AN ACT GRANTING TAX AMNESTY TO PERSONS REPATRIATING THEIR FOREIGN CURRENCIES

AND/OR SECURITIES TO THE PHILIPPINES.

Sec. 2. Exceptions. The following taxpayers shall not be qualified to avail of the tax
amnesty herein granted:
(1) Those with income tax cases already filed in court as of the effectivity of this Act;
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(2) Those with criminal cases involving violations of the income tax law already filed in
court as of the effectivity of this Act;
(3) Those who have withholding tax liabilities under the National Internal Revenue Code, as
amended, insofar as the said liabilities are concerned;
(4) Those with pending cases involving unexplained or unlawfully acquired wealth before
the Sandiganbayan;
(5) Those liable under Title VII, Chapter III (Frauds, Illegal Exactions and Transactions) and
Chapter IV (Malversation of Public Funds and Property) of the Revised Penal Code, as
amended; and
(6) Those with pending cases involving unexplained or unlawfully acquired wealth falling
under the jurisdiction of the Philippine Commission on Good Government.

Sec. 7. Immunities and Privileges. Upon full compliance with the conditions of the tax
amnesty, the taxpayer shall enjoy the following immunities and privileges:
(1) The taxpayer shall be relieved of any civil, criminal or administrative liabilities arising
from or incident to the availment of the tax amnesty herein granted, which are actionable
under the National Internal Revenue Code, the Revised Penal Code, the Anti-graft and
Corrupt Practices Act, the Revised Administrative Code, the Civil Service laws and
regulations, laws and regulations on immigration and deportation, or any other applicable
law; and
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(2) The taxpayer's tax amnesty declaration shall not be admissible in evidence in all
proceedings before judicial, quasi- judicial or administrative bodies in which he is a
defendant or respondent, and the same shall not be examined, inquired or looked into by
any person, government official, bureau or office.chanrobles virtual law library
Sec. 8. Deposit of Foreign Currencies. Foreign currencies brought into this country
pursuant to this Act may be deposited and maintained in any bank in the Philippines as a
foreign currency and the Government or any of its agencies cannot compel the depositor to
convert the same into some other currency.
Tax exemption
1.

Those who are minimum wage earners (see list of current minimum wage rates per region
here)

2.

Those whose gross income do not exceed the personal and additional exemptions dictated by
BIR. All taxpayers are entitled to P50,000 personal exemption, while those with dependents
have additional exemption of P25,000 for each qualified dependent but the number of
dependents should not exceed 4. (READ: What to consider in computing income tax)

3.

Those whose annual salary from just one employer will not exceed P60,000

4.

Those whose income has been subjected to final withholding tax filed by the employer

5.

Those who are qualified under "substituted filing." Substituted filing is when the employer's
annual tax return may be considered as the "substitute" ITR as they contain the same
information.

Business tax exemption

Self-employed individuals who are categorized as marginal income earners (MIEs) are still subject to
income tax, but they are exempted from paying business taxes, such as value added tax (VAT) and
percentage tax.
The MIEs, according to BIR's description, are:

individuals whose businesses do not exceed P100,000 in annual gross sales or receipts

individuals who are not deriving income from an employer

individuals whose activities should be principally for subsistence or livelihood, such as:

farmers/fishermen selling directly to consumers

small sari-sari stores

small carinderias or "turo-turos"

drivers/operators of a single-unit tricycle

A proper understanding of the terms shifting and incidence is necessary before their discussion
can profitably be undertaken. Fiscal authorities may place a tax upon a particular individual,
which he will pay. He may, however, in some way, transfer the burden of this tax to a second
individual; the second may transfer it to a third, and so on. The burden must, however, finally
rest somewhere - that is, a point will be reached where there will be opportunity or possibility
for no more transfers. This process of transferring a tax burden from one individual to another
is called shifting) the point where the burden finally rests is called the inci-dence. The
expressions have the same meaning as when applied by physicists to rays of light. A ray of
light may be shifted or refracted in various directions by mirrors or prisms, but it will finally rest
or hit upon some point, and this point is its incidence. The incidence of a tax is usually
considered as the result of its having been shifted. If, however, a tax burden remained where it
was first placed, the incidence properly might be said to be here, even though no process of
shifting occurred.
The shifting of a tax must be clearly distinguished from the evasion of a tax. When an
individual evades a tax he neither pays it and bears the burden, nor does anyone else. If all
taxes were evaded no revenue would accrue to the state, while if all were shifted the revenue
would not be affected, yet the person making the payment would not feel the burden. When
the holder of a mortgage, for example, does not list it with the tax assessor, he evades the tax.
If, however, he lists the mortgage as a part of his property, pays the tax levied upon it, and
then charges the mortgagor a sufficiently high rate of interest to recoup himself for the tax, it
is shifted, and the incidence is on the mortgagor.

Tax Violations

Deliberately under-reporting or omitting income. This is self-explanatory: concealing

income is fraudulent. Examples include a business owner's failure to report a portion of the
day's receipts or a landlord failing to report rent payments.

Keeping two sets of books and making false entries in books and records. Engaging in
accounting irregularities, such as a business's failure to keep adequate records, or a
discrepancy between amounts reported on a corporation's return and amounts reported on its
financial statements, generally demonstrates fraudulent intent.

Claiming false or overstated deductions on a return. These range from claiming

unsubstantiated charitable deductions to overstating travel expenses. It can also include
paying your children or spouse for work that they did not perform. The IRS is always vigilant
when it comes to inflated deductions from pass-through entities.

Claiming personal expenses as business expenses. This is an easy trap to fall into
because often assets, such as a car or a computer, will have both business and personal use.
Proper record-keeping will go a long way in preventing a finding of tax fraud.

Hiding or transferring assets or income. This type of fraud can take a variety of forms,
from simple concealment of funds in a bank account to improper allocations between
taxpayers. For example, improperly allocating income to a related taxpayer who is in a lower
tax bracket, such as where a corporation makes distributions to the controlling shareholder's
children, is likely to be considered tax fraud.

Engaging in a "sham transaction." You can't reduce or avoid income tax liability simply by
labeling a transaction as something it is not. For example, if payments by a corporation to its
stockholders are in fact dividends, calling them "interest" or otherwise attempting to disguise
the payments as interest will not entitle the corporation to an interest deduction. As discussed
below, it is the substance, not the form, of the transaction that determines its taxability.