Auto importers without ATRIG get Mar 31 deadline to file for BIR permit

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imported automobiles that were released from customs custody may still be issued ATRIGs until March 31, 2016
imported automobiles that were released from customs custody may still be issued ATRIGs until March 31, 2016
Automobiles imported into the Philippines that were released from customs custody may be issued an Authority to Release Imported Goods until March 31, 2016. Photo courtesy of Asian Terminals Inc, operator of Manila South Harbor and Batangas Container Terminal.

All Philippine importers of automobiles released from the custody of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) but not yet given an Authority to Release Imported Goods (ATRIGs) by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) have until March to apply for the issuance of such authority to prevent their vehicles from being impounded.

BIR said “a significant number of motor vehicles were released without the required ATRIG which can be seized by the BIR under existing rules.”

An ATRIG is an authority issued by BIR, addressed to the commissioner of its sister agency, BOC, allowing the release of imported goods from customs custody once applicable taxes are paid or proof of exemption from these payments is shown.

“For practical considerations and for lack of logistical provisions at the BIR, and in order to regularize their documents, imported automobiles that were released from customs custody may still be issued ATRIGs until March 31, 2016,” BIR said in its Revenue Regulations (RR) No. 02-2016 dated March 7.

For the ATRIG to be granted, the importer needs to file an application with the BIR’s Excise LT Regulatory Division (ELTRD), and to pay the excise and value added taxes within the same period.

Taxes are computed based on the rates provided in Section 4 of RR No. 25-032. In turn, these rates are based on the manufacturer’s or importer’s selling price at the time of importation as defined under Section 5, including 50% surcharge and 20% interest reckoned from the date of final import entry and internal revenue declaration.

“Consequently, all imported automobiles found to have been released from customs custody after March 31, 2016 without the required ATRIG shall be subject to seizure pursuant to Section 172, 263 and 268(C) of the NIRC (National Internal Revenue Code), as amended,” RR 02-2016 states.

The new revenue regulation, signed by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima and Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares, has been published to set down the guidelines and procedures for securing and issuing ATRIGs for imported automobiles already released from customs custody.

The new circular also clarifies the legal basis for issuing an ATRIG and the legal consequences for not securing one before an imported automobile is released.

RR 02-2016 takes effect immediately.

According to the circular, the NIRC of 1997 mandates that excise taxes on imported goods should be paid before the release of such articles from customhouse, particularly under Section 131 (Payment of Excise Taxes on Imported Articles).

Moreover, Section 172 of the NIRC provides that any revenue officer who believes the excise tax has not been paid may detain the package containing taxable articles until it shall be determined whether the property is “liable by law to be proceeded against for forfeiture. “

However, the section states the detention should “not continue in any case longer than seven days without due process of law or intervention of the officer to whom such detention is to be reported.”

The ATRIG will be issued for all imports of articles subject to excise tax (whether exempt or taxable), including raw materials for their production, as well as machinery, equipment, apparatus, or any mechanical contrivances used in assembly or production.

The ATRIG will also be handed out for all importations of articles exempt from VAT, except articles specifically identified and enumerated in the circular issued jointly by BIR and BOC, as circulated by RMC 48-2002.

The ATRIG should be issued prior to release of the excisable product from customs. Revenue Memorandum Order No. 35-2002 dated October 28, 2002 details the policies and procedures in the processing of ATRIGs.

In particular, for imported automobiles, RR 25-2003 dated September 16, 2003 mandates that, whether for sale or otherwise, all of these vehicles must not be released without payment of the ad valorem tax.

Furthermore, under a BOC and BIR joint order published on May 1, 2004, a certificate of payment will be issued only when an ATRIG for the vehicle is presented.

If the articles covered by an application for ATRIG have been released from customs custody before the authority is issued, no ATRIG will be issued just to complete the documentation of the importation for BOC purposes, RR 02-2016 points out. – Roumina Pablo