Duterte certifies Citira bill as urgent

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte has certified as urgent a measure seeking to lower corporate income tax and streamline fiscal incentives.

In a letter to Senate President Vicente Sotto III, a copy of which was released to the media by the office of Senator Pia Cayetano, Duterte called for the swift passage of Senate Bill No. 1357 also known as the Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Reform Act (Citira).

Cayetano chairs the Senate committee on ways and means, the panel in charge of tackling tax-related measures.

Congress is set to take a break from its current session on March 13, giving it less than a week to pass the Citira bill. It will resume the session on May 4.

The Citira will lower the corporate income tax in a span of a decade, a welcome sign for companies in the Philippines which has the highest tax rate in Southeast Asia.