[ EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 361, October 12, 1959 ]
PROMULGATING RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROPOSALS OF FILIPINOS RESIDING IN THE UNITED STATES TO INVEST IN THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM OF THE PHILIPPINES
In order to carry out the desire of Filipinos residing in the United States to invest their savings in the economic development program of the Philippines, I, CARLOS P. GARCIA, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby promulgate the following rules and regulations governing such investments:
1. Nature of investments.—The eligible forms of investment are (1) essential producers’ and consumers’ goods and (2) capital and essential consumers’ goods purchased in the United States.
Essential producers’ and consumers’ goods.—Essential producers’ and consumers’ goods produced by Filipino independent farm operators and farm hands in the United States may be channeled to the Philippines for sale, except those that would tend to displace similar locally produced goods or to disrupt the agricultural development program of the country. Likewise, such products should not be allowed to be channeled into the country if the importation thereof is banned by Philippine laws and regulations or rules promulgated by the Central Bank or other competent authorities of the Philippines.
Capital and essential consumers’ goods purchased in the United States.—Capital and essential consumers’ goods purchased in the United States by Filipino residents either by direct cash purchase or through the use of credit facilities may be sent to the Philippines by the Filipino investors’ corporations or associations, mentioned in paragraph 3 hereof, or individually if he prefers not to join such corporations or associations, through their representatives who would sell them arid invest the proceeds thereof in the Philippines.
2. Shipment of goods.—The shipment of acceptable goods for importation into the Philippines may be handled by corporations or associations formed by the Filipino residents, or by their personal representatives duly authorized by them to handle the distribution and sale in the Philippines of the above-mentioned goods. Bonds must be filed by such representatives to secure the proper disposal of the accounting for the goods and to guarantee the faithful administration of the proceeds thereof.
3. Corporate representatives and agents in the Philippines.—For purposes of pooling their resources and concentrating management in order to better promote and protect their interests, the Filipino independent farm operators and farm hands, and other Filipino residents in the United States desiring to invest in the Philippines, may form corporations or associations which can transact business for them in the Philippines. If an individual investor prefers not to join such corporations or associations, he may appoint his own agent or representative who will be responsible to the individual investor. The necessary bond to guarantee the faithful performance of the transactions and the security of the proceeds that will be realized from the sale of the goods should be filed by the representatives and agents.
4. The Far East Management Corporation and other agents. —The association of Filipino residents abroad or any investor acting independently may deal directly with the Far East Management Corporation or any other corporation cr association duly authorized to transact business, for the distribution and sale in the Philippines of capital goods or essential producers’ and consumers’ goods and the investment of the proceeds thereof locally. The funds may be invested in government bonds or in other forms of investment which is expected to give reasonable returns.
Any representative of the Far East Management Corporation or any other corporation or association or any individual operator who solicits investment in accordance with Rule 1 hereof from any Filipino resident abroad or opens an office in the United States for this purpose must first report to the Philippine consul who has jurisdiction over the particular territory concerned. It is understood that these representatives or persons shall comply with all the other existing legal requirements or rules and regulations enforced in the different states where they may desire to solicit such investments.
Any contract otherwise valid and legal under existing laws must further contain for its recognition under these rules and regulations a clause providing for a guarantee or performance bond issued by a surety or bonding company or a recognized bank to the satisfaction of the investor, conditioned on the faithful administration of the proceeds of the goods and their proper investment.
In the event that the Far East Management Corporation or any other corporation or association or individual acts as agent in the sale of Philippine Government bonds or securities to Filipinos in the United States, the said corporation or association or individual must be bonded in an amount to be determined by the Central Bank of the Philippines, and the said Corporation or association or individual must operate under the terms and conditions to be promulgated and required by the Central Bank of the Philippines.
5. Areas of investment.—The areas of investment shall be governed by existing policies regarding the essentiality of the product to be produced, potential and actual capacity to generate employment and income, and the degree of utilization of domestic resources. In the case of investment in agricultural development, Filipino investors are welcome to agricultural reservations created by the government for the purpose.
6. Remittance of profits and repatriation of capital.—The remittance of profits and the repatriation of capital shall be governed by Central Bank regulations regarding the same.
7. Supervision on investment and operation.—-The transactions of the Far East Management Corporation or any other such corporation or association or individual representatives handling the aforementioned investments shall be subject to periodic inspection by representatives of the Department of Finance. The books, records, and accounts should be opened for examination by the said representatives. Likewise, the books, records, and accounts of corporations, associations, or individual representatives abroad handling the aforesaid investments shall be opened for inspection by the Consul or his representative or by the commercial attache who has jurisdiction over the particular territory concerned. Compliance with existing policies on investments required in Rule No. 5 hereof shall be determined by the National Economic Council.
8. Control on imports.—All importations under this grant shall be under the administration and control of the Central Bank of the Philippines.
Done in the City of Manila, this 12th day of October, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and fifty-nine, and of the Independence of the Philippines, the fourteenth.
