BIR shuts down 207 errant firms, collects P995-M back taxes

MANILA, Philippines — Taxmen padlocked a total of 207 delinquent business establishments in the first five months, leading to the collection of nearly P1 billion in arrears.

From January to May, the Bureau of Internal Revenue managed to collect P995.04 million in taxes from errant firms under the agency’s “Oplan Kandado” program, the Department of Finance said in a statement on Monday.

In May alone, the BIR shutdown 36 establishments and collected tax liabilities amounting to P37.3 million. At the same time, the bureau also filed 26 complaints before the justice department in May seeking for a preliminary probe into unpaid taxes amounting to P702.3 million.

In the Court of Appeals, the BIR filed another eight cases involving P1.04 billion in estimated tax deficiencies in May this year.

Introduced in 2009, Oplan Kandado aims to discourage Tax Code violations by slapping hefty fines and sanctions on erring taxpayers.

With the pandemic continuing to sap state revenues amid tepid economic activity, running after delinquent companies has become important to the government now more than ever. According to the DOF, the mother agency of BIR, the program led to the closure of 209 establishments and collection of P607.87 million in back taxes in 2020.