Subic Bay Freeport—Business locators in this freeport, whose registration had expired since the imposition of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in March, have another 30 days to renew their permit with the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).
SBMA Deputy Administrator for Business Kenneth Lemuel Rementilla said the SBMA has extended until July 13 the validity of Certificate of Registration (CR) and Certificate of Registration and Tax Exemption (CRTE) issued to Subic-registered companies.
The extension approved by SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma effectively granted a 120-day reprieve to businesses with expired registrations since March 17 when the Subic Bay Freeport began operating under quarantine rules.
Rementilla said the SBMA board of directors initially approved a 30-day amnesty to Subic Bay Freeport enterprises whose registration would have expired within the ECQ period, or from March 17 to May 13, as well as to those whose CR or CRTE expired prior to the ECQ, but had already applied for renewal before March 17.
This extension also applies to sub-lessees whose sublease would have expired during the said ECQ period, provided that no protest was received from the sub-lessor during the extended period, Rementilla added.
Following the initial extension, Eisma, who was authorized by the SBMA board to further extend the validity as needed and pursuant to national government directives, first granted an extension until June 13.
“[However], in view of the continuing community quarantine imposed in the Subic Bay Freeport, Chairman Eisma further extended the validity of the CRs and CRTEs of Subic Bay Freeport locators until July 13,” said Rementilla.
Prior to this, the SBMA also further suspended the collection of penalties and other fees from business locators and residents until the end of June to help ease economic difficulties during the pandemic.
The extension covered penalties on late payment of billings, fees on deferment of deposit for maturing post-dated checks, and due dates covering payment schemes with deed of undertaking, which were all initially suspended from March to May.
The SBMA had similarly granted a validity extension for the IDs and access passes of SBF workers until June 30 and allowed the renewal until July 31 of vehicle decals with one-year validity issued in 2019.