Seven business groups oppose 'SIR' tax document requirement of BIR

With the April 15 tax deadline just days away, seven major local business groups have asked the national government, through a position paper, to stop requiring taxpayers to submit the supplemental information return (SIR).

 

Submission of the SIR was made mandatory through two revenue regulations issued by the Department of Finance and Bureau of Internal Revenue in February 2014. 

 

The business groups want the SIR made optional again as it was in 2013. They sent their position paper to the DOF and BIR last March 27 and informed the news media of it on Monday, March 30.

 

SIR is required for submission together with the annual income tax returns known as Form 1700 and Form 1701. Form 1700 is for individuals earning purely compensation income while Form 1701 is for self-employed individuals, estates and trusts. The deadline for both of these forms for the taxable calendar year of 2014 is on April 15, 2015.

 

Opposing the mandatory SIR are the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc. (PHILEXPORT), Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), and the Tax Management Association of the Philippines (TMAP).

 

These groups' presidents said in their joint position paper that “the SIR is a redundant requirement which imposes additional burden to taxpayers but which will not necessarily add to the tax collections of the BIR. Moreover, erroneous declarations in the SIR could expose the taxpayer to penalties of perjury as in any tax return submission to the BIR.”

 

They added that “while on surface, the reporting requirement seems easy to comply with, in reality, it is difficult to implement, considering the nature and details of information required to be reported.”

 

“Among the income items required to be reported in the SIR are passive income items/receipts which are tax exempt, or have been subjected to final withholding taxes, as well as the final taxes withheld for each type of income. The amounts to be reported as income or receipts are the actual amount received, fair market value or net capital gains, as the case may be,” their position paper said. — ELR, GMA News