BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 143-2019
Clarification on Inclusion of Taxpayers as Top Withholding Agents Who are Obliged to Remit the 1% and 2% Creditable Withholding Taxes Pursuant to the Criteria of Revenue Regulations No. 7-2019
REVENUE MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 143-2019 issued on December 27, 2019 clarifies the inclusion of taxpayers as Top Withholding Agents who are obliged to remit the 1% and 2% Creditable Withholding Taxes (CWTs) pursuant to the criteria of Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 7-2019
In implementing RR No. 7-2019 and consistent to the policy of Ease of Doing Business by ensuring that the list of Top Withholding Agents (TWAs) only reflect taxpayers who are compliant to the prescribed criteria of said RR, Operations Memorandum (OM) Order No. 20-2019 was issued, which excludes the following taxpayers in the identification of TWAs, although they have satisfied the prescribed criteria of the said RR:
a. National government agencies, government-owned or controlled corporations, state universities and colleges. and local government units;
b. Taxpayers who were included because of one-time transactions (i.e. Estate and Donor’s Tax);
c. Individual taxpayers deriving income on commission basis such as but not limited to insurance agent and real estate broker, subject to verification of their duly-filed 2018 Quarterly Income Tax Returns (BIR Form No. 1701Q) in order to determine the regularity of their transactions. Accordingly, if the ?12M criteria has been satisfied only in one (1) taxable quarter, the taxpayer shall not be qualified as TWA; and
d. Taxpayers who are tax exempt from payment of Income Taxes with no proprietary activities (i.e. foundations, non-stock, non-profit and tax exempt educational institutions, religious and charitable institutions, etc.).
On the basis of the above discussions and clarifications, in cases of publication of TWAs in the newspaper of general circulation wherein certain taxpayers are included or not deleted in the existing list of TWAs but do not satisfy the criteria of RR No. 7-2019, or if they may have satisfied the same but qualify as taxpayers enumerated in OM No. 20-2019 who should be excluded from the list of TWAs, these taxpayers cannot be compelled to withhold the 1% and 2% CWTs.
