The Bureau of Internal Revenue on Tuesday said it will allow credit and debit cards as form of payment on the income tax starting next month.
BIR Commissioner Kim Henares, under revenue regulation no. 3, the public can now pay taxes by credit, debit or prepaid card, aside from cash and checks.
Henares said the taxpayer could choose from available online payment facilities provided an electronic payment service provider.
The regulation, however, limits authorized agent banks to those who complied with the criteria set by the tax-collecting agency and to Philippine-issued credit and debit cards.
The card payment information system of the authorized banks should have been tested and approved by the BIR.
The BIR said it would not take responsibility if the taxpayer or the cardholder made an error in filing and paying the tax returns’ information.
“In case the taxpayer-cardholder made erroneous tax payment transactions through this prescribed payment mode, the same shall not give rise to any automatic ‘charge back’ to the taxpayer-cardholder’s account. In meritorious cases, the taxpayer shall apply for refund/tax credit with the BIR in accordance with existing revenue issuances,” the BIR said.
The authorized banks are responsbile for ensuring all payment transactions, through credit/debit/prepaid cards, are accurately and timely reported and remitted to the BIR and the Bureau of Treasury.
The issuance of the regulation is considered timely as the deadline for the filing of the annual income tax returns is set on April 15.
BIR tax collections hit P1.44 trillion in 2015, up 8 percent from a year ago. They are expected to reach P2.02 trillion this year.
The government expects to collect P1.243 trillion from income taxes, P405.11 billion from value-added tax, P170.72 billion from excise taxes, P82.90 billion from percentage tax, and P123.54 billion from other taxes.
The BIR said the collections will cover 67 percent of the P3.002-trillion budget this year.