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Subic Bay collects higher taxes after more firms use its facilities


MANILA, Philippines - Taxes collected by a Philippine freeport zone increased after more companies used ports and a number of firms chose to locate their operations inside Subic Bay. The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) said tax collections reached P3.55 billion for the first nine months this year, 7.6 percent higher than the same period last year. The tax collection surge began in the third quarter as companies increased operations in anticipation of the demand during the Christmas season, figures released by the SBMA indicated. “The growing number of business locators in Subic also contributed to the growth in income taxes collected from Freeport employees, which now number to almost 82,000," SBMA administrator Armand Arreza said. He added that some 11,321 jobs were created this year. Bulk of collections were sourced from income and withholding taxes, the Bureau of Customs’ Revenue District Office 19 said, adding that expenditure taxes went up. “Collection from fringe benefit taxes have also increased primarily because Korean companies shoulder the daily expenses of their Korean expats," a BIR employee explained to GMANews.TV. Percentage taxes from non-VAT exempt locators inside the Freeport represent a miniscule portion of the total collections as most locators inside zone are VAT exempt. - GMANews.TV