BIR closes down 9 Tondo shops for total of P25M in unpaid taxes

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) last Thursday shut down nine shops in Tondo, Manila due to unpaid taxes totaling about P25 million.

In a statement, the BIR identified the nine establishments, all located along Santo Cristo Street, as follows: ADD 1 Enterprise, BS Exponent Ville Marketing, Evertrix Enterprises, JPC Candy Shoppe Inc., Lorex Bazar Company, MKY General Merchandise, WBT Pharmacy and General Merchandise, YUSUN Inc., and ZYX Enterprises.

“The said establishments substantially underdeclared their correct taxable sales or receipts, in violation of the Tax Code” or the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended, the BIR said.

Also, they “failed to comply with the requirements specified in the 48-hour notice and the five-day value added tax (VAT) compliance notice, including their failure to settle their VAT liabilities,” the BIR added.

BIR Deputy Commissioner Nelson M. Aspe issued the closure orders for the nine establishments, pursuant to Section 115 of the Tax Code.

The BIR padlocks tax-deficient establishments under its “Oplan Kandado” program.

The Oplan Kandado and Run Against Tax Evaders (Rate) programs were consistently among the top priority programs of the country’s biggest tax-collection agency, as these have “significant impact to the attainment of the revenue goal,” BIR Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares had said. Rate brings alleged tax evaders to court.

As of end-July, the BIR’s collections grew 8 percent year-on-year to P824.1 billion, although 14-percent lower than the P958.4-billion goal.

The BIR targets to collect P1.674 trillion in taxes by yearend. Ben O. de Vera