13TH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
SENATE 
INTRODUCED BY HON. MANUEL B. VILLAR JR. 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The Constitution, Article 16, provides: 
Section 9. The State shall protect consumers from trade malpractices and 
from substandard or hazardous practices. 
R.A. No. 7394, a.k.a. the "Consumer Act of the Philippines" was enacted to protect the 
interests of the consumer, promote his general, welfare and to establish standards of conduct for 
business and industry. 
These laws recognize that consumers play a key role in the Philippine economy. Hence, they 
seek to protect the rights of consumers and to put a stop to abusive practices of business 
establishments in the country. 
The practice of giving insufficient change or giving no change at all to consumers by product 
sellers or service providers is something that is often taken for granted. This is usually because the 
change involves only a matter of five, ten, fifteen, or twenty centavos, or small bills, which when 
added up at the end of the day, amount to thousands of pesos. The failure to give the change or the 
exact change constitutes a trade malpractice that must be stopped. 
This bill seeks to: (a) prohibit the giving of insufficient change or no change at all to 
consumers; (b) to prohibit the giving of change in any form other than money; (c) require the 
posting of signs reminding consumers to ask for their exact change; and (d) require the use of price 
tags, when appropriate, that will reflect the exact retail price per unit or services, already 
incorporating the applicable tax or taxes. 
MANUEL B. V LLAR, JR. 
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13TH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
First Regular Session 
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SENATE 
INTRODUCED BY HON. MANUEL B. VELAR JR. 
AN ACT REQUIRING BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS TO GIVE EXACT CHANGE TO 
CONSUMERS 
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assern bled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title.-- This Act shall be known as the "Exact Change Act." 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy.-- It is the policy of the state to protect the interests of the 
consumer, promote his general welfare and to establish standards of conduct for business and 
industry. Towards this end, the state shall implement measures to achieve the following objectives: 
A) Protection against deceptive, unfair and unconscionable sales acts and practices; 
B) Provision of information and education to facilitate sound choice and the proper exercise 
of rights by the consumer; 
C) Provision of adequate rights and means of redress; and 
D) Provision of penalties for offenders. 
SECTION 3. Definition of Terms.-- 
A) "Department" means the Department of Trade and Industry; 
B) "Consumer" means a natural person who is a purchaser or recipient of consumer products, 
services, or credit; 


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C) 'Business Establishment" means any person or entity, whether single proprietorship, partnership, 
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or corporation, including government-owned and controlled corporations or a government entity 
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exercising its proprietary functions, engaged in, or- doing business in the Philippines, either in 
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selling products or providing services; 
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D) "Consumer Products and Services" means goods, services and credits, debts or obligations which 
are primarily for personal, family, household or agricultural purposes, which shall include but is not 
limited to food, drugs, cosmetics, and devices; 
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E) "Services" means services that are subject of a consumer transaction, either together with, or 
separate from, any kind of personal property, whether tangible or intangible; 
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per unit or service; 
F) "Price Tag" means any device, written, printed, affixed or attached to a consumer product or 
displayed in a consumer retail or service establishment for the purpose of indicating the retail price 
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purchased or received; and 
G) "Change" means the excess in the payment given by a consumer for products or services 
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H) "Insufficient Change" means a change that is less than what is due the consumer; 
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thesame. 
SECTION 4. Regulated Acts.-- (A) In General -- It shall be unlawful; for any business establishment 
to give insufficient change or no change at all to consumers who purchased or received products or 
services, even if such change is only of a small amount. It shall be the duty of the business 
establishment to give the exact change to the consumer without waiting for the consumer to ask for 
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(B) Other Prohibitions -- It shall also be unlawful for any business establishment which sells 
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products or provides services to give the change in any other form other than the present currency or 
to ask the consumer for permission to be exempted from the provisions of this Act for any reason 
including the non-availability of small bills or coins. 
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(C) Posting of Signs -- It shall be the duty of business establishments to put signs in every 
counter which states: "Demand Your Exact Change." 


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(D) Price Tags -- It shall likewise be the duty of business establishments to use price tags, 
when appropriate, indicating the exact retail price per unit or service which already includes the 
taxes applicable to the goods or services being offered. These establishments shall also put signs in 
conspicuous places within the establishment or reflect in the official receipts issued, the taxes 
incorporated in the retail price per unit or services. This is to avoid misleading the consumer as to 
the exact price they have to pay for the goods or services and consequently, the exact change due to 
them. 
SECTION 5. Procedures in Filing a Complaint.-- 
A) Not later than ten working days after a violation has been committed, the consumer shall 
write and submit a letter of complaint to the Department. 
B) The Department shall, in not more than ten working days after the complaint has been 
submitted, conduct an investigation and shall issue a notice to the establishment involved. 
C) After a full investigation shall have been made by the Department, it shall issue its 
decision and findings not later than thirty days from the receipt of the complaint. 
SECTION 6. Information Campaign.-- The Department shall undertake to implement an 
education campaign to inform consumers of the provisions of this Act. It shall regularly publish a 
list of the establishments found to have violated any provisions of this Act. 
SECTION 7. Rules and Regulations.-- It shall be the duty of the Department, in coordination with 
other executive departments or government agencies which may be involved, to formulate and issue 
the necessary rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this Act. 
SECTION 8. Penalties.-- Any violation of this Act shall be punished as follows: For the first 
offense,, a violator shall be fined Five Hundred pesos (P 500.00); for the second offense, a violator 
shall be fined Five Thousand pesos (P 5,000.00); for the Third offense, a violator shall be fined 
Fifteen Thousand pesos (P 15,000.00) and the license to operate the business establishment shall be 
suspended for three months; and for the fourth offense, a violator shall be fined Twenty-five 
Thousand pesos (P25,OOO.OO) and the license to operate shall be revoked. 


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SECTION 9. Separability Clause.- If any provision, or part hereof, is held invalid or 
unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not otherwise affected shall remain valid 
and subsisting. 
SECTION 10. Repealing Clause.- Any law, presidential decree or issuance, executive order, letter of 
instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation contrary to or inconsistent with, the provisions of 
this Act is hereby repealed, modified or amended accordingly. 
SECTION 1 1. Effectivity Clause.- This Act shall take effect fifteen (1 5) days after its publication in 
at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
Approved.