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Accountants, tax practitioners group appeals for one month extension of ITR filing deadline


An advocacy group of accountants, auditors and tax practitioners is calling on the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Department of Finance (DOF) to extend the April 15 deadline of filing and payment of the annual income tax returns for last year for at least one month.

“We, the Tax Helpers, are joining the call to urge the Department of Finance and the Bureau of Internal Revenue to extend the April 15, 2021 deadline by at least 30 days for the filling of the Annual Income Tax Return (ITR),” Tax Help in the Philippines said in a statement Friday.

In its Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 46-2021 issued on April 8, the BIR  reiterated that the deadline for filing ITR for the taxable year ending December 31, 2020 remains to be on April 15, 2021.

Taxpayers, nevertheless, will be allowed to amend their filings until May 15 without any penalties.

In its appeal, Tax Help said, “Accountants, auditors, bookkeepers, and tax practitioners are also affected by COVID-19. Getting sick forces a shutdown and isolating not just the person getting sick, but his close contact (such as colleagues) as well.”

“With the growing number of COVID-19 patients, even the Authorized Agent Banks, and government offices also shutdown to avoid getting sick,” it added.

The group also emphasized that supporting documents for tax filing “are vital in income tax calculation” and “working from home is not an option as documents are located in the office premises.”

“With limited transportation, and the imposition of ECQ (enhanced community quarantine) in NCR Plus, this becomes a difficult task,” it said.

Apart from COVID-19 challenges, Tax Help also cited the recently signed Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law adds burden as “it would be unfair to corporate taxpayers not to apply lower rates.”

The CREATE, recently signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte, reduces the corporate income tax from 30% to 25% for corporations and to 20% for micro, small and medium enterprises. 

The law is retroactive, meaning the lower tax rates should apply to 2020 income tax payable of companies.

The retroactive provisions are effective July 1, 2020. This means that the 25% and 20% tax rates for income incurred from the said date should be applied.

“The current tax returns are not yet equipped to handle the transition, whether via the online or offline filing platforms,” Tax Help said.

The group also said that other countries, such as the United States, Japan, Qatar, and Australia, have already extended and relaxed their tax deadlines.

Senator Nancy Binay has also appealed to the BIR and DOF to reconsider its decision to push through with the April 15 deadline for the filing and payment of the annual income tax returns for 2020. 

Sought for comment, BIR Commissioner Caesar Dulay replied, “RMC 46-2021,” referring to the memorandum circular which reiterated that the deadline remains on April 15, 2021. — RSJ, GMA News

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