BPOs should be shifted to BOI to implement WFH
Albay Representative Joey Salceda is urging the government to mount a “concerted effort in transitioning Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies from the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) to the Board of Investments (BOI).
In a statement, Salceda explained that this move could allow BPO firms to conduct alternative working arrangements, such as work-from-home (WFH), while remaining competitive through tax incentives.
He added that he is looking to work alongside the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to encourage BPOs to register either as exporters or as BOI-registered domestic enterprises.
“Basically, the fear of the FIRB (Fiscal Incentives Review Board) appears to be that work-from-home reduces economic benefits from face-to-face work such as rent and spending on utilities and nearby establishments that serve workers,” he said in a statement.
“So, we need a concerted effort to craft the package and procedure for that shift and to make BPOs understand this.”
Salceda said he has already pitched this idea to incoming House Speaker Martin Romualdez, several economists, and incoming members of the Marcos Cabinet, adding that the BPO sector is a “big part” of the new admin’s economic strategy.