Taxing online sellers ‘started during Aquino administration’, according to the Palace.
The Palace on Monday said that the policy of requiring online sellers in the Philippines to register with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and pay taxes already started during the Aquino administration.
This, as Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Monday said in a televised briefing that the Duterte administration was only implementing the policy that was made during the term of BIR Commissioner Kim Henares.
The records from the Bureau of Internal Revenue showed that BIR Commissioner Kim Henares issued Revenue Memorandum Circular 55-2013 last August 2013 in order to remind those who engaged in online business transactions with their tax obligations. As per RMC 55-2013, it stated that any person engaged in e-commerce who failed to comply with their applicable tax laws, rules, and regulations will be penalized.
Previously, some senators slammed the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s latest move, claiming that BIR’s move was “ill-timed” and “insensitive” in the middle of a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. On Sunday, Senate Majority Leader Miguel Zubiri instead proposed to impose heavy taxes on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) n the country.
Although the Department of Finance on Friday clarified that the current BIR memorandum requiring online sellers to register and declare their past transactions wasn’t meant to squeeze money out of their incomes.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque restated that those online sellers who earned an annual income of PHP 250,000 and below were exempted from paying taxes.
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