DOF issues rules on tax deadline extensions

MANILA — Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has issued the revenue regulations extending the deadlines for filing of tax returns, submission of documents, and the payment of taxes, pursuant to Republic Act 11469, otherwise known as “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.”

According to Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 7-2020 dated March 30, 2020, the extension aims to relieve Filipino taxpayers who will not be able to prepare, let alone file, the necessary documents under the Tax Code because of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and other restrictions on the personal movement being implemented by the national and local governments to prevent community transmission of the coronavirus disease.

Section 4(z) of the Bayanihan Act, which placed the Philippines in a state of national emergency, grants the President the authority to “move statutory deadlines and timelines for the filing and submission of any document, the payment of taxes, fees, and other charges required by law.”

“By moving the statutory and regulatory deadlines for tax compliance, we ensure that taxpayers would be able to fulfill their patriotic duty of paying taxes without any risk to their health and safety,” Dominguez said in a statement Thursday.

RR No. 7-2020 extends the deadline for filing and payment of the annual income tax returns (ITRs) for the calendar year 2019 from April 15, 2020 to May 15, 2020.

It also generally extended the deadlines for electronic and non-electronic filing and payment of quarterly ITRs, monthly and quarterly value-added tax (VAT) declarations, documentary stamp taxes (DST), percentage tax on winnings and prizes withheld by race track operators, withholding taxes on compensation, and creditable and final withholding taxes, as well as monthly excise tax declarations, which fall within the period of national emergency, by 30 days from the original deadline.

If the deadline falls on a weekend, the deadline shall be the next business day.

The submission of the quarterly summary lists of sales and purchases, sworn statement of manufacturers or importers of excisable products, financial statements for the year 2019, inventory lists, e-Sales reports, summary lists of machines, list of medical practitioners, and certificates of residence for tax treaty relief, as well as the registration of computerized books of accounts and other accounting records, which deadlines fall within the period of national emergency, shall also be generally extended by 30 days.

The deadline for VAT refund applications covering the quarter ending March 31, 2018, is extended from March 31, 2020, to April 30, 2020, while the tax amnesty on delinquency returns shall be accepted until May 23, 2020.

Additionally, settlement of one-time transactions, submission of assessment-related documents, and other filings and submissions not enumerated in the revenue regulations are given a 30-day extension, counted from the original due date.

Aside from moving the deadlines for tax compliance, RR No. 7-2020 also suspends the running of the statute of limitations on assessment notices, warrants of distraint and/or levy, and warrants of garnishment, by 60 days from the lifting of the declaration of a state of national emergency.

“The extension of deadlines under RR No. 7-2020 applies nationwide while the country is in a state of national emergency,” Bureau of Internal Revenue Commissioner Caesar Dulay said.

The revenue regulations also provide that the new deadlines may also be further extended if the circumstances warrant such an extension.

The regulations shall take effect immediately after its publication.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) previously issued Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 28-2020 extending the deadline for the filing and payment of the 2019 Annual ITRs by a month, and RMC Nos. 29-2020 and 30-2020 extending the deadline for the filing and payment of withholding taxes, VAT, and one-time transactions, as well as the submission of documents.

Despite the deadline extensions, Dominguez reiterated his appeal to those who are able to file within the deadline or at the earliest possible time to do so through mechanisms that have been made available by the BIR, including online filing and payment platforms.

He said such tax payments ahead of the new deadlines are crucial for the government to fund extremely urgent social protection and emergency health measures in the face of Covid-19, as well as to sustain state investments needed to help Filipino families regain stable and reliable sources of income as soon as the pandemic is over. (PR)