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Audit approach overview
Our audit approach will allow our client's accounting personnel to make the maximum contribution to the audit effort without compromising their ongoing responsibilities
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Annual and short period audit
At P&A Grant Thornton, we provide annual and short period financial statement audit services that go beyond the normal expectations of our clients. We believe strongly that our best work comes from combining outstanding technical expertise, knowledge and ability with exceptional client-focused service.
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Review engagement
A review involves limited investigation with a narrower scope than an audit, and is undertaken for the purpose of providing limited assurance that the management’s representations are in accordance with identified financial reporting standards. Our professionals recognize that in order to conduct a quality financial statement review, it is important to look beyond the accounting entries to the underlying activities and operations that give rise to them.
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Other Related Services
We make it a point to keep our clients abreast of the developments and updates relating to the growing complexities in the accounting world. We offer seminars and trainings on audit- and tax-related matters, such as updates on Accounting Standards, new pronouncements and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issuances, as well as other developments that affect our clients’ businesses.
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Tax advisory
With our knowledge of tax laws and audit procedures, we help safeguard the substantive and procedural rights of taxpayers and prevent unwarranted assessments.
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Tax compliance
We aim to minimize the impact of taxation, enabling you to maximize your potential savings and to expand your business.
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Corporate services
For clients that want to do business in the Philippines, we assist in determining the appropriate and tax-efficient operating business or investment vehicle and structure to address the objectives of the investor, as well as related incorporation issues.
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Tax education and advocacy
Our advocacy work focuses on clarifying the interpretation of laws and regulations, suggesting measures to increasingly ease tax compliance, and protecting taxpayer’s rights.
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Business risk services
Our business risk services cover a wide range of solutions that assist you in identifying, addressing and monitoring risks in your business. Such solutions include external quality assessments of your Internal Audit activities' conformance with standards as well as evaluating its readiness for such an external assessment.
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Business consulting services
Our business consulting services are aimed at addressing concerns in your operations, processes and systems. Using our extensive knowledge of various industries, we can take a close look at your business processes as we create solutions that can help you mitigate risks to meet your objectives, promote efficiency, and beef up controls.
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Transaction services
Transaction advisory includes all of our services specifically directed at assisting in investment, mergers and acquisitions, and financing transactions between and among businesses, lenders and governments. Such services include, among others, due diligence reviews, project feasibility studies, financial modelling, model audits and valuation.
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Forensic advisory
Our forensic advisory services include assessing your vulnerability to fraud and identifying fraud risk factors, and recommending practical solutions to eliminate the gaps. We also provide investigative services to detect and quantify fraud and corruption and to trace assets and data that may have been lost in a fraud event.
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Cyber advisory
Our focus is to help you identify and manage the cyber risks you might be facing within your organization. Our team can provide detailed, actionable insight that incorporates industry best practices and standards to strengthen your cybersecurity position and help you make informed decisions.
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ProActive Hotline
Providing support in preventing and detecting fraud by creating a safe and secure whistleblowing system to promote integrity and honesty in the organisation.
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Accounting services
At P&A Grant Thornton, we handle accounting services for several companies from a wide range of industries. Our approach is highly flexible. You may opt to outsource all your accounting functions, or pass on to us choice activities.
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Staff augmentation services
We offer Staff Augmentation services where our staff, under the direction and supervision of the company’s officers, perform accounting and accounting-related work.
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Payroll Processing
Payroll processing services are provided by P&A Grant Thornton Outsourcing Inc. More and more companies are beginning to realize the benefits of outsourcing their noncore activities, and the first to be outsourced is usually the payroll function. Payroll is easy to carve out from the rest of the business since it is usually independent of the other activities or functions within the Accounting Department.
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Our values
Grant Thornton prides itself on being a values-driven organisation and we have more than 38,500 people in over 130 countries who are passionately committed to these values.
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Global culture
Our people tell us that our global culture is one of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton.
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Learning & development
At Grant Thornton we believe learning and development opportunities allow you to perform at your best every day. And when you are at your best, we are the best at serving our clients
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Global talent mobility
One of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton is the opportunity to work on cross-border projects all over the world.
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Diversity
Diversity helps us meet the demands of a changing world. We value the fact that our people come from all walks of life and that this diversity of experience and perspective makes our organisation stronger as a result.
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In the community
Many Grant Thornton member firms provide a range of inspirational and generous services to the communities they serve.
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Fresh Graduates
Fresh Graduates
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Students
Whether you are starting your career as a graduate or school leaver, P&A Grant Thornton can give you a flying start. We are ambitious. Take the fact that we’re the world’s fastest-growing global accountancy organisation. For our people, that means access to a global organisation and the chance to collaborate with more than 40,000 colleagues around the world. And potentially work in different countries and experience other cultures.
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Experienced hires
P&A Grant Thornton offers something you can't find anywhere else. This is the opportunity to develop your ideas and thinking while having your efforts recognised from day one. We value the skills and knowledge you bring to Grant Thornton as an experienced professional and look forward to supporting you as you grow you career with our organisation.
Taxpayers’ First Quarter Election
14 May 2019Just yesterday, millions of registered Filipino voters headed to their respective precincts to exercise their rights to suffrage. Leading up to Election Day, Filipinos were bombarded with countless campaign advertisements — from catchy jingles and sponsored social media posts to political rallies and public debates — all in the hope that candidates could influence and win the people’s vote. Now, candidates and voters alike are in limbo, hoping and praying that the election odds are in their favor.
For taxpayers, the election is not over yet. Other than voting during yesterday’s midterm elections, taxpayers have another selection to make, this time in their first quarter income tax returns (ITR). For individual taxpayers who are required to file ITRs, the deadline for their first quarter ITR for 2019 is tomorrow, May 15; for corporate taxpayers, the deadline is May 30.
INDIVIDUAL TAXPAYERS
For individual taxpayers, certain sole proprietors engaged in business or those practicing their profession have to decide on the income tax regime they will adopt.
Specifically, they have to choose whether they will apply an 8% or a 0 to 35% graduated income tax rate. In addition, such individual taxpayers also have the option to choose how to deduct against their gross receipts/sales: itemized deduction or optional standard deduction (OSD).
8% PREFERENTIAL OR 0 TO 35% GRADUATED
The 8% tax option is applicable to qualified individuals whose gross receipts or gross sales and other non-operating income for the taxable year do not exceed P3,000,000. When the individual opts for the 8% tax, it will be a straightforward computation of their gross sales or receipts, less a P250,000 exemption, then multiplied by the 8% income tax rate. If the taxpayer opts for the 0 to 35% graduated income tax rates, on the other hand, they can subtract the allowable deductions against their gross receipts or gross sales to arrive at their net taxable income.
ITEMIZED DEDUCTION OR 40% OSD
Individual taxpayers also have the power to choose the manner of deduction taken to arrive at their net taxable income. Itemized deduction allows the taxpayer to deduct their business-related expenses, such as salaries, rentals, and depreciation expenses, among others. Note that the conditions of deductibility under the tax rules apply to such expenses. By choosing itemized deduction, there could be instances where the bottom line result is a net loss, rather than a net income.
OSD, on the other hand, is equivalent to 40% of the taxpayer’s gross sales or gross receipts. As its name suggests, the OSD is a fixed percentage of the taxpayer’s income. Under this method, there will always be a net taxable income, since only 40% is being deducted against the taxpayer’s income.
CORPORATE TAXPAYERS
Corporate taxpayers can choose whether to adopt the itemized deduction or the OSD methods.
Under the itemized deduction method, corporate taxpayers will be allowed to deduct actual corporate business expenses; likewise, the conditions for deductibility apply to each type of expense. In contrast, the OSD is computed in an amount not exceeding 40% of the corporate taxpayer’s gross income, as defined by the tax rules. For comparison, while the OSD for individuals is based on their gross sales or receipts, the OSD for corporations is based on gross income.
IRREVOCABILITY OF THE ELECTION
The choice of tax regime (whether 8% or graduated income tax rates for individuals) or the option of method of deduction (whether itemized deduction or OSD) is irrevocable for the applicable taxable year. Once the selection is made, it cannot be changed by any future amendment of the ITR.
For individual income taxpayers, what tax rate then should a home-based online consultant choose to compute their income taxes for the year? Should they make the same decision as a financial adviser regularly earning commissions? What about a businessman who owns and operates a gas station or a hardware store? Should they take same option as a practicing doctor or lawyer? The individual’s projected income for 2019 must be considered.
Similarly, for corporate taxpayers, budgeted or forecast income statements for the year are prepared. These budgets and forecasts should be carefully studied to determine whether itemized deduction or OSD would be more advantageous. A corporation with an expected low profit margin or incurring losses would more likely opt for itemized deduction; while companies with a high profit margin could consider OSD.
These are just general reminders on the taxpayer’s election for the first quarter ITR. The details can be carefully read in Revenue Regulations No. 16-2008, 08-2018, and other related issuances. Additionally, taxpayers need to make a cautious analysis of their financial figures or projections and other circumstances.
So, the May 13 elections have ended, and it can be surmised that Filipino voters thought matters through before casting their ballots. In the same vein, it is obviously fitting that taxpayers make the same responsible evaluation when it comes to their choices related to filing their first quarter ITR. Remember, your choices in the first quarter ITR are irrevocable for this year.
Let’s Talk Tax is a weekly newspaper column of P&A Grant Thornton that aims to keep the public informed of various developments in taxation. This article is not intended to be a substitute for competent professional advice.
Mica Dyan T. Borja is a senior from the Tax Advisory & Compliance division of P&A Grant Thornton, the Philippine member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd.
As published in BusinessWorld, dated 14 May 2019