Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 038 – 2026

Pursuant to Section 236 of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended (Tax Code) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations under Section 5 of Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 7-2026 and Section 5 of RR No. 15-2024, every person subject to any internal revenue tax is required to register with the Revenue District Office of the Bureau of Internal Revenue on or before the commencement of business, before payment of any tax due, or before or upon filing of any applicable tax return, statement or declaration as mandated by the Tax Code.

Moreover, Section 5(F) of RR No. 7-2024 provides for the issuance of Certificate of Registration (COR) or Electronic Certificate of Registration (eCOR) to each Head Office, Branch and Facility within the period of/time prescribed in the BIR Citizen’s Charter, upon submission of complete documentary requirements.

Section 5(G) of RR No. 7-2024 and Section 6 of RR No. 15-2024 require all persons subject to the provisions of Section 5(C) and (D) of RR No. 7-2024 (persons engaged in business or practice of profession) to post the COR or eCOR at the place where the business is conducted and at each branch and/or facility in a manner that is clearly visible to the public.

In addition, Section 5(H) of RR No. 7-2024 and Section 7 of RR No. 15-2024 further require the posting of proof of registration by sellers/merchants on their online websites, e-commerce or e-marketplace pages, and other platforms. In this regard, online businesses, sellers or merchants and service providers operating a business or with sales transactions through a website, social media or any digital or electronic means shall display conspicuously the electronic copy of their BIR COR/eCOR on their website, account or profile pages of the e-commerce platform or mobile application, where it is clearly visible and easily accessible to buyers or customers.

In line with the foregoing provisions, this Circular is hereby issued to implement the requirement under Section 5(H) of RR No. 7-2024 and Section 7 of RR No. 15-2024 on the posting of proof of registration on online websites, e-commerce or e-marketplace seller/merchant’s page, and other platforms. This requirement applies not only to online sellers of goods but also to persons engaged in providing services through digital or electronic means or with online presence, including but not limited to professionals or persons offering their services through online website, e-commerce platforms or mobile applications, bloggers, vloggers, live streamers, content creators, influencers, and individuals earning through online views, advertisements, affiliate commissions, brand sponsorships, or similar monetized digital activities.

To address taxpayers’ concerns over the online disclosure of sensitive information contained in their COR/eCOR, the BIR shall issue a BIR Registration Seal Badge (Annex A) to be displayed on the seller’s/content creator’s/online influencer’s website, online page/platforms, e-commerce shop, in lieu of the BIR COR/eCOR.

Policies and Guidelines

1. The BIR Registration Seal Badge serves as proof of registration for businesses engaged in online selling of goods or services, and e-commerce activities. It is issued together with the BIR COR/eCOR and is intended to be posted on the taxpayer’s website, online store or platform, mobile application, social media business page, or e-commerce seller profile in lieu of posting of copy of the BIR COR/eCOR.
   
2. The BIR Registration Seal Badge shall be issued [manually or electronically via the Online Registration and Update System (ORUS)] free of charge to all business taxpayers. For taxpayers engaged in online selling, online services and/or e-commerce activities, the following Philippine Standard Industrial Classification (PSIC) or Philippine Standard Occupational Classification (PSOC) code should be registered and available in their BIR COR/eCOR:

3. Both the BIR COR/eCOR and BIR Registration Seal Badge shall contain a Quick Response (QR) Code that can be verified online by scanning the QR Code using any mobile application or QR Code scanner. The QR Code will enable verification of the authenticity of the BIR COR/eCOR and validity of taxpayer’s business registration with the BIR.

4. Taxpayers are not required to replace their existing BIR COR/eCOR that does not contain a QR Code; however, they are encouraged to update or replace the same for the purposes of securing a BIR Registration Seal Badge. Taxpayers who are required to post online a proof of their BIR registration shall secure a BIR Registration Seal Badge with the Bureau’s Revenue District Office where they are registered by updating their registration information, or secure it online via ORUS by updating their registration information and paying the P30.00 Loose Documentary Stamp Tax (DST).

5. The BIR Regisrtation Seal Badge shall be posted on the following, including but not limited to:

6. To ensure consistent and proper online display of the BIR Registration Seal Badge on websites, mobile applications, online shops and e-commerce platforms, the following guidelines shall apply:

• 6.1 Only the BIR Registration Seal Badge shall be posted on the taxpayer’s official website, mobile application, online shop, or e-commerce platform profile page.
• 6.2 Taxpayers are not required to upload their entire registration document or the full page where the badge appears. Taxpayers may crop, scan, or extract only the BIR Registration Seal Badge image for the purpose of uploading or posting it to their official website, mobile application, online shop, or e-commerce platform profile page.
• 6.3. The uploaded BIR Registration Seal Badge should remain clear, readable, and unaltered, preserving all design elements.
• The posting of the BIR Registration Seal Badge must be compliant with the requirement under Item 5 above, ensuring that it is visible and easily accessible to customers as required under Section 5(H) of RR No. 7-2024 and Section 7 of RR No. 15-2024.

Government agencies, banks and financial institutions, e-commerce platforms and other relying parties may verify the validity of the BIR COR/eCOR/BIR Registration Seal Badge and taxpayer’s current registration with the BIR by scanning the QR Code on the document. When the QR Code is scanned, relying parties must ensure that the URL displayed is the official BIR verification domain or BIR link before relying on the result of verification of validity of the BIR COR/eCOR/BIR Registration Seal Badge.

The BIR COR/eCOR with QR Code and BIR Registration Seal Badge shall be available upon the issuance and publlication of this Circular on the BIR Website. A Taxpayer’s User Guide on how to generate and secure the BIR Registration Seal Badge through ORUS is provided in Annex C.