Tax Billed as a Separate Item in the Invoice Issued

June 22, 1959 BIR RULING NO. 316-59 7th Indorsement Respectfully returned to the Regional Director, B.I.R. Regional District No. 3, Manila, the within papers bearing on the internal revenue case of the Philippine Refining Co., 1035 Isaac Peral, Manila, with the information that the computation of the investigating agent is in order. In the case of Connel Bros. Co. (Phil.) vs. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, CTA Case No. 357, the Court reiterated its decision in the case of the Philippine Acetylene Co. vs. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, and further stated that the annotation of the phrase "5% Sales Tax Included" was not a sufficient compliance of General Circulars Nos. 431 and 440 in relation to sections 184, 185 and 186 of the Tax Code. In order that the sales tax may not be considered as part of the taxable gross selling price of an article, it is essential that the tax be billed as a separate item in the invoice issued to the customer. The requirement that the tax be billed as a separate item in the invoices being merely a privilege granted to the taxpayers, the same must be strictly complied with. Failure to do so results in the denial of the privilege. lexlib (SGD.) JOSE ARAAS Commissioner of Internal Revenue