Government has revised the guidelines in securing construction permits, cutting further the number of steps, days and requirements.
Secretary Jeremiah Belgica, director-general of the Anti-Red Tape Authority led the virtual ceremonial signing yesterday of the Amended Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 1, s. 2018 “Guidelines in the Processing of Construction-Related Permits” along with officials of the Departments of Trade and Industry, Interior and Local Government, Public Works and Highways, and Information and Communication Technology and the Bureau of Fire Protection.
The amended guidelines reduce the steps in securing permit from four to three and the processing for simple transaction from five days to three.
The guidelines also removes the notarization requirements of application forms.
The JMC provides for the establishment one-stop shops in each city and municipality to hasten processing in the local government unit level.
It also calls for the creation of an oversight committee on construction permit reforms.
Construction-related applications for Building Permits and Certificates of Occupancy will also be classified into simple, complex, and highly technical. This means that the processing time for simple transactions will be reduced from five to three days. There will also be a set processing time of seven days for complex transactions and 20 days for highly technical transactions in alignment with Republic Act No. 11032 or the Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018.
“Stagnant construction projects are a sure sign of economic distress, whereas a thriving construction industry indicates a booming economy,” Belgica said.
