How to Register a New BIR Branch: BIR Form 1905, Requirements, and the ₱500 Fee Rule

Opening a second store, office, or outlet requires registering that specific location with the BIR before it can legally invoice or transact — filing BIR Form 1905 to add the branch to your existing registration, securing a branch-specific BIR Form 2303, and setting up that branch’s own books of accounts and invoicing. The branch does not get a new TIN, but it is treated as a distinct registration record with its own compliance obligations from day one.

When do you need to register a new BIR branch? #

A new branch registration is required whenever a business starts operating, selling, or issuing receipts from a physical location other than its already-registered head office or existing branches — a second store, a satellite office, a new outlet in another city. A pure storage area with no sales activity, located within the same premises as an already-registered head office or branch, does not need its own registration. A warehouse or storage place at a different address generally still needs to register as a “facility” even without direct sales, but it is not issued a full invoicing series the way a selling branch is.

The underlying rule is Section 236(A) of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), as amended, which ties registration to physical location, not just to the taxpayer as a whole:

“Any person who maintains a head office, branch or facility shall register the head office and branch or facility with the Revenue District Officer having jurisdiction over the head office, branch or facility, respectively.” — Section 236(A), National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), as amended

In practice, this means a business relocating or expanding does not get to treat a new store as an informal extension of its head office registration — each physical place of business has to be registered where it actually operates.

Does a new branch get its own TIN? #

No — a branch never receives a separate Taxpayer Identification Number; it operates under the head office’s existing TIN, distinguished only by a branch code suffix appended to that TIN. The head office carries branch code 000; the first branch registered after it typically becomes 0001, the second 0002, and so on, in the order branches are added.

For most small and mid-sized businesses opening a second or third location, the branch code your RDO assigns will simply be the next short, sequential suffix after your existing locations — you do not choose it, and it appears on the branch’s own BIR Form 2303 once the application is approved.

How to register a new branch with the BIR #

1. Confirm the RDO with jurisdiction over the branch address. This is the RDO where you will file, and it is very often different from the RDO where your head office is registered — use the BIR RDO locator or your ORUS account to confirm the correct code before preparing documents.
2. Accomplish BIR Form 1905, checking the box for registration of a new branch/facility, and indicate the branch address, the tax types the branch will be registered for (such as VAT or percentage tax, and withholding if the branch will act as a withholding agent), and the invoicing method it will use.
3. Gather the supporting documents the branch RDO requires (see the checklist below) and have the application signed by an authorized signatory — for corporations, this generally means the person named in a Secretary’s Certificate or Board Resolution authorizing the branch.
4. File the application at the branch’s RDO, in person or through the applicable ORUS transaction if that RDO supports it, and pay any fees specific to the transaction (for example, documentary stamp tax on certain documents — not a per-branch registration fee, since that was removed).
5. Receive the branch’s own BIR Form 2303, Certificate of Registration, listing the branch’s RDO code, branch code, and the specific tax types and invoicing details for that location. Post it conspicuously at the branch, as required for any registered place of business.
6. Register the branch’s books of accounts and invoicing (Authority to Print or e-invoicing enrollment) before the branch starts transacting — each branch generally needs its own set of books and its own invoice/receipt series, separate from the head office’s.
7. Enroll a branch account in ORUS, if applicable. Since Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 10-2024 (dated January 22, 2024), a registered branch can enroll its own Branch Account in the Online Registration and Update System, separate from the head office’s ORUS account, to apply for Authority to Print and register books of accounts online.

Documentary requirements #

Exact requirements can vary slightly by RDO, and the BIR periodically updates its documentary checklist for registration-related transactions — most recently through Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 74-2025 (issued July 18, 2025), which consolidated the Checklist of Documentary Requirements (CDR) across registration frontline services and stated that only complete, properly executed submissions will be processed. The typical requirements for a new branch application are:

Confirm the current list with the branch’s RDO or the latest CDR before filing, since RMC 74-2025 explicitly warns that incomplete submissions will not be accepted.

Does the ₱500 annual registration fee still apply per branch? #

No — the ₱500 Annual Registration Fee (ARF), which used to be charged separately for every distinct establishment or place of business under the old Section 236(B) of the NIRC, was abolished for all registered locations, head office and branches alike, effective January 22, 2024, under Republic Act No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act. Before EOPT, a business with a head office and two branches paid ₱1,500 total every January 31 — ₱500 for each registered location. That obligation, and the BIR Form 0605 filing that went with it, no longer exists for any location. For the full mechanics of that change, see Is the ₱500 Annual BIR Registration Fee Still Required?.

This does not remove other registration-linked costs. Documentary stamp tax can still apply to specific documents in the registration process, and local government fees (Mayor’s permit, barangay clearance) for the branch address are separate from — and unaffected by — the BIR’s ARF removal.

Books of accounts, invoicing, and BIR Form 2303 for the branch #

A branch’s registration is not a lightweight extension of the head office’s — it carries its own BIR Form 2303, generally its own set of books of accounts, and its own invoicing series, because BIR recordkeeping and invoicing rules attach to the specific registered place of business where the transaction happens. Each establishment, head office or branch, is covered by its own Authority to Print (or e-invoicing enrollment) with its own range of receipt/invoice serial numbers — a branch cannot simply keep issuing receipts printed under the head office’s series.

For the three recognized books-of-accounts formats (manual, loose-leaf, or Computerized Accounting System) and which one a given business must use, see BIR Books of Accounts: Manual, Loose-Leaf, and Computerized Accounting System Requirements. The same format rules that apply to a head office apply to each branch, evaluated against that branch’s own transaction volume where relevant.

If you already have an existing registration and instead need to change a registered address, transfer RDO, or correct registration data rather than add a new location, that is a different transaction on the same form — see BIR Form 1905: How to Update Your Registration Information or Transfer RDO for that process.

Worked example: a retail business opens a second store #

Suppose a sole proprietorship, “Maria’s Pasalubong Corner,” is registered with RDO No. 40 (Cubao) in Quezon City, where its single store operates. Maria decides to open a second branch in Baguio City to catch the tourist trade, at a commercial space she leases starting September 2026. To register the Baguio branch correctly, Maria’s process looks like this:

1. She confirms the branch will fall under RDO No. 8 (Baguio City), not her existing RDO No. 40.
2. She accomplishes BIR Form 1905, checking the box for registration of a new branch, listing the Baguio address, and indicating the branch will register for the same tax types as her head office (percentage tax under Section 116, since she remains below the ₱3,000,000 VAT threshold on a combined basis).
3. She gathers her DTI Certificate (updated or supplemented to reflect the branch, per her DTI registration terms), the signed lease contract for the Baguio unit, her Quezon City COR, a valid ID, and the Baguio Mayor’s permit application.
4. She files the application at RDO No. 8, which processes it and issues a Baguio-specific BIR Form 2303 showing branch code 0001 appended to her existing TIN.
5. Before opening, she registers a separate set of books of accounts for the Baguio branch and applies for that branch’s own Authority to Print (or e-invoicing enrollment), so Baguio receipts carry their own serial series distinct from Cubao’s.
6. She does not pay a ₱500 registration fee for the new branch — that obligation no longer exists under the EOPT Act — but she does pay the Baguio City business permit fees, which are a separate local government requirement.

Maria now has two BIR Form 2303 certificates, two invoicing series, and two sets of books, both consolidated under her single TIN when she files her income tax return.

Frequently asked questions #

Does a new BIR branch get its own TIN? #

No. A branch does not receive a separate Taxpayer Identification Number. It uses the head office’s existing TIN with an additional branch code appended as a suffix — for example, 000-000-000-0001 for the first branch after the head office’s 000 code. The branch is a registration record under the same TIN, not a separate taxpayer.

Which BIR form do I use to register a new branch or additional place of business? #

BIR Form 1905, the Application for Registration Information Update/Correction/Cancellation, is used by an already-registered taxpayer to add a new branch or facility to its registration. It is filed at the Revenue District Office (RDO) having jurisdiction over the new branch’s address, together with the supporting documents that RDO requires.

Do I still need to pay the ₱500 annual registration fee for each branch? #

No. The ₱500 Annual Registration Fee, which used to be charged per separate establishment or place of business under Section 236(B) of the NIRC, was abolished effective January 22, 2024, under Republic Act No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act. This applies to branches the same way it applies to a head office — no per-branch ARF and no BIR Form 0605 filing for that purpose.

Does a branch need its own BIR Form 2303 and its own books of accounts? #

Yes. Each registered branch is issued its own BIR Form 2303, Certificate of Registration, listing the tax types and invoicing details specific to that location, and each branch generally keeps and registers its own set of books of accounts. Consolidation for reporting happens at the head office, but the branch-level registration and recordkeeping are separate.

Do I need to register a warehouse or storage facility as a branch? #

Not always. A storage area within the same premises as an already-registered head office or branch does not require separate registration. A warehouse, storage place, or other facility at a different address generally must still be registered as a facility with the BIR, even if no direct sales happen there, though it is not treated as a full branch with its own invoicing series unless it also transacts sales.

Where do I file the application to register a new branch? #

You file at the Revenue District Office that has jurisdiction over the new branch’s physical address, not the RDO where the head office is registered. This follows directly from Section 236(A) of the NIRC, which requires a head office, branch, or facility to register with the RDO covering its own location.

Summary #

Registering a new BIR branch means treating that location as its own registration event: file BIR Form 1905 at the RDO covering the branch’s address, submit the supporting documents that RDO requires, and set up the branch’s own BIR Form 2303, books of accounts, and invoicing before it starts transacting. The branch keeps your existing TIN with a new branch-code suffix — it does not need, and cannot get, a separate TIN. The one cost that used to apply per branch, the ₱500 Annual Registration Fee, was removed for every registered location under the EOPT Act effective January 22, 2024, so budgeting for it is no longer necessary, though local permit fees and any document-specific charges still apply.