THE Department of Finance (DOF) said it it looking at investigating 250 high-earning social media influencers to check if they have been paying their taxes as the government seeks to cash in on the digital economy’s exponential growth amid the pandemic.
In a statement by the DOF, letters of authority (LOA) for the conduct of the examination have already been sent to social media influencers who were part of the initial list of top earners as determined by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
The tax agency said that the influencers who “willfully attempt to evade the payment of tax or willfully fail to make a tax return, to supply accurate and correct information or to pay tax” will face and be held accountable or criminally liable in addition to the payment of taxes and penalties.
According to BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa, they are encouraging the 250 personalities to register as they already have their profiles. He also added that the investigation is being done so that these influencers will pay their taxes based on their earnings.
The BIR also reminded these internet personalities via a new circular last month that they have to pay income tax, percentage tax, and value-added tax (VAT).
The new regulations were set to get needed revenues that will be created from economic activities online, which showed a dramatic growth even despite the existence of a pandemic.
“The social media influencers are, therefore, advised to voluntary and truthfully declare their income and pay their corresponding taxes without waiting for a formal investigation to be conducted by the BIR to avoid being liable for tax evasion and for the civil penalty of fifty percent of the tax or of the deficiency tax,” the circular read in part.
Likewise, the BIR also reminded online sellers to pay sales and income taxes as well.
The bureau is still studying how to collect taxes from the cryptocurrency sector.