What is GS1?

Get retail barcodes without GS1 Philippines membership fees

Selling in the Philippines and researching barcode registration? Buy genuine EAN and UPC product codes for a one-time fee — no membership application, no yearly renewal, and delivery by email within minutes.

Buy barcodes now Why barcodes.ph

GS1 is the largest barcode standards body in the world. They operate as a membership organisation: you apply to join, complete the registration process, and use their system to assign barcode numbers to your products. Member organisations such as GS1 Philippines charge annual membership and renewal fees for barcode licensing. That model suits large manufacturers who need company prefixes and thousands of GTINs — but it is often expensive and slow for small businesses and startups.

Barcodes Philippines offers barcodes for a one-time fee with no ongoing subscription. Many Filipino businesses prefer buying GTINs from us instead of joining GS1 Philippines. Whether you need one barcode or 5,000, we deliver them to your email within minutes of purchase. Ready to buy barcodes?

Membership registration vs buying barcodes outright

Typical membership route (GS1) Barcodes.ph
Cost model Annual membership + renewal fees One-time fee per barcode package
Setup time Application and onboarding process Purchase online - minutes by email
Quantity Often oriented to large prefix blocks From 1 barcode to 5,000+
Retail use in PH Accepted where GTIN standards apply Accepted — genuine EAN/UPC GTINs for retail & online

Unsure which option fits your products? Contact us and tell us about your situation. We'll help you get your products barcoded and into stores in the Philippines and worldwide quickly and efficiently.

Common questions about barcode registration

Not if you buy with barcodes.ph. All retailers and marketplaces in the Philippines accept our International Barcodes Network-issued barcodes to the best of our knowledge. Please see our retailer acceptance information for full details. This data is gathered from all International Barcodes Network sites around the world (over 120 country sites).

Yes — our EAN-13 and UPC-A numbers are genuine GTINs in international barcode formats, used on retail products worldwide. Thousands of Philippine businesses use them on physical products and online listings in the Philippines and globally. For marketplace-specific steps, see our Shopee & Lazada barcode guide.

Membership means paying recurring fees to assign numbers from a shared prefix under a standards organisation. Buying outright means you pay once for barcode numbers that are yours to use on your products without annual renewal. Barcodes Philippines supplies numbers originating from pre-2002 UCC allocations — see the UCC settlement below for the legal background on perpetual use without renewal fees.

We provide a complete ecosystem including a self-service customer portal, barcode registration in barcodesdatabase.org, ibnverified.org and philippineproducts.info, free 2D barcode image generation and much more — all free for our customers.

Barcode History

In the 1990s, GS1 operated in most parts of the world, licensing 13-digit barcode numbers to their members. Meanwhile, in the USA, a separate organisation called the Uniform Code Council (UCC) sold 12-digit barcode numbers outright, with no ongoing fees. The UCC numbers are effectively a subset of the 13-digit system. In the late 1990s, the UCC merged with GS1, becoming GS1-US.

Following the merger, GS1 decided to impose annual license fees on all members, even those who had originally purchased barcodes outright. Unsurprisingly, this led to a court case in the early 2000s, which the original UCC members won. GS1 paid a multi-million dollar settlement, and the court ruled that UCC-issued numbers were outside GS1's control, meaning no ongoing fees are required. These are the numbers we buy in bulk and resell — they've never been used on retail products, making them effectively new.

Selling products in the Philippines and need barcodes without a membership subscription? Our EAN and UPC packages include instant email delivery and optional free barcode registration.

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UCC settlement (legal background)

UCC Settlement

Agreement

Lukins & Annis P.S. 1405 South Pioneer Way Moses Lake WA 98837-2458 Phone: (509) 765-9555 Fax: (509) 765-4265 The class action suit filed by Lukins & Annis has been settled and those who signed up as part of the class have been paid. If a person or company did not specifically opt out of the class action suit, they are bound by the settlement and cannot file a new law suit for the same greivence. It does not matter what state they are in or even if they were not aware of the suit. Feel free to contact us at any time with any question.

Case Overview

This lawsuit claims that businesses that paid membership fees to UCC and acquired a company prefix from UCC prior to August 28, 2002, are not obligated to pay annual "renewal fees" to UCC. Uniform Code Council reaches $3.89 million settlement with long-time members in renewal fee action. The parties have reached a tentative $3,895,000 settlement in an USA nationwide action filed against the Uniform Code Council, Inc. on behalf of all persons that paid a membership fee to and acquired a company prefix from UCC prior to August 28, 2002, and to whom UCC mailed an unreturned "renewal invoice" for membership in UCC, or who otherwise paid a renewal fee to UCC.

The settlement provides that:

Annual Renewal Fees
If you paid a membership fee to UCC prior to August 28, 2002, you will be entitled to perpetual membership in UCC and not be obligated to pay annual renewal fees to UCC, either now or in the future, as a condition for continued membership in UCC, or as a condition for your continued use of the company prefix issued to you before August 28, 2002. However, this does not apply to any company prefix(es) issued to you by UCC after August 28, 2002.
UCC's Licensing Agreement
If you are such a member, UCC's "licensing agreement" which pertains to your company prefix and accompanied UCC's renewal invoice will be declared null and void.
Compensation
If you are such a member and you have paid the renewal fee, you are entitled to compensation from the settlement fund.
Benefits
  • If you are such a member, you will be entitled to basic membership benefits, which are:
  • Continued use of your company prefix issued by the UCC prior to August 28, 2002
  • Listing of your company in the UCC membership directory
  • Discount pricing on UCC events and products
  • Membership support through the UCC's Customer Service organization, educational events, and Equipment/Service Provider Directories.
  • Though you are not required to pay a membership renewal fee, you may choose to do so.
Enhanced Benefits
Such payment entitles members to certain enhanced benefits:
  • Access to the online UCC Solution Center
  • Enhanced supply chain support through UCC's customer service team
  • Free web seminars on supply chain solutions and a quarterly newsletter
If you file a claim for reimbursement of your annual renewal fee, such enhanced benefits will not be available to you, unless you begin paying annual renewal fees sometime in the future. Your share of the settlement fund will depend on how much you paid UCC as a renewal fee and on the number of class members who file claims seeking compensation from the fund. As illustration, if every single eligible class member timely filed a claim, your gross recovery would be roughly 48% of the renewal fee you paid. Similarly, if half of the eligible class members file claims, your gross recovery would be roughly 100% of the renewal fee you paid.

Conclusion

The action alleged that the company violated its own contract with exempt customers by attempting to require them to pay unnecessary fees. To take part in the settlement, participants must submit a claim form postmarked no later than March 10, 2004. UCC began sending annual "renewal fee" invoices to its existing members beginning in November 2002 and continued to send such invoices until June 2003. Some businesses that received the invoice paid the unnecessary renewal fee. Others did not. The action seeks a court order declaring that businesses who became members of UCC prior to August 28, 2002, are under no obligation to pay annual renewal fees as a condition for continued membership in UCC or as a condition for their continued use of the company prefix issued to them by UCC prior to August 28, 2002. The suit also seeks to recover damages for those who did pay the "renewal fee" invoice.
Regarding the class action law suit brought by the law firm: Bronson & Associates Attorneys at Law 15 West 8th Street Suite A Tracy CA 95376

Original Agreement

The class action suit filed by: Lukins & Annis, P.S. 1405 South Pioneer Way Moses Lake, WA 98837-2458 Phone: (509) 765-9555 Fax: (509) 765-4265 has been settled and those who signed up as part of the class have been paid. If a person or company did not specifically opt out of the class action suit, they are bound by the settlement and cannot file a new law suit for the same greivence. It does not matter what state they are in or even if they were not aware of the suit.
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