Before buying any property in the Philippines, one should conduct the due diligence required of them and ensure that the property to be purchased is clean from any liens and encumbrances. Due diligence is “such a measure of prudence, activity, or assiduity, as is properly to be expected from, and ordinarily exercised by, a reasonable and prudent man under the particular circumstances; not measured by any absolute standard, but depending on the relative facts of the special case.”[1] If no proper due diligence is conducted, the outcome may result to a lot of headaches when another party suddenl ..read more

The website of the Department of Foreign Affairs provides: "An Apostille is a certificate that authenticates the origin of a public document. It is issued by a country that is party to the Apostille Convention to be used in another country which is also a party to the Convention. On 14 May 2019, the Philippines became a party to the Apostille Convention. Authentication is still required for all Philippine documents to be used abroad, but this time with an Apostille instead of an Authentication Certificate (“red ribbon”) as proof of authentication. After authentication (Apostillization) by DFA ..read more

Last March 16, 2019, the lawyers of Nonato Nonato Nonato-Luciano & Luciano Law Offices conducted a legal seminar on the new laws: the Tax Amnesty Law, the Revised Corporation Code, 105-Day Expanded Maternity Leave Law and the SSS Act of 2018. The seminar was held in Palmbeach Resort and Spa. To know more about the seminars the firm will be conducting in the future, please send an email to roselle.jean@nonatolaw.com. #legalseminar #cebulawyer #CebuBusiness #cebulawoffice #Cebuinvestments #DoingbusinessinCebu ..read more

President Duterte signed into law Republic Act No. 11232 or the Revised Corporation Code which promises to improve the ease of doing business in the Philippines. Among the notable changes are the following: A single person may now organize a corporation. A corporation with only one stockholder is called a One Person Corporation. A corporation now has perpetual existence unless provided otherwise in its articles of incorporation. A corporation whose term has expired may now apply for a revival of its corporate existence, together with all the rights and privileges under its certificate of inc ..read more

President Rodrigo Duterte has finally passed into law Republic Act No. 11213 otherwise known as the “Tax Amnesty Act.” Under the law, the amnesty tax to be paid for estates of decedents whose deaths occurred on or before December 31, 2017, is reduced to six percent (6%) based on the total net estate at the time of death. If the allowable deductions at the time of death exceed the value of the gross estate, the minimum estate amnesty tax of Php5,000.00 shall be paid. The legal heirs should avail of the Estate Tax Amnesty within two (2) years from the effectivity of the Implementing Rules and R ..read more

A Black List Order (BLO) is one that bars a foreigner from entering the Philippines. This is usually because the foreigner has committed a violation of one or more of the immigration laws of the Philippines. Being discourteous to an immigration official upon arrival in the Philippines can even be considered a ground to black list a foreigner from the Philippines. Remember, black listing is discretionary on the part of the Bureau of Immigration which is why foreigners have to be careful and conscious of their actions while in the country. Under Immigration Administrative Circular No. SBM-2014 ..read more

In Ricardo E. Vergara, Jr. v. Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc. (G.R. No. 176985, April 1, 2013), the Supreme Court held: Generally, employees have a vested right over existing benefits voluntarily granted to them by their employer. Thus, any benefit and supplement being enjoyed by the employees cannot be reduced, diminished, discontinued or eliminated by the employer. The principle of non-diminution of benefits is actually founded on the Constitutional mandate to protect the rights of workers, to promote their welfare, and to afford them full protection. In turn, said mandate is the basis ..read more

There are several kinds of employment visas in the Philippines, it would depend on several factors such as but not limited to the way that the company was organized or formed, the nature and scope of its authorized activities, as well as its location. The law that mainly regulates foreign employment visas is the Commonwealth Act No. 613, otherwise known as the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, and the most commonly applied employment visas based on the aforesaid law are 9(g) Pre-Arranged Employment Visa and 47(a) 2 Visa for foreign employees of companies registered with the Philippine Export ..read more

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