Official urges politicians to declare poll spending

INTERNAL Revenue Regional Director Eduardo Bajador reminded politicians to declare their campaign expenses honestly as the agency will exert extra effort in tracing these spending in close coordination with the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Bajador, in last year’s filing of Certificates of Candidacies, fielded revenue officers to remind electoral candidates of registering as withholders of taxes spent during the campaign period.

He also reminded candidates, especially those who ran in the previous 2010 polls, to settle any tax deficiencies.

The regional director said the bureau is sending Comelec the list of candidates in previous polls who have not settled their tax liabilities.

“Candidates should be the role models in complying with their tax obligations whether they won the elections or not,” he said.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is mandated under Revenue Regulations 8-2009 to strictly monitor the withholding tax payments of five percent on campaign-related expenditures of political parties, campaign contributors and candidates for the forthcoming national and local elections.

The BIR emphasized the five percent creditable withholding tax is a tax on candidates, political parties and contributors by deducting the tax from the agreed transaction price upon making payment, which will then be remitted to the bureau.

The regional director also stressed they will cull information from third-party sources to pinpoint those who have not been remitting these taxes to the bureau.

Also, in line with the bureau’s campaign to boost tax collection in 2013, the BIR launched Oplan Iboto Mo to remind politicians to register and remit taxes to the BIR.

He said they are not going to determine delinquent tax payers from the candidates as they will only be known after the election period and after the submission of campaign spending reports to the Comelec.