PROPOSED EASING OF FOREIGN INVESTMENT RESTRICTIONS IN THE PHILIPPINES
The Philippines has introduced several restrictive foreign direct investment regulations over many years, but local lawmakers and the business community are pushing for changes to a decades-old law that could contribute to a post-pandemic economic recovery.
Under the 1987 Philippine Constitution, no franchise for the operation of a public utility shall be granted except to citizens of the Philippines or to corporations or associations organized under Philippine law that are at least 60 percent owned by Filipino citizens. What constitutes a public utility, however, is not defined in the Constitution. Instead, it has been indirectly defined by the legislature in the Commonwealth Act No. 146, also known as the Public Service Act (PSA), and by the judiciary in case law.
Read "Proposed Easing of Foreign Investment Restrictions in the Philippines."
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