Prescribing Policies and Procedures for the Grant of Permission to Travel Abroad

October 19, 2000 REVENUE MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. 58-00 SUBJECT : Prescribing Policies and Procedures for the Grant of Permission to Travel Abroad TO : All BIR Personnel I. OBJECTIVES : This Order is being issued to: Prescribe standards, policies, guidelines and procedures to facilitate the approval of request for permission to travel abroad, both for personal and official purposes, by the bureau personnel pursuant to Memorandum Circular Nos. 9-80 dated June 3, 1980, 7-84 dated September 4, 1984, 5-85 dated April 22, 1985. Set the requirements, responsibilities and obligations of the applicants for travel abroad. II. POLICY-GUIDELINES : 1. Applications for travel abroad shall be prepared and filed in accordance with the provisions of DOF-MC Nos. 9-80, 7-84 and 5-85, subject to the usual screening and evaluation by the Personnel Division. cDCaTS 2. For proposed travel of Bureau officials with the rank of Deputy Commissioner and above requiring the approval of the Office of the President, requests should be submitted to the Department of Finance (DOF) at least fifteen (15) working days before the travel, to allow sufficient time for the Department of Finance to comply with the ten-day submission requirement of the Office of the President. 3. All requests for travel abroad of BIR officials or employees below the rank of Deputy Commissioner whether for official or personal reasons, must be filed with the- Personnel Division of the BIR-NOB at least 15 days prior to the actual departure/travel of the applicant to allow enough time to process the permit. 4. Approval of travel request must be consistent with the DOF's Department Personnel Order No. 97-2000 dated March 1, 2000 and the DOF Memorandum dated June 2, 2000. 5. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue has the exclusive authority to approve or disapprove requests for permission to travel abroad, which authority may be delegated at the discretion of the Commissioner. 5. Recommendations for the approval of any request for permission/authority to travel abroad shall be jointly made by the Deputy Commissioner for Resource Management, and by the Deputy Commissioner having administrative jurisdiction over the requesting personnel, as follows: The DCIR (Information Systems) for personnel assigned at any of the Information Systems Group Services and Divisions, or at any of the Revenue data Centers. The DCIR (Operations) for personnel assigned at any of the Operations Group's Services and Divisions, or at any of the Regional or District Offices. The DCIR (Legal and Inspection) for personnel assigned at any of the Legal and Inspection Group's Services and Divisions. The Deputy Commissioner having administrative jurisdiction over the requesting personnel shall sign first, and then forward the recommendation to DCIR-RMG for signature. IcHTAa For personnel assigned in any of the Services and Divisions under the Office of the Commissioner and RMG, only one signatory is required, i.e. the DCIR (Resource Management Group). 6. In instances when the CIR has delegated the authority to approve and/or disapprove the granting of permit to travel abroad to DCIR-RMG, the ACIR-HRDS will sign the recommendation for and in behalf of the DCIR-RMG. III. CRITERIA : All requests for permit to travel abroad must be supported by the following. requirements/documents: A. Official Travel Purposes A.1 For Deputy Commissioners and abov e Copy of Invitation or Acceptance Letter No travel request will be processed without it. Justification The justification for the trip should be clearly spelled out. Endorsement of Head of Office No travel .request will be processed without the endorsement of the Head of Office and/or Undersecretary concerned. Certification of Funds Availability If to be funded by DOF, it should be certified by the Accounting Division, if not, certification or proof of funding from sponsor should be attached. A.2 For Assistant Commissioners and below Pre-Training Travel Requirements : Letter of Invitation to attend Local/Foreign training course, seminar or study grant by the Sponsoring Agency; Duly signed Revenue Special Order (RSO); Itinerary of the Training Course/Seminar; Clearance from Internal Security Division; Certificate of Urgency duly signed by the Regional Director, if applicant is from Regional Office, or by the Assistant Commissioner concerned, if applicant is from National Office; Certification as to the relevance of the training course/seminar to the participant's actual duties and responsibilities; Course syllabus for study grant purposes; and Approval of Scholarship Grant from the Training Management Division for study grant purposes. Post-Training Travel/Requirements : Certificate of Attendance; Post-Training Report to be submitted to the Training Delivery Division; Certificate from Training Delivery Division that the employee has submitted Post Training Report; and Report for Duty to his/her assignment. B. Personal Travel Purposes Letter request seeking permission to travel abroad duly indorsed by the Regional Director, if applicant is from Regional Office, or by the Assistant Commissioner concerned, if applicant is from National Office. AIcECS Approved application for leave; Affidavit stating purpose of the trip, place of destination, estimated cost of the trip, who will finance the trip, annual income of the requesting official/employee, and amount of income tax paid for the last two (2) preceding years; Clearance from Internal Security Division; Medical Certificate by the attending physician, duly authenticated by the Medical & Dental Division, if leave applied is for sick leave purposes; and National/Regional Office Clearance for accountable officers and employees of the Bureau such as Collection Agents, Cash Clerks, Budget Officers, and all those who have financial accountabilities, regardless of the number of days applied for travel abroad. The above requirements must be submitted to the Personnel Division. No action shall be taken on incomplete applications . IV. PROCEDURES : Applicants for travel abroad may seek permission for their proposed trips, by observing the procedures stated below: 1. The employee or official concerned shall submit a written application for permit/authority to travel abroad to the Personnel Division with the attached required documents. (Ref. III-A or III-B of this issuance). 2. The application shall be evaluated/screened to determine whether the application is in order. 3. The Personnel Division shall then prepare the Memorandum for the Commissioner and the Permit/Authority to Travel, by accomplishing the forms prescribed for the purpose: A. For Personal Travel Purposes Memorandum for the Commissioner by the DCIR/ACIR concerned (Annex A) Foreign Travel Memorandum (Annex B) B. For Official Travel Purposes Memorandum for the Commissioner by the ACIR/DCIR concerned (Annex C) Revenue Special Order (Annex D) Foreign Travel Memorandum (Annex E) For purposes of uniformity, the above-mentioned formats must be used in the preparation of the appropriate documents to support a request for permission/authority to travel abroad. A Checklist of other requirements is likewise attached as Annex F of this Memorandum, for general reference. 4. The Personnel Division shall facilitate the processing and follow-up of the travel authority up to its approval. 5. The applicant shall submit to the Personnel Division the Post-Training Travel requirement and the Report for Duty to his assignment, immediately after the accomplished travel. V. SANCTIONS : Travel abroad without the required permit/authority shall be a violation of this Memorandum, and the official or employee concerned may be subject to appropriate disciplinary action. Failure to comply with the required post travel/requirements, may be considered as a basis for the denial of subsequent requests for permission or authority to travel/abroad. VI. EFFECTIVITY : This Memorandum shall take effect immediately upon approval hereof. (SGD.) DAKILA B. FONACIER Commissioner of Internal Revenue ANNEX A PERSONAL (Annex A) Quezon City MEMORANDUM FOR THE COMMISSIONER FROM : ESTELITA C. AGUIRRE Deputy Commissioner, Resource Management Group DATE SUBJECT : Request for authority to travel for NAME : POSITION : PURPOSES : VENUE : DURATION : SPONSOR : FUNDS CHARGEABLE : APPROXIMATE TOTAL EXPENSES : PREVIOUS FOREIGN TRAVELS {within the last 24 months): Place : Duration : Nature : Official Personal OSCAR L. SEVILLA ESTELITA C. AGUIRRE Deputy Commissioner Deputy Commissioner Operations Group Resource Management Group ANNEX B (pro-forma memo) PERSONAL (Annex B) Quezon City Date __________ FOREIGN TRAVEL MEMORANDUM ORDER NO. ___ SERIES OF 2000 SUBJECT: PERMIT TO TRAVEL FOR _______________________ 1. This is to authorize _________________ (Name), ________________ (Position) of the ____________________ (Office), to proceed to __________________ (Destination) from ____________ (date) to __________________________________________. (Purpose of travel) 2. The above travel shall be undertaken with no government expense. All expenses shall be shouldered by _______________________. DAKILA B. FONACIER Undersecretary of Finance Commissioner of Internal Revenue ANNEX C OFFICIAL (Annex C) Quezon City MEMORANDUM FOR THE COMMISSIONER FROM : ESTELITA C. AGUIRRE Deputy Commissioner, Resource Management Group DATE : SUBJECT : Request for authority to travel for NAME : POSITION : PURPOSES : VENUE : DURATION : SPONSOR : FUNDS CHARGEABLE : All expenses for airfare, accommodation, pre-departure and other necessary expenses relative to her travel shall be shouldered by the sponsoring agency APPROXIMATE TOTAL EXPENSES: Not applicable PREVIOUS FOREIGN TRAVELS (within the last 24 months): Official : Personal : RECOMMENDING APPROVAL: OSCAR L. SEVILLA ESTELITA C. AGUIRRE Deputy Commissioner Deputy Commissioner Operations Group Resource Management Group (pro-forma memo) OFFICIAL (Annex D) Quezon City Date _________ REVENUE SPECIAL ORDER NO. _______ SERIES OF 2000 SUBJECT: AUTHORITY TO TRAVEL FOR _____ 1. This is to authorize _________________ (Name), ________________ (Position) of the ____________________ (Office), to proceed to __________________ (Destination) from ____________ (date) to __________________________________________. (Purpose of travel) 2. The International and Special Projects . . . . will provide the round-trip airfare, hotel accommodation, pre-travel and other travel allowances. No government expense shall be entailed for the above-mentioned travel. 3. This Order takes effect immediately. DAKILA B. FONACIER Undersecretary of Finance Commissioner of Internal Revenue