Philippines digital services non-resident providers bill progress

Draft Bill to impose VAT on nonresident digital or electronic service providers and marketplace platforms reintroduced following elections

A stalled Bill (House Bill 372) to extend Value Added Tax to resident and non-resident providers and marketplaces of digital services has been reintroduced. This follows the elections of the Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr government and it taking power this month. There will be a PHP 3million (approx $54,000)

VAT on digital services delayed since 2021

The Philippines’ House had approved a bill (House Bill 7425 (HB 7425)) in September 2021 to implement VAT on “digital or electronic” supplies sold by foreign provider via the an online platform. However, it is was stalled in the Senate. The legislation targets offshore digital service sales to consumers, including providers such as Netflix and Spotify. VAT would be levied on online advertisement services, digital services and the supply of other electronic services.

This would likely include a VAT annual sales registration threshold of PHP 3million (approx. $54,000).

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COVID-19 drives taking e-services

The Philippines is anxious to raise funds with a worsening budget deficit following the COVID-19 medical and economic crisis. A 12% VAT on digital services could raise P 10 billion per annum. The bill does not give an implementation date, but does indicate a six-month implementation period once the legislation passes. The proposed House Bill not only focuses on digital services but also on the sale of goods through marketplaces. Marketplaces are suggested as the collectors of VAT on behalf of sellers.

What digital services liable to Philippines VAT?

The House bill defines digital services as “any service delivered or subscribed over the internet or other electronic network which cannot be obtained without the use of information technology.” The law goes further:

• The supply of advertising space and other services for the purpose of online advertisement
• The supply of digital services in exchange of a regular subscription fee
• The supply of electronic or online services that can be delivered through an IT infrastructure such as the internet

This would likely include income from:

• Software licensing
• Database services
• Online telecoms services
• E-learning
• Streaming and download media
• Mobile apps
• E-books and newspapers
• SaaS and cloud-based software
• Hosting and other internet services
• Online advertising
• Membership to dating memberships
• Online gaming
• Search engine services

However, the new bill exempts a number of services in previous legislation – e-books, digital newspapers or journals.

Marketplace liabilities

It would not just be the responsibility of the provider, but potentially also any intermediary or marketplace selling the service of an underlying supplier – termed a network orchestrator.

Asia Pacific VAT on digital services