DOF: BIR collecting, demanding estate tax; Marcoses have not paid

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) continues to demand the Marcos family to settle their estate tax debt, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said Wednesday.

“BIR is collecting and demand[ing] payment from the Marcos Estate Administrators,” Dominguez told reporters in a Viber message.

“They have not paid,” he said.

Early this month, the BIR said it already sent a written demand to the family of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos regarding their tax liabilities amounting to P203.819 billion last year. 

In a letter provided by Aksyon Demokratiko, BIR commissioner Caesar Dulay said, "BIR did send a written demand to the Marcos heirs on December 02, 2021 regarding their tax liabilities."

The BIR’s disclosure came days after the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) denied claims made by the Marcos camp that the family's billions of tax liabilities are under discussion.

“BIR will continue to consolidate the titles in favor of the government on those properties which have been levied upon,” Dominguez said.

“The procedure may take time as it involves selling at public auction to convert to cash,” he said.

The camp of presidential candidate Ferdinand Marcos  Jr. has repeatedly dismissed calls for his family to settle the tax liabilities and said the case is still pending in the courts.

However, the high court in 1997 denied the petition filed by presidential candidate and former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals.

In 1994, the CA ruled that ”the deficiency assessments for estate and income tax made upon the petitioner and the estate of the deceased President Marcos have already become final and unappealable, and may thus be enforced by the summary remedy of levying upon the properties” of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

But, Marcos' camp insists that the pieces of property which were the subject of the tax case were still under litigation.

“Bottomline, Marcos[es] does not take any steps to settle and pay because [of] pending litigation,” Dominguez said.

Meanwhile, Malacañang said the  BIR should go after all people who are not paying their taxes amid the issue of the P203-billion estate tax debt case of the Marcos family.

This, after Rodrigo Duterte said the BIR should be asked why it had yet to collect a certain estate tax due. He didn't name from whom the estate tax should be collected. —NB, GMA News