BIR Ruling No. 010-80

September 18, 1980 BIR RULING NO. 010-80 205-A 026-79 10-80 The Manila Hotel Rizal Park, Manila Attention : Mr . Domingo S . Galicia Credit Manager Gentlemen: This refers to your letter dated June 26, 1980 requesting a ruling on the request of Ms. Bella Bulan, Administrative Officer, United Nations Children's Fund, for exemption from hotel room occupancy tax for the visiting UNICEF Internal Audit Deputy Director, Mr. Kazuo Tateishi, from July 6 to 10, 1980, pursuant to the agreement between the Philippines and the UNICEF, providing immunity of the latter from taxation. In reply, I have the honor to inform you that this Office finds no legal basis to grant the requested exemption for the reason that the said hotel room occupancy tax is a tax imposed on the proprietors, operators, or keepers of hotels, motels, resthouses, pension houses, lodging houses and resort pursuant to Section 205-A of the Tax Code of 1977, as amended by Batas Pambansa Blg. 2. In other words, the hotel room occupancy tax is a tax directly payable by said establishment. Therefore, the fact that said tax may ultimately be shifted to or passed upon to the visiting UNICEF official will not constitute the same as tax payable by said guest or UNICEF for purposes of the exemption. aisadc Moreover, Presidential Decree No. 31 which would have exempted foreign tourist and travellers such as the said visiting UNICEF Internal Audit Deputy Director from New York the payment of the hotel room occupancy tax, has been repealed by Batas Pambansa Blg. 2 which took effect on April 1, 1979. Very truly yours, RUBEN B. ANCHETA Acting Commissioner