The House Committee on Ways and Means approved yesterday a measure seeking to increase the

tax exemption ceiling for the 13th month pay, Christmas bonus, and other benefits of employees to
P70,000.
If enacted into law, the measure means that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) will not be
collecting any tax on bonuses and other benefits given to employees, private or public, which do not
exceed P70,000 a year.
The House committee, headed by Marikina Rep. Miro Quimbo passed the consolidated measure,
which seeks to boost the morale of all employees who are now reeling from rising prices of food
and oher basic commodities and unabated rise of housing, education, electricity, water, and
transportation expenses.
A consolidation of 12 measures, the still unnumbered bill seeks to amend the National Internal
Revenue Code of 1997, Republic Act No. 7833, to provide financial relief to all working employees.
We approved the tax exemption because pag dating ng Pasko, mayoon silang enough funds to be
able to celebrate the occasion. Tumataas ang morale ng isang manggagawa kapag nakakapag
celebrate ng Pasko. Pangalawa, ginagamit yung 13th, dahil kalahati nyan binabayad sa pag
papaenrol sa Hunyo, Quimbo said in an inteview after the committee approval.
He said the current P30,000 tax exemption ceiling as set by the National Internal Revenue Code of
1997 is no longer enough to support the countrys workers, given the rate of inflation and the rising
cost of living,.
So we need to adjust that to inflation.. Ang na-approve natin today ay exempting all bonuses or 13th
month pay to the extent of P70,000, so more than double yung tax exemption na nangyayari,
Quimbo said.
He said Iloilo Rep. Jerry Trenas House Bill 3670, which seeks to increase the tax exemption
threshold every three years to promote the general welfare of the countrys workers, has become the
basis of the condolidated bill.
Consolidated with Trenas bill were HB 248, filed by ACT party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio; HB 589, Rep.
Jose Christopher Belmonte; HB 2835, Makati Rep. Mar-Len Abigail Binay; HB 3245, Aurora Rep.
Bellaflor Angara Castillo; HB 3409, Reps Anthony Bravo and Crescente Paez; HB 3459, Bayan
Muna party-list Reps. Carlos Zarate and Neri Colmenares; and HB 3629, Rep. Raneo Abu.
Quimbo expressed optimism that Congress will be able to pass the measure this year so that all
government and private employees would enjoy the tax exemption next year.

Trenas said it is about time Congress increased the tax exemption threshold in order to realize the
constitutional mandate to promote the general welfare of the people and to improve their quality of
life.
With the unabated rise of food, housing, education, electricity, water, and transportation expenses,
the 13th-month pay and other benefits are no longer mere bonuses as these are necessities relied
upon by our countrymen as sources of income to support their families, he said.
In the Senate, Senate Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto filed Senate Bill No. 256, which calls for a ceiling of
P75,000.
Both Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Senate President Franklin Drilon had earlier voiced their
support for the measure.
The Department of Finance (DOF) has warned that the government would lose P10.3 billion in tax
collection if the tax exemption ceiling is raised to P40,000; P43.6 billion if it is raised to P75,000.