THE Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has partially granted the petition of Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. for a refund on excise tax erroneously collected on its jet fuel imports by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
In a decision promulgated by the tax court on July 27, it ordered the internal revenue commissioner “to refund or provide a tax credit certificate in favor of the Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. the amount of P56,762,554.12, representing excise taxes erroneously collected on its imported Jet A-1 fuel sold to international carriers for the period Aug. 12, 2013 to Dec. 31, 2013.”
Pilipinas Shell in its Petition for Review sought a refund of P61.47 million worth of tax it paid on the sale of 16.75 million liters of aviation jet turbo fuel (Jet A-1).
The court found that only P56.76 million in claimed payments were supported by proper documentation.
The decision to refund the excise tax was pursuant to the Section 135 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) of 1997, also cited by Pilipinas Shell, which states that petroleum products sold to “international carriers… of foreign registry (for) their use or consumption outside the Philippines” are exempted from excise tax.
“Very clearly, petitioner as the statutory taxpayer, who paid the excise taxes on petroleum products sold to international carriers for their use or consumption outside the Philippines, is entitled to claim refund of the subject excise taxes paid based on Section 135 of the NIRC, as amended, as the payment thereof is deemed illegal or erroneous,” the court said. The ruling also noted that Shell also filed its claim for refund within two years from the date of payment in compliance with Sections 204 (C) and 229 of the NIRC. Pilipinas Shell initially filed the petition for refund on Aug. 18, 2014 to the BIR but directed the petition for review to the CTA. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
