Tax relief law for private schools a ‘much-needed reprieve’ amid pandemic – Cayetano

 (INQUIRER/GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / file photo)

MANILA, Philippines — The newly signed law that will give preferential tax treatment to all private schools, whether for profit or non-profit, will provide “much-needed reprieve” for such institutions amid the “uncertainties” brought about by the pandemic, Senator Pia Cayetano said.

In a statement Thursday, Cayetano welcomed the enactment of Republic Act No. 11635, which amends Section 27(B) of the National Internal Revenue Code, to “clearly indicate” that all proprietary educational institutions, whether for profit or non profit, shall enjoy the 10 percent preferential tax rate.

The new law shall also allow the schools to be covered by a provision under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act, which reduced the tax rate of such institutions from 10 percent to 1 percent until June 30, 2023, Cayetano noted.

“Private schools are the government’s partners in education. In this time of pandemic, they need as much assistance as they can get to continue delivering quality education to Filipino learners,” the senator said.

“The enactment of Republic Act (RA) 11635 comes as a welcome development for them amid the uncertainties of the times, as rising COVID-19 cases forced us to restrict face-to-face classes to start the New Year,” she added.

“With this measure, private schools would be given much-needed reprieve to cope with the continuing challenges caused by the pandemic, starting with their own financial viability and sustainability,” she also said.

As chairperson of the Senate ways and means committee, Cayetano sponsored the measure in the upper chamber.

Cayetano further stressed that the law was the result of “continuous dialogue and cooperation among the various stakeholders.”

“We worked with the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the private schools, led by the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations of the Philippines (COCOPEA), to root out the issues and find a common solution,” she added.

The senator then highlighted the need to continue working with the government’s partners in education in order to formulate “long-term solutions in terms of policy and budget, using strategic foresight and futures thinking to help this sector recover from the pandemic, and beyond.”

“This is part of our country’s commitment under Sustainable Development Goal No. 4, which is  to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education for all by year 2030,” said Cayetano, who also chairs the Senate Committee on Sustainable Development Goals, Innovation and Futures Thinking.

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