According to a One News interview with tax expert and former Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) examiner Mon Abrea, people who report tax evaders will get rewarded by the government. He added, for those that report a social media influencer evading taxes could receive up to PHP 1 million in reward.
“‘Yun ‘yung hindi masyado alam ng publiko. Tayo mismo pwede kumita…‘pag sinabi natin o tinuro natin ‘yung mga kasama natin na mukhang hindi nagbabayad ng buwis,” said Abrea on One News’ Agenda.
BIR recently released a circular reminding YouTubers and other social media influencers, individuals, or corporations of their tax obligations.
The agency defines “social media influencers” as those individuals who generate income from online sites like YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Reddit, Snapchat, to name a few.
“Dapat patas tayo kasi ‘yung mga kababayan natin na empleyado fixed income earner pero nabawas na ‘yung tax bago pa nila matanggap ‘yung sahod nila,” Abrea noted.
The Creator and Influencer Council of the Philippines (CICP) responded to the circular from the BIR and assured the agency that the members are willing to pay proper taxes. The CICP is a group of content creators and social media influencers.
“We view the (circular) as an opportunity to exemplify the importance we give to paying taxes and show others that we view it as a patriotic duty that any responsible citizen should fulfill,” the CICP said in a statement.
The group added that they are crafting a code of ethics for content creators centered around standards, fair dealing, transparency, social responsibility, and compliance with the law.
Ram found his love and appreciation for writing in 2015 having started in the gaming and esports sphere for GG Network. He would then transition to focus more on the world of tech which has also began his journey into learning more about this world. That said though, he still has the mentality of "as long as it works" for his personal gadgets.
