Peza set to lose one-stop shop role, says official

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) will no longer be a one-stop shop if lawmakers insist on removing an edge that makes it easier for investors to do business, according to an official.

This tax perk, an essential element to Peza’s role as a one-stop shop, might soon be scrapped as lawmakers push for the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High-quality Opportunities (Trabaho) bill, a tax package that will lower corporate income tax while rationalizing tax incentives.

The House of Representatives recently passed its version of the bill, removing the crucial 5-percent gross income earned tax. Peza-registered companies pay this in lieu of national and local taxes.

“If this is taken away from Peza, it also takes away the ease of doing business in Peza,” Elmer San Pascual, manager of Peza’s promotion and public relations, told the Inquirer.

Being a one-stop shop means getting everything a company needs from Peza, instead of having to go through a bureaucratic maze.