Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 9297)
The official title is the "Chemical Engineering Law of 2004."
The policy is to supervise and regulate the practice of chemical engineering, upgrade chemical engineering education to global standards, and reserve the practice of the profession to Filipino citizens.
It is defined as the rendering or offering of professional chemical engineering services for a fee, salary, reward, or even without compensation, synonymous with rendering chemical engineering services.
It includes consultation, investigation, estimation/valuation, planning, feasibility studies, designing, specification preparation, installation supervision, operation (excluding chemical analysis and operation of chemical laboratories), research and development, and teaching or reviewing chemical engineering subjects.
The Board consists of a Chairman and two members appointed by the President from nominees recommended by the Professional Regulation Commission from the duly accredited national organization of chemical engineers.
They must be natural-born Filipino citizens, holders of a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering or its equivalent from an accredited school, registered chemical engineers with at least 10 years of active practice, members of good standing of the integrated national organization, and not have pecuniary interest in chemical engineering educational institutions or be faculty or administration members thereof.
The licensure examination is given twice each calendar year on dates and venues prescribed by the Professional Regulation Commission.
Subjects include Physical and Chemical Principles, General Engineering, and Chemical Engineering, with Chemical Engineering having a weight of at least 40%.
Applicants must be Filipino citizens, of good moral character, graduates of an accredited school with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering degree or equivalent, and not have been convicted of offenses involving moral turpitude.
Violators shall be guilty of misdemeanor and face fines ranging from Ten thousand pesos (₱10,000) to One million pesos (₱1,000,000), imprisonment from six months to five years, or both, at the court's discretion.
All proposals, designs, specifications, working drawings, or plans for industrial plants or parts thereof must be signed and sealed by a registered chemical engineer.
Foreign chemical engineers recognized as experts for specific consultation or projects and those hired as professors or lecturers on a direct hire or exchange basis can practice under certain conditions, subject to board verification and foreign reciprocity.
They are automatically registered upon the effectivity of this Act.
No, firms, partnerships, corporations, or associations cannot be licensed to practice chemical engineering. Only duly licensed and registered chemical engineers can form partnerships among themselves or with other licensed engineers and architects.
The Board supervises practice regulation, evaluates qualifications, prescribes licensure examination subjects, issues certificates and permits, inspects places of practice, investigates violations, adopts rules and codes, conducts hearings and prosecutions, administers oaths, and submits annual reports among others.