Philippines’ Manila Malacañang said on Sunday that a bill aimed at strengthening taxpayer rights and improving the efficacy and efficiency of tax administration has been signed into law by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
According to the Presidential Communications Office, on January 5, Marcos signed Republic Act 11976, popularly referred to as the “Ease of Paying Taxes Act.” It is the administration’s top legislative goal.”
“By streamlining the system and minimizing the burden on taxpayers, the law allows the government to capture as many taxpayers as possible into the tax net, increasing the country’s revenue collection in the long run.”
The division of taxpayers into micro, small, medium, and large groups; the option to pay internal revenue taxes to the city or municipal treasurer; and the electronic or manual filing of returns and payment of taxes to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), authorized agent banks, or tax software providers were some of the law’s salient features.
The law divides value-added tax refund applications into three categories: low, medium, and high-risk. It also does away with the distinction between paperwork and the basis of sales of goods and services.
The proposal also offers non-resident taxpayers registration facilities; it promotes and assists with tax procedures; it reduces the amount of documentation needed; and it digitizes BIR services.
According to the Palace, “it also requires the agency to adopt an integrated digitalization strategy by providing end-to-end solutions for the benefit of taxpayers in order to improve the performance and efficiency of the BIR.”
