THE Department of Finance (DOF) has expressed optimism that all the remaining packages under the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) will be passed within the first half of 2020.
Finance Assistant Secretary Antonio Joselito G. Lambino II said passage of Package 2 of the CTRP, also known as the Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act (Citira), is scheduled for the first quarter while Packages 3 and 4 are slated within the first half of the year.
“We are continuously working with our legislators both at the Senate and the House,” Lambino said at the Tapatan sa The Aristocrat on Monday.
“We’re looking forward to the whole Comprehensive Tax Reform Program to be passed within the first half of the year,” he added.
The Citira seeks to gradually cut corporate income taxes starting 2021, eventually bringing down the current 30 percent to 20 percent by 2029.
It would also rationalize fiscal incentives allocated to businesses by putting specific time frames on them and linking job generation and use of local inputs to certain parameters.
Package 3 refers to the real property valuation reform bill, which is aimed to establish a single valuation base for taxation to eliminate wide disparities and achieve consistency.
Meanwhile, Package 4 or the Passive Income and Financial Taxes or Pifita is expected to simplify the taxation of passive income, financial services and transactions, likewise, rationalize the documentary stamp tax on financial transactions to lessen friction cost and enhance taxpayer compliance.
The DOF had earlier hoped to pass all the remaining packages before the end of 2019.
Last year, the President signed into law Package 1B on Tax Amnesty, with a line veto of the grant on general tax amnesty. In July 2019, he also signed the tobacco tax hike bill into law.
Aside from Packages 2, 3
and 4, the other pending tax reform measures
include Package 1B on Motor Vehicle User’s Charge and Package 2 plus on mining
taxes.
Image credits: Roy Domingo