BIR Ruling No. 051-80

November 7, 1980 BIR RULING NO. 051-80 029-b 000-00 51-80 Task Force on Internal Refugee Assistance and Administration c/o National Housing Authority Quezon Memorial Elliptical Road Diliman, Quezon City Attention : Mr . G . V . Tobias Major General, AFP (Ret.) Administrator Gentlemen: This refers to your letter dated April 8, 1980 requesting a certification to the effect that the remunerations paid by the United Nations to personnel appointed by you to undertake the administration of the Refugees Processing Center for Indochinese Refugees in Sabang, Morong, Bataan per Agreement Between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees on the Construction and Operation of the Refugee Processing Center in the Philippines dated November 12, 1979, are exempt from income tax. It appears that the personnel appointed by you consist of qualified local personnel as well as foreign personnel on a consultative or collaborative basis. In reply, please be informed that the remunerations paid by the United Nations to the personnel appointed by you are exempt from income tax, pursuant to Section 18(b) of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, which was adopted by U.N. General Assembly on February 13, 1946. However, pursuant to Section 17 of the said Convention, the operative act under which the tax-exemption shall be enjoyed is a certification to be submitted by the United Nations to our Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Unless such certification is secured and submitted, the said personnel shall be subject to income tax. In case the remunerations are subject to income tax, the same will not be subject to the withholding tax on wages since the services in this case are being performed by citizens or residents of the Philippines for the United Nations, an international organization (Sec. 90(a)(4), Tax Code of 1977, as amended) which cannot be made a withholding agent of the Philippine Government without its consent. Consequently, the Task Force is requested to furnish the Bureau with a list of the U.N. personnel, if any, receiving remuneration which is not tax-exempt with the corresponding amounts paid to enable the Bureau to monitor the tax liabilities of these personnel. aisadc Very truly yours, ROMULO M. VILLA Acting Commissioner