Manila, Philippines—In a landmark move to significantly enhance service delivery and underscore its commitment to ease of doing business, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued new guidelines that enforce strict timelines in processing nearly all types of applications. This initiative includes a crucial "deemed approved" policy for requests left unattended beyond their prescribed periods.
Issued on July 10, 2025, SEC Memorandum Circular No. 7, Series of 2025, titled “Affirming the Commission’s Commitment to Ease of Doing Business, and Providing for Strict Timelines in the Processing of Applications and the Guidelines for Applications Deemed Approved,” sets clear and enforceable turnaround times for applications covering permits, licenses, registrations, certificates, clearances, and other authorizations. A limited list of exclusions applies.
"I said on Day One that I wanted the SEC to be known not only as a good regulator, but as a good facilitator of doing business," quoted SEC Chairman Francis Lim, referencing his inaugural address on June 10, 2025.
"This policy breathes life into that promise—we are removing bottlenecks, eliminating unreasonable delays, and imposing discipline in our internal processes to give entrepreneurs and investors the level of responsiveness and certainty they deserve."
Under the new Circular, applications are categorized with specific processing times:
- Simple applications, which are routine with minimal discretion, must be processed within 3 working days.
- Complex applications, requiring evaluation or coordination, must be resolved within 7 working days.
- Highly Technical applications, involving financial or legal review or multiple clearances, must be completed within 20 working days.
- Transactions governed by special laws will adhere to the timelines specified in those laws or the SEC Citizen’s Charter.
- The processing time officially begins once all complete documentary requirements are submitted.
Crucially, if the Commission fails to act on an application or issue a written notice of delay or deficiency within these prescribed timelines, the application will be DEEMED APPROVED, provided all required documents were submitted based on the appropriate checklist for the transaction. Upon confirmation of completeness and the lapse of the processing period, the SEC is mandated to immediately issue a Payment Assessment Form (PAF). After payment, the requested documents must be released within two working days.
Approvals under this "deemed approved" rule remain subject to post-approval evaluation. Non-compliance with SEC directives or the submission of false/misleading information can lead to administrative penalties, including cancellation or revocation of the approval. "This is without prejudice to the right of the public to proceed against applicants in case they suffer damage as a result of the applicants’ false or misleading information or failure to comply with the SEC requirements,” Chairman Lim added.
The new policy, however, does not apply to applications that are subject to ongoing legal proceedings or regulatory investigations, instances of fraud or misrepresentation, delays caused by force majeure, or applications requiring specialized technical evaluations or clearances from other government agencies. Furthermore, any SEC personnel causing undue delay without valid justification will face administrative sanctions.
For pending applications at the time the Circular took effect (July 14, 2025):
- Applications with valid PAFs as of July 14 are deemed approved upon payment, with documents to be released within 2 working days.
- Covered applications submitted at least 20 days prior to July 14 (excluding those reverted as of June 30, 2025) will receive their PAFs within 3 days from July 14, and the deemed approved rule will apply upon payment.
- For reverted applications, deficiencies must be addressed within 10 working days from July 14; otherwise, they will be deemed abandoned.
Specific procedures were also prescribed for certain pending applications due to public policy considerations, including those for lending and financing companies, online lending platform disclosures, and OTC market approvals.
"We recognize that predictability in regulatory action is vital to the business community, and with this policy, we are saying clearly: the SEC will act, and act swiftly," Chairman Lim affirmed.
This circular is part of a series of reforms under Chairman Lim's leadership since June 10, 2025. Earlier, the SEC also issued a circular reducing fees for securing copies of documents by 50% to further ease the cost of doing business.
