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FILE – Chinese nationals working for offshore gaming operators in the Philippines have their temperatures checked as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19 before entering the office building at the Pearl Plaza shopping center in Barangay Tambo, city of Paranaque. INQUIRER PHOTO / RICHARD A. REYES
MANILA, Philippines – Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Saturday that P17.5 billion of revenue is expected from Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos) under the newly enacted Bayanihan to Recover As One Act or Bayanihan 2.
In a statement, the Senate leader said that Bayanihan 2 “redefined Pogo’s taxes and tightened regulations in an attempt to raise funds to increase the government’s increasingly scarce resources.”
“The Bayanihan 2 will more than double POGO’s tax collection, from an estimated P7 billion of collection in 2019 to about P17.5 billion this year due to the reforms we have introduced into the measure,” he added, citing Department estimates. Finance. .
“All proceeds from POGO will be used to fund the various types of assistance established in Bayanihan 2 for all sectors affected by the pandemic.”
Under the provision of the law, which was first proposed as an amendment by Drilon, it requires that a five percent franchise tax be applied to gross bets or turnovers, or the predetermined minimum monthly income from trading operations. game, whichever is greater.
“With its amendment, the government can now impose the five percent franchise tax on gross bets or business losses, which will generate more revenue for the government,” Drilon said.
Drilon added that under Bayanihan 2, the franchise tax will be calculated on the equivalent in pesos of the foreign currency used, based on the official exchange rate in effect at the time of payment.
This way, Drilon said, it would prevent Pogos from underreporting his income.
Failure to comply with the provision will be a violation of the Philippine National Internal Revenue Code, Drilon added.
Bayanihan 2 also orders the Internal Revenue Office to close Pogos that do not pay the taxes owed.
The measure orders the Internal Revenue Office (BIR) to close the POGOs that do not pay the taxes owed.
President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law the Bayanihan 2 Act on Friday, which provides a P165 billion stimulus and relief package to cushion the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
P140 billion of the fund will be for regular appropriation and P25 billion as reserve funds.
Most of the budget will go to loans for sectors affected by the pandemic such as micro, small and medium enterprises, transport, tourism and agriculture.
CFC
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