Law Summary
Registration Requirement for Warehouses
- Owners/operators of warehouses storing raw/refined sugar must register warehouses with SRA and renew registration annually.
- Exemptions: warehouses already registered under existing orders for accredited sugar traders, custom bonded warehouses, mills, and refineries.
Mandatory Use of SRA Registered Warehouses
- All locally produced or imported raw/refined sugar must be stored only in SRA registered warehouses.
- Sugar stored in unregistered warehouses is considered undocumented and subject to penalties.
- Imported aCa or Reserved sugar must only be stored in registered warehouses.
- SRA will issue certificates verifying volumes of such sugar with confirmation by importer/owner.
Registration Application and Inspection Procedures
- Any Filipino person or business may apply to SRA's Regulation Department for registration.
- Required documents include notarized application form with warehouse details, pictures of owners/operators, SEC/DTI registrations, permits (barangay, mayor), BIR registration, and other SRA requirements.
- Warehouses are subject to unannounced inspection before approval.
Registration Fee and Validity
- Registration fee: P2,000 payable upon approval; 50% if applied mid-crop year.
- Registration valid for one crop year.
- Renewal is filed two months before crop year start, submitting the same documents from the initial application.
Issuance and Posting of Notice of Registration
- SRA issues a Notice of Registration for each approved warehouse containing identifying details and validity period.
- Notice is signed by Deputy Administrator and posted visibly by SRA monitoring team.
- Removal or tampering of Notice is penalized under the Revised Penal Code.
- Notices are replaced upon renewal; non-renewed registrations lead to Notice removal.
- Warehouses without valid Notice are considered unregistered.
Visitorial Power and Enforcement
- Authorized SRA teams conduct unannounced inspections during working days.
- Refusal to allow inspection presumes sugar as undocumented.
Penalties for Non-Compliance
- Sugar in unregistered warehouses is presumed undocumented unless satisfactorily proven otherwise.
- Fines: P300 per bag for first offense, no less than P500 per bag for recurrences.
- Undocumented sugar may be seized and controlled until fines are paid.
- Owners/operators of unregistered warehouses face fines equal to those for undocumented sugar.
- Additional penalties may apply under existing laws.
- SRA enforces penalties with assistance from law enforcement agencies.
Repealing Clause
- Any inconsistent Sugar Orders, Circulars, or Rules are amended or revoked, except those covering warehouses already regulated under specific categories.
Effectivity
- The provisions take immediate effect upon issuance.