DTI eyes national business one-stop shops

MANILA, Philippines — The government plans to set up a national business one-stop shop (NBOSS) which will host agencies and local government units (LGUs) to make it easier to issue business licenses and permits, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

In a statement, the DTI, which leads the Ease of Doing Business – Anti-Red Tape Authority Advisory (EODB-ARTA) Council, said the planned NBOSS was discussed by ARTA director general Jeremiah Belgica during the council’s inaugural meeting held earlier this month.

The NBOSS would host in one office key agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Philippine Health Insurance Corp., Social Security System, and  Home Development Mutual Fund, as well as LGUs to expedite the business registration process.

DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez said the NBOSS is in line with the government’s aim to simplify processes and improve services to the public.

“This initiative is a testament of our commitment to the Filipino people in providing better and comfortable life for all. The President was clear in his address that government transactions must be streamlined, simplified, responsive, and client-friendly to deliver services without delay and within a short timeline,” he said.

Through the NBOSS, he said the goal is to no longer require an entrepreneur to go to different offices to register a business.

“This in a way is a preview to the eventual end-to-end registration to be done in an online portal. The ultimate ease of doing business is really doing things online and with the use of smartphones,” he said.

Once the NBOSS is in place, the time it would take to start a business should be completed within three to six days in three to five steps, lower than the 31 days and 13 steps, at present.

Lopez said the process would even be reduced further to one hour when the online business portal is set up.

The NBOSS will be piloted in the National Capital Region first, and eventually set up in other parts of the country.

The EODB-ARTA Council serves as the policy and advisory body to the ARTA in coming up with policies and programs for improving the country’s competitiveness and ease of doing business.

ARTA is responsible for overseeing the implementation of Republic Act 11032 or the EODB and Efficient Delivery of Government Services Law.

RA 11032 aims to rid government of bureaucratic red tape by providing a required period for the completion of transactions with agencies.

In particular, simple transactions have to completed within three days, those classified as complex within seven days, and highly technical ones within 20 days.