Bangon Pilipinas lone senatorial candidate Eddie Villanueva on Monday cautioned the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) against stunting the growth of micro and small enterprises in its efforts to intensify tax collection on self-employed professionals and individuals paying less than P200,000 in taxes per year.
Villanueva said BIR’s efforts to increase tax collection should not add another hurdle in the success of those who are starting or running micro and small businesses such as sari-sari stores.
He said BIR should adopt specific measures to ensure that its new policy to prioritize the auditing of self-employed professionals and individuals who pay taxes that are below P200,000 will not be used as a barrier to entry or to harass local micro enterprises.
“While we support the government’s efforts to shore up revenue collection, BIR must ensure that micro entrepreneurs will not become collateral damage in its efforts to aggressively pursue tax collection efforts on high-earning self-employed professionals and individuals,” Villanueva said.
“What we are afraid of is that in our desire to increase our tax collection, we will be creating another barrier that would prevent poor Filipinos from starting a small business to help improve their family’s future.”
According to Villanueva, if the BIR intends to improve the compliance of high-earning professionals including lawyers and doctors to tax payment rules, it should issue very specific instructions detailing the scope of its aggressive audit efforts.
BIR’s new tax drive stemmed from its findings that self-employed individuals and professionals only accounted for 6.8% of the individual incomes taxes paid in 2012.
BIR data showed that self-employed individuals and professionals paid P15.1 billion in income taxes last year – much lower compared to the P181.7 billion paid out by employees whose taxes are withheld automatically by their employers.
Encourage MSMEs
Villanueva reiterated his earlier call that the government should encourage the development of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) throughout the country to spur jobs creation and alleviate poverty.
By creating institutions that will nurture MSMEs, Villanueva said the government will not only create jobs but will also unleash a potent force that will fast-track the country’s development both in urban and rural areas.
This policy of boosting employment through enterprise development forms part of Villanueva’s 3Es platform – Ekonomiyang Agresibo’t Walang Napag-iiwanan, Edukasyon na Napapanahon, at Entre-Pinoy na Masang Pilipino ang Nangunguna at Nakikinabang – which he envisions to directly alleviate the plight of the country’s marginalized sectors or the “sagigilids”.
In particular, Villanueva proposes the establishment of Community Entrepreneurial High Schools throughout the country which are envisioned to transform students, parents, and communities into entrepreneurs capable of growing micro, small, and medium businesses with the help of teachers and the local government.
Villanueva is also pushing for the creation of a National Cooperative Bank, an institution similar to the “Grameen Bank” concept which will encourage small and medium-scale industries and entrepreneurs through a lending institution with increased capitalization, support services, and technical support from the government.
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