The short answer
- The law
- RA 12254, the E-Governance Act, signed September 5, 2025
- Who it covers
- All of government, including local government units
- What LGUs must do
- Put services online through their own portal or the DICT's eLGU system, and keep an up-to-date website with an e-bulletin board
- The standard coming
- A Local Government Digital Service Standard for permits, clearances, taxes, civil registry and citizen requests
- Who pays
- The LGU's own funds, with DICT support for unserved and underserved municipalities
Does it cover barangays?
The Act applies to “local government units” and does not mention barangays by name. But the 1987 Constitution lists barangays among the country's territorial and political subdivisions, and the Local Government Code treats them as local government units. So barangays are within the law's scope.
In practice, how the rules apply to a barangay, and how much its city or municipality does on its behalf, will depend on DILG and DICT guidance. Ask your DILG field office, and your city or municipal ICT office, what they expect from your barangay.
What the law requires of LGUs
- An online portal or eLGU (Sec. 9(b)). Each LGU establishes its own portal or uses the DICT's eLGU system. An LGU that cannot set up its own within one year of the law taking effect must use eLGU.
- Connection to the national portal (Sec. 9(h)). Existing government systems, including those of LGUs, are to be integrated into the government's online public service portal.
- A website and an e-bulletin board (Sec. 20). LGUs must keep improving their websites and set up an e-bulletin board for public notices.
- Information security (Sec. 24). National and local government offices must protect the information in their systems.
- An annual report (Sec. 36). Government offices, local ones included, report each year on how far they have implemented the Act.
- Local funding (Sec. 32). The cost of implementing the Act at the local level is charged to the funds of the LGU concerned.
Your own portal, or eLGU?
eLGU is the DICT's ready-made e-government system for local governments, and the DICT provides its software and infrastructure to unserved and underserved municipalities. Your own portal gives you your own website, your own services and control over how they work, but under the implementing rules it has to be certified against the national standard below.
- eLGU
- Provided by the DICT. The default for LGUs that do not build their own, and the fallback for those whose systems are not certified.
- Own portal
- Built or procured by the LGU. Must meet the Local Government Digital Service Standard, pass DICT technical validation, and integrate with the eGovPH app.
The Local Government Digital Service Standard
The implementing rules, signed March 24, 2026, direct the DICT and the DILG to publish a Local Government Digital Service Standard (LGDSS) within one year of the rules taking effect. It sets out which services local governments must offer online, including:
- Business permits, clearances and licenses
- Revenue and taxation services
- Civil registry services
- Citizen request and feedback mechanisms
An LGU that develops or procures its own system must show full compliance with the standard to be certified, and its system is validated by the DICT for interoperability and integration with national systems. Only LGUs certified as compliant and integrated with the eGovPH app are deemed compliant; those that are not must adopt the DICT's eLGU. The DICT reviews the standard at least every two years.
For a barangay, the lines that matter most are clearances and citizen requests: the documents residents come to the hall for are named services.
Timeline
- September 5, 2025
- RA 12254 signed. It takes effect 15 days after publication.
- One year after that
- LGUs without their own portal must use eLGU.
- October 2025
- Separately, DILG MC 2025-104 requires every barangay to adopt BIMS for its records.
- March 24, 2026
- Implementing rules signed.
- Within a year of the rules
- The DICT and DILG publish the Local Government Digital Service Standard.
Confirm the exact deadlines that apply to your LGU with your DILG field office.
How it fits with other rules
- BIMS. The DILG's records system, which every barangay must adopt. It is where the DILG expects your records and reports to live; your online services sit alongside it. How a portal and BIMS work together.
- The Data Privacy Act. Online services collect residents' personal data, and the barangay stays responsible for it. Barangays do not appoint their own Data Protection Officer; the city or municipality may designate a Compliance Officer for Privacy for each barangay (DILG MC 2024-135).
- Full Disclosure. Barangays already post six financial documents on a board and on their website if they have one (DILG MC 2010-149, as amended by MC 2014-81). A website and e-bulletin board are the natural home for them.
What a barangay can do now
- 01List the services residents come to the hall for, starting with clearances and certificates.
- 02Ask your DILG field office and your city or municipal ICT office what they expect: eLGU, a shared city system, or your own portal.
- 03Get a proper website with a bulletin board for notices, and put your Full Disclosure documents on it.
- 04Talk to your Compliance Officer for Privacy before collecting personal data online.
- 05If you build or buy a system, require that it can meet the digital service standard and connect to national systems, and that the barangay owns its data and domain.
- 06Keep BIMS up to date for your records, whatever you choose for online services.
Frequently asked questions
Does the E-Governance Act apply to barangays?
The Act covers local government units. It does not name barangays specifically, but barangays are local government units under the 1987 Constitution and the Local Government Code, so they are within its scope. Check with your DILG field office for guidance specific to barangays.
What is the deadline under RA 12254?
LGUs that cannot set up their own portal within one year of the law taking effect must use the DICT's eLGU system. Separately, the DICT and DILG must publish the Local Government Digital Service Standard within one year of the implementing rules taking effect.
Can a barangay use its own system instead of eLGU?
Yes. The Act lets an LGU set up its own portal. Under the implementing rules, a system an LGU builds or procures must meet the Local Government Digital Service Standard and pass DICT validation to be certified; otherwise the LGU adopts eLGU.
Who pays for it?
The Act charges the cost of implementing it at the local level to the funds of the LGU concerned. The DICT provides eLGU software and infrastructure to unserved and underserved municipalities.
Is BIMS the same as eLGU?
No. BIMS is the DILG's system for barangay records, which every barangay is required to adopt under DILG MC 2025-104. eLGU is the DICT's e-government system named in the E-Governance Act. They serve different purposes.
Where Bytebento BOS fits
Bytebento BOS gives a barangay its own portal on its own domain: residents request clearances and certificates online, the Full Disclosure documents are published, and the barangay owns its data. It runs alongside BIMS. The digital service standard is not published yet; when it is, we will align BOS with it. See Bytebento BOS.
General information, not legal advice. The Act's implementing rules and the standard are still being rolled out, so confirm current requirements with the DILG and the DICT.