Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar

January 9, 2020 ITAD BIR RULING NO. 011-20 Principle of Reciprocity; Revenue Memorandum Order No. 10-2019 Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar 8th Floor, Gervasia Corporate Centre 152 Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village 1229 Makati City Gentlemen : This refers to your letter dated 16 September 2019, indorsed by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Office of Protocol (DFA-OP), requesting for the renewal of the Value-Added Tax (VAT) Certificate 1 previously issued to the Embassy which will expire on 20 November 2019. In reply, please be informed that while the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 exempts diplomatic missions ( i.e. , embassies and consulates) and their diplomatic agents from all dues and taxes, personal or real, national, regional or municipal, they are nevertheless subject to the indirect taxes of a kind which are normally incorporated in the price of goods or services ( e.g. , VAT). acEHCD However, on the basis of reciprocity, this Office may grant tax privileges to a foreign embassy and to its members on their local purchases of goods and services, provided that they can submit to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue proof that the foreign government of the concerned embassy allows similar tax privileges to the Philippine Embassy or its personnel on purchases of goods or services in their country. As per the Indorsement of the DFA-OP dated 01 October 2019, and the DFA Matrix of VAT Privileges Enjoyed by the Philippine Foreign Service Posts dated 18 September 2019, the Philippine Embassy and its diplomatic personnel in Yangon, Myanmar enjoy VAT exemption privileges through reimbursement/refund , subject to the following limitation: The minimum amount of purchase per invoice/receipt is USD50.00 ( approximately Php2,600 ). Based on the foregoing, this Office is of the opinion as it hereby rules that, applying the principle of reciprocity, the Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and its diplomatic personnel in the Philippines are entitled to the same VAT exemption privileges through reimbursement/refund , and not through point-of-sale basis. Hence, the expiring VAT Certificate of the Embassy shall not be renewed anymore. Accordingly, the Embassy of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and its diplomatic personnel may proceed to secure the necessary VAT reimbursement/refund on purchases of local goods and services in the Philippines subject only to the aforementioned limitations, and following the guidelines set forth in Revenue Memorandum Order (RMO) No. 10-2019. EcTCAD Very truly yours, (SGD.) CAESAR R. DULAY Commissioner of Internal Revenue Footnotes 1. Formerly, Value-Added Tax Exemption Certificate (VEC).