PHILIPPINE CONTRACTORS ACCREDITATION BOARD:

LEGITIMIZING ALL CONTRACTORS’ OPERATIONS IN THE PHILIPPINES

Originally called the Philippine License Board for Contractors (PLBC), the Philippine

Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) was made an implementing arm of the Construction

Industry Authority of the Philippines (CIAP), and an attached agency of the Department of Trade

& Industry (DTI). As such, all the powers and functions of the PLBC were transferred to PCAB.

To date, the Board maintains its regulatory and quasi-judicial functions. Pursuant to its mandate,

the PCAB issues or denies the issuance of license based on established criteria/qualifications,

and investigates violation of RA 4566 and the regulations thereunder as may come to its

knowledge and suspends or revokes licenses of contractors as warranted by the investigation

results.

PCAB Chairman
Pericles Dakay

R.A. 4566 as amended by P.D. No. 1746 provides that no contractor (including sub-

contractor and specialty contractor) shall engage in the business of contracting without first

having secured a PCAB license to conduct business. It is an offense to engage in contracting

business without a license first being obtained. All architects and engineers preparing plans and

specifications for work to be contracted in the Philippines shall stipulate in their invitation to
bidders, whether a resident of the Philippines or not, and in their specifications that it will be

necessary for any bidder, whether contractor, sub-contractor or specialty contractor, to have a

license before his bid is considered. The purpose of R.A. 4566 is to ensure, for the safety of the

public, that only qualified and reliable contractors are allowed to undertake construction in the

country. The law also aims to promote for the benefit of the public and private sectors and for the

national interest, the orderly growth of the contracting sector and the upgrading of construction

capability.

The law was enacted in 1965 to ensure for the safety of the public that only qualified and

reliable contractors are allowed to undertake construction in the country, meaning those

obtaining the PCAB License.

PCAB has been working hard to enforce compliance with unlicensed Contractors by

implementing a series of actions. For example, Mayors have been required to only issue Business

permits to licensed contractors, subcontractors and specialist contractors. Additionally, Local

Building Officials have been requested to ensure that only duly licensed and registered

contractors may perform the work before Building Permits are delivered for projects.

Quality Policy

• The Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board is a government agency tasked with

licensing contractors for public and private construction.

• The PCAB is dedicated to providing its constituents with accurate and fast delivery of

services, particularly in the issuance of contractors’ license.

• In order to achieve this, the PCAB is committed to a continual improvement culture

throughout the organization based on its stated mandate and the PNS/ISO 9001:2008 QMS

Standard.
• The PCAB aims to understand the requirements of our constituents and recognize the

importance of accountability, responsibility and transparency.

• The PCAB views “quality” as an essential framework to improve service delivery, as

well as to reinforce and enhance the agency’s reputation and image.

VISION: We shall protect public interest and promote public safety through enlightened

regulation of the construction contracting sector. In line with this vision, we shall ensure that

only reliable, competent and qualified contractors are allowed to engage in construction

contracting business. We shall continually introduce responsive and meaningful reforms to

promote professionalism in the delivery of construction services. We shall always be God-

fearing individuals and dedicated public servants.

MISSION: Guided by our vision and with our alliance with our partners in government and

private sectors, we hereby commit to effectively enforce the provisions of Contractors’ License

Law and its Implementing Rules and Regulations for the common good. We shall help create an

environment conducive to healthy competition among construction contractors. We shall

continuously establish mechanisms for more efficient and effective delivery of

licensing/registration services to our clients and all interested parties. In the attainment of our

mission, we shall work together harmoniously with the highest standards of public service.

CORE VALUES

• Accountability

• Responsibility

• Transparency

The current Board is composed of the following:

Pericles P. Dakay, Chairman

Arthur N. Escalante, Board Member

Filomeno H. Castillo, Jr., Board Member

Herbert DG. Matienzo, Executive Director

Sergie T. Retome, Board Secretary

PCAB promulgates Amnesty Program for unlicensed contractors

The PCAB in its Board Resolution No. 211 dated August 24, 2018 promulgated an

Amnesty Program for Unlicensed Contractors until December 15, 2018.

To afford contractors, developers and project owners the opportunity to complete their

requirements, the PCAB extended this Amnesty Program up to April 30, 2019 thru its Resolution

No.027 dated January 24, 2019.

There are contractors who implement construction projects without a duly issued license.

Some contractors operate with the mistaken belief that possession of a DTI business name or

SEC registration is sufficient to operate legitimately as a contractor. Other contractors with

expired license continue to operate because the license is not required by the project owners.

There are prime contractors who engage the services of unlicensed subcontractors/specialty

contractors. Quite a number of developers and project owners undertake construction of projects

intended for sale, lease, commercial/industrial use or any other income generating purpose which

for the protection of public interest, the law requires a contractor’s license. There are technology

professionals who engage in activities that require a contractor’s license.

For and in consideration of the foregoing premises, the Board provides for a facility to

legitimize the operations of unlicensed contractors mentioned above through an Amnesty

Program.

Mechanics:
  Letter-Application for Amnesty

 Properly accomplished license application form

 AMO affidavit showing at least 2 years managerial/technical experience in the

construction industry

 DTI/SEC Registration of business name (national in scope)

 Registration with the SSS, PHILHEALTH AND PAG-IBIG

 Audited Financial Statements showing a Net Worth of at least P100,000 dated within six

months from date of application

 Upfront payment of the P10,000 Additional License Fee and other applicable fees

Category and Classification under the Amnesty Program

All applicants for the Amnesty Program will be granted Category “Trade” with the classification

of Specialty “Trade” which may be upgraded after a period of six (6) months.

AMO Seminar, Course on Construction Safety and Health (COSH) and AMO Exam

Contractors who have not, as yet, completed the AMO Seminar, COSH and passed the AMO

Exam may avail of the Amnesty Program and file their respective applications, provided that the

same must be completed before the license is renewed.

Sidebar: On requesting for PCAB List of Licensed Contractors for CFY 2018-2019 as 03

January 2019

Early this year, a certain Dianne Muyrong requested PCAB List of Licensed Contractors

for Jan 2019 with Contact Details. She made the request under Executive Order No. 2 (s. 2016)

on Freedom of Information in the Executive Branch.

The Freedom of Information (FOI) Officer replied, to wit:

“We were able to determine that this particular information "PCAB List of Licensed Contractors

for CFY 2018-2019 as 03 January 2019" is already available online and therefore cannot be

counted as a valid FOI request. You may retrieve your requested information from our website.

Please refer to this link: http://www.ciap.dti.gov.ph/directory.

If you are unhappy with this response to your FOI request, you may ask us to carry out an

internal review of the response by writing to CIAP Executive Director Ramon L. Abiera at

CIAP@dti.gov.ph. Your review request should explain why you are dissatisfied with this

response, and should be made within 15 calendar days from the date when you received this

letter. We will complete the review and tell you the result within 30 calendar days from the date

when we receive your review request.

If you are not satisfied with the result of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the

Office of the President under Administrative Order No. 22 (s. 2011).”

This information is being shared here for the benefit of those also seeking a list of PCAB-

licensed contractors. (end of sidebar)

Renewal Alert to PCAB Contractors (CFY 2019-2020)

Starting 03 January 2019, PCAB will accept renewal of regular license applications for CFY

2019-2020.

Important Reminders:

1. Contractors are highly encouraged to file their renewal of regular license applications as early

as 03 January 2019 or on/before the scheduled filing date (Board Resolution No. 376, s. 2014) as

stated below:

Last Digit of License Number / Filing Month

0 / February 1-14
1 / February 15-28

2 / March 1-15

3 / March 16-31

4 / April 1-15

5 / April 16-30

6 / May 1-15

7 / May 16-31

8 and new license approved from January to March / June 1-15

9 and new license approved from April to June / June 16-30

2. Use the latest application forms which are downloadable at the official website of

Construction Industry Authority of the Philippines (CIAP):

http://ciap.dti.gov.ph/content/philippine-contractors-accreditation-board. PCAB shall only accept

application forms published at the CIAP official website.

3. Contractors filing their renewal application on or before April 15 may use the previously

submitted Audited Financial Statements (AFS).

4. Submission of the required Annual Income Tax Return (ITR) and Audited Financial Statement

(AFS) duly filed with the BIR for preceding taxable year can be done on or before the release of

the renewed license certificate.

5. Should the contractor failed to meet the qualification requirement based on the current AFS

for its present category, the license category shall be downgraded to the next lower sustainable

category.

6. Contractors filing their renewal applications beyond the assigned filing schedule shall be

assessed an Additional Processing Fee (APF) of Php 5,000.

7. If the renewal application is filed after June 30, an Additional License Fee (ALF) of Php 5,000

will also be imposed for a total of Php 10,000 on top of the regular renewal fees for each

category.

Online Filing Reminders:

8. The filing of license and registration applications thru Online CLiRS is still mandatory for

contractors falling under the categories of “AA, “AAA” and “AAAA”. No application for these

categories shall be accepted at the PCAB Office or CIAP Windows.

9. Contractors falling under categories “A” to “E/Trade” may file their respective license and

registration application at the PCAB Office or at the nearest DTI Regional / Provincial Office

and/or CIAP Window

10. PCAB renewal applications for CFY 2018-2019 should be fully encoded/accomplished to

avoid encountering problems in filing renewal applications for CFY 2019-2020.

11. Comprehensive and complete work experience of newly/previously nominated STEs should

be reflected in the constructor’s portal account

12. All system computed work experience of STE (only encoded work experience) will be the

basis of final Technical recommendation disregarding the current STE work experience.