CTA affirms denial of Carmen Copper’s VAT refund claim

THE COURT of Tax Appeals (CTA) has upheld its decision to reject Carmen Copper Corp.’s tax refund claim of P11.4 million, which was said to represent the excessive value-added tax (VAT) on the company’s purchases of goods, services, and imports for the year 2015.

In a 19-page decision dated Aug. 2, the CTA full court said the firm failed to prove its entitlement to the amount and that the amount could be traced to zero-rated sales.

“Petitioner (Carmen Copper) was not able to prove that it is entitled to a refund in cash in the amount of P11,393,494.01, representing its excess and unutilized input VAT on purchases of goods and services, and importation of goods, for the first quarter of 2015,” the tax tribunal said.

The court also noted that its Second Division did not misuse its discretion in rejecting the company’s refund claim.

In 2017, former Assistant Revenue Commissioner Teresita M. Angeles partially granted Carmen Copper’s claim in the amount of P48.78 million of its initial P60.17 million claim for 2015.

Under the country’s tax code, zero-rated sales are transactions made by VAT-registered taxpayers that do not translate to any output tax.

If a sale is subject to 0% VAT, the term “zero-rated sale” must also be written on the company’s official invoices. — John Victor D. Ordoñez