An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Filing Taxes Fast & Easy Online in the Philippines

Last Updated on – Apr 19, 2022 @ 2:33 pm

This entry was co-authored by Trish Rodriguez, Marketing Manager at Taxumo – a tax filing platform for freelancers, entrepreneurs, and self-employed professionals.

Let’s face it. Tax filing should be easy for everyone to do and accomplish. But with the current Philippine tax filing system, it can be a real struggle for entrepreneurs to comply with tax requirements, while running a business.

Otherwise, they risk being run after by the BIR, and having to pay hefty penalties and surcharges.

Fortunately, there is now a way to do the whole process online, and no, it’s not via eBIR Forms. With the latter, you would still have to manually calculate your taxes and input your data entries.

On the other hand, you can opt for Taxumo: an end-to-end online tax solution that automates the whole process so you wouldn’t have to worry about it.

In this article, we dish out the difference of filing taxes manually, versus doing it online with Taxumo. Read on!

Manual BIR Filing Process

The Standard BIR Filing Process involves several steps. If you haven’t registered with the BIR yet, here are the steps to accomplish the BIR registration process.

I. Accomplish the BIR Registration process:

1. Register your Tax Identification Number (TIN).

2. Submit the general registration requirements to your designated BIR-Revenue District Office.

3. Have your BIR Form 0605 stamped by a BIR representative

4. Proceed to a BIR-authorized agent bank to pay for the processing fee, which costs P500.00

5. Go back to your designated BIR-RDO and present the proof of payment, which, in this case, is the BIR form stamped by the bank.  

6. Secure BIR Form 1906, or the Authority to Print Invoices/Receipts (ATP), and also Books of Accounts.

7. Submit the ATP to the attending BIR officer.

8. Secure columnar books and have them stamped by the guard. Skip this step if you are not a mixed-income owner.

9. Submit the 4 Books of Accounts to a BIR-authorized printing press. Go back after the processing time, which may take 5-10 business days.

10. Attend the scheduled taxpayer’s briefing.

11. After attending, you can now secure your Certificate of Registration (COR) or BIR Form 2303.

12. Have your COR stamped by the RDO attending officer. .

The stamping of the COR marks the last step of the grueling manual BIR registration process. That doesn’t end there though. For the actual filing process, here are the steps:

II. Proceed to the BIR Filing Process:

1. Obtain a copy of the BIR Form you opt to pay, which is also available online. You can also get a copy at the BIR-RDO.

2. Fill out the BIR form.

3. Prepare the general requirements. Have the BIR form stamped by an attending officer.

4. Proceed to the BIR-Authorized Agent Bank and submit the duly-filled BIR Form together with the required attachments. Pay the designated amount and processing fee.

5. Secure a copy of the duly stamped and validated form, which will be given to you by the representative. This will serve as your proof of payment.

NOTE: Don’t forget to compile your proof of payment. You will need them later for documentation.

Also Read: 100+ Profitable Small Business Ideas & Opportunities in the Philippines

 eBIR Forms Filing Process

You finally did it—you’ve completed your tax return forms. After spending a good hour figuring out, answering, and double-checking everything, you giddily go to the nearest BIR office to submit your documents and pay your taxes.

After spending a few minutes in line, you finally reach the window. After taking a quick look at your paperwork, the clerk said:

“Mali po yung entry niyo (insert section here) dito, paki-ulit po”

Accurate or not, I’m willing to bet that a similar scenario happens a lot during the course of a regular day at the BIR.

The bottomline is, filling forms the manual way has a higher risk of error.

I should know, I tend to get anxious filling out forms. As if I’m pretty sure I’m gonna get something wrong (happens often, sadly).

To help taxpayers sidestep this dilemma, the BIR came up with a solution that will lessen the risk of mistakes and ensure a higher accuracy in filling out tax returns.

Enter: eBIR Forms

What is eBIR?

In a nutshell, the eBIRForms Package is a computer software made by BIR which Filipinos can use to prepare their taxes. Instead of the manual process of completing forms (which has a high risk of error), the eBIR software allows users to enter their tax data as well as validate, calculate, save, edit, print, and submit their tax returns.

The highlight is the software’s ability to validate the data entered by the user, as it automatically calculates the information provided

Who needs eBIR Forms?

Taxpayers, employers, freelancers, and more—anyone who needs to accomplish their tax returns. The eBIR Form software contains 36 forms which covers all sorts of tax filing needs (see table below).

Here’s a quick list of individuals who need to use eBIR forms:

• Accredited Tax Agents (ATA)
• Real estate agents and real estate developers who are one-time transaction taxpayers
• LGUs (Barangays are an exception)
• Corporations reporting to the government
• Accredited principal and secondary receipt/invoices printers
• Cooperatives belonging to the government
• People filing for a “No Payment Return” (they fall under business income or mixed income)
• Registered National Electrification and Local Water Utilities Administration cooperatives

The following can manually file their “No Payment Returns” (exempted from eBIR forms mandate)

• Senior citizens
• Persons with disabilities
• Employees getting income from multiple employers
• Qualified employees for substituted filing RR 2-98 Sec. 2.83.4, as amended (but chose to file their ITR for the following reasons: foreign travel requirements, loans, scholarship, etc.

eBIR Forms Coverage

The eBIR Forms software includes 36 BIR forms that covers the following regulations: Income Tax Returns, Excise Tax Forms, VAT Forms, Withholding Tax Forms, Documentary Stamp Tax Forms, Percentage Tax Forms, ONETT Forms, and Payment Forms.

Here’s the full list.

eBIR Forms Computer Requirements:

• 100 MB free space in the hard disk
• At least 2GB RAM memory
• Java Runtime Environment version 1.7
• Window Vista or Window 7
• 1152 x 864 screen resolution is needed for the best view of this package

How to Install eBIR Forms

The latest version as of this writing (Feb/2019) that is available on the official Dept. of Finance website is Offline eBIRForms Package V5.2.

Step 1: Download v5.2 Offline eBIRForms package from here

Step 2: Upon installation, look for its program icon on the desktop. Double-click (for Windows) to launch it.

Step 3: Follow the steps that will appear on the screen to install the software.

Step-by-step guide on how to file taxes using eBIR Forms

Step 1: Launch the file by double-clicking (for Windows users) its icon on your computer

Step 2: Key in all required information on encoding page including:

• TIN
• RDO Code
• Line of Business
• Full Name
• Address
• Zip Code
• Phone number
• Email address

Step 3: Double-check the information you keyed in, clicking EDIT/Modify as needed.

Step 4: Select the BIR form type that you need to complete. For example, (BIR form 1700-Annual Income Tax return).

Step 5: Complete all required information.

Step 6: The next part is for calculating how much you actually need to pay in taxes. To do this, simply enter your income on the field that says, “Taxable Amount”.

Step 7: The tax amount you need to pay will show up on the screen. Hit “Save and Validate”

Step 8: Upon successful validation, print 3 copies. You will need to present this to authorized agent banks.

Step 9: Go online to submit your BIR form online using the email address you provided. You’ll receive a Filing Reference Number (FRN) as receipt of returns.

Step 10: Upon receipt of the email confirmation, you can pay your taxes.

You’ll know that your form has been successfully submitted when you receive a confirmation on the screen that says, “The form has been successfully filed”.

It should also display the Filing Reference Number (FRN) and the option to proceed to the FRN screen.

Here are some tips in case you don’t receive the BIR email confirmation after step 9:

• Check your email’s SPAM folder to see if it went there
• Make sure that the website, “bir.gov.ph” is not blocked by your email provider
• Double-check to make sure you entered a valid and active email address

Note: If you don’t need to submit any attachments with your filing via eBIR Forms, you no longer need to visit the RBO or AAB to submit the forms.

Are there penalties if the eBIR-mandated taxpayers fail to file their returns?

Yes. Taxpayers mandated to file returns using eBIR and EFPS will incur a Php1000 penalty per return.

Also, penalties of 25% of the tax required to be paid will be charged as well.

How to File Taxes Online with Taxumo: From Registering to Filing

As we can see above, the manual registration process is more complicated than you thought it would be.

We haven’t even mentioned the painstaking traffic and long queues you’d have to endure to fulfill your tax responsibilities.

Now, here’s how you can file your taxes with Taxumo.

You don’t need to hire an accountant nor face the grueling computation process yourself.

All you need is a computer with an internet connection, and you’re all set for an easy and convenient online tax filing payment process. It’s condensed in just 3 STEPS!

Step 1: Sign up to the Taxumo Platform

Create a Taxumo account here.

Wait for an email, which will be sent to your email account, to confirm your registration.

After signing up, you can then sign in to the Taxumo platform. You may likewise do so by clicking on the link on the email sent to you, aside from signing in to the Taxumo website.

NOTE: Don’t forget to secure  a scanned copy of your Certificate of Registration. We will be needing them for documentation later,  as you edit your profile.

Step 2: Fill in all necessary information, including your Income & Expense.

Next, fill in all pertinent information, including your income and expense. Just go to the Cashflow section on the left corner of the website. This will show you the records for the year.

NOTE: Prepare a scanned copy of your receipts, since you have the option to upload these, when you enter your income and expense.

To file your taxes, click on the forms you opted to file on the “Company” Section on the left corner of your dashboard.

The fees you incurred are automatically computed based on the income and expense you’ve entered.

After accomplishing this and confirming the correctness of your entered information,  you’ll be redirected to the section that shows the incurred tax due amount plus the processing fee.

The auto-generated tax form will also appear below it.

Step 3: Pay at your own convenience via any of our Payment Channels

Pay at your own convenience via any of our multiple payment channels, which include:

• Paypal
• Unionbank
• RCBC
• EON
• GCash
• Dragonpay

In just a few seconds, you should be taken back to Taxumo. You’ll see that your payment is successful.

The next step will all be with Taxumo. We will submit and pay to the BIR on your behalf.

That’s it.

There you have it.  A supposed 2-4 hours that it might take for you to file via the manual tax filing process, can be done in just a few minutes online with Taxumo.

Note that this is for Taxumo’s DIY platform. If you would want to skip all these steps altogether, you can just opt for Taxumo’s tax concierge service – Taxumo Premium. It lets you simply send in your receipts, and Taxumo handles everything else.

Read Next:

• 8 Best Practices to Lowering your Taxes in the Philippines
• How to Buy a Business in the Philippines
• How to Sell a Business in the Philippines
• The Ultimate Guide to Business Valuation in the Philippines