THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has created a task force to audit social media influencers for tax registration compliance and tax payments.
Lawyer Ron Mikhail Uy, who represented the BIR during Friday’s Tri-Comm hearing, gave the information to the panel in the course of responding to a question from Antipolo City Rep. Romeo Acop.
Acop told Uy that in its last hearing, the three-committee panel directed the BIR to submit on the number of social media content creators taxed by the agency and their respective tax payments.
Uy informed Acop and Tri-Comm that the BIR “has already created a specialized body…a task force dedicated to investigating social media influencers, and consequently for issuing letters of authority for further tax audit.”
He said the hearing panel has actually given his agency a list of 27 social media personalities.
Uy proceeded to explain the difficulty in running after these taxpayers.
“We have investigated their accounts and most of them are registered indeed. But considering that they use their..they are not a company, your honor. Some of the influencers, their names are similar to other taxpayers. One of them has been tagged for 17-18 names,” Uy said.
Deputy Speaker David “Jay-Jay” Suarez of Quezon asked the BIR lawyer if social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) are paying taxes in the Philippines.
Uy said since these companies are “non-resident foreign corporations, they should be paying tax on income earned in our country.”
“But are they actually paying?” Suarez asked again.
“Your honor, we will check with our operations and submit the date next week,” Uy responded.
Suarez also asked social media platform representatives to check with their principals if they are paying taxes here.
The Quezon lawmaker likewise inquired from influencers and content creators if they are paying taxes.
One of them, former Press Secretary Trixie Cruz Angeles, said they are.
One well-known influencer has claimed earning at least P5 million a day
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