Online gambling in the Philippines will be properly taxed from now on. (pennonlinecasinos.com)
A phased implementation of the recently approved tax scheme for Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) will be endorsed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), its top executive said on Tuesday.
PAGCOR chair and CEO Andrea Domingo said the recommendation will help the POGO industry grow before being taxed heavily.
“I would recommend that and I can only pray they will listen,” Domingo said. “I think the bill will be up for debate and discussion in plenary soon enough. The legal minds and the Constitution experts in Congress will surely debate on this matter. Then we will see how they will resolve these issues.”
While POGO must be taxed, such scheme should be executed in a fair and just manner.
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“Fair and reasonable taxation is good. Overtaxation will of course kill the legal and legitimate business operations. For illegal operations, it will not matter,” Domingo explained. “PAGCOR’s charter does give it jurisdiction over illegal gambling so the task of fighting illegal gambling falls on the law enforcement agencies.”
The House of Representatives earlier approved a tax slap of 5 percent for POGO franchise tax and a 25% income tax for its employees, most of whom are Chinese.
Based on the latest projections, such tax scheme will generate additional revenues between P20 billion to P45 billion.
To recall, various lawmakers and economic managers refuted the Office of Solicitor General’s (OSG) comment on the POGO taxation issue that such firms must not be taxed since their income is sourced outside the country.
Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III agreed with the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s opinion that “the situs of income is where the services are rendered.”
“Thus, since POGO provides services to their counterparts in the Philippines, they are subjected to income tax,” Dominguez explained.
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon shared the same sentiment, labeling the OSG’s take on the matter as “erroneous, misplaced and misguided.”
