case of those corporations with revoked or suspended status, such entities shall pay 50% of the total assessed fees.
Covered Violations in the Amnesty
The covered violations in filing for amnesty are: (a) non-filing of the GIS for the latest and prior years; (b) late filing of the GIS for the latest and prior years; (c) non-filing of the AFS, including fines for its attachments; (d) late filing of the AFS, including fines for its attachments; and (e) filing of Memorandum Circular No. 28 series of 2020, which should have a penalty of P10,000.
"The issuance of amnesty to corporations that are being tagged as non-compliant is a very significant move of the Commission in helping these corporations to be updated with their reports by not paying huge amounts of penalties because of their non-compliance. This is a great help for them, especially those corporations whose certificates of incorporation were revoked or suspended already, who would be paying 50% of the total assessed fees only," says Lawyer Director Frederick A. Enopia in a statement.
Meanwhile, corporations will only submit their latest GIS and FS, including amendments if there are any, and the Expression of Interest Form by uploading them to the EFAST portal. A proof of MC28 compliance will also be required as one of the requirements for the amnesty application.
The payment of the P5,000 petition fee will be settled through the Electronic System for Payment to SEC (eSPAYSEC) through the Payment Assessment Form (PAF), which shall be issued through the EFAST portal. The eSPAYSEC will then provide the electronic official receipt as proof of the corporation’s payment. (SEC-CDO/PIA-10)
