By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on July 25,2024 Last July 11, 2024, I joined as one of the panelists in the 11th PICPA-Cebu Summit where I discussed the pending PIFITA or the Passive Income and Financial Intermediary Taxation Act Bill (House Bill No. 4339) which seeks to reform the…

By: Atty. Raida Argelli G. Grefiel on July 18,2024 Our National Internal Revenue Code, as amended (the “Tax Code”) empowers the Commissioner of Internal Revenue (“CIR”) to conduct an assessment of the taxes paid by a taxpayer through the CIR's duly authorized representative armed with a validly issued Letter of…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on July 11,2024 On 13 June 2024, President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. signed into law Republic Act No. 12001, the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RP-VAR Act), which will change significantly the landscape of our real property valuation (and consequently, their taxation). The…

By: Atty. Lew Earvin H. Manarin on July 4, 2024 Mergers play a crucial role in the corporate landscape. Mergers help companies compete better, keep up with new technology, and handle economic changes more effectively. Overall, mergers can be essential catalysts for growth and staying competitive in a fast-changing market.…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on June 27,2024 Republic Act No. 11976, the Ease of Paying Taxes Act (“EOPTA”), repealed Section 34(K) of the National Internal Revenue Code (“Tax Code”) which provides that expenses or income payments are allowed as deductions from gross income “only if it is shown…

By: Atty. Xela Leona D. Laqui on June 20,2024 In the recent case Integrated Bar of the Philippines v. Purisima, (G.R. Nos. 211772 and 212178, April 18, 2023) (the “IBP Case”), the Supreme Court invalidated portions of Sections 2(1) and 2(2) of Bureau of Internal Revenue (“BIR”) Revenue Regulations (“RR”)…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on June 13,2024 Our Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is now open to developing the financial technology (“Fintech”) industry and adopting the latest innovations in this industry in the Philippines.  In April of this year, the SEC, through its newly established PhiliFintech Innovation Office…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on June 6,2024 We are doubly blessed, as we celebrated our firm’s 11th anniversary yesterday, June 4, 2024.  Eleven is double one—as what Fr. Pat Villasanta of the Salesian Order said, double one means double blessings, as the number 1 represents God. My partner,…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on May 23,2024 Our government is poised to expand its wings, to take advantage of the global growth of the digital economy. The Senate approved on third reading Senate Bill (SB) No. 2528, a bill proposing to impose the 12% value-added tax (VAT) on…

By: Atty. Rio Krisel G. Bautista on May 16,2024 Section 249 of the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended (the “Tax Code”), provides for deficiency interest and delinquency interest, which may be assessed and collected on any unpaid amount of tax. Deficiency interest is assessed and collected from the date…

By: Atty. Raida Argeli Grefiel on May 2,2024 The National Internal Revenue Code, as amended, (the “Tax Code”) authorizes the Commissioner of Internal Revenue (“CIR”) or his duly authorized representative to conduct audits, in light of the power of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (“BIR”) to assess and collect taxes.…

By: Atty. Cara Angela N. Flores on April 25,2024 Section 203 of the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended (the “Tax Code”), entitled “Period of Limitation Upon Assessment and Collection”, provides that taxes shall be assessed within three (3) years after the last day prescribed by law for the filing…

By: Atty. Xela Leona D. Laqui on April 18,2024 Under Section 222 of the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended (“Tax Code”), the ten-year prescriptive period for the Commissioner of Internal Revenue (CIR) to assess tax applies in cases where a taxpayer files a false or fraudulent return with intent…

By: Atty. Sarah T. Ganto on April 5,2024 With the issuance of Revenue Memorandum Circular (“RMC”) No. 5-2024, as clarified by RMC No. 38-2024, on the taxation of cross-border services, another topic tackled by the said RMCs equally merits discussion: the taxation of reimbursements among multinational enterprises. RMC No. 5-2024…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on March 21,2024 On March 15, 2024, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued Revenue Memorandum Circular No. (RMC) No. 38-2024 clarifying its earlier pronouncements in RMC No. 5-2024 on the taxation of cross-border transactions.  To recall, in Aces Philippines Cellular Satellite Corp. v.…

By: Atty. Lew Earvin Manarin on March 14,2024 The Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (the “CREATE Act”) introduced amendments to our National Internal Revenue Code (“Tax Code”) which were aimed to eliminate tax uncertainty, offer tax assistance to struggling enterprises affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and streamline…

By: Atty. Keanu P. Castañeda on March 7,2024 Republic Act No. 11976 otherwise known as the “Ease of Paying Taxes” (“EOPT”) amended Sections 204 and 229 of our National Internal Revenue Code, as amended (the “Tax Code”) and modified the rules and procedures on the claims for refund of erroneously…

By: Atty. Jigo P. Arevalo on February 28,2024 The world of international trade, particularly for agricultural products, can be a labyrinth of regulations and tariffs. Like many other countries, the Philippines navigates this intricate landscape using a system of Tariff-Rate Quotas (TRQs), specifically in-quota and out-quota rates. Understanding these terms…

By: Atty. Nica Marsha V. Gasapo on February 22,2024. In Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Toledo Power Corporation (G.R. No. 259309, February 13, 2023) (the “Toledo Case”), the Supreme Court overturned the findings of the Court of Tax Appeals (“CTA”) both in Division and En Banc, and held that payments…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on February 15,2024 In their position paper dated February 13, 2024, representatives of certain private sector groups requested Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui to review, revisit, and reconsider the provisions of Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 5-2024 dated January 10, 2024,…

By: Atty. Nica Marsha V. Gasapo on February 8,2024 The Financial Rehabilitation and Insolvency Act (“FRIA”) or Republic Act No. 10142 was enacted with the aim of offering debtors an avenue to preserve and maximize the value of their assets and prioritize claims; and, at the same time, ensuring fair…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on February 2,2024 In my interview with Business Outlook last Thursday, January 24, 2024, I was asked if we are competitive as a country from a taxation point of view.  I mentioned that while there have been efforts, through tax reforms, to make the…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on January 25,2024 In its Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 5-2024 (RMC 5-2024), the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is espousing new rules regarding the situs or source of income.  RMC 5-2024 sprung from the decision of the Supreme Court in Aces Philippines Cellular Satellite…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on January 18,2024 In taxation of foreign corporations in the Philippines, the determination of source of income is key, and this determination has taken a significant turn lately. Taxation is an inherent power of sovereignty of a state. For a state to exercise such…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on January 11,2024 The Philippine tax scene is abuzz again with the passage of Republic Act No. 11976, or the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act on January 5, 2024.  The main objective of the Act is to provide a healthy environment for the…

By: Atty. Euney Marie J. Mata-Perez on January 4,2024 Happy new year everyone!  Time flies so fast, and we are now in 2024.  It has been four years that our law firm, Mata-Perez, Tamayo & Francisco has been contributing weekly to this column, More to Follow Column of The Manila…

By: Atty. Nica Marsha Gasapo on December 21,2023 As the curtains fall on another trip around the sun, it is important to dissect the events that unfolded in the past months. The conclusion of the year is not merely a time for reflective musings; it also a strategic and opportune…