Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto has welcomed the passage of Senate Resolution No. 139, ratifying the Philippines’ participation in the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (MAAC), which will help stop tax evasion and avoidance in the country.
The MAAC is a comprehensive multilateral instrument available for all forms of administrative cooperation between signatories in the assessment and collection of taxes.
“We are finally happy to have the MAAC in full force in the Philippines. To fund our people’s growing needs, we need more tools like this to enhance our revenue-generating capacity. This is a crucial weapon in our arsenal to fight tax evasion that ultimately denies every Filipino’s right to have the quality public goods and services they deserve,” the finance chief said.
The MAAC is the most comprehensive multilateral instrument available for all forms of administrative cooperation between signatories in the assessment and collection of taxes. It was jointly developed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Council of Europe in 1988 and amended by the Protocol in 2010. It has been signed by 147 countries and ratified by over 100 countries.
The finance chief expects the MAAC to significantly improve tax administration in the Philippines since it gives the government access to data exchange, assessment, and enforcement tools with over a hundred partner signatories. Furthermore, it allows the Philippines to enter into agreements on simultaneous tax examinations and exchanges of information (EOI).
With the MAAC in place, the Philippine government can access tax information of other jurisdictions, decrease the risk of a downgrade on the country’s tax transparency, and save time, financial and human resources on treaty negotiations. The country will also gain third-party information to support assessment and enforcement programs, such as the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) Run After Tax Evaders (RATE) Program.
“Sa ratipikasyon ng MAAC, binibigyan natin ng lakas ang ating bansa upang labanan ang mga mapanlinlang na paraan sa pag-iwas ng buwis. Hindi na makakatakas ang mga taong gumagamit ng masalimuot na estratehiya upang umiwas sa kanilang responsibilidad,” Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Chair Imee Marcos said.
To ensure the integrity of the cooperation, the MAAC contains safeguards to protect the confidentiality of information exchanged between tax authorities, upholding taxpayers’ right to privacy.
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