SSS Employer Registration: Form R-1 and What It Takes
Social Security System · employers
Quick answer
Register a business for an SSS Employer ID Number using SS Form R-1, two original copies, at an SSS branch with a Data Privacy Consent and valid ID. The Citizen's Charter records the total at 3 hours and 10 minutes with no standard fee.
Last verified
Where these figures come from
About these figures: the numbers below come from SSS's official published sources: Social Security System | Citizen's Charter 2026 (1st Edition) (https://www.sss.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/2026-SSS-Citizens-Charter-1st-Edition-External-Services.pdf, retrieved 2026-08-31); Social Security System | Download forms and electronic applications (https://www.sss.gov.ph/download-forms-and-electronic-applications/, retrieved 2026-08-31); Social Security System | SSS Payment Channels (https://www.sss.gov.ph/sss-payment-channels/, retrieved 2026-08-31). Agencies change fees and rates without notice, so confirm with SSS before you rely on them. Last verified: 2026-08-31.
Registering a business with SSS is a branch transaction built around one form, SS Form R-1. The SSS Citizen’s Charter puts the whole thing at 3 hours and 10 minutes and prices it at none.
What you bring
| # | Requirement | Copies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Employer Registration, SS Form R-1 | 2 original copies |
| 2 | Data Privacy Notice or Consent | 1 original copy |
| 3 | Valid identification document | See the ID rule below |
The R-1 is downloadable from www.sss.gov.ph, and SSS asks you to read the instructions on the back of the form before filling it in.
The ID rule
SSS runs a one-or-two rule that applies to nearly every branch transaction.
| Who is filing | What they present |
|---|---|
| Employer or authorised signatory | 1 primary ID, original presented and photocopy submitted. In its absence, any 2 ID cards or documents, both with a signature and at least one with a photo |
| Employer’s representative | ID for the employer or authorised signatory on the same rule, plus their own ID on the same rule, plus an original Letter of Authority or Special Power of Attorney |
The primary IDs SSS names are the UMID card from SSS or GSIS, the SS card, an Alien Certificate of Registration from the Bureau of Immigration, an LTO driver’s licence, a PNP firearm registration, a PNP licence to own and possess firearms, an NBI clearance, a passport from the DFA or a foreign government, the PSA Philippine Identification Card or National ID, a PNP permit to carry firearms outside residence, a Philippine Postal Corporation postal identity card, a MARINA seaman’s book, and a COMELEC voter’s ID card.
Situational requirements by entity type
The base list is the same for everyone. What changes is the constitutive document.
| Entity type | What SSS additionally requires |
|---|---|
| Single proprietorship | Situational requirements per the charter |
| Partnership | Approved Articles of Partnership from the Securities and Exchange Commission |
| Corporation, including non-stock and non-profit | Situational requirements per the charter |
| Cooperative | Approved Articles of Cooperation from the Cooperative Development Authority |
| Manpower service cooperative | Approved Articles of Cooperation, with its own sub-requirements |
What happens at the counter
SSS publishes the branch flow with timings, and it is unusually transparent about the queue.
| Step | What happens | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Get a queue number and wait to be called | Included in the total |
| 2.1 | The Member Service Representative receives the R-1, Data Privacy Consent, supporting documents and IDs | 5 minutes |
| 2.2 | Screens the filer’s identity and evaluates the R-1 and supporting documents | 10 minutes |
| 2.3 | Processes the received R-1 and its supporting documents | 15 minutes |
| 2.4 | Prepares a Letter to Employer in 3 copies and a Certificate of Registration in 1 copy | 10 minutes |
| 2.5 | Forwards the R-1 and attachments for review | 5 minutes |
SSS states plainly that waiting time is included in the processing time and that it varies with branch category, whether small, medium or large, the number of walk-in clients, and the season, peak or off peak. That is why the total lands at 3 hours and 10 minutes rather than the 45 minutes the numbered steps add up to.
If there is a discrepancy or a missing supporting document, the representative informs the filer, issues a Rejection Notice, and returns all submitted documents.
After registration: reporting employees
Registering the business is only the first form. Reporting the people is the second.
| Form | What it is | Where |
|---|---|---|
| SS Form R-1 | Employer Registration | Branch |
| SS Form R-1A | Employment Report | Branch, or online through the employer’s My.SSS account |
| Employer Data Change Request | Changing employer details on record | Branch |
| Household Employer Unified Registration Form | Registering as a household employer | Branch |
| Household Employment Unified Report Form | Reporting kasambahay | Branch |
SSS runs Online Submission of Employment Report (R1A) in My.SSS as a separate charter service, so the R-1A does not require a branch visit once the employer account exists.
What you will be paying
Once registered, the employer’s monthly obligation is set by the same schedule that applies to every member.
| Employee’s Monthly Salary Credit | Employer’s share, including EC | Employee’s share | Total remitted |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₱5,000 | ₱510.00 | ₱250.00 | ₱760.00 |
| ₱10,000 | ₱1,010.00 | ₱500.00 | ₱1,510.00 |
| ₱15,000 | ₱1,530.00 | ₱750.00 | ₱2,280.00 |
| ₱20,000 | ₱2,030.00 | ₱1,000.00 | ₱3,030.00 |
| ₱35,000 | ₱3,530.00 | ₱1,750.00 | ₱5,280.00 |
The employer’s share is 10% of the MSC plus the Employees’ Compensation contribution, which is ₱10.00 for an MSC up to ₱14,500 and ₱30.00 from ₱15,000. The SSS contribution table has all 61 brackets.
Employers remit through a wider set of channels than individuals, including BancNet’s e-Gov facility across 17 banks. How to pay SSS contributions lists them.
Why the employer’s status matters to employees
Two SSS loan programmes make the employer’s compliance a condition of the employee’s eligibility.
| Programme | The employer condition |
|---|---|
| Salary loan | The employer of an employed member must be updated in the payment of contributions and loan remittances |
| Calamity loan | The same requirement applies |
An employee whose employer is behind cannot borrow, whatever their own contribution record looks like.
What this page does not cover
SSS does not publish, in the sources read for this page, the penalty amounts for failing to register or remit, the deadline for registering a new business after hiring its first employee, the full situational requirement lists for each entity type, or the employer My.SSS account registration, which is a separate charter service. None of those are stated here.
Related
How to pay SSS contributions covers the PRN and the employer channel list. The SSS contribution table covers what to remit, and the SSS forms guide covers the R-1, R-1A and the rest of the form library.
Frequently asked questions
- What form do I use to register a business with SSS?
- SS Form R-1, the Employer Registration Form, submitted in 2 original copies. It is downloadable from sss.gov.ph, and SSS asks you to read the instructions on the back before filling it in.
- How long does it take and what does it cost?
- The SSS Citizen's Charter records a total processing time of 3 hours and 10 minutes, and a Total Standard Fee of None. Waiting time at the branch is included in that figure and varies by branch size, walk-in volume and season.
- What else do I submit with the R-1?
- A Data Privacy Notice or Consent in 1 original copy, and valid identification. The filer presents one primary ID, or in its absence any two ID cards or documents both bearing a signature with at least one bearing a photo.
- What if a representative files it?
- The representative submits ID for both the employer or authorised signatory and for themselves, on the same one-primary-or-two-secondary rule, plus an original Letter of Authority or Special Power of Attorney.
- Does the requirement list change by business type?
- Yes. SSS sets situational requirements for a single proprietorship, a partnership needing approved Articles of Partnership from the SEC, a corporation including non-stock and non-profit, a cooperative needing approved Articles of Cooperation from the CDA, and a manpower service cooperative.
- What do I get at the end?
- The branch prepares a Letter to Employer in 3 copies and a Certificate of Registration in 1 copy, which go through review before release.
- How do I report my employees?
- Through the Employment Report, SS Form R-1A. SSS also runs an online submission of the R-1A inside the employer's My.SSS account.
- What do I pay once registered?
- 15% of each employee's Monthly Salary Credit, split 10% employer and 5% employee, plus the employer's Employees' Compensation contribution of ₱10.00 or ₱30.00. At the ₱20,000 MSC that is ₱2,030.00 from the employer and ₱1,000.00 from the employee.