BIR affirms declaration of File and Pay ANYWHERE

In line with the filing of the 2022 Annual Income Tax Return (AITR), Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui, Jr. reiterates that taxpayers can file their 2022 AITR and pay the corresponding taxes due thereon ANYWHERE on or before April 17, 2023, without penalties imposed for wrong venue filing.

Such provision is contained in Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 32-2023, which was issued by Commissioner Lumagui on March 16, 2023 to provide guidelines to taxpayers in the filing of their 2022 AITR and payment of the taxes due thereon.

The Commissioner likewise reminds both the taxpayers and Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) not to use fake receipts/transactions to illegally reduce their taxes.

Per RMC No. 32-2023, here are other important reminders that the BIR wants the taxpaying public to keep in mind this tax filing season:

1. Taxpayers who are mandated to use the BIR’s Electronic Filing and Payment System (eFPS) shall file their AITRs electronically and pay the correct taxes due through the eFPS-Authorized Agent Banks (AABs) where they are enrolled. In cases wherein filing cannot be made through the eFPS due to specific reasons mentioned in the RMC, taxpayers shall use the eBIRForms facility in filing their AITR. The tax returns filed through the eBIRForms facility shall no longer be required to be filed thru the eFPS.
2. The payment of taxes due for tax returns filed through the eBIRForms may be made through: i) any AAB or ii) through Revenue Collection Officers (RCOs) in the Revenue District Offices (RDOs), or iii) through any of the Electronic Payment (ePayment) channels of the BIR. Said ePayment Channels accept tax payments through the use of either online payment facility (i.e. LBP’s LinkBiz Portal, DBP’s Pay Tax Online, etc.), credit/debit/prepaid cards, and mobile payment facilities, such as GCash, Maya and MyEG. The link to the Bureau’s ePayment channels are accessible through the BIR Website (www.bir.gov.ph).
3. “No Payment AITRs” shall also be filed electronically through the eBIRForms facility. Taxpayers with “No Payment AITRs” are allowed to manually file their 2022 AITR at the nearest RDO, provided that they qualify in any of the following conditions:
   1. Senior Citizen or Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) filing for their own returns;
   2. Employees deriving purely compensation income from two or more employers, concurrently or successively at any time during the taxable year, or from a single employer, although the income of which has been correctly subjected to withholding tax, but whose spouse is not entitled to substituted filing; and
   3. Employees qualified for substituted filing (those who are covered by Section 2.83.4 of Revenue Regulations No. 2-98, as amended), but opted to file for an ITR and are filing for purposes of promotion, loans, scholarships, foreign travel requirements, etc.
4. Taxpayers who are qualified to do the manual filing of their “No Payment AITRs” shall prepare their tax returns in triplicate copies using the prescribed BIR Form available in the RDOs or using electronic or computer-generated returns or photocopied returns in its original format in Legal/Folio size bond paper.
5. Taxpayers who will manually file their AITR and pay the taxes due thereon through the RCOs of the RDO can pay in cash up to Twenty Thousand Pesos
   (P 20,000.00) only or in check (payable to the “Bureau of Internal Revenue”).
6. Taxpayers who electronically-filed their AITRs have the option to submit their required attachments (i.e. audited financial statements, Statement of Management Responsibility, etc.) through the Bureau’s Electronic Audited Financial Statement (eAFS) System. They may also personally submit their attachments to the Large Taxpayers Service (LTS) / RDO where they are registered within fifteen (15) days from the date of the tax filing deadline.
7. Only the attachments will be stamped “Received” by the LTS/RDO. The printed copy of the AITR need not be stamped “Received”.
8. For taxpayers who have electronically-filed their AITRs with no attachments required, there is no need to submit to the BIR their printed copy of the e-filed tax returns. The generated Filing Reference Number (FRN) from the eFPS or the email confirmation from the eBIRForms will serve as proof of the electronic filing of their AITR.

All AABs will extend their banking hours up to 5:00 PM from April 1 to April 17, 2023 (except Sundays and Holidays) to accept the tax returns and payments of taxpayers (per Bank Bulletin No. 2023-02). Aside from the RDOs, taxpayers can also go to the e-Filing/Tax Assistance Center established in the BIR National Office (at the National Training Center) until April 17, 2023 (except Sundays and Holidays) if they need assistance in their AITR filing and payment.

For more information or clarifications on AITR filing and payment of taxes, visit the BIR Website at www.bir.gov.ph  or call the BIR Hotline No. 8538-3200.