The Energy Regulatory Commission has introduced new rules designed to make electricity bills easier to understand and prevent consumers from being charged twice for the same costs.
Filipino households may soon see some changes in the way electricity charges appear on their monthly bills.
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has adopted a new billing format that requires distribution utilities to clearly and separately identify government-mandated pass-through charges, including allowable system loss charges that are not subject to value-added tax (VAT).
At the same time, the regulator has introduced new rules governing “Other Charges” that electricity providers can collect from consumers.
The changes are part of the ERC’s broader effort to make electricity billing more transparent and protect consumers from unnecessary or duplicate charges.
What Is Changing on Your Electricity Bill?
One of the major changes involves the system loss charge.
System loss refers to electricity that is lost as power travels through the distribution system. The ERC previously declared the allowable system loss charge a government-mandated pass-through cost that is excluded from the VAT base.
Under the new billing format, distribution utilities must identify this charge separately instead of including it with other VAT-applicable items.
The ERC said the new format should make it easier for consumers to distinguish between charges that are subject to VAT and government-mandated pass-through charges that are not.
For households, this means the electricity bill should provide a clearer breakdown of what they are actually paying for.
New Rules Aim to Prevent Double Charging
Another important change concerns “Other Charges.”
Under ERC Resolution No. 30, Series of 2026, distribution utilities may generally collect these charges only for specific customer-requested or account-related services that create additional costs, such as certain connection, disconnection, and reconnection services.
The regulator has also standardized how these charges should be calculated.
Only costs directly related to providing the service — including direct labor, deployment and fuel, and replacement materials — may generally be included. Administrative and overhead expenses cannot be separately passed on as “Other Charges” because these costs are already recovered through approved rates.
More importantly, costs that have already been recovered through approved Distribution, Supply, and Metering rates cannot be collected again through Other Charges.
In other words, the new rules are intended to prevent consumers from effectively paying twice for the same cost.
What About Late Payment Fees?
The ERC has also set safeguards around late payment charges.
Under the new rules, a distribution utility may charge a late payment fee of up to 2% of the current month’s bill or the unpaid portion, whichever is lower.
The fee can only be charged once per bill and must appear as a separate line item on the succeeding billing statement. Utilities must also properly serve a Notice of Disconnection before disconnecting a customer’s service for nonpayment.
This gives consumers a clearer way to identify exactly how much of their bill comes from late payment charges.
When Will Consumers See the Changes?
Distribution utilities have been given 90 calendar days from the effective date of the new rules to adjust their billing systems, IT infrastructure, and accounting records. They are also required to make their approved schedules of Other Charges accessible through their official websites, social media platforms, and physical bulletin boards.
The new billing format under ERC Resolution No. 28, Series of 2026, takes effect following its required publication, while ERC Resolution No. 30 sets the new framework for Other Charges.
What This Means for Filipino Households
The changes do not mean that every household will suddenly see a dramatically lower electricity bill.
Instead, the immediate focus is transparency and clearer billing.
Consumers should be able to see which charges are subject to VAT, which are government-mandated pass-through costs, and which additional fees are being collected for specific services.
For households trying to keep track of monthly expenses, that clearer breakdown can make it easier to check their bills and question charges that do not appear to match the approved rules.
The ERC’s latest measures essentially put more emphasis on a simple principle: Filipinos should be able to understand what they are paying for every time they open their electricity bill.