BIR told: Collect P203-B Marcos tax
Political coalition 1Sambayan has urged newly appointed Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Rolando Ligon Jr. to act before 2 December to protect the government’s ability to collect the Marcos estate’s reported P203-billion tax liability.
In a statement, the coalition warned that the government’s ability to collect the liability could be affected if the applicable prescription period expires without the necessary action.
The BIR last issued a written demand to the Marcos heirs on 2 December 2021, according to the group.
The estate tax was originally assessed at P23.29 billion in 1991 and reportedly grew to approximately P203 billion by December 2021 because of accumulated interest and penalties.
The assessment stemmed from the BIR’s finding that the estate of the late President Ferdinand Marcos failed to file estate tax returns and several income tax returns covering 1982 to 1986. In July 1991, the BIR issued a deficiency estate tax assessment of P23.29 billion against the estate.
The Marcos family challenged the assessment, but the Court of Appeals dismissed Marcos’ petition in 1994. In 1997, the Supreme Court upheld that ruling, finding that the assessment had become final and unappealable.
The Supreme Court also upheld the BIR’s February 1993 notices of levy on Marcos properties issued to satisfy the tax liabilities.
Despite the rulings, the estate tax remained largely uncollected through succeeding administrations. The Presidential Commission on Good Government said the BIR levied and sold 11 Marcos properties in Tacloban City in 1993, but the broader estate-tax liability remained unpaid.
In 2021, the BIR confirmed that it had sent a written demand to the Marcos heirs on 2 December regarding their tax liabilities. The demand came amid renewed public calls for the government to enforce the Supreme Court ruling and collect the estate tax.
The P203-billion figure is an estimate that includes interest, surcharges and penalties accumulated since the original assessment. It is not a new tax assessment, but the reported current value of the liability.
1Sambayan called on the BIR to issue and properly serve a renewed demand if legally required, stressing that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is an heir and co-administrator of his father’s estate.
“P203 billion is too much public money to lose to silence, inaction, or administrative neglect,” the coalition said.