No exceptions on taxes — BIR

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is intensifying its crackdown on tax evaders, with no exceptions, following the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) filing of a P176-million tax evasion case against Hilmarc’s Construction Corporation, one of the country’s largest government contractors. The company is accused of using ghost receipts to illegally reduce its tax obligations.

In a post on his official Facebook page, BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. emphasized that the BIR has repeatedly warned the public against using ghost receipts, saying, “We will file tax evasion charges against you. You will be arrested, even if you are one of the largest government contractors in the country.”

Lumagui also expressed his gratitude to the DoJ for its support in the fight against tax evasion, particularly the use of ghost receipts, stating, “Together we will make sure that under this administration this tax evasion scheme will end.”

The DoJ filed eight criminal charges before the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) against Hilmarc’s and its corporate officers — Efren M. Canlas, Robert B. Henson and Cristina Elisse F. Canlas — for violations of Sections 254 and 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC).

Arrest warrants are expected to be issued soon.

The case followed an investigation by the BIR’s Run After Fake Transactions (RAFT) Task Force, which uncovered fraudulent tax filings by Hilmarc’s for 2013 and 2014. The company allegedly used false receipts from ghost companies — Everpacific Incorporated and Unimaker Enterprises Inc. — to claim deductions on its income tax returns and falsify input taxes on its VAT returns.

In addition to criminal charges, Hilmarc’s faces a tax liability of P176,363,284.77.