Philippines Tax Academy eyes New Clark City, Tagaytay campuses

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Tax Academy (PTA) is planning to set up permanent campuses in Tagaytay City in Cavite and New Clark City at the Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga, the Department of Finance (DOF) said over the weekend.

Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said the PTA, for the Tagaytay campus, would join other government-run professional learning institutions, such as the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), the Philippine Judicial Academy (PHILJA) and the Commission on Audit (COA) International Training Center in a lot donated by the city government. 

The plan to build a PTA campus in the New Clark City, which is now being developed as the country’s first smart, disaster-resilient and sustainable metropolis,  will likewise push through.

In addition, the undersecretary said the Regional Association of Treasurers and Assessors in the Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) region has requested the Academy  to offer courses on advanced competencies and specialized training for its members. 

Launched in February last year, the PTA seeks to provide continuing education to the country’s revenue collectors and administrators to improve their competitiveness, sharpen their commitment to their profession and raise their ethical standards.

The establishment of the academy is in compliance with Republic Act 10143, which states that the academy should serve as the nation’s learning institution for tax collectors and administrators from the government and selected applicants from the private sectors. 

A senior-level International Seminar on Taxation, another on international taxation for Asian countries, and country-focused training courses on tax administration are available to personnel of the DOF and attached agencies.

Earlier, Beltran said the PTA is planning to team up with the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) in offering a post-graduate program on finance and taxation to qualified employees of the DOF and attached agencies. 

The proposed joint program with the UPLB will be off-campus and will run for three semesters. 

The PTA will be filming its lectures and  uploading them online to make these available to personnel of the DOF and its attached agencies based in remote areas. 

Under Republic Act 10143, “all existing officials and personnel of the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue), the BOC (Bureau of Customs) and the BLGF shall be required to undergo the re-tooling and enhancement seminars and training programs to be conducted by the Philippine Tax Academy.” 

It also requires all applicants to the said bureaus to pass the basic courses before they can be hired on contractual or permanent status.

The PTA’s program, curriculum and syllabus were developed based on ASEAN University Network Standards.