BIR files tax raps vs Zoren, 2 others

MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) yesterday filed tax evasion cases against five individuals and corporations led by actor Zoren Legaspi in line with the government’s sustained campaign to run after tax dodgers.

In a complaint lodged before the Department of Justice, the BIR said Legaspi “willfully and deliberately” underdeclared his income and failed to provide correct information in his income tax returns (ITRs) for 2010 and 2012 in violation of sections 254 and 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code.

Legaspi, registered with the BIR as a professional in the entertainment industry, was assessed a tax liability of P4.45 million for those two years, inclusive of surcharges and interest.

An investigation conducted by the BIR showed that Legaspi earned P9.64 million in 2010 and P6.49 million in 2012.

Documents submitted to the BIR, however, revealed that Legaspi declared only P6.79 million as gross income in his 2010 ITR and P1.82 million in his 2012 ITR.

This means he under-declared his taxable income by P2.85 million or 42 percent in 2010 and P4.67 million or 256 percent in 2012.

Legaspi is among several other celebrities and high-profile individuals facing tax evasion charges following an intensified crackdown on tax offenders.

Reacting to the tax case, Legaspi said, “I’m more than willing to comply and cooperate regarding the ongoing investigation of my tax liabilities.”

He said they would review their tax records to determine what went wrong or if they had committed any lapses at all.

“I’m glad that the BIR brought their initial findings to the DOJ – that means they are doing their job,” he said. “I love my country... I will never evade any tax obligation.”

Aside from Legaspi, the BIR also filed yesterday a criminal complaint against proprietress Gigi Donaire Chua, who owns Wangler Commercial; and Edgardo Vazquez, president of Vazquez Building Systems Corp.

Chua had a tax deficiency of P329.79 million for 2007 consisting of P238.41 million in income tax and P91.38 million in value added tax (VAT).

Vazquez, on the other hand, had a tax liability of P84.35 million for 2008. His firm is engaged in the construction of buildings and residential houses and supply of construction materials.

According to the BIR, Chua and Vazquez were served the corresponding Letter Notice, Letters of Authority, Preliminary Assessment Notices, Final Assessment Notices and Formal Letters of Demand with details of the discrepancies but they failed to contest the assessments, making them final, executory and demandable.

“The respondents’ obstinate failure and continued refusal to pay their long overdue deficiency tax assessments, despite repeated demands, constitute willful failure to pay the taxes due to the government,” the BIR said.

The BIR has so far filed 242 cases against tax dodgers under its Run After Tax Evaders program since Kim Henares took the reins of the tax collection agency.

The BIR aims to collect P1.46 trillion in revenues this year, 20 percent higher than the P1.22 trillion collected in 2013.

To achieve its goal, the government has launched several public information campaigns to encourage self-employed individuals and small businesses to pay the right taxes.

The campaigns include the Department of Finance’s “Tax Watch” shame campaign, which involves the weekly publication of lists of individual and corporate taxpayers in various industries.