19 more medicines now VAT-exempt – BIR

The Bureau of Internal Revenue headquarters on Agham Road in Quezon City. —INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Nineteen maintenance and lifesaving medicines have been included in the list of those exempted from value-added tax (VAT), benefiting more people.

Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr., during the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing on Thursday, said nine medicines were included under Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) 59-2025 issued on June 11, 2025, while the other 10 are covered by RMC 62-2025.

He said the inclusion of the medications for VAT exemption was based on the recommendation of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Of the total, seven of these medicines are for cancer treatment; three each for diabetes, hypertension, and mental illness; and one each for high cholesterol, kidney disease, and tuberculosis.

“Ang mga ito ay mga maintenance at lifesaving medicines na ngayon ay hindi na papatawan ng VAT. Isang kongkretong hakbang para mas mapagaan ang gastuhin ng mga pasyente (These are maintenance and lifesaving medicines that will now be exempt from VAT. This move is a concrete step to lower patients’ expenses),” Lumagui said.

The BIR chief said both the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law and the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law provide VAT exemptions on certain health products.

He said BIR coordinates with the FDA and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), among others, to monitor compliance among pharmaceutical companies and drugstores regarding these price changes.

READ: FDA adds 10 more drugs to VAT-free medications

“(Ito ay) upang masiguradong maipapasa ang benepisyo, naipapasa ang benepisyo sa mga mamamayan (This is to ensure that the benefit will be passed, is being passed to the people),” he said.

The public can file complaints for non-compliance with BIR through contact_us@bir.gov.ph, the FDA, and the DTI, he added.