Alterations Checks No Longer Accepted Effective January 4, 2016

Commencing on January 4 of 2016 – in accordance with MC15-460 of the Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC), which is co-equally owned by all of the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) member banks – checks missing information or with alterations or erasure will no longer be accepted, with exceptions being made with regards to post-dated checks.

 

With regards to dated checks, the following criteria must be noted in order for the check to be accepted:

 

*                The date, the name of the payee, the amount in figures, the amount in words, the                  relevant signatures, the account name and number, the check number, and the                 magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) must not be altered in any way, and must be    accurate at the time of presentation.

 

*                The date, the name of the payee, the amount in figures, the amount in words (unless           issued by banks using a check writer), and the relevant signatures must all be completed                accurately and thoroughly.

 

Post-dated checks, on the other hand, are subject to the following:

 

*                Those post-dated checks received prior to the date of implementation must be stamped “Warehoused Check – Name of the Bank” in the section marked “Reserved For Other Details” on the reverse side of the check.

 

*                Post-dated checks will likewise be subjected to the same criteria as regularly dated checks, as indicated above.

 

*                Should there be a complaint made by the issuer of a check that has already been stamped with regards to suspected alterations, the presenting bank of the post-dated check shall be held accountable for any proven damages.

 

The intention is to reduce the number of days a check takes to clear from three days to just one and, despite the fact that the initiative has not yet been implemented, many banks are already advising their customers against presenting checks with such characteristics – with some banks even having already implemented the rule of non-acceptance.

 

The initiative is the result of the PCHC’s CHOM No. 15-460, as issued on September 2 of 2015, and should you have any questions, please feel free to contact our certified payroll geniuses at genius@philpay.ph

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