Gov’t to lose P40B in revenues if bill raising cap on tax exemption is passed

Bureau of Internal Revenue building. INQUIRER file photo

MANILA, Philippines – The government stands to lose as much as P40 billion in revenues if a House bill seeking to raise the tax ceiling exemption of workers is passed, a finance official warned.

Department of Finance undersecretary Jeremiah Paul told the House ways and means committee Tuesday that revenue loss would range from P10.3 billion to P43.6 billion if House Bill 248 is passed.

“From the fiscal perspective, we want to look at the broader picture,” Paul said.
The bill authored by ACT Teachers Representative Antonio Tinio sought to increase the ceiling for tax exemption on the 13^th-month bonus and other benefits of private and public sector workers to P60,000, from P30,000 as stated in the National Internal Revenue Code.

The bill would then amend the said revenue code.

“The ceiling now rendered the exception from the taxation of much less value,” Tinio told the ways and means committee in a presentation. He was accompanied by teachers of unions and militant groups.

Tinio added that the present ceiling has been in place for 17 years already.

He cited teachers who are taxed heavily despite having a low salary.

For his part, ways and means committee chair Marikina City Rep. Romero “Miro” Quimbo said the BIR should look for other ways to generate revenue instead of imposing the burden to workers.

House Bill 248 has been pending with the committee since July 2013.

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