Anti-Red Tape Act: 3, 7 and 20 Working Days

Republic Act No. 11032, the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018, approved 28 May 2018, amended the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 and put a clock on every government transaction in the country.

It is the law behind the Citizen’s Charters this site quotes on almost every page. It is also the one most people transacting with an agency have never read.

The deadlines

The clock runs from the date the complete application was received, not from when the office gets round to it.

An extension is allowed once, for the same number of days, and only if the office notifies you in writing before the original period lapses, giving the reason and the final date of release. You sign that notice as proof.

If they miss it, you win by default

This is the provision worth knowing before you queue anywhere.

If a government office fails to approve or disapprove an original application within the prescribed processing time, the application shall be deemed approved, provided all required documents were submitted and all fees paid.

The acknowledgement receipt together with the official receipt is then enough proof, and has the same force and effect as the licence, clearance, permit, certification or authorisation itself.

For a renewal, the existing licence or permit is automatically extended.

That is why the acknowledgement receipt matters. Under Section 9 it must carry the agency seal, the name of the receiving officer, their unit and designation, and the date and time of receipt. Your application also gets a unique identification number used for every subsequent transaction about it.

What the Citizen’s Charter must contain

Section 6 requires every agency, GOCC and LGU to post its service standards at the main entrance or the most conspicuous place, on its website, and in published materials in English, Filipino or the local dialect, covering:

Anything demanded of you that is not on that charter is a violation, whether it is an extra document or an extra cost.

Rules that limit what an office can do to you

Three signatures, maximum. Section 9(d) caps the number of signatories on any document at 3, and they must be officers directly supervising the office concerned. If the authorised signatory is on leave, an alternate must be designated rather than the file waiting for their return.

A refusal must be in writing. Any denial must be fully explained in writing, naming the person making the denial and the grounds. It is deemed made with the clearance of the highest authority in that office, so nobody can disclaim it afterwards.

Zero-Contact Policy. Section 7 bars any contact between a government officer and an applicant about an application, in any manner, except during the preliminary assessment and the check that requirements are sufficient.

The office cannot close on you. Heads of agencies must adopt working schedules that serve applicants who are inside the premises before the end of official working hours and during lunch break.

The head is accountable. Section 8 makes the head of the office primarily responsible for implementation and accountable to the public.

The eight violations

Section 21 names them. Any of these makes a person liable.

1. Refusing to accept an application with complete requirements, without due cause.
2. Imposing additional requirements not listed in the Citizen’s Charter.
3. Imposing additional costs not reflected in the Citizen’s Charter.
4. Failure to give written notice of a disapproval.
5. Failure to render the service within the prescribed processing time.
6. Failure to attend to applicants inside the premises before closing or during lunch.
7. Failure or refusal to issue official receipts.
8. Fixing, or collusion with fixers, for economic or other gain.

A fixer is defined as any individual, whether or not officially involved in the office and whether or not in collusion with staff, who facilitates speedy completion of transactions for pecuniary gain or other advantage.

The penalties

Fixing skips the first step. Section 22(a) provides that for fixing or collusion with fixers under Section 21(h), the second-offence penalty applies immediately. There is no warning shot for that one.

Administrative jurisdiction sits with either the Civil Service Commission or the Office of the Ombudsman.

What the 2018 Act changed

RA 11032 did not create anti-red tape law. It amended Republic Act No. 9485, the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007, and hardened it: the 2007 Act had a charter requirement, and the 2018 Act added the processing clock, the deemed-approved rule, the signature cap and the Authority.

It also set deadlines for the government itself, not just for transactions.

Where an LGU renews on a fixed cycle rather than the anniversary of issue, that renewal falls in the first month of the year. The business permit renewal guide covers that cycle.

Where to complain

The Anti-Red Tape Authority was created by Section 17, organised within 6 months of effectivity, and attached to the Office of the President. Its powers include the two that matter to a complainant:

• Initiate an investigation on its own motion or on receipt of a complaint, refer it to the appropriate agency, or file cases for violations.
• Assist complainants in filing the necessary cases with the CSC, the Ombudsman and other appropriate courts.

Separately, Section 16 requires the CSC to maintain an anti-red tape unit in its central office and every regional office, to use Report Card Survey findings, and to receive, review, hear and decide complaints against erring officials. Every covered agency must also run a feedback mechanism and put the results in its annual report.

What this page does not cover

This page states what the Act requires. It does not carry ARTA’s current contact details, complaint form or hotline, which the Authority publishes and changes independently of the statute, nor the implementing rules, which add operational detail. It also does not cover the business-permit streamlining in Section 11, which has its own page.

Related

The mayor’s permit guide and the business permit renewal guide cover the Section 11 streamlining and the Business One Stop Shop, the fire safety inspection certificate guide covers the clearance this Act caps at 7 working days, and the civil service exam guide covers the commission that hears these complaints.

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