Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, who heads the Senate committee on ways and means, said it is the responsibility of Filipinos to pay the right amount of taxes due them. FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Monday urged taxpayers to file their income tax returns as soon as possible to beat the April 17 deadline.
Gatchalian, who heads the Senate committee on ways and means, said it is the responsibility of Filipinos to pay the right amount of taxes due them.
“As responsible citizens of the country, taxpayers have a collective obligation to pay the right amount of taxes due them,” he said in a statement.
“Revenues generated by the government enable the implementation of various programs and projects necessary to promote economic growth,” Gatchalian added.
According to the senator, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has set a revenue collection target of ₱2.599 trillion for 2023 versus last year’s actual tax haul of ₱2.3 trillion.
“Wala nang dahilan pa ang mga taxpayers na hindi makapag-file ng kanilang income tax return bago o pagdating ng deadline lalo na’t maaari na silang pumunta saan mang branch ng BIR o bangkong otorisado ng BIR,” he said.
(Taxpayers don’t have an excuse not to file their income tax returns before the deadline since they can just go to any branch of the BIR or authorized banks to do so.)
Under Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 32-2023, taxpayers can now file their 2022 Annual Income Tax Return (AITR) on or before the deadline of April 17 and pay the corresponding taxes anywhere.
This means they can pay through any BIR-authorized banks or revenue collection officers and BIR district offices aside from where the taxpayer is registered.
Gatchalian also called on the BIR to accelerate its digitalization in order to further make it easy for taxpayers to settle their obligations.
The lawmaker earlier filed a bill seeking to empower taxpayers by educating them on their basic rights and obligations, which he hopes would subsequently enhance the government’s revenue-collection efforts.
Under Senate Bill 1199 or the Taxpayers Bill of Rights and Obligations, the senator sought the creation of the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate, envisioned to ensure that taxpayers’ rights are safeguarded.
According to the senator, among the basic rights of taxpayers provided in the proposed measure is the right to participate in taxpayer dialogues and information or education campaigns of revenue authorities.