SUBMISSION DEADLINES SET FOR REPORTS TO SEC
THE Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued guidelines governing the submission of reportorial requirements this year and is urging corporations to comply.
SEC Memorandum Circular 2-2024, issued on January 27 but only made available on Tuesday, states that annual financial statements (AFS) and general information sheets (GIS) should only be submitted via the regulator’s Electronic Filing and Submission Tool (eFAST).
This is in compliance with a zero-contact policy and the automation of business-related transactions, SEC said, adding that no submissions should be done over the counter or through courier.
For companies whose fiscal years ended on Dec. 31, 2023, their AFS submission dates will depend on the last digit of their SEC registration or license numbers.
Those with license numbers ending in 1 and 2 must file their AFS through eFAST from April 29 to May 10 while those ending 3 and 4 should comply with a May 13-24 submission deadline. This will be followed by those with registration numbers ending in 5 and 6 from May 27 to June 7. Companies with last digits of 7 and 8 should submit their reports from June 10-21 and those with 9 and 0 from June 24 to July 5.
The submission of reportorial requirements should only be done from Mondays to Fridays, except holidays.
Corporations whose fiscal years ended on a date other than Dec[ember] 31 of last year should submit their AFS “within 120 calendar days from the end of their fiscal year,” the SEC said.
“The annual report of a broker dealer whose fiscal year ended on Dec[ember] 31 must be filed on April 30, while those with fiscal years ending on a date other than Dec[ember] 31 shall file their reports 120 calendar days after the close of their respective fiscal years,” it added.
Meanwhile, publicly listed and private companies covered under the Securities Regulation Code (SRC) should file their AFS “within 105
calendar days after the end of their respective fiscal years, as an attachment to their annual reports.”
The SEC said that firms whose financial reports were being audited by the Commission on Audit (CoA) would be exempted from the submission schedule provided they include documentation proving the CoA audit.
“Failure to follow the formal requirements prescribed under Revised SRC Rule 68 shall be considered a sufficient ground for the imposition of penalties by the SEC,” the regulator warned.
“The acceptance and receipt by the commission of the financial statements shall be without prejudice to such penalties.”
For the GIS, the SEC said stock and nonstock corporations must submit their forms via eFAST within 30 days from the date of the actual annual stockholders and members’ meetings, respectively.
Foreign firms, meanwhile, should comply with the submission within 30 days from the “anniversary date of the issuance of the SEC license for foreign corporations,” it said.
One-person corporations are not mandated to submit their GIS, but they must file the SEC form for the appointment of officers “within 15 days from the date of issuance of their certificate of incorporation, or within five days from subsequent changes.”