Henares sets BIR agenda beyond Aquino’s term
THE BUREAU of Internal Revenue (BIR) has come out with its medium-term plan aimed not only at shoring up tax revenues but also at further easing payment processes.
The BIR’s Strategic Plan 2016-2020, made public through Revenue Memorandum Order No. 6-2016 issued last Feb. 15, “provides the bureau’s strategy roadmap and a five-year overview of the seven high-level strategic objectives,” Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares said.
The BIR’s seven strategic objectives are: Attain collection targets and sustained collection growth; improve taxpayer satisfaction and compliance; strengthen good governance; improve assistance and enforcement processes; build and deploy contemporary information technology (IT) systems, processes and tools; improve integrity, competence, professionalism and satisfaction of human resources; and optimize management of resources.
Henares said the overall goal was “to build on the investment we have made in improving our business processes and our IT systems, and further transform the administration of the tax system.”
Henares said the plan would help BIR achieve its goal of becoming an institution of service and integrity.
The BIR, under Henares, has been criticized for being selective in her campaign against tax evaders. On the other hand, Henares has also earned accolades for running after high profile personalities.
“The BIR continues to face challenges in terms of strengthening revenue collection for the government to fund social and infrastructure commitments to the community. This requires ongoing focus to improve the compliance levels of taxpayers,” the 32-page Strategic Plan 2016-2020 document read.
“Further, there are increasing expectations from both government and taxpayers to provide timely, convenient and efficient services. Rapid advances in technology and online interactions further challenge the BIR to provide contemporary services to enable taxpayers to interact,” it added.
The document also noted of improvements in tax administration over the past few years. These include “significant growth in revenue collection; strengthening the use of technology and the provision of e-services; stronger focus on improving risk management processes and improving compliance; reform of some business processes; and increasing resources to respond to workload demands.”
The BIR has been tasked to collect P2.026 trillion in taxes this year, P2.315 trillion in 2017, and P2.558 trillion in 2018.
To attain its record collection target for 2016—the first time it could breach the P2-trillion mark—the BIR also earlier identified 26 priority programs to “further propel the upward momentum of collection efficiency that the bureau has been able to sustain over the past years,” Henares said.
