Foreign ownership of housing businesses in the Philippines

The government understands the importance of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the
Philippines and therefore, allows foreign investors to set up 100% foreign-owned
companies in the Philippines, including businesses in the hospitality industry.

How to set up a hotel in the Philippines

#1 Incorporation of a company in the Philippines

The process of company registration in the Philippines starts with verifying your
company’s name and preparing the documents for the Securities and Exchange
Commission and finalizes with tax and employee registration.
The process of registering a company in the Philippines usually takes 4-5 weeks.

#2 Environmental Compliance Certificate

Before your hospitality business can operate in the Philippines, it also needs to acquire
an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC).
An ECC is necessary for certifying that your business activities will not cause any
negative effect on the environment. In general, the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources and the Environmental Management Bureau will issue the certificate
within 30 working days.

There is a list of requirements on what you need to provide when applying for an ECC,
including:

 Project description
 Environmental impact and management plan
 Geotagged photographs of the project site
 Affidavit of no complaint
 Etc.