POGO tax brings over P1Bn in its first 3 months
The newly implemented Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGO) taxation law generated P1.22 billion (US$23 million) in additional revenue during its initial months of implementation, according to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
Per the BIR’s computation, the agency collected a total of P709.39 million (US$13 million) in withholding taxes between October 9 and December 31, 2021.
Meanwhile, P409.93 million (US$7.9 million) came from POGOs’ gaming revenues and P89.67 million from income taxes.
The bureau was also able to raise P5.33 million (US$103,705) in value-added tax (VAT), P4.96 million (US$96,506) in other taxes, and P3.34 million (US$64,986) in documentary stamps tax.
The POGO tax law — formally known as Republic Act (RA) 11590 or an “Act Taxing Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations” — was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte last September.
The BIR reported that they are expecting POGO operations to continue and revenues to increase as the country has already laid out rules and regulations for the industry.
In October last year, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez predicted that total tax collection from POGOs could reach P76.2 billion (US$1.5 billion) between 2022 and 2023.
