Registering a business name in the Philippines

Business Registration Philippines

Your business name is your identity, so it is essential to set up it in the early stages of your business. The majority of businesses are legally mandatory to register their business name in order to operate in the Philippines. DTI is the primary government department assigned to assist the formation of a business environment which deal with areas such as commerce, domestic and international trade, industries and investments that generate jobs and increase incomes for Filipinos. DTI also administer the Philippine business registration of company and trade names that a participant proposed to be listed. Business name is what you will always use when dealing with your clients or customers. It is the name that will be declared in your certificates of registration with different agencies, in your official receipts and invoices, in your contracts and in other business forms.

Prior to your registration, you must  determine what type of business you want to establish. For a single proprietorship business, it is necessary that you secure a certificate of registration with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). If you’re establishing a partnership or a corporation, you should first register your company with the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). After securing a SEC certificate of registration, list your business name with the DTI to guarantee that no other individuals or organizations would register a name similar to yours.

Philippines Business Registration reminders: Names which cannot be registered with DTI:

1. The same or confusingly similar with an existing business name
2. Prior registered names with Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Intellectual Property Office (IPO)
3. Immoral sounding
4. Words which are indecent, immoral and prohibited in nature
5. Names used by the government in its official non-proprietary functions
6. The words: Company, Limited, Associates, Sons, Groups, Philippines, nation, state, barangay, Metro Manila, Philippines International, CALABARZON, and ASEAN, etc.
7. Bargain, Discount or similar words
8. Full name of another person (except when it is part of a duly registered business name, sells or transfers the business name)
9. Names of any nation, intergovernmental or international society unless authorized by the competent authority of such (UN, UNESCO, etc.)
10. Names which misinterpret the nature of the business
11. Generic terms
12. Names, words, terms or expressions suggestive of quality of any class of goods, articles, merchandise, or service
13. The word Industry (except when engaged in manufacturing, processing, and farming) 

source: dtincr.ph