Legal basis and purpose
- Section 5(a) of Presidential Decree No. 223 gives the Commission power to administer, implement, and enforce the regulatory policies of the National Government regarding regulation and licensing of professions under PRC jurisdiction, including maintenance of professional standards and ethics and enforcement of related rules.
- Section 5(u) of Presidential Decree No. 223 empowers the Commission to promulgate rules and regulations necessary to implement its regulatory policies regarding the regulation and practice of professions.
- PRC Resolution No. 187 is enacted to change the Professional’s Registration/Identification Card into a Professional’s License that more accurately reflects continuing professional requirements and provides clear standards for renewal.
- PRC Resolution No. 187 requires licensees to show evidence of maintained current professional knowledge through compliance with continuing professional education requirements prescribed for their profession.
Licensing replacement and issuance rule
- The Commission shall issue a Professional’s License in lieu of a Professional’s Registration/Identification Card to practicing professionals who have complied with regulatory requirements and paid the prescribed registration/license fee.
- A Professional’s License serves as evidence that the person named therein has complied with continuing professional education requirements and is duly registered and licensed to practice the profession indicated therein.
Required contents and license form
- Each Professional’s License must contain the full name and profession of the licensee.
- Each Professional’s License must bear a serial number, the registration date, and the expiry date.
- Each Professional’s License must have a recent ID bust photograph of the licensee affixed and sealed on the upper left-hand corner.
- Each Professional’s License must be signed by the licensee and the Chairman of the Commission, and must carry the official seal of the Commission.
Serial number and expiry mechanics
- The serial number of each professional license must be the number appearing on the licensee’s certificate of registration followed by the last two digits of the year in which the license expires.
- LOI 567 governs the license validity period: the professional license is valid for a three year period starting on the registration date and ending on the expiry date.
- Under LOI 567, the expiry date is the birth date of the licensee in the third year, unless the license is sooner revoked or suspended for cause.
Renewal deadline and late penalty
- A professional license must be renewed not later than the twentieth day of the next month following its expiry date.
- If a professional license is not renewed within the prescribed period, a 20% surcharge is imposed in addition to the registration/license fee.
Implementation and verification by entities
- Upon approval, the Commission shall implement PRC Resolution No. 187 by taking appropriate administrative actions against delinquent professionals.
- The Commission shall request all private and government entities to ascertain that the professionals they employ or deal with have valid professional licenses to practice their respective professions.