BIR issues RMO on Amnesty for Tax Delinquents

In our April 21 article, we discussed Revenue Regulations (RR) 4-2019, the implementing rules and regulations covering the Tax Amnesty on Delinquencies (TAD) under Republic Act 11213, the
“Tax Amnesty Act of 2019.” The regulations took effect on April 24, 2019.

Under the TAD, any person may enjoy the benefits and privileges of the tax amnesty by paying the following tax amnesty rates:

– 40 percent of the basic tax in cases of tax delinquencies and assessments which have become final and executory;

– 50 percent of the basic tax for cases subject to final and executory judgment by the courts;

– 60 percent of the basic tax for ongoing tax evasion cases; and

– 100 percent of the basic tax for withholding agents and their withholding tax liabilities.

Quite recently, the BIR issued Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) 23-2019, which provides further guidelines in processing applications for TAD. We provide below the salient features discussed under the RMO:Previously, we provided for the specific steps that taxpayers will have to follow in applying for the TAD, the first step of which is to secure the Certificate of Tax Delinquencies (CTD) from the concerned BIR offices (depending on the tax liability and whether applicant is a large taxpayer or not). The issuance of the CTD is subject to the payment of a certification fee of P100 and documentary stamp tax of P30.

Once the CTD is secured, the applicant will have to fill up the Tax Amnesty Return (TAR) and Acceptance Payment Form (APF), and have the APF endorsed by the BIR, before payment can be made with the appropriate BIR authorized agent bank (AAB). Specifically, for large taxpayers, tax amnesty payments shall only be made with AAB branches cited in the table:

Once the tax amnesty payment has been made, the applicant has to prepare the following documents in triplicate copies and file the same with the BIR RDO/Large Taxpayers Division (LTD)/ Large Taxpayers Collection Enforcement Division (LTCED):

– TAR (BIR Form 2118-DA) duly accomplished and made under oath;

– CTD duly issued by the concerned BIR Office;

– APF (BIR Form 0621-DA) duly endorsed and validated or duly endorsed and stamped “received” with attached validated bank deposit slip, or Revenue Official Receipt as proof of the tax amnesty payment;

Copy of the Final Assessment Notice (FAN), or Final Decision on Disputed Assessment (FDDA) issued by the BIR;

Copy of Preliminary Assessment Notice (PAN), or Notice for Informal Conference, or equivalent document issued by the BIR showing assessment of withholding tax liabilities arising from non-remittance of withheld taxes, if applicable.

An “Authority to Cancel Assessment” (ATCA) will be prepared by the concerned BIR Regional Collection Divisions (RCD)/LTD/LTCED within five days from receipt of the applicant’s TAR and accompanying documents discussed above.

The RCD/LTD/LTCED will then send to the taxpayer a “Notice of Issuance of ATCA within two days from the approval of the ATCA.

Ron Arriesgado is a tax lawyer, a transfer pricing specialist, and is a Partner at the LMA Law Offices in Makati City. He has managed and resolved taxation issues of local and multinational entities; resolved various tax assessment cases issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue; and provided clients with the proper tax strategies to cancel or substantially lower tax assessments, among others.