NEW CHECK GUIDELINES

New Check-Writing Rules? Again?!

Yes—again. The Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC) has quietly rolled out updated guidelines for writing check details, and you might’ve missed a crucial change (I almost did).

At first glance, I thought, “Nothing new here. We’ve seen these rules before.” But buried in the fine print is a key update:

You can no longer use asterisks, dashes, or “X” marks when writing the amount in figures. That means goodbye to **P100,000.00** or P10,000— in the NUMBER box.

However, symbols like asterisks, equals signs, or dashes are still allowed before and after the amount in words and the payee name. So you can still write something like:

**One Million Pesos Only**

The new rules are effective yesterday, July 1, 2025.

Why Should You Care?

1.⁠ ⁠Brokers—brace yourselves. You might start getting calls from landlords needing to replace their tenants' post-dated checks.

2.⁠ ⁠Sellers accepting personal checks—double-check (pun intended). Whether it’s a downpayment or full payment, make sure the check complies with the new format, or you could be holding a piece of paper that won’t clear.

Bottom line: it's a small detail that could cause big delays. Pass the word along—especially to your clients.

You may download BPI’s complete guidelines here: https://www.bpi.com.ph/content/dam/bau/news/deposit-updates/M.C.%203821%20-%20Important%20Reminder%20on%20Writing%20Checks.pdf