UPON gassing up and a pump boy asks, Do you want a receipt? What do you say? “Yes. Always,” thus advised revenue collection authorities during the recent Kapihan sa PIA aired live over DyTR every Thursdays at 3-4PM. Now into pump-priming the country's economy as the national budget deficit balloons to more than a hundred billion, government has intensified its revenue collections capability by plugging and putting up remedies to cure the ailing tax collection system of the country. An establishment that intends to lessen its sales records by non-issuance of sales receipts or invoices technically qualify as tax evaders, authorities explained.

According to Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima in reports, at least P250 billion pesos is lost annually because of tax evasion. He added that much of that could be because about 1.4 million self-employed individuals who pay suspiciously low taxes. This figure does not even include small businesses that churn out sales daily but do not issue receipts so their income tax base is “manipulated” to appear low, revenue authorities said. At a time when government said it is facing P293B deficit in 2010, uprooting tax cheats, can be shared by an ordinary citizen, explained revenue collection officials here. Evelyn Lomantas, Bureau of Internal Revenue Administrative and Information Officer dared consumers to demand receipts from establishments for every P25 and above transactions.

Section 216 of the National Internal Revenue Code says all persons subject to an internal revenue tax shall, for each sale or transfer of merchandise or for services rendered valued at P25.00 (twenty-five pesos) or more, issue duly registered receipts or sales or commercial invoices, prepared at least in duplicate, showing the date of transaction, quantity, unit cost and description of merchandise or nature of service. “These receipts would be BIR's basis in computing gross income of entrepreneurs from small, micro to big industries and would be the base for the businesses' annual income tax computation, she explained. “A business establishment must, and always issue receipts and it is the right of the customers to be given receipts or demand them if the owners refuse to give,” she added. (racPIABohol)