The revised list of businesses or activities under Category I to IV is contained in Memorandum Circular No. 20-33 issued by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on 8 June 2020. As used in the list below: NO means not allowed to operate; SKT means skeleton workforce; 50% means partial operating capacity; 100% means full operating capacity. The complete list, as provided in the Annex of MC 20-33, is reproduced below.
CATEGORY I-IV BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS / ACTIVITIES
CATEGORY I | ECQ | MECQ | GCQ | MGCQ |
Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Manufacturing of essential goods: | ||||
* Food and Beverages (only non-alcoholic drinks) | 50- 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
* Essential and Hygiene Products–Soap, detergents, shampoo, and conditioners– Diapers, feminine hygiene products, toilet papers, wet wipes– Disinfectants | 50- 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
* Medicines and Vitamins | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
* Medical Products, such as: PPEs, Masks, Gloves, Others; medical supplies, devices and equipment, including suppliers of input, packaging and distribution | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
* Pet food, Feeds, Fertilizer | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Essential Retail (e.g., groceries, markets, convenience stores, drug stores) | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Food preparation insofar as take-out and delivery services | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Water-Refilling Stores | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Laundry Services (including self-service) | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Public and private hospitals | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Health, emergency and frontline services such as dialysis centers, chemotherapy centers and the like | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Other medical, dental, rehabilitation and optometry clinics, non-aesthetic dermatological clinics, EENT | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Logistics Service Providers (Cargo Handling, Warehousing, Trucking, Freight Forwarding, and Shipping Line) | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Delivery and courier services, whether in-house or outsourced transporting food, medicine, or other essential goods, including clothing, accessories, hardware, house wares, school and office supplies, as well as pet food and other veterinary products | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Water supply and sanitation services and facilities, including waste disposal services, as well as property management and building utility services | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Establishments engaged in repair and maintenance of machinery and equipment, including those engaged in the repair of computers and household fixtures and equipment | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Telecommunications companies (e.g., ISPs, cable providers, telco 3rd party contractors) | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Energy and power companies (incl. 3rd party contractors) across transmission, distribution, maintenance, retail, exploration, operations, trading and delivery of raw materials (incl. refineries and depots) | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Gasoline Stations | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Workers accredited by the DOTr to work on utility relocation works, and specified limited works across thirteen (13) railway projects, including replacement works for the Metro Manila Rail Transit System Line 3 | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Airline and aircraft maintenance, pilots and crew, and employees of aviation schools for purposes of the pilot’s recurrent training for flight proficiency and type rating using simulator facilities; and ship captains and crew, including shipyard operations and repair | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Public and private construction projects that are essential (i.e., quarantine and isolation facilities for PUMs, and suspect, and confimed COVID-19 patients, facilities for the health sector including those dealing with PUMs and suspect, and confimed COVID-19 patients, facilities for construction personnel who perform emergency works, flood control, and other disaster risk reduction and rehabilitation works, sewerage projects, water service facilities projects, and digital works, health facilities). Priority public and private construction projects, defined as those that refer to food production, agriculture, fishery, fishport development, energy, housing, communication, water utilities, manufacturing, and BPO, subject to guidelines to be issued by the DPWH | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Manufacturing companies and suppliers of equipment or products necessary to perform construction works, such as cement and steel | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Export- oriented companies, including mining and quarrying | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Printing presses authorized by the BIR or other appropriate agencies to print official receipts and other accountable forms | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Media Establishments | 50% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
CATEGORY II | ECQ | MECQ | GCQ | MGCQ |
Other Manufacturing • Beverages (e.g. alcoholic drinks) • Electrical Machinery • Wood products, Furniture • Non-metallic products • Textiles / Wearing apparels • Tobacco products • Paper and Paper products • Rubber and Plastic products • Coke and Refined Petroleum products • Other non-metallic mineral products • Computer, Electronic and Optical Products • Electrical Equipment • Machinery and Equipment • Motor Vehicles, Trailers and Semi-Trailers • Other Transport Equipment • Others | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Mining and Quarrying | ||||
— Export-oriented | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
— Domestic | NO | NO | 50- 100% | 100% |
Electronic commerce companies | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Postal, courier and delivery services for articles or products other than food, medicine, or other essential goods, including clothing, accessories, hardware, house wares, school and office supplies, as well as pet food and other veterinary products | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Real estate activities (including parking space leasing companies) | ||||
— Leasing | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
— Other retail activities | NO | 50% | 100% | 100% |
Housing service activities, such as but not limited to plumbing, roofing, and electrical works | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Office Administrative and Office Support (such as photocopying, billing, and record keeping services) | NO | 50% | 50- 100% | 100% |
Veterinary Activities | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Security and Investigation Activities | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Funeral and embalming services | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Hotel and other accommodation establishments For ECQ, MECQ and GCQ: Only for the following: (a) guests with long-term bookings and existing booking accommodations for foreigners as of 17 March 2020 for Luzon and 01 May 2020 for other areas guests, (b) guests who have existing long-term bookings; (c) distressed Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and stranded Filipinos or foreign nationals; (d) repatriated OFWs in compliance with approved quarantine protocols; (e) non-OFWs who may be required to undergo mandatory facility-based quarantine; and (f) health care workers and other employees from exempted establishments -provided that accommodation establishments may operate only upon the issuance of a Certificate of Authority to operate by the DOT; provided further that hotel operations shall be limited to provision of basic accommodation services; ancillary establishments within the premises such as restaurants, cafes, bars, gyms, spas, and the like shall not be allowed to operate or to provide room service; provided finally that accommodation establishments may prepare: (a) packed meals for distribution to guests; and (b) food orders for take-out and delivery. For MGCQ: only those accredited as provided by law and relevant DOT and DILG issuances may operate, and only upon issuance of a Certificate of Authority to operate by the DOT. | SKN | SKN | SKN | 50% |
CATEGORY III | ECQ | MECQ | GCQ | MGCQ |
Banks, money transfer services, pawnshops, microfinance institutions, and credit cooperatives | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Capital markets (e.g., BSP, SEC, PDEC, PDTC, etc.) | SKN | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Other financial services (e.g., money exchange, insurance, reinsurance, lending companies, and non- compulsory pension funding) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Legal and Accounting | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Management Consultancy Activities | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Architecture and Engineering Activities; Technical Testing and Analysis | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Scientific and Research Development | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Advertising and Market Research | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Computer programming (such as writing, modifying, testing and supporting software, planning and designing computer systems), information service activities (such as data processing and hosting activities) and other related activities | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Publishing and printing services (such as printing of newspapers, magazines, and other periodicals, books, brochures, manuscripts, posters, maps, atlases, advertising catalogues, prospectuses, etc; printing directly onto textiles, plastic, glass, metal wood, and ceramics) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Film, music, and TV production | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Rental and Leasing Activities, other than real estate, e.g., vehicle rental, equipment rental for permitted sectors) | NO | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Employment Activities that involve recruitment and placement for permitted sectors | NO | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Recruitment and placement agencies for overseas employment | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Other services such as photography services; fashion, industrial, graphic, and interior design) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Wholesale and retail trade of motor vehicles, motorcycles, and bicycles, including their parts and components | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles, and bicycles, (including vulcanizing shops, battery repair shops, auto repair shops, car wash) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Malls and commercial centers (non-leisure only), subject to guidelines to be issued by DTI | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
Other non-leisure whole sale and retail establishments such as: | ||||
* Dining/ Restaurants | ||||
— Delivery and take-out only | 50% | 50% | 50% | 100% |
— Dine in [See Guidelines] | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
* Mall-based government frontline services | SKN | SKN | 100% | 100% |
* Hardware stores | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Clothing and accessories | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Bookstores and school and office supplies stores | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Baby or infant care supplies stores | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Pet shops, pet food and pet care supplies | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* IT, communications, and electronic equipment | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Flower, jewelry, novelty, antique, perfume shops | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Toy store (with playgrounds and amusement area closed) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Music stores | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Art galleries (selling only) | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Firearms and ammunition trading establishment | NO | 50% | 50% | 100% |
* Barbershops and Salons, provided that they are compliant with DTI-issued protocols | NO | NO | 30- 50% | 50- 100% |
All other public and private construction projects, subject to strict compliance to the issued construction safety guidelines for the implementation of infrastructure projects during the COVID-19 pandemic by the DPWH | NO | NO | 50% | 100% |
CATEGORY IV | ECQ | MECQ | GCQ | MGCQ |
Gyms/Fitness studios and Sports Facilities For GCQ: only those outdoor facilities for non- contact sports and other forms of exercise such as walking, jogging, running, biking, golf, swimming, tennis, badminton, equestrian, range shooting, and skateboarding; no sharing of equipment, where applicable. For MGCQ: Outdoor and indoor sports, facilities for non-contact sports, and other forms of exercise. | NO | NO | SKN | 50% |
Internet and computer shops (subject to strict health protocols) – Only for Work or Educational Purposes ONLY | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Other education and educational support establishments such as but not limited to: | ||||
— testing centers, tutorial and review centers | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
— language, driving, dance/acting/voice schools | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Entertainment industries (e.g., cinemas, theaters, karaoke bars, etc.) | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Kid amusement industries (e.g., playrooms, rides) | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Libraries, archives, museums and cultural centers | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Tourist destinations (e.g., water parks, beaches, resorts) | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Travel agencies, tour operators, reservation service and related activities | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Other personal care services (e.g., massage parlors, sauna, facial care, waxing, etc.) | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Pet grooming services | NO | NO | NO | 50% |
Latest posts by P&L Law (see all)
- Extension of Filing Periods and Suspension of Hearings for March 29 to April 4, 2021: SC Administrative Circular No. 14-2021 (Full Text) - March 28, 2021
- ECQ Bubble for NCR, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal: Resolution No. 106-A (Full Text) - March 27, 2021
- Guidelines on the Administration of COVID-19 Vaccines in the Workplaces (Labor Advisory No. 3) - March 12, 2021