Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 22) — The Department of Finance (DoF) will back a proposal that would impose more taxes on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
In a statement, the DoF said that Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez will support a proposal by Albay 2nd District Representative Joey Salceda, that would impose a 5 percent tax on POGOs.
“I haven’t seen the exact proposal, but in general, yes. I think that’s a good idea,” Dominguez said in a statement.
The Finance Secretary explained that this is a separate tax from the 5 percent franchise tax levied by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) on the gross gaming receipts or earnings of POGOs.
“They are already paying a fee for that,” Dominguez said.
According to the DoF statement, Salceda’s proposal would also impose a $10,000 monthly gaming tax per table for live set-up casinos and a $5,000 monthly tax for random number generator-based games. A $1,000 presumptive corporate income tax per seat would also be implemented for POGOs.
The House ways and means committee, chaired by Salceda, is studying these proposals.
There are currently 218 POGOs listed with the BIR, with a total of 108,914 foreign workers.
POGOs in 2018 paid withholding taxes worth ₱579 million, more than double the ₱175 million paid in 2017.
