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This year has been one of the most challenging filing seasons ever, particularly for accountants. On top of implementing recovery measures to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and addressing employee health concerns, companies also have to deal with demanding tax deadlines. This year, no extension was granted for the filing of Annual lncome Tax Returns (AITR). Also, a new required attachment to the AITR has been introduced. While the BIR allowed taxpayers to file provisional AITRs and amend these on or before May 15 without interest, surcharges, and penalties, beating the April 15 deadline was still a challenge.

It’s been more than a year since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This global health crisis, which has claimed millions of lives and continues to change the ways businesses operate, has spanned two tax seasons in the Philippines.

Physical exhaustion, sleepless nights, and anxiety are among the words that some might use to describe the experience of taxpayers and their accountants in this tax season just concluded, an ordeal heightened by the effects of the pandemic and lockdowns.

On March 31, 2021, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issued Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) 14-2021 which outlines the new procedures for availing of relief from double taxation under relevant tax treaties on all items of income derived by nonresident taxpayers from Philippine sources.

Without a doubt, globalization of businesses has been thriving. Multinational and domestic firms alike are often engaged in multiple transactions with and on behalf of each other in a bid to achieve cost efficiency due to readily available resources and administrative convenience or practical exigencies. These types of transactions are usually made without any intention to make profits.

And so, it came to pass. The Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Bill, though with vetoed provisions, was finally signed by the President on March 26 as Republic Act No. 11534. After years of waiting for the lowering of the corporate income tax and the rationalization of fiscal incentives, we now have the law just waiting to be published to be effective.

The sleepless nights of most accountants will end less than a month from now, as the last day of filing annual income tax returns (ITR) for corporations whose taxable year ended December 31, 2020 is on the 15th of April. However, most of these companies are hoping that this due date will still be extended because, starting this week, the National Capital Region, along with other nearby provinces, will be observing a strict form of community quarantine. On top of this, some taxpayers are still struggling to comply with new requirements on transfer pricing (TP) and the impact of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives (CREATE) Bill which is expected to be signed or lapse into law soon.

The pandemic has highlighted the opportunity to pursue digitalization at all levels. From the point of view of employees working from home, digital transformation is not just relevant but also convenient. Electronic signing of contracts and letters, such as engagement letters, reports, and closure letters, to name a few, are some of the initiatives that P&A Grant Thornton has implemented as it adapts to the new normal in business practices.