BIR amends rules for issuing GOCC tax clearances

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said it amended the rules governing the issuance of tax clearance certificates as they relate to determining interim performance-based bonuses in government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs).

In Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 67 issued on May 4, the BIR amended sections of RMC 32-2021, to insert provisions on large taxpayers, the verification of outstanding tax liabilities, and adjusting requirements.

Under the amended No. 3 section of General Policies, the tax compliance verification sheet for GOCCs (TCVS-GOCC), formerly only requested by the Accounts Receivable Monitoring Division (ARMD) of “the concerned Revenue District Office (RDO),” will now be requested of specific offices.

For regular large taxpayers, the TCVS-GOCC will be requested by the ARMD of the Large Taxpayers Assistance Division and the Large Taxpayers Document Processing and Quality Assurance Division (LTDPQAD).

For excise large taxpayers, the document will be requested of the Excise Large Taxpayers and Regulatory Division, as well as the LTDPQAD.

For large taxpayers registered under RDO No. 123 (Cebu) and RDO No. 127 (Davao), the requests will be made by their respective Large Taxpayers Divisions.

Additionally, the amended section No. 6 now states that applicants with outstanding accounts receivable/delinquent accounts but whose tax liabilities involved are the “subject of a pending application,” will be issued a Tax Clearance Certificate for GOCCs (TCC-GOCC) regardless.

However, the applicant must later issue an Affidavit of Undertaking and must fully pay the settlement or abatement of penalties, the BIR said.

A certificate of Outstanding Tax Liability/ies will now also be requested by the ARMD from the office for non-large taxpayers, and from the Large Taxpayers Collection Enforcement Division.

Meanwhile, alongside an accomplished and notarized application form for a TCC-GOCC, proof of payment of documentary stamp tax worth P30 is only required if it was paid electronically. 

The RMC amendment also now requires applicants to submit two valid identification cards with three signatures of the authorized officer and corporate secretary of the GOCC.

Formerly, the applicants had to submit a Special Power of Attorney or authorization letter. Instead, this will now be used in order to claim an issued TCC-GOCC or a letter of denial, in the event the application is rejected. — Tobias Jared Tomas