BONTOC, Mountain Province – Business owners in this capital town can look forward to faster and easier business permits and licensing applications as the Bontoc Local Government Unit (LGU) through the Business Permit and Licensing Office (BPLO) has adopted the electronic Business Permits and Licensing System (eBPLS).
The eBPLS is a cloud-based software developed by the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) that allows end-users to file applications for new and renewal of business permits online. This is in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to reduce the requirements and processing time of all government transactions through the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) Law or RA 11032. The automation is a joint undertaking of the DICT along with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
Licensing Officer Karen Lumiwes remarked that the eBPLS will help systematize the processes for business licensing and its related transactions.
Considering that it will be the first implementation of the eBPLS, a One-Stop-Shop shall still be in place during the renewal and application of business permits from January 3, 2022, until January 20, 2022.
According to Licensing Officer Karen Lumiwes, applicants for the business permits are required to secure Community/Corp Tax Certificate (cedula); Barangay Clearance; Police Clearance; Sanitary Permit; Health Certificate; Zoning Clearance (for new business registration); Fire Safety Inspection Certificate; Registration Certificate (for new business registration) to include DTI BNR for a sole proprietorship, SEC for partnership or corporation and CDA cooperative; and Sworn Statement of Gross Sales/ Receipt of the preceding year (for renewal of business). The requirements are to be presented by the applicants upon filing of registration for the business permit at the BPLO.
Upon securing the required documents, the applicant must register to the eBPLS link https://prod.ebpls.com/bontocmountainprovince/index.php/register and upload copies of the secured documents.
Upon submission of the required documents to the BPLO or online, the applicants must pay the assessed fees at the Office of the Municipal Treasurer and then claim their respective Business Permits at the BPLO-Office of the Municipal Mayor.
Likewise, she reminded that applicants to be ready with the information needed to be inputted in the eBPLS as follows: Taxpayer’s Data (Name, Date of Birth, Civil Status, Sex, Telephone Number, Mobile Number, Email Address), Taxpayer’s Address Data (Barangay, Municipality, Province, Region, Postal Code) , Business Data (Franchise, President, Treasurer, Type of Business: Single/Partnership/Corporation/Coop, TIN, PIN, If the stall is rented – the area in sqm, Number of Male and Female Employees, Registration Number (BNR/SEC/CDA), Registration Date, Phone Number, Mobile Number, Business Address Data (Business Name, Building Number, Building Name, Address Number, Street, Subdivision, Barangay, Municipality, Province, Region, Postal Code) , Emergency Contact Data (Name, Contact Number, Email Address, Relationship), Lessor Data (Business Name, Lessor’s Name, Address Number, Building Number, Building Name, Street, Subdivision, Municipality, Province, Region, Postal Code, Cost of rent), Application Data (Name, Business Name, Mode of Payment: Annual/Semi-Annual/Quarterly, Application Type: New/Renewal, Application Date, Date of Release, Business Name Registration, Plate Number)
Relative to this, Bontoc Mayor Franklin Odsey remarked that eBPLS is a welcome development for the municipality, which expects increased revenue generation with the automation of its business license. With the increase in revenue, more projects can be implemented for the benefit of the community.
Likewise, Odsey is encouraging owners of businesses operating in the municipality to renew their issued permits or apply for the issuance of business permits in case their operations are just new.
The mayor added that the taxes to be generated from the businesses operating in the capital town will be used to fund the implementation of more development projects in the municipality and improve the delivery of basic services to the people in the different barangays.
Bontoc is the first municipality in Mountain Province, and the fifth in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) to adopt the eBPLS to promote a more competitive business environment in the municipality. By Alpine L. Killa
