LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—Local and foreign investors locating in Pangasinan will not have to pay taxes for at least five years.
The tax-holiday package is being offered by the provincial government as part of the investment promotions program of Gov. Amado I. Espino III, who made the offer public in a recent business forum in Makati, Metro Manila.
“Make our home, your home,” Espino told hundreds of business executives and investors who attended the Asia CEO Forum held at the Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati City.
“We can assure you that in Pangasinan, you will not only explore limitless investment opportunities, but you will also be enthralled by over 100 wonders,” the governor said during the event.
Under the provincial government’s Investments and Incentives Code of 2016, new businesses are granted privileges of full exemptions on the governor’s permit, annual fixed tax for every truck delivery of commodities and basic real-property tax on acquired or built property to be used in the investment project.
Espino encouraged investors to take a serious look at five major investment areas in: agriculture (particularly on food and fish processing); tourism (especially on accommodation facilities, restaurants, terminals, pasalubong centers, recreation centers, theme parks, museums and farm tourism site); business-process outsourcing; renewable energy; and ecozone development.
Processing of investment papers will be done on a “one-stop shop” hassle-free scheme, the governor said.
Pangasinan is one of the few ISO-certified local government units (LGUs) in the country, particularly in medical and health services. The province, apart from being host to two big power plants generating a combined capacity of 3,000 megawatts, is also noted for its quality road network system that interconnects cities, towns and barangays.
Investments on a build-operate-transfer (BOT) scheme for an international airport and seaport can also be arranged, the provincial information office said, adding rehabilitation efforts are under way to open the airstrip here for domestic flights.
A railway system is now being worked out with a Hong Kong-based construction firm in coordination with the Philippine National Railways.
During the Makati forum, city mayors Arthur Celeste (Alaminos), Joseres Resuello (San Carlos), Amadeo Gregorio Perez IV (Urdaneta) and Belen Fernandez (Dagupan), along with municipal mayors Kim Amador (Manaoag), Simplicio Rosario (Binmaley), Michael Cruz (Umingan) and Eric Versoza (Dasol), presented their respective investment potentials.
Also joining the forum proper were President and CEO Rey Untal of IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines, Deputy Director-General for Operations Harriet Abordo of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and former Pangasinan Provincial Administrator Rafael Howard F. Baraan.