House panel OKs bill seeking to exempt senior citizens from paying income tax

The House Committee on Senior Citizens has approved the proposed measure seeking to exempt senior citizens from paying income taxes.

House Bill 8832 or the “Income Tax Exemption for Senior Citizens Act” was approved during the panel meeting on Tuesday.

Under the bill, senior citizen employees, or individuals aged 60-years-old and above who are still under continued employment, shall be exempt from the payment of income tax.

It added that the holiday pay, overtime pay, night shift differential, and hazard pay received by such senior citizen employees shall likewise be exempt from income tax.

Senior Citizens party-list Representative Rodolfo Ordanes said the measure he authored seeks to increase the savings of senior citizens in preparation for their retirement.

He claimed that Filipino retirees have limited savings for their retirement, citing information from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas saying that "Filipinos have only 3.6 months' worth of income for retirement." — Anna Felicia Bajo/RSJ, GMA News