2 flower shops charged for failing to issue receipts

MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Internal Revenue filed on Thursday criminal charges against two flower shops who failed to issue receipts in violation of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997.

The state agency charged Sylvia Pimentel, sole proprietress of Flowers by Sylvia, a flower shop in San Antonio Village, Makati City. The bureau likewise filed with the Justice Department a complaint against Casa Flores, Inc. and its president Belen Bactad, vice-president Edgar Bactad and treasurer/secretary Fe de Belen Bactad de Leon.

BIR said the two flower shops were subjected to covert surveillance operations to verify whether or not they are issuing receipts as mandated by the Tax Code.

"Two  BIR investigators acted as poseur customers who bought flowers from Pimentel’s flower shop. Her establishment did not issue to the first buyer any official receipt but instead issued an unregistered provisional receipt that did not conform to the invoicing requirements provided under the Tax Code. It still failed to issue any receipt to the second buyer but instead issued for the second time an unregistered provisional receipt," the bureau said.

BIR added that the same happened with Casa Flores, which only issued an unregistered delivery receipt that did not conform to the invoicing requirements of the Tax Code.

"It likewise failed to issue any receipt to the second buyer but issued a cash invoice only upon demand," BIR said.

The shops were served mission orders before the investigators apprehended and confiscated their invoice booklets, the bureau said.

The cases filed against the flower shop owners are under the BIR's Run After Tax Evaders Program.