Is the ₱500 Annual BIR Registration Fee Still Required? What the EOPT Act Changed

No — the ₱500 Annual Registration Fee (ARF), which businesses used to pay every year on or before January 31 using BIR Form 0605, was abolished effective January 22, 2024, under Republic Act (RA) No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act. RA 11976 amended Section 236 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) to remove the requirement entirely — for both new business registrants and taxpayers who had been paying it annually for years.

For the broader registration process this fee used to be part of, see How to Register a New Business with the BIR and What Is BIR Form 0605 (Payment Form) and When Do You Use It?.

What the ARF used to require #

Before the EOPT Act, every business taxpayer had to file BIR Form 0605 and pay ₱500 on or before January 31 each year to maintain their registration — a recurring, small but easy-to-miss compliance obligation that applied regardless of business size or income. Missing the January 31 deadline exposed a taxpayer to the same late-payment penalties (surcharge and interest) that apply to any other overdue BIR payment.

What changed under the EOPT Act #

RA 11976 amended Section 236 of the NIRC to remove the Annual Registration Fee requirement outright, effective January 22, 2024 — not phased out gradually, and not limited to a particular taxpayer category.

The change is automatic — a taxpayer does not file anything to be relieved of the ARF, and no confirmation from the BIR is needed. The obligation simply no longer exists as of the effectivity date.

Why your Certificate of Registration might still list it #

A business’s existing Certificate of Registration (COR) may still display a “registration fee” line as one of its listed tax types, and this does not mean the fee is still due — the COR retains its validity as-is, and the BIR did not require taxpayers to reprint every COR just to remove that line item. If a taxpayer is unsure whether a specific line on an older COR still applies, the EOPT Act’s statutory change controls over what a particular document happens to show; the safest reference is Section 236 of the NIRC as amended, not the printed COR from before 2024.

What this doesn’t change #

Removing the ARF simplified one specific, recurring obligation — it did not remove any other registration, filing, or payment requirement a business has. A business still:

• Registers with the BIR and secures a Certificate of Registration when starting operations.
• Maintains its books of accounts and other registration requirements.
• Files and pays all other applicable returns — income tax, VAT or percentage tax, withholding tax — on their normal schedules.

The EOPT Act made several other changes to Philippine tax administration beyond the ARF — including changes to VAT invoicing and taxpayer classification — but the ARF removal is the change most directly tied to a recurring January deadline that no longer exists.

Frequently asked questions #

Do I still need to pay the ₱500 annual BIR registration fee? #

No. The ₱500 Annual Registration Fee (ARF) was abolished effective January 22, 2024, under Republic Act No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act, which amended Section 236 of the National Internal Revenue Code. Business taxpayers are no longer required to file BIR Form 0605 or pay the ₱500 fee on or before January 31 of each year.

Does this apply to new business registrants too, or only existing ones? #

It applies to both. The removal of the Annual Registration Fee took effect January 22, 2024, for new business registrants filing for the first time and for existing registered taxpayers who previously paid the fee annually.

Why does my Certificate of Registration (COR) still show a registration fee tax type? #

The Certificate of Registration retains its validity and may still list the registration fee as one of the tax types on the document, even though the obligation to pay it no longer exists. The listing on an old or reprinted COR does not revive the payment requirement — the EOPT Act’s amendment to Section 236 controls, not what a specific COR document happens to show.

What law abolished the annual registration fee, and what else did it change? #

Republic Act No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act, signed into law January 5, 2024, abolished the Annual Registration Fee as part of a broader set of reforms to Philippine tax administration, including changes to VAT invoicing, classification of taxpayers, and simplified filing rules.

Do I need to file anything to formally stop paying the ARF? #

No separate filing is required to stop paying the ARF — the exemption from the fee and from filing BIR Form 0605 for that purpose applies automatically by operation of the EOPT Act’s amendment to Section 236 of the NIRC, effective January 22, 2024. A taxpayer does not need to request confirmation or submit a form to be relieved of the obligation.

Summary #

The ₱500 Annual Registration Fee and its BIR Form 0605 filing are gone, effective January 22, 2024, under the EOPT Act’s amendment to NIRC Section 236 — no filing is needed to stop paying it, and an older Certificate of Registration that still lists a registration fee line does not revive the requirement. Every other registration and filing obligation stays in place. See What Is BIR Form 0605 for what that form is still used for today.