’Tis the season to pay our taxes

 Economy
Dec 292013
 
’Tis the season to pay our taxes

MANILA, Philippines – I have to admit it. I love what the BIR is doing. No country can progress without adequate state revenue. While nobody likes taxes, it’s the price we must pay to participate in, and benefit from a society. Many are flabbergasted at the recent ads that publicize the highest taxpayers — and by virtue those who are noticeably absent — which the BIR is sponsoring in the leading newspapers.  I think it’s fabulous. Let’s put a spotlight on all of it. Nothing purifies better than a bright spotlight. This approach is a proven tactic of the US Internal Revenue Service. In fact, it is fairly well established that each and every tax season, at least one prominent citizen — be it a top athlete or Hollywood star — is arrested and jailed for tax evasion. Why? To send a signal to the entire population that nobody is above the law. Tax avoidance is legal, but tax evasion is not. Just watch in the coming February-April window in the US press. We’ll see at least one famous individual on CNN being led to prison in handcuffs. It is imperative that the internal revenue bureau of any country sends clear signals. Who pays and who doesn’t. And that nobody is above the law. You evade your taxes and you go to jail — pure and simple. Doesn’t matter who you are, who your daddy is. How much money you have. The Philippines is on its way. But there is Read More …

Kaizen: BIR style

 Economy
Dec 112013
 

KAIZEN is a Japanese concept for continuous improvement. Literally, the word means “improvement” or “betterment”, but some may expand this to “the act of making bad points better”. With the issuance of Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 18-2013 on Nov. 28, it seems that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has dipped into kaizen by leveraging on past experience. RR 18-2013 amends certain provisions of RR 12-1999, the implementing regulations that contain the BIR’s procedures on issuing deficiency tax assessments.

DOF officials to arrive in Tacloban to address traders' concerns

 Economy
Nov 252013
 
DOF officials to arrive in Tacloban to address traders' concerns

MANILA, Philippines – Officials from the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) are set to arrive in Tacloban City this week to address concerns of business owners as they reopen their establishments weeks after typhoon Yolanda destroyed the city. “(The traders’) primary concern is security and … soft loans and implication of the BIR,” Lim said on Monday at an inter-agency meeting. He added that security options are also being studied by the business owners, and officials from major malls are also assessing when to open supermarkets. Lim said the aim is to have the supermarkets open by the second week of December.

No tax on cash donations from abroad – BIR

 Entertainment
Nov 192013
 
No tax on cash donations from abroad – BIR

U.S. Marine helps deliver relief goods to areas affected by Typhoon “Yolanda” on Friday (Nov. 15) at the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City. US Agency for International Development (USAID) was managing relief assistance for the victims of Typhoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan). (MNS photo) MANILA, Nov 18 (Mabuhay) – The Burea of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Monday clarified that no donor’s tax is imposed on cash donations from overseas. “Kung pera from abroad, wala naman binubuwisan ang gobyerno. Kasi kung donation, ang batas ng ibang bansa ang iiral, kung may donor’s tax sila or wala. As far as the Philippines is concerned, cash donations from abroad, walang donor’s tax yun. Kung meron babawasan, bank charges yun at di napupunta sa gobyerno,” BIR chief Kim Henares said. She added that there is no donor’s tax on local cash donations given to the government or accredited foundations. Donors can also deduct their donations from their income. However, cash donations made to organizations that are not accredited with the Department of Social Welfare and Development and NDRRMC may be taxed. “Kung nag-donate kayo sa isang hindi accredited (na organization), if beyon P100,000 ang donation niyo meron ho donor’s tax. Graduated yun. Up to P100,000 exempted naman yun,” Henares said. “Yung kumakalat sa Facebook na sinasabi nag-donate sila sa GCASH or Pasa Load ng P3,000 eh nabasawan pa, hindi ho buwis yun, charges ho yun at dapat magtanong sila sa telco nila,” she added. As for in-kind donations sent from abroad, the BIR chief Read More …

Napoles paid BIR staff to escape audit – whistleblower

 News
Oct 102013
 
Napoles paid BIR staff to escape audit – whistleblower

Pork barrel scam whistleblower Marina Sula said her former employer and alleged scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles had connections in the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). It went to the point that, Sula claimed in her affidavit, Napoles paid BIR employees to sweep under the rug the audit on the questionable assets of one of Napoles’ dubious corporations, according to a report that aired on “24 Oras” on Thursday. “I was present when our lawyer, Atty. Rocky Delson, negotiated with BIR officials and paid them to cease auditing JCLN Global Properties Development Corp.’s properties because the corporation had many assets but no sales,” Sula said in her August 2013 affidavit. Asked to name these BIR officials, Sula said in a separate affidavit that they are three male revenue officers in the BIR’s main office in Quezon City. “Hindi ko na po matandaan ang mga pangalan nung tatlong lalaking BIR Revenue Officers… Ang natatandaan ko lang ay taga-Investigation Department sila ng BIR National Office [Head Office] sa BIR Road sa Quezon City,” Sula said in her September 2013 affidavit. BIR chief Kim Henares said they would check on the officers who audited Napoles’ corporations. “We would check whether there was an audit conducted between those periods and who were the people auditing. And we will question them,” Henares said in the report. Sula said the JCLN Global Corp. was questioned by the BIR in 2009 and 2010 due to the number of its properties and assets despite having a low paid-up Read More …

BIR seeks IRS help in finding Napoles assets in United States

 News
Oct 102013
 
BIR seeks IRS help in finding Napoles assets in United States

BIR Commissioner Kim Henares. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue expects its American counterpart — the Internal Revenue Service — to help find any assets that Janet Lim Napoles and her family may have in the United States. BIR Commissioner Kim Henares confirmed, on Thursday, reports that the tax bureau has sought the assistance of the IRS, and she expressed confidence the latter would give a favorable response given the existence of a tax treaty between the Philippines and the United States. Henares said that under the tax treaty of the Philippines with the United States, as well as with many other countries, each of the two parties could seek the assistance of the other in pursuing people guilty or suspected of tax evasion. Member-countries of the influential and international group Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), to which the Philippines and the Unites States are members, are expected to help out in efforts to catch tax evaders and money launderers, according to Henares. “Cooperation [between internal revenue agencies of member-countries] is a common practice. Non-cooperative countries may be subjected to blacklisting by the OECD,” she said in a phone interview. “So, yes we [the BIR] have asked assistance of the IRS. In return, we should also help them in case they need information from the Philippines on tax matters,” Henares also said. The BIR thought of seeking help from the IRS amid reports the Napoles family may have assets in the United States, Read More …

BIR: Online filing of ITRs to be rolled out next year

 Economy
Sep 172013
 
BIR: Online filing of ITRs to be rolled out next year

MANILA, Philippines – Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Hernares on Tuesday said the tax collecting agency is now putting in place measures for the electronic filing of income tax returns (ITRs) by April next year. Henares said the agency is in talks with the Department of Budget and Management for the online payment system. “We will put up interactive forms for self-employed individuals to file their ITRs online with an option to pay electronically or through banks,” said Henares. She added that by next year, taxpayers will soon have the option to file their ITR either electronically or manually. She added that BIR is now pilot-testing other tax-related payments such as the value-added tax which it plans to implement by the end of the year. Other measures include the improvement of information technology capacity of registering corporations as well as properties, the state agency said. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “This will provide us assurance that those who registered with us are legitimate persons,” Henares said.

Appealing a BIR ruling

 Economy
Sep 162013
 

ASIDE from the pork barrel scam issue, I think that by now, many taxpayers are aware that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is working doubly hard to attain its collection goal. One of its strategies to achieve its target is to strictly enforce tax laws. This has resulted in the denial of request for rulings issued to some taxpayers, including the rulings on upstream merger (BIR Ruling No. 508-2012, Aug. 3, 2012), deductibility of royalties (BIR Ruling No. 014-2012, Jan. 4, 2012) and NOLCO (BIR Ruling No. 214-2012, March 28, 2012), among others.

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