VALUE-ADDED TAX

A. Period of filing the claim - the administrative claim for VAT refund or TCC
must be filed within two years from the close of the taxable quarter when
the zero-rated sales and/or effectively zero-rated sales were made.
B. Documentation requirement - The application for VAT refund must be
accompanied by complete supporting documents as specifically
enumerated in Annex A of the RMC.
In this case, the taxpayer should attach a sworn statement/affidavit:
(i)
(ii)

(iii)

attesting to the completeness of the submitted documents;

stating that the attached supporting documents are the only
documents which the taxpayer will present to support the claim;
and,
in the case of corporations or other juridical persons, there should
be a sworn statement that the officer signing the affidavit (which
should at the very least be the Chief Finance Officer) has been
authorized by the companys Board of Directors.

C. Processing of claims - Upon submission of the administrative claim and its

supporting documents, the BIR shall process the claim, and no other
documents shall be accepted or required from the taxpayer in the course
of its evaluation. A decision shall be rendered by the Commissioner based
only on the documents submitted by the taxpayer. The application shall
be denied if the taxpayer fails to submit the complete supporting
documents.
D. Periods to decide the claim
1. The Commissioner shall have 120 days from the submission of the
complete supporting documents within which to decide whether or not to
grant the claim. If the claim is not acted upon by the Commissioner within
the 120 days, such inaction shall be deemed a denial of the claim.
2. If the Commissioner denies the claim, whether in full or in part, or if the
Commissioner does not act on the claim within the 120-day period, the
taxpayer should file a judicial claim with the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA):

(i)

(ii)

within 30 days from receipt of the Commissioners decision

denying the claim (whether in full or in part) within the 120-day
period, or
from the expiration of the 120-day period if the Commissioner does
not act within the 120-day period. The taxpayer is required to
observe the 120+30 day rule before lodging a petition for review
with the CTA.

E. Jurisdiction - In cases where the taxpayer has filed for a Petition for
Review with the CTA, the Commissioner loses jurisdiction over the
administrative claim. However, the processing office of the administrative
agency shall still evaluate internally the administrative claim for purposes
of intelligently opposing the taxpayers judicial claim.
F. Controversial issue raised by the RMC:
Failure to file a judicial claim with the CTA within 30 days from the expiration of
the 120-day period renders the Commissioners decision or inaction deemed a
denial, final and unappealable. This applies to all currently pending
administrative claims for refund or tax credit.