An Individual who is Married to a Foreign National is Entitled to the Full Basic Personal exemption of P12,000

September 19, 1991 BIR RULING NO. 195-91 29 (1) (1) 000-00 195-91 Gentlemen : This refers to your letter dated March 13, 1991 requesting for a ruling on whether or not a resident citizen of the Philippines who is separated in fact from her foreigner husband can rightfully claim a personal exemption of P12,000.00 pursuant to Section 29 (1) (1) of the Tax Code, as amended. It is represented that one of your current employees, a Ms. Fe T. Tanangonan, got married, prior to her joining your company to a HongKong national on March 26, 1988; that she has been separated in fact from her husband since July 5, 1989; that it was only after her separation from her husband that she decided to come back to the Philippines; that since then, she has not heard nor communicated with her estranged spouse so much so that there was no way she could have secured his income tax return and/or W2 (withholding tax on wages); that for the taxable year 1989, she claimed a personal exemption of P12,000 as married individual. cdt In reply, please be informed that Section 29 (1) (1) of the Tax Code, as amended, provides as follows: "SEC. 29. . . . (1) Personal exemption allowable to individuals. (1) Basic personal exemptions . For the purpose of determining the tax provided in Section 21 (a) of this Title (on Income Tax), there shall be allowed a basic personal exemption as follows: For single individual or married individual judicially decreed as legally separated with no qualified dependents P6,000.00 For head of family 7,500.00 For married individual 12,000.00 Provided, that husband and wife electing to compute their income tax separately shall be entitled to a personal exemption of P6,000.00 each. xxx xxx xxx The personal exemption for a married couple is P12,000; and if they elect to file their income tax returns separately, they are entitled to claim a personal exemption of P6,000 each. This contemplates, however, a situation where both would file income tax returns separately in the Philippines . In the case at hand, the husband, being a HongKong national and resident and without any income from the Philippines, would not file any income tax returns in the Philippines. The occurrence that is being sought to be obviated in the law is the deduction or exemption that would go beyond P12,000. Such a contingency would not happen in this case because the husband would not be filing an income tax return in the Philippines. On the basis of all the foregoing, it is the opinion of this Office as it hereby holds that an individual who is a married to a foreign national, and who is neither the head of family nor legally separated, is entitled to the full basic personal exemption of P12,000 provided that the other spouse is a non-resident alien individual who derives no reportable income whatsoever from the Philippines. Considering that the circumstances of Ms. Tanangonan's case fall within the ambit of the conditions herein before set forth, she rightfully claimed the P12,000 personal exemption allowed to married individuals. Very truly yours, (SGD.) EUFRACIO D. SANTOS Deputy Commissioner Officer-in-Charge