Territorial scope is the area where your business may put its offices, stores, branches or plants under your registered business name: one barangay, one city or municipality, one region, or the whole country. DTI says it is not a limit on where you may transact business. The scope sets the fee: ₱200, ₱500, ₱1,000 or ₱2,000, plus ₱30 documentary stamp tax.[1]
Fee for each territorial scope
| Scope | Fee | Total with ₱30 stamp tax |
|---|---|---|
| Barangay | ₱200 | ₱230 |
| City or municipality | ₱500 | ₱530 |
| Regional | ₱1,000 | ₱1,030 |
| National | ₱2,000 | ₱2,030 |
What the scope covers, and what it does not
DTI defines territorial scope as the geographical area within which your business may locate its offices, stores, shops, branches, manufacturing or processing plants and other business structures, or where your business name may be used, without stopping you from doing business elsewhere. DTI adds that it is not the geographical limit in which to transact business.[1]
Put simply: scope is about where your physical places of business carry the name. A sari-sari store with barangay scope can still sell to a customer from the next town. An online seller with city scope can still ship to Mindanao. What changes is where you can open a store or branch under that registered name.
How to choose
These are practical rules of thumb, not DTI rules. Think about where your stores or branches could be in the next five years, since that is how long the registration lasts.
- Barangay: one fixed spot that will stay put, such as a sari-sari store, carinderia or piso wifi in your own home
- City or municipality: a shop that may move within the same city, or open a second stall nearby
- Regional: plans for branches in nearby cities or provinces in the same region
- National: branches in several regions, a franchise plan, or a brand you want to protect across the country
Scope also affects whether your name is available
On BNRS you choose the scope before you type the dominant name and descriptor, and the availability check runs against that scope. If you change scope later, during renewal or at a DTI office, the name goes through validation again.[2]
So a name that passed at barangay level is not guaranteed at national level. If you think you will grow, it can be cheaper to pick a wider scope now than to find out later that someone else holds your name in another city.
Changing your scope after registering
You can change or upgrade the scope of a registered name, subject to the rules on registrability. DTI treats the change as a new application: you get a new certificate and a new validity period. This is applied for at a selected DTI office near you; call your DTI regional or provincial office first to ask which office or Negosyo Center offers the service.[1]
You can also change scope online when you renew, by choosing "Update Scope and Renew" on BNRS. When you renew without a scope change, any new business address you enter must be within the scope you already registered.[2]
Moving outside your scope
DTI lists the transfer of your business to a place outside your registered scope as one of the reasons to apply for cancellation of the registration. In that case you either upgrade the scope or cancel and register again for the new place. See DTI cancellation.[1]
Pick your scope in five minutes
- List every place you may sell from in the next five years
- If all are in one barangay, barangay scope is enough
- If any are in another city or region, go one level wider
- Search your name at the scope you picked
- Budget the fee plus ₱30 stamp tax
- Note that changing scope later means a new application
Questions people ask
- Can I sell online across the Philippines with barangay scope?
- DTI says the scope is not the geographical limit in which to transact business. It concerns where your stores, offices and branches are located under the name.
- Which scope do most small stores choose?
- DTI does not publish a breakdown of scopes chosen. Pick by where your physical places of business will be, not by what others do.
- Does a wider scope last longer?
- No. Every scope is valid for five years from the date of registration. Only the fee changes.
- Can I upgrade my scope online?
- Yes, at renewal, using "Update Scope and Renew" on BNRS. Outside renewal, scope changes are done at a selected DTI office.
Sources
Checked 13 November 2026. We link the agency's own page for every requirement. Rules change; confirm with the office before you pay.