THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) ordered Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) to remit withholding taxes from their foreign workers by Aug. 10.
“Aug. 10 is deadline for the monthly remittance of withholding tax on compensation,” BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel S.D. Guballa confirmed in a text message. BIR has said it has so far collected P200 million worth of tax remittances from six POGO companies.
There government currently has no definitive estimate of the total number of foreign workers employed by POGOs.
Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III has said that the government foregoes revenue of about P2 billion a month for every 100,000 POGO workers that do not pay withholding tax on their earnings, or about P24 billion a year.
In early July, Mr. Dominguez said the BIR will start collecting taxes from foreign workers employed by POGOs. — Beatrice M. Laforga
