The Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) is set to launch new rules designed to cut bureaucratic delays in housing development, reviving long-dormant provisions of the three-decade-old Lina Law as the government seeks to accelerate affordable housing projects and reduce regulatory bottlenecks.
ARTA Secretary Ernesto Perez said the agency will formally roll out a Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) on Aug. 4 establishing a Housing One-Stop Processing Center (HOPC), a centralized permitting system that aims to simplify approvals for housing developments from acquisition and construction to project disposition.
Speaking at the “Mastering the Lina Law: Protecting Assets and Maximizing Value in Modern Real Estate and Housing for the Poor” seminar organized by Scientia Eventus, Perez said the circular has been signed by 15 regulatory agencies and will introduce an electronic Housing One-Stop Shop to digitize and coordinate permit processing.
Among its key reforms are the integration of barangay clearances into city and municipal permitting systems and the implementation of automatic approval for applications that remain unresolved beyond the prescribed processing period, consistent with Republic Act No. 11032, or the Ease of Doing Business Act.
The initiative breathes life into provisions of Republic Act No. 7279, or the Lina Law, authored by former Senator Joey Lina, which envisioned a Housing One-Stop Processing Center but was never fully implemented despite being enacted more than 30 years ago.
Under the new framework, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development will lead the HOPC, while ARTA will oversee process streamlining and the Department of Information and Communications Technology will provide technical support for the digital platform.
Beyond simplifying permits, the circular seeks to reduce overlapping regulations and improve coordination among agencies, addressing a longstanding hurdle that has slowed housing development and added costs to projects. By shortening approval timelines, the government hopes to encourage more housing investments and support the Expanded Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino (4PH) Program.
The circular also requires participating agencies to issue harmonized documentary requirements, process flows and processing timelines within 60 working days of its effectivity.
