Guidelines for Revenue Tobacco Inspectors Assigned to Supervise the Operations of Tobacco Trading Centers

March 4, 1976 REVENUE MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 23-76 TO : All Internal Revenue Officers and others concerned SUBJECT : Guidelines for Revenue Tobacco Inspectors Assigned to Supervise the Operations of Tobacco Trading Centers 1. A Revenue Tobacco Inspector specifically assigned to supervise the operations of a tobacco trading center must be at his place of assignment at all times that business transaction is being undertaken. When a Revenue Tobacco Inspector is assigned to supervise the operations of two or more trading centers, he must submit a time schedule to his immediate superior indicating at what establishment he is to be found at a given time. He shall enforce the provisions of Act 2613, as amended, and Presidential Decree No. 69, together with their respective implementing regulations. He shall be held responsible for the strict compliance and adherence to the following rules: (a) That buying and selling of Virginia leaf tobacco shall take place only at trading and authorized buying stations; (b) That the duly appointed tobacco buyers (L-3) shall purchase only flue-cured Virginia leaf tobacco which shall be transferred within thirty (30) days from the date of purchase to the principal trading center, provided however, that purchases made less than thirty (30) days prior to the end of the trading season shall be transferred before closure of such trading season. The Tobacco Inspector assigned to a trading center shall conduct the necessary inspection of the tobacco handled therein. In the absence of the tobacco inspector assigned to a trading center or when exigencies so require, the services of the Tobacco Inspector assigned to other nearby trading centers may be availed of to avoid delay in the tobacco trading operations. Revenue Tobacco Inspectors assigned to supervise the operations of trading centers are authorized to inspect and assess the corresponding inspection fees on tobacco of FACOMAS to be delivered to the trading center where he is assigned. Tobacco shipments made by FACOMAS and other tobacco dealers to trading centers or other wholesale leaf tobacco dealers located outside their province may be inspected by any Revenue Tobacco Inspector assigned in the trading center nearest to the establishment of the consignor; (c) That all deliveries of flue-cured Virginia tobacco by the trading center should be duly debited in its official register book (BIR Form No. 31.46) on the date received. All the official guias issued by various FACOMAS and duly appointed tobacco buyers (L-3) covering the shipments of flue-cured Virginia tobacco to the trading center should be verified and if no discrepancy is found, the same should be lifted for submission to the Chief, Specific Tax Branch by the tobacco inspector assigned thereat; (d) That the corresponding inspection fees on flue-cured Virginia tobacco to be shipped by the FACOMAS to a trading center which is located in another province shall be paid before removal at the province of origin at the rates provided for by Presidential Decree No. 69; (e) That tobacco delivered by FACOMAS to trading centers on which the inspection fee has previously been paid and subsequently transferred for redrying from the trading centers to the redrying plant need no further inspection and payment of inspection fee, provided that no rebaling thereof is done in the trading center. However, after the tobacco has been redried the same shall be inspected and the corresponding inspection fee paid before removal from the redrying plant. The quantity of such removal shall be entered in the official register book of the trading center concerned and the corresponding official guia covering the transfer shall be issued which, together with the Abstract of Purchases, shall accompany the shipment; (f) That all flue-cured Virginia tobacco coming from buying stations and/or appointed tobacco buyers (L-3) delivered to the principal trading center shall be inspected at the trading center and the corresponding inspection fee shall be paid before removal therefrom. The quantity of receipt or removal shall be entered in the official register book of the trading center; (g) That the tobacco transferred from the trading center to the redrying plant must be in standard bales or cases; (h) That the warehouse of the buying station shall be properly identified, separate and independent of any existing L-3 warehouse; (i) That appropriate signboard to identify the trading center or the warehouse of the buying station (L-3) shall be displayed at the most conspicuous part of the establishment; (j) That the official guias to be issued by buying station (L-3) shall be used only to accompany the shipment of tobacco from such buying station to its principal trading center; (k) That all authorized buyers of leaf tobacco from the farmers must issue purchase invoices to the farmer-sellers as required by Sec. 14 of Revenue Regulations No. V-1 (otherwise known as the Bookkeeping Regulations); and (l) That wholesale leaf tobacco dealers including trading centers and cooperatives (whenever applicable) shall submit to the Revenue Collection Agent in their locality on or before the 8th day of the following month two copies of their monthly transcript sheets and attaching therewith the corresponding copies of their issued purchase invoices. 2. The Tobacco Inspector assigned to a trading center shall keep two separate logbooks: one in which he shall make a complete record of all flue-cured Virginia tobacco received and removed by the trading center with appropriate columns therein to indicate the date, name and address of the consignor, consignee, quantity received/removed, corresponding official guias issued; and another wherein entries of consecutively numbered applications for inspection of the tobacco are made, indicating therein the amount of inspection fee paid, O.R. No. and date and place of payment after the tobacco has been inspected by him. 3. That all removals of flue-cured Virginia leaf tobacco shall be covered by the corresponding official guias, the blanks of which must be fully filled up especially the quantity, kind, origin, date of removal, amount of inspection fee paid, O.R. number, date and place of issue. The Revenue Tobacco Inspector shall carefully check the official guias to prevent any illegal re-routing of tobacco from the point of shipment to another place. 4. That when flue-cured Virginia leaf tobacco which had been inspected at the trading center and the corresponding inspection fee paid is shipped to the Metro Manila or other provinces, to forestall any attempt to make any illicit transfer of tobacco by using one official guia for more than one shipment, an accompanying official guia must always be stamped at the back thereof and the desired information or data indicated therein shall be duly filled: "Application No. ______ Inspected ________ bales of flue-cured or ________ leaf tobacco or a total of _________ kilos on ___________, 19 ___ at _______________. Inspection fee in the amount of P _________ was paid under O.R. No. _____________ at __________ on _________. This official guia covers _________ bales of leaf tobacco or a total of ___________ kilos. ________________________ Signature of Tobacco Inspector 5. That all pertinent provisions of existing tobacco laws and regulations governing movements of leaf and tobacco products thereof are faithfully and strictly complied with and any case of violations shall be promptly and thoroughly investigated and a report shall be submitted without any delay to the Chief, Specific Tax Branch, Baguio City, for appropriate evaluation to protect the interests of the government. 6. That all Revenue Tobacco Inspectors shall submit their monthly report of activities and inspection to their immediate superiors within the first week of the month following for transmittal to higher authorities. Strict compliance herewith is hereby enjoined. EFREN I. PLANA Acting Commissioner of Internal Revenue TAN-1456-040-3