Presidential Decree No. 23, dated October 16, 1972, as amended by Presidential Decree No. 67

December 11, 1972 REVENUE REGULATIONS NO. 15-72 SUBJECT : Presidential Decree No. 23, dated October 16, 1972, as amended by Presidential Decree No. 67, dated November 24, 1972, Proclaiming Tax Amnesty TO : All internal revenue officers and others concerned Pursuant to Paragraph 3 of Presidential Decree No. 67, dated November 24, 1972, amending Paragraphs 1 and 3 of Presidential Decree No. 23, dated October 16, 1972, the following regulations are hereby promulgated and shall be known as Revenue Regulations No. 15-72. SECTION 1. Scope . These Regulations shall cover all cases of voluntary disclosures of previously untaxed income and/or wealth such as earnings, receipts, gifts, bequests or any other acquisitions from any source whatsoever which are taxable under the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended realized in the Philippines or abroad by any taxpayer, natural or juridical. SECTION 2. What is "previously untaxed income and/or wealth . " The term "previously untaxed income and/or wealth" means: (a) In the case of an individual, all earnings, receipts, gifts, bequests or any other acquisitions from any source whatsoever which are taxable under the National Internal Revenue Code which he, knowingly or unknowingly, failed to declare for internal revenue tax purposes in any year prior to 1972. If such be incapable of exact determination then the total increase in his equity or net worth up to the calendar year ending December 31, 1971. (b) In the case of a juridical person, all taxable earnings, receipts, gifts, bequests or any other acquisitions from any source whatsoever, which it knowingly or unknowingly, failed to declare for internal revenue tax purposes in any calendar year prior to 1972 or in any fiscal year ending on any day prior to the effectivity of these regulations. cdt SECTION 3. Tax Imposed . A tax of ten per centum (10%) on such previously untaxed income and/or wealth shall be paid in lieu of all internal revenue taxes including the increments or penalties on account of non-payment imposed under the National Internal Revenue Code, subject to the conditions enumerated in Section 5 hereof. The payment of the tax imposed under this section shall relieve the taxpayer from all civil, criminal or administrative liabilities arising from or incident to the disclosure under the National Internal Revenue Code, the Revised Penal Code, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, the Revised Administrative Code, the Civil Service Laws and Regulations, laws and regulations on Immigration and Deportation or any other applicable law or proclamation. The taxes collected herein shall accrue to the General Fund and an appropriate Tax Numeric Code under Revenue Memorandum Order No. 50-68, dated November 4, 1968, shall be assigned by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue for this purpose. SECTION 4. Who may not avail of the amnesty . All taxpayers, natural or juridical, against whom a valid information under Republic Act No. 2338 has been filed or a notice of deficiency assessment has been issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue prior to the effectivity of Revenue Regulations No. 8-72, as amended, may not avail of the immunity provided for in Presidential Decree No. 23, as amended by Presidential Decree No. 67. SECTION 5. Conditions under which amnesty may be granted . The tax on previously untaxed income and/or wealth referred to in Section 3 hereof shall be accepted under the following conditions: (a) Such previously untaxed income and/or wealth must have been earned or realized prior to 1972; (b) The taxpayer must file a notice and return with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue on or before March 31, 1973 showing such previously untaxed income and/or wealth; (c) If such previously untaxed income and/or wealth, or part thereof, consist of cash hoarded abroad, such cash must be repatriated and deposited with any bank in the Philippines or invested as entrepreneur capital, additional capital contribution or in new issues of capital stocks in any of the preferred areas of productive undertaking, to wit: 1. BOI registered enterprises; 2. NACIDA promoted industries; 3. BTTI sponsored tourist oriented projects; 4. Export oriented industries; 5. Banks: rural, private development, commercial; 6. Utilities: transport, communication, power; 7. Agricultural cooperatives; 8. Livestock and other agricultural development projects; 9. Foreign equity in domestic/resident corporations; 10. Insurance companies; or utilized in the purchase of new issues of the following instruments: 1. Government bonds; 2. Government securities; 3. Government debentures; 4. Bonds, notes or other commercial papers issued by domestic corporations. Such investment must be made within six (6) months from the date of such disclosure. The shares of stocks or instruments are not to be disposed of, transferred, assigned or conveyed within a period of three (3) years from the date of said investment. SECTION 6. Notice and return required . (a) Where to file . The notice and return required under these Regulations (BIR Form No. 1745 for individuals and BIR Form No. 1746 for Partnerships and Corporations) shall be filed in duplicate with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Regional or Revenue District Office. (b) When to file . The notice and return must be filed on or before March 31, 1973. No extension of time to file said notice and return shall be granted for any reason whatsoever. (c) W hat must be contained in the notice and return required . The notice and return must contain the following: 1. Taxpayer's name and address; 2. The taxpayer's account number; 3. A disclosure of how much his previously untaxed income and/or wealth amounts to; and 4. If such previously untaxed income and/or wealth, or part thereof, consist of hoarded cash abroad, a statement of the amount thereof. cdt SECTION 7. Payment of the tax; effect of payment . The tax imposed herein must be paid at the time of the filing of the return but not later than March 31, 1973. If the tax due is in excess of P10,000.00, the taxpayer may pay in two (2) equal installments, the first installment to be paid at the time of the filing of the return but not later than March 31, 1973 and the second installment within three (3) months after the filing of the return, without notice, but not later than June 30, 1973. Upon payment of the tax within the period provided in this section, the taxpayer shall not be subject to any investigation, whether civil, criminal or administrative insofar as such previously untaxed income and/or wealth is concerned; such payment shall not be used as evidence against, or to the prejudice of, the taxpayer in any proceeding before any court of law or body, whether judicial, quasi-judicial or administrative in which he is a defendant or respondent. SECTION 8. What is hoarded cash abroad . The term "hoarded cash abroad" means cash in any currency located abroad whether kept in private vaults, safe deposit boxes or in foreign bank deposits. Such cash hoarded in any foreign country shall include all cash and/or cash items such as traveller's cheques, bank money orders, bank drafts, certificates of time deposits, bank manager's checks, negotiable letters and the like. SECTION 9. Investment of hoarded cash abroad required . Hoarded cash abroad, as defined in Section 8 hereof, which forms part or all, of the previously untaxed income and/or wealth must be deposited with any bank in the Philippines or invested in the manner and under the conditions prescribed in Section 5 hereof, within six (6) months from the time of the disclosure but not later than September 30, 1973. SECTION 10. Notice of bank deposit or investment required . In case the hoarded cash abroad is deposited in any bank in the Philippines in compliance with these Regulations, the taxpayer shall be required to submit to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue within thirty (30) days after such deposit has been made a certificate of bank deposit covering the amount stated in his notice and return. If such hoarded cash is not deposited but is invested pursuant to these Regulations, such investment shall be reported to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue within thirty (30) days after such investment is made. The report of such investment must contain the following information: 1. Name and address of the taxpayer; 2. Taxpayer Account Number; 3. Kind of investment made; and 4. Amount of investment. SECTION 11. Penal Provisions . (a) Failure to comply with conditions . Failure to comply with any of the conditions and requirements set forth in these Regulations shall nullify the immunity provided for in Presidential Decree No. 23, as amended by Presidential Decree No. 67. (b) Failure to pay the tax on time . The amnesty under Presidential Decree No. 23, as amended, shall be granted only after the tax imposed herein shall have been paid. This means not only that the tax must be paid in full but also that such tax must be paid within the time prescribed under Section 7 hereof. Failure to pay the tax, or any installment thereof, on time will nullify the taxpayer's right to claim the immunity granted by the said Presidential Decree. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue shall, in such cases of failure to comply with any condition or to pay the tax on time, compute the internal revenue taxes in accordance with the tax rates prevailing in 1971 on the whole amount of such previously untaxed income and/or wealth, as provided for in the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended, and apply the penal provisions of the said Code. SECTION 12. Treatment and Disposition of the Notices and Returns . (a) Upon filing of the notice and return, the same shall be kept confidential and shall not be subject to verification. After the tax shall have been paid by the taxpayer, all notices and returns filed pursuant to these Regulations shall be kept in a secret file in the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Section 81 of the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended, providing the disposition of income tax returns and publication of lists shall not apply to the notices and returns file pursuant to these Regulations. (b) Notices and returns filed pursuant to these regulations shall not be examined, inquired or looked into by any person, government official, bureau or office. Disclosure of any information relating to the declaration shall subject the offender to an imprisonment of not more than two years. SECTION 13. Repealing Clause . These regulations repeals Revenue Regulations Nos. 8-72 and 8A-72. SECTION 14. Effectivity Clause . These Regulations shall take effect immediately. CESAR VIRATA Secretary of Finance Recommended by: MISAEL P. VERA Commissioner of Internal Revenue