Tax Filing Extended Until May 15 2020

Written by Marc Adrian

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has announced that it will be extending the deadline for the filing of Income Tax Return (ITR) until May 15, 2020. This move is a response to the request of the public to delay the collection due to the enhanced community quarantine situation in Luzon.

BIR’s Commissioner Caesar Dulay through a Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) last March 18 ordered the one-month extension without penalties to taxpayers. 

The announcement was later on made by the Department of Finances (DOF) earlier on Thursday, March 19, 2020. Addressing the calls for such action from the private and public sectors, lawmakers from both houses of Congress, and even private sector groups such as the Philippine Chamber of Commerce Inc. (PCCI) and the Makati Business Club (MBC).

This emergency measure is being offered to provide relief to Filipino taxpayers who will not be able to prepare, let alone file, the necessary ITR documents on or before the original annual deadline of April 15 because of skeletal workforce arrangements and enhanced community quarantine rules that the national government has implemented to contain the pandemic.

The call to extend the came after BIR announced that they will retain the April 15 deadline due to the availability of their online channel for payments. 

The delay comes with some consequences in the collection, with an estimated shortfall of ₱145 billion. This will have to be covered by additional borrowing by the national government. That’s why, despite the announced extension, the government is encouraging taxpayers to file within the deadline if they could. 

The DOF said in a statement:

“The government is thus appealing to those who are able to file within the deadline or even as early as now to do so through mechanisms that have been made available by the BIR, including online filing and payment platforms.”

DOF further elaborated that these tax payments are crucial for the government to fund extremely urgent social protection and emergency health measures meant to effectively combat COVID-19 as well as to sustain state investments needed to help Filipino families regain stable and reliable sources of income at the soonest possible time.

In line with this, the Philippine economic team already rolled out a ₱27.1-billion package to help contain the spread of COVID-19 and to provide economic relief to businesses affected by the threat. Some ₱14 billion will be used for programs of the Department of Tourism (DOT), which is said to be the “most affected.”

 

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