Spare the small fish, go for the whales

The Bureau of Internal Revenue is doing a good job of showing its tough side when it comes to collecting revenues for the national government. Commissioner Kim Henares will go down in history as perhaps the only woman boss of BIR with more guts than her male counterparts.

Just as other collecting agencies of the national government, the fight should continue not just against big-time corruption, but even against “small-time” tax evasion, like running after our professionals who’ve been having a field day by declaring incomes less than what a public school teacher receives.

Of course, the regular BIR advertisements shaming those suspected to have wrongly declared their incomes are more a show than an actual step towards prosecution at the moment, and it’s difficult to believe that this campaign is working until we see actual changes.

When the BIR issued a ban on unnumbered invoices sold in bookstores, one could understand that this move, while remaining skeptical about the ruling,  is part of the overall image and cult building that BIR is embarking on, i.e., every transaction must be above-board.

Of course, this has created a minor stir in households who use these forms for their record-keeping, or with those individuals who buy and sell goods to earn some money to augment their regular incomes. But the Filipino is a creative soul: there’s always the photocopier or slips of paper to record these “informal” money transactions.

Tough operator rules

Recently, now that the Christmas season has started in the country with the coming of the “ber” months, the BIR has announced a new target. This time, the warnings have been issued against operators of the tiangge or flea markets, and of course, the tenants renting space and selling goodies.

If a tiangge operator is setting up tents every weekend from October to December, or for more than 15 days, Revenue Regulations 16-2013 requires the entity to register as a regular taxpayer, and subsequently have its own set of invoices and receipts, and more importantly, pay appropriate taxes.

If the operator is setting up for less than 15 days (mind that the days are computed per venue; therefore if an operator is setting up in two venues on the same day, this is considered two days), he will have to declare income on rentals and must submit a dossier of the tenants including names, residence address, and taxpayer identification number.

Bazaar organizers are also mandated to provide cash registers to their tenants as well as to keep a centralized payment system to be able to monitor individual tenant sales and consolidate these in a report to be submitted to the BIR.

Too tough on tenants

Tenants, on the other hand, are required to issue official receipts and invoices for transactions, and to keep a book of accounts covering the declared days of operation. They are then asked to submit their list of sales within five days of the start of operations – and of course, pay the corresponding taxes.

All these rulings sound laudable, but somehow impractical. After all, most of the tiangge vendors who open shops during the months in the Christmas season are, well, seasonal. Whatever little income and joy they derive from setting up their stalls and selling wares becomes an arduous activity with the new BIR ruling.

Those who persevere, mindful of the possibility of having to pay taxes, will definitely not sell at the bargain prices that you, me and every Filipino consumer look forward to when visiting these flea markets. That definitely takes the fun out of Christmas shopping at a tiangge.

Going after small fish

Throwing the books at tiangge operators and vendors is admirable as this is another step to demonstrate that the BIR is keen on highlighting and impressing on the general public the importance of paying taxes on activities taxable by law.

However, doing this only during the holiday season, while being inactive during the rest of the year, makes one wonder whether the BIR officials and staff have another agenda.

And, of course, everyone knows that in the overall picture, the tiangge operators and vendors are merely small fishes in the large pond of business enterprises.

Shouldn’t the BIR concentrate its time and effort on restaurants that are not paying the right amount of taxes or on tracking the thousands of professionals who continue to pay lower taxes than teachers, clerks and other merely salaried employees?

Champions League (PCCL) 2013 National Collegiate Championship

The South Luzon-Bicol regional games are scheduled on November 14 to 16, 2013 at Sorsogon City Gym to determine the region’s representative to the Sweet 16 step-ladder phase of the 2013 National Collegiate Championship.

Competing in the games are the University of Batangas Brahmans, champion of NCAA-S and UCCL; STI College Santa Rosa, champion of SLCUAA; the Lewis College Blazing Fox, champion of BICCS-Sorsogon; the Naga College Foundation Tigers, champion of Naga; the Calayan Educational Foundation Cougars, champion of Quezon province; and the Amando Cope College Green Serpents, champion of Tabaco, Albay.

The Metro Manila qualifying games will be held from Nov.19 to 21 at Emilio Aguinaldo College Gym where one seat to the Sweet 16 step-ladder is at stake. The eight participating teams are divided into two groups, and the group winners will knock each other out for the coveted Sweet 16 seat.

In Group A are the teams of the Ateneo Blue Eagles; NCBL champion Technology Institute of the Philippines; ISAA champion La Consolacion College-Manila Pirates; and the NCAA 6th placer. In Group B are the UE Warriors; NAASCU champion Centro Escolar U Scorpions; UCLAAI champion St. Francis of Assisi Doves; and the NCAA 5th placer.

The other regional qualifying games are scheduled on November 9 to 11 for South Mindanao, November 11 to 14 for North-Central Luzon, and November 15 to 18 for the Visayas Islands.

Forty five collegiate teams are involved in the competition for 16 seats in the step-ladder phase of the Champions League (PCCL) 2013 National Collegiate Championship. Ten teams are already assured of slots in the elite group of 16, namely UAAP champion DLSU Green Archers, the UST Growling Tigers, the FEU Tamaraws, the NU Bulldogs, the San Beda College Red Lions, the Letran Knights, the Perpetual Help University Altas, University of Visayas, CESAFI champion SWU Cobras, and the University of San Carlos Warriors. One seat awaits the NCAA 4th placer, which is still being contested as of date.

Visit www.CollegiateChampionsLeague.net or like www.facebook.com/PCCLeague for more updates on the ongoing tournaments nationwide.

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Should you wish to share any insights, write me at Link Edge, 25th Floor, 139 Corporate Center, Valero Street, Salcedo Village, 1227 Makati City. Or e-mail me at [email protected]. For a compilation of previous articles, visit www.BizlinksPhilippines.net.