The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with business groups, professional organizations, foreign chambers, and industry associations to renew its multi-sectoral consultative mechanism aimed at strengthening tax administration reforms.

In a statement Wednesday, the BIR said the agreement, signed Tuesday, renews its Partnership with the Multi-Sectoral Group (BIR-PMSG), a platform for dialogue and collaboration between the tax agency and private sector stakeholders.

The renewed agreement expands the BIR-PMSG’s membership from 12 to 15 organizations, with the inclusion of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce in the Philippines (FICCI), the Philippine Institute of Petroleum (PIP), and the Swiss Chamber of the Philippines (SwissCham).

Aside from the three, the PMSG is also composed of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), Tax Management Association of the Philippines (TMAP), Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (FINEX), Association of Certified Public Accountants in Commerce and Industry (ACPACI), Association of Certified Public Accountants in Public Practice (ACPAPP), Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (PHILEXPORT), Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines (JFC), Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. (FFCCCII), Makati Business Club (MBC), and Alliance of Tech Innovators for the Nation (ATIN).

Established in 2023, the BIR-PMSG serves as a structured venue for discussions on tax administration issues, taxpayer services, compliance concerns, and proposed reforms.

BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said the renewed partnership builds on the group’s active role in helping shape reforms under BIR DARES, the bureau’s five-point priority reform agenda.

Under the renewed MOA, the BIR and its private sector partners will continue working together on tax administration reforms, taxpayer services, compliance issues, digitalization, ease of paying taxes, and ease-of-doing-business initiatives.

“When we began working on one of the most important reforms under BIR DARES – our audit reforms – it was to the PMSG that we turned. You helped us stress-test our proposals, challenge our assumptions, and refine them before they were implemented,” Mendoza said.

“Many of the reforms we have rolled out during the first six months of BIR DARES are stronger and better received by taxpayers because of that engagement.”

Mendoza assured stakeholders that the BIR would continue to engage with the private sector, address concerns before they escalate, and subject major reforms to thorough review before implementation. (PNA)