BIZ BUZZ: Abolish BIR?
That’s a suggestion from tax expert Raymond Abrea, who argued that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)—an attached agency of the finance department—would be better off if it were an independent institution that can enact pro-investment reforms without worrying about politics.
We all know that revenue measures—whatever their intentions are—can be extremely unpopular in the Philippines.
This is why elected presidents try to avoid them as much as possible, even though certain reforms are needed in some cases.
That said, Abrea’s proposal is to abolish BIR and replace it with an independent tax collecting agency that would not be afraid to implement reforms meant to spur investments in industries that really need support, like tax breaks for the country’s promising fashion industry, for example.
“Maybe the problem is we are so collection-driven but focused on the small ones. The government is so afraid to collect from their campaign donors, from the multinational companies who are supporting their candidacy,” Abrea said during a media conference ahead of Asian Consulting Group’s upcoming International Tax and Investment Conference later this month.
“So maybe it’s also high time to make the BIR independent of the bureaucracy like the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Maybe we have to abolish the BIR and create a new agency where the head is not a presidential appointee,” he added.
What do you think of this proposal?
