Quezon City is expanding its digital government services by giving entrepreneurs a more inclusive way to identify themselves when applying for business permits. The city's QC Biz Easy platform now includes a non-binary option for applicants who do not identify exclusively as male or female.
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A More Inclusive Business Process
The new feature allows business owners who do not want to select male or female to use a gender option that more accurately represents their identity during the permit application process. Beyond making the transaction more accommodating, city officials said the change can also improve the accuracy of information collected by the local government.
Better data can help Quezon City develop policies, programs, and services that more closely correspond to the realities and needs of its business community.
Mayor Joy Belmonte said the update reflects the city's broader approach to inclusive governance, where residents should be able to deal with government institutions with dignity, respect, and equal opportunity.
“The true measure of innovation is not how advanced a system becomes, but how many people it empowers,” Belmonte said.
She added that recognizing different identities within the business permit process can encourage more entrepreneurs to take part in the city's economic activity while making government services more responsive to the people they serve.
The enhancement follows a commitment made by Quezon City during the 2025 QC LGBTIQ+ Business Summit. At the event, city officials pledged to examine the online business permit system and find ways to improve how information from non-binary business owners is recorded.
The Business Permits and Licensing Department (BPLD) said Quezon City may be among the first local government units in the Philippines to provide a non-binary gender option on its business permit application form.
Digital Services Designed for More Filipinos
The update is part of Quezon City's wider digital transformation efforts, which aim to make government transactions more convenient and efficient while ensuring that digital services reflect the diversity of the communities using them.
City officials said more inclusive data collection can also give policymakers a stronger basis for developing business assistance programs and other initiatives. By gathering information that more accurately represents entrepreneurs, the local government can better understand the business sector and shape services around their actual circumstances.
For entrepreneurs, changes like this can make routine government transactions feel more accessible and respectful. More broadly, the initiative shows how digitalization can go beyond simply making processes faster by making public services more responsive to the people they are intended to serve. In a major economic center like Quezon City, a more inclusive business environment can help encourage wider participation in entrepreneurship while offering a model that other local governments in the Philippines may consider as they modernize their own services.
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