Philippines Bookkeeping and Tax Filing: Registering the Books, What a Company Files Each Month, Quarter and Year, and Who Should Do It

Before the first sale: BIR registration, books of accounts and the authority to print

SEC registration gives the company legal existence. Before it starts trading, it still needs its BIR primary registration and a set of secondary registrations, and the books of accounts and the authority to print are the two most often left too late.

The BIR's registration requirements page splits registration into two layers:

• Primary registration: the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and registration updates. Corporations and partnerships register on BIR Form 1903. The BIR has five registration forms in all: 1901 for self-employed and mixed-income individuals, 1902 for individuals earning purely compensation income, 1903 for corporations and partnerships, 1904 for one-time taxpayers, and 1905 for updating registration information. What the TIN is and why a taxpayer holds only one is covered in the Philippine TIN explained.
• Secondary registration: registration of books of accounts; the Authority to Print (ATP) receipts and invoices; authority to use a Computerized Accounting System (CAS) or its components, or loose-leaf books; and the permit to use cash register machines (CRM) or point-of-sale (POS) machines.

Why books must be registered. The BIR's secondary registration page says all corporations, companies, partnerships or persons required by law to pay internal revenue taxes must keep a journal and a ledger, or their equivalents such as subsidiary ledgers or simplified books. There are two ways to register them:

• Online, through the BIR's Online Registration and Update System (ORUS). When registration succeeds, the system generates a "QR Stamp" that the taxpayer pastes on the first page of the books.
• Manually, with BIR Form 1905 plus attachments that depend on the type of books: a new set of permanently bound books for manual books; for loose-leaf books, the permit to use them, the bound loose-leaf books and an affidavit on the completeness of the entries and the number of leaves used; for computerized books, the acknowledgement certificate or permit to use the CAS or computerized books where applicable, a storage device holding the electronic books in Standard Audit File (SAF) format with a transmittal letter describing its contents, and an affidavit on the completeness and accuracy of the records.

Choosing between manual, loose-leaf and computerized books is covered in books of accounts registration. One point of timing matters here: the BIR states that a computerized accounting system must be registered before it is actually used. Installing the software first and registering it later is one of the most common sequencing mistakes new companies make.

If a representative files on the company's behalf, the BIR asks for a board resolution or secretary's certificate (a written resolution for a one person corporation) naming the representative and the purpose, plus a copy of a government-issued ID of one signatory and of the representative. How the SEC, BIR and city hall steps fit together is set out in registering a company in the Philippines.

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Invoices and supporting records: what the books are built from

Get the authority to print on or before the first day of business. After that, an invoice for every sale and a document for every purchase are what make the books balance and the returns correct.

The BIR's secondary registration page says every person engaged in business must secure an Authority to Print from the BIR before a printer can print its receipts or sales or commercial invoices, and that the application is due on or before the commencement of business. Businesses that issue invoices through cash register or POS machines need a separate permit to use them.

Invoicing rules have changed more than once in recent years. After the Ease of Paying Taxes Act (Republic Act No. 11976, known as EOPT) took effect, the roles of invoices and receipts were adjusted; what changed and what to do with old receipts is covered in official receipts and invoicing rules. Who must connect to the BIR's Electronic Invoicing System (EIS), and by when, is in BIR e-invoicing. This guide does not repeat either.

For bookkeeping purposes, keep supporting documents in three groups:

• Sales: invoice copies or system records in sequence, including cancelled invoices.
• Purchases: supplier invoices. For a VAT-registered company these support the input tax claimed on the quarterly VAT return.
• Withholding certificates: when a customer withholds tax from a payment to you, it should give you BIR Form 2307, the Certificate of Creditable Tax Withheld at Source. The BIR lists it, where applicable, as an attachment to the quarterly VAT return and to the quarterly and annual income tax returns. Without the 2307s, tax already withheld from you is hard to credit.

The reverse also applies. When the company pays suppliers, landlords or professionals, it is often the withholding agent and must withhold and issue the 2307 itself; see expanded withholding tax.

The BIR also has specific regulations on preserving books of accounts and accounting records (Revenue Regulations No. 17-2013) and on keeping and submitting electronic records (Revenue Regulations No. 9-2009). Retention periods and formats follow the BIR's current rules.

Day to day, problems tend to start in the same places: the owner's personal account mixed with the company account, cash sales not invoiced on the spot, purchases backed by a receipt but no invoice, and tax withheld without a 2307 being issued. Any one of these turns month-end bookkeeping into guesswork, and the quarterly returns stop reconciling. For cash-heavy small businesses where paperwork tends to go missing, the usual weak points are described in cash and books risks for small shops.

What a Philippine company files every month

Every month a company keeps its books and remits the taxes it has withheld. VAT is now filed quarterly by law, and a monthly VAT return is optional.

Start with who is responsible. The BIR's withholding tax page says the duty to withhold falls on individuals engaged in business or a profession, on non-individuals such as corporations, associations, partnerships and cooperatives whether or not they are engaged in business, and on government agencies. A withholding agent is any person or entity "in control of the payment subject to withholding tax" and therefore required to deduct and remit the tax. Once a company pays wages, or makes certain payments to others, it is a withholding agent: the returns are filed in the company's name and the liability is the company's.

The usual monthly items:

On the monthly VAT return, the BIR's VAT page cites Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 52-2023: the Tax Code now requires VAT to be filed and paid quarterly, but VAT-registered persons may continue to file and pay monthly on Form 2550M. Switching between monthly and quarterly filing does not attract penalties, but the quarterly return, Form 2550Q, must still be filed within the period set by the Tax Code.

Employers also carry duties that run through the year. The BIR lists them: withhold in the prescribed manner, remit by the due dates, carry out the year-end adjustment, refund excess withholding and issue Form 2316 to employees. When new staff join, the employer also submits their registration form (BIR Form 1902 or 1905) to the RDO within the prescribed period. The payroll cycle, including the year-end recomputation, is covered in the 1601-C guide in the table.

So the precise answer to "what does a Philippine company file every month" is: mostly withholding returns. Business tax (VAT or percentage tax) is quarterly, and income tax is paid quarterly and settled annually.

Exact due dates for every monthly, quarterly and annual item, including the staggered dates for electronic filers grouped by industry, are kept in one place: the Philippine tax calendar. They are not repeated here, so the two pages cannot drift apart.

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Quarterly and annual returns, including periods with no sales

Each quarter a company files a business tax return (VAT or percentage tax, not both), a quarterly income tax return and withholding summaries. Each year it files the annual income tax return, annual withholding information returns and employee certificates. Returns are due even when no tax is payable.

Quarterly

• Business tax, one or the other. A VAT-registered company files BIR Form 2550Q, one consolidated return covering the head office and all branches for every line of business subject to VAT, and the BIR also requires VAT taxpayers to submit quarterly Summary Lists of Sales and Purchases. A company that is not VAT-registered and whose annual gross sales stay under the VAT threshold generally files BIR Form 2551Q for percentage tax. The threshold follows the BIR's current rules; how to judge it is covered in the VAT registration threshold.
• Quarterly income tax. Corporations and partnerships file BIR Form 1702Q, attaching 2307 certificates where applicable.
• Quarterly withholding summaries. Expanded withholding goes on BIR Form 1601-EQ, and final withholding on Form 1601-FQ.

Annual

• Annual income tax: corporations and partnerships file BIR Form 1702. The BIR's income tax page says companies whose gross annual sales, earnings or receipts exceed the statutory threshold attach balance sheets, profit and loss statements and related schedules certified by an independent CPA; those below it may attach the Account Information Form (BIR Form 1702 AIF) instead.
• Annual withholding information returns: BIR Forms 1604-C (compensation), 1604-E (expanded) and 1604-F (final), each with the alphabetical list of employees or payees.
• Employee certificates: BIR Form 2316 goes to each employee, and a duplicate is submitted to the company's Revenue District Office (RDO). Qualifying employees can rely on the employer's 1604-C in place of their own annual return.

No sales still means filing. The BIR's VAT page sets out separate procedures for returns with a payment and returns without one, and the latter still have to be filed. The BIR's penalties page also lists compromise penalties specifically for late returns with no tax due. A newly formed company with no revenue yet still has filing obligations, and that "nothing to report" stretch is where many missed filings begin: nobody remembers to file, and a few quarters later every period turns out to be late.

A practical way to stay on top of it is to split the quarterly and annual items into three checklists: business and income tax for the accountant, withholding returns for whoever runs payroll and payments, and the annual summaries and employee certificates for a single review at the start of each year. How the three layers stack up, and which months are busiest, is covered in the BIR filing calendar for companies.

Audited financial statements and SEC reports: BIR first, then eFAST

The annual financial statements go to the BIR first; the company then files them with the SEC through eFAST, with proof of BIR receipt attached. The General Information Sheet is filed separately after the annual stockholders' meeting.

SEC Memorandum Circular No. 9, series of 2026 (full text), spells out the sequence:

• BIR before SEC. Financial statements filed with the SEC, other than consolidated statements, must bear the BIR's "received" stamp. Companies that used the BIR's eAFS system attach the system-generated transaction reference number or confirmation receipt instead.
• Who must be audited. Under Revised SRC Rule 68, the circular lists the entities that must submit annual audited financial statements: stock and non-stock corporations whose total assets or total liabilities exceed the prescribed threshold, and branch offices, representative offices and regional operating headquarters of foreign corporations that reach their own thresholds. The amounts follow the SEC's current rules. Corporations below the threshold may file with a sworn Statement of Management's Responsibility, signed by the chairman, president or chief executive officer and the treasurer or chief financial officer, or, for a one person corporation, by the president and treasurer. Corporations that must be audited have to engage SEC-accredited external auditors in the appropriate category.
• Deadlines and exceptions. The circular sets a single filing deadline for companies with a 31 December year end, and late filings are penalized. Companies with a different fiscal year file within 120 calendar days after it ends, and listed and other covered companies follow their own rules. The SEC may also announce extensions, so check each year's circular and notices; dates are tracked in the tax calendar.
• How eFAST treats a filing. Statements filed through eFAST are received automatically and issued a QR code, subject to later review. A report reverted for poor image quality, wrong page orientation, the wrong company profile, the wrong period or submission type, or other errors is treated as not filed. Filings made on a weekend, holiday or work suspension day count as filed on the next working day.
• General Information Sheet. Every corporation files its GIS through eFAST within 30 calendar days of the actual annual stockholders' meeting (the members' meeting for non-stock corporations), and foreign corporations within 30 calendar days of the anniversary of their SEC licence. How to complete it is covered in the GIS guide.

On the BIR side, the income tax page lists CPA-certified financial statements as an attachment to Form 1702 for companies above the threshold. The practical order is: close the books, get the auditor's report, file it with Form 1702 at the BIR, then take the BIR proof of receipt to eFAST. What each step hands to the next is in audited financial statements step by step, and what an AFS means to each agency is in AFS for the BIR and SEC.

One link foreign shareholders often miss: an investor holding an SIRV files an annual report with the Board of Investments that attaches the investee company's audited statements and income tax return as filed with the BIR, plus its GIS. Late company filings can therefore hold up the individual's visa renewal; the visa side is covered in what a Philippine green card means.

Do it yourself, hire a bookkeeper or outsource, and how to catch up on missed filings

Any of the three approaches can work, but the filing obligation always stays with the company. The choice turns on transaction volume, whether you have employees, whether you are VAT-registered, and whether anyone inside the company can own the deadlines.

Whichever you choose, the company should hold three things itself: its BIR registration documents and registered books, every filed return with proof of payment, and its BIR and SEC online accounts. What is really being outsourced, and how to switch providers without a gap, is covered in tax agent and bookkeeping services.

Consequences of missed filings, by type only. The BIR penalties page lists a surcharge (Section 248 of the National Internal Revenue Code), interest (Section 249), and compromise penalties under the schedule annexed to Revenue Memorandum Order No. 7-2015. Section 255 adds criminal liability for willful failure to file, pay, keep records, or withhold and remit, and Section 250 penalizes failure to file information returns or keep required records. On the SEC side, late financial statements are also penalized. Amounts follow the BIR's and SEC's current rules. Individual cases belong with a licensed accountant or lawyer; this guide is not legal or tax advice.

A practical catch-up order

1. Take stock: confirm with the company's RDO which periods and tax types are unfiled, and gather bank statements, invoice copies and purchase documents.
2. Rebuild the books: post the missing periods into the registered books. Without them, late returns have nothing to rest on.
3. File the late returns period by period, settling surcharge and interest where tax is due. Where statements still need an audit, follow the BIR-then-SEC order.
4. Fix the process: write down deadlines, owners and document handovers so the same gap does not open again.

If the BIR has already issued an audit notice, the order changes; see BIR tax audits and the Letter of Authority. The knock-on effects of late or missing audited statements are covered in late audited financial statements.

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