Philippines E-PESO SHORT-TERM CONSULTANT REPORT

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) seeks to provide faster, reliable, and more convenient electronic services to the taxpaying public, including registering and authorizing third-party tax software providers (TSPs) to submit their clients' e-tax filing and payment. The consultant, Jacent Ruffy T. Lustro, worked on the enhancements to the eTSPCert System, which includes the installation of the enhanced eTSPCert Online Application, executable files, source codes, objects used, and libraries used. The consultant made modifications and bug fixes to the user interface, including security and log-in pages, uploading of documentary requirements, and account history. Additionally, the consultant developed a new workflow for additional levels of approval for certification issuance and added a validation to check approved forms with the same version upon application. The consultant also provided a demonstration for sign-off to proceed with User Acceptance Testing (UAT) and submitted a UAT plan, including test scenarios for execution during UAT Proper. The UAT plan documented a triage process, defect management, and acceptance criteria. Furthermore, the consultant provided training to BIR, which included a final code walkthrough, and submitted the final systems design documentation. The consultant implemented fixes on the issues raised during production for eBIRForms Offline Package ver 7.6, covering income tax returns, including forms 1701v2018, 1702EXv2018, and 1700v2018. The consultant also developed additional TSP tools and their corresponding documentations for forms 1700v2018, 1702MXv2018, and 1702RTv2018. The E-PESO initiative has been successful in transitioning tax payments to digital channels, with the BIR collecting bulk of its tax revenues through digital payments. As of 2019, total tax revenue collected from digital payment channels (eFPS and new channels) amounted to Php1.831 trillion, up by 12% from 2018. The share of digital payments in tax revenue collection was sustained at 84% in 2019, although transaction volume share increased to 17%. The 2020Q3 tax revenue collection showed an uptrend, with digital payments increasing its share to 86% and a significant jump in digital payment transaction share to 29%. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift to digital payments, with 78% of tax filers already filing electronically as of 2020 Q3, significantly up from 58% by the end of 2019. The share of e-filing has jumped from 86% by the end of 2019 to 94% in the first nine months of 2020. Expanding the digital payment options further and making the taxpayer experience more convenient and seamless will drive the transition of all e-filers to digital payment, thus increasing the share of digital payments in total tax revenue collection of the BIR.