BIR effort to register Chinese workers receives tepid response

The Internal Revenue Bureau is attempting collect income taxes from 138,000 Chinese workers employed by Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) by compelling these foreign workers to apply for tax identification numbers.

According to Maki Pulido's Friday report on GMA 7 news program "24 Oras," the BIR had prepared for this sudden influx of TIN applications by all these Chinese workers.

"The solution is to do overtime work," said BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa. "Kasi hindi namin kaya yun ng regular 8 to 5. So overtime and even on weekends para lang to accommodate."

At the BIR's District Office 52 in Parañaque, civil servants were fully prepared to process 10,000 TIN application by these workers.

But so far, on 40 such applications had been filed with their office.

To expedite matters, the BIR will begin to process TIN applications based on a master-list of Chinese workers employed by the POGO, with the required the BIR Form 1902 and a photocopy of the worker's passport to follow later.

This reduced requirement could be seen to by the POGO itself, and would not require any effort by the foreign worker.

But even this accommodation had not produced the response the BIR had hoped.

"Hindi pa nila sinubmit yung masterlist ng requirement, eh. Hinihingi namin masterlist ng bibigyan namin, wala pa nagdadala puro tanong lang ano idadala namin," said a nonplussed RDO 52 Assessment Section chief Boy Guevarra.

Deputy Commissioner Guballa warned that Chinese workers faced penalties if they failed to acquire a TIN.

"Ngayon kung hindi ka nag comply kay BIR, then Bureau of Immigration has reason para i-deport ka," said Guballa.

The TIN requirement was not limited to POGO employed Chinese workers, but also to foreign workers in the construction and call-center industries.

The Finance Department hoped to collect up to P2 billion in taxes from POGO Chinese workers, as well as P4 billion in back taxes from the POGOs themselves. — DVM, GMA News