MANILA – The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on Monday conducted the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) roadshow to educate taxpayers on the updates brought about by the EOPT Law on the country's taxation system.
The EOPT roadshow Metro Manila Cluster, which was held at the PICC, Pasay City, is the first of the series of roadshows that the BIR will be conducting this year to educate taxpayers about the EOPT law and the new regulations issued by the BIR.
"Taxation is for everyone. Everyone needs to be educated with our system of taxation. The BIR aims to create an inclusive environment with taxpayers. The BIR will reach out to taxpayers so they can be informed of their tax obligations," Lumagui said.
"The taxpayer can also reach out to the BIR for comments or suggestions on improving tax administration in the Philippines. The BIR and taxpayers are partners in nation-building," he added.
The Ease of Paying Taxes Act introduces administrative tax reforms and amendments to several sections of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997.
Signed into law in January this year, its salient features are the classification of taxpayers into micro, small, medium and large; electronic or manual filing of returns and payment taxes either to the BIR, through any authorized agent bank or authorized tax software provider; option to pay internal revenue taxes removal to the city or municipal treasurer; the elimination of the distinction between documentation and basis of sales of goods and services; and the classification of value-added tax refund claims into low, medium and high-risk.
Lumagui is hopeful that the streamlined process of tax filing and paying taxes will hopefully help the BIR attain its revenue collection target.
For April, the BIR is tasked to collect around PHP406 billion.
"We're positive and I hope that we will really be able to accomplish the goal for the month of April," he said.
Data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed that as of the first three months of the year, the BIR's collection amounted to PHP591.8 billion, up by 17.15 percent from the PHP505.2 billion collections in the first quarter of 2023.
Department of Finance Undersecretary for the Revenue Operations Group Charlito Martin Mendoza, for his part, said the EOPT law will help create an environment that is conducive to entrepreneurship, investment and innovation.
"So hopefully by simplifying tax compliance procedures, reducing red tape, and harnessing technology, we would be able to encourage an atmosphere of trust and confidence between the government and the taxpayers so that they will voluntarily comply with their tax obligations and therefore avoid tax avoidance or tax evasion," Mendoza said.
"Hopefully, especially with this new law, we would be able to simplify tax compliance and therefore generate additional revenues for the government," he added. (PNA)
