BIR RDO 72 holds withholding tax seminar
ROXAS CITY -- The Bureau of Internal Revenue Office 72 here conducted a Seminar on Withholding Tax at Roblee Hall of Filamer Christian College. The seminar is in coordination with the College of Business and Accountancy (CBA) of the said school, headed by its dean, Dr. Matilde Perez. Attended by the different sectors coming from the government, business, academe, non-government organizations, and private individuals, the seminar was spearheaded by BIR Regional Director Alert Alocilja, Revenue District Officer Eralen de Aro, Asst. RDO Nemesia Diano, and Atty. Vicente Tady, chief of assessment section. Resource person of the seminar is Atty. Gealdina Reyes, chief of staff, Office of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue.
The seminar is an information dissemination of the agency to inform taxpayers on the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 9504, "An Act Amending Sections 22, 24, 34, 35, 51, and 79 of Republic Act No. 8424, as Amended, otherwise known as The National Internal Revenue Code." The provisions are relative to the withholding of income tax on compensation income, increase of personal and additional exemptions, compensation received by minimum wage earners (MWEs) and other concerns.
According to the amended revenue regulation, facilities and privileges of relatively small value such as entertainment, medical services, or "courtesy" discounts on purchases furnished or offered by employer to his employees are not considered as compensation subject to withholding tax. Other benefits not subject to withholding tax on compensation income of both managerial and employees are the following: monetized value of leave credits, medical cash allowance to dependents of employees, rice subsidy amounting to not more than P1,500 per month, uniforms and clothing allowance not exceeding P4,000 per annum, actual yearly medical benefits not exceeding P10,000 per annum, laundry allowance not exceeding P300 per month, employees achievement awards with monetary value not exceeding P10,000 per employee, gifts given during Christmas and major anniversary celebrations no exceeding P5,000 per employee per annum, daily meal allowance for overtime work not exceeding 25% of basic minimum wage, and flowers, fruits, books, or similar items given to employees on account of illness, marriage, birth of baby, etc.
The following income payments are also exempted from the requirements of withholding tax on compensation: holiday pay, overtime pay, night shift differential pay and hazard pay earned by minimum wage earners (MWEs) who work in the private and public sectors.
Other topics tackled in the seminar are the computation of wages and income taxes collected at source on compensation income such as the use and components of withholding tax tables, steps to determine the amount of tax to be withheld, use of exceptional computations, procedures for the filing of the application for registration (BIR Form No. 1902), liability for tax, statements and returns, and other transitory provisions. These regulations were signed by Margarito Teves, Secretary of Finance and Lilian B. Hefti, Commissioner of Internal Revenue and take effect beginning July 6, 2008.