BIR Ruling [DA-426-00]

December 12, 2000 BIR RULING [DA-426-00] Sec. 236 (J) Girl Scout of the Philippines National Headquarters 901 Padre Faura Street 1000 Ermita. Manila Attention: Mrs . Ma . Dolores T . Santiago Assistant National Executive Director Gentlemen : This refers to your letter dated September 4, 2000 requesting the assistance of this Office regarding the Tax Identification Number (TIN) issued to your local councils all over the Philippines. You stated that the National Headquarters of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines was registered with the Revenue District Office No. 33 and was issued TIN-000-768-350-000; that the GSP has at present 95 Girl Scout Councils in different location all over the Philippines, each having its own Council Charter and its own Board that the local councils are governed by the GSP Constitution and Council By-laws but the administrative operations are independent of the National Headquarters; that inasmuch as the local councils are operating administratively on their own, you required them to register with their local BIR Office as withholding agents of their employees; and that some of them were issued TINs which are exactly the same as that of the National Headquarters, some with the same number but with suffix and others with entirely different set of numbers. In reply, please be informed that Section 236(J) of the Tax Code of 1997 specifically provides that any person required under authority of this Code to make, render or file a return shall be supplied with or assigned a Tax Identification Number (TIN) which he shall indicate in such return, statement or document filed with the Bureau of Internal Revenue for his proper identification for tax purposes and which he shall indicate in certain documents enumerated therein. Since your local councils act as withholding agents of their respective employees, they shall be supplied with or assigned their own TIN different from the TIN issued to the National Headquarters of the GSP. This is in accordance with the provisions of law to the effect that only one TIN shall be assigned to a taxpayer. To this end, the local chapters of the GSP should file TIN application with a letter-request for replacement of the TIN previously issued which bears the same number as that of the GSP National Headquarters pursuant to Revenue Regulations No. 11-99 issued on August 30, 1999. We wish to inform you though that the proper official who can help you regarding the instant problem is the Chief of our TIN Transaction Unit, this Bureau. IDCScA Very truly yours, Commissioner of Internal Revenue By: (SGD.) LILIAN B. HEFTI Deputy Commissioner Legal & Inspection Group