Following the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to expand income tax exemptions, House Committee on Ways and Means Chairperson and Marikina 2nd District Rep. Miro Quimbo believes this would provide much-needed relief to the middle class.

In the proposed bill, the annual income tax exemption will climb to ₱350,000.

“Ang middle class, ito yung portion ng ating population na nagbabayad ng buwis pero never nakakatanggap ng ayuda. Sila ang parating napag-iiwanan pagdating sa mga tulong ng gobyerno. Pero pagdating sa tax burden, sila ang pumapasan ng 90% ng burden ng individual taxpayers sa ating lipunan,” Quimbo said

[“The middle class is a portion of our population that pays taxes but never receives government aid. They are always left behind when it comes to government assistance. Yet when it comes to tax burden, they shoulder 90% of individual taxpayer burdens of our society.”]

The lawmaker clarified that the proposed ₱350,000 exemption applies to the taxable income, not the gross annual salary. The taxable income reflects after deducting mandatory contributions (i.g. SSS, GSIS, PhilHealth, and PAG-IBIG).

“In short, kapag may gross salary ka na tingin ko umaabot ng 385,000 (or) 390,000, ikaw pa rin ay magiging tax exempt dahil aalisin natin ang mga SSS at saka GSIS contributions,” Rep. Quimbo explained

[“In short, someone with a gross-salary of around ₱385,000 (or) ₱390,000, I think you could still qualify as tax-exempt because the SSS and GSIS contributions will be subtracted.”]

If the House schedule proceeds as planned, the House Committee on Ways and Means will begin hearings over the matter next week. According to Rep. Quimbo assures that the committee will hear the sides of the concerned agencies and stakeholders to ensure that the middle class will truly get the benefit.

The lawmaker also emphasized that the granted tax relief should not be wiped out by introducing new indirect taxes, as the goal of the House bill is to provide relief to the taxpayers.

“But we will always stand firm on our position that hindi po pwede na ibibigay natin sa kaliwang kamay yung pagpapaluwag ng taxes, pero with the right hand, babawiin naman natin in the form of indirect taxes. Hindi naman tayo papayag doon,” he said

[“But we will always stand firm on our position that we shouldn’t waive the tax relief in the left hand, but in the right hand, it will be taken back in the form of indirect taxes. We will not allow that.]