Day: October 3, 2024

Manila: Acting Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ma. Cristina Roque said the newly signed Republic Act (RA) 12023, imposing a 12 percent value-added tax (VAT) on online services from foreign providers promotes an equitable digital economy in the country. ‘This landmark legislation is a significant step towards creating a more equitable and inclusive digital economy in the Philippines. By ensuring that all digital service providers, regardless of origin, contribute their fair share to the country’s tax system, we are promoting healthy competition and supporting the growth of our local MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises),’ Roque said in

Manila: Senator Loren Legarda on Thursday vowed to seek more funding for the Philippine Information Agency’s (PIA) Barangay Information Officers Network (BION) to strengthen the government’s information dissemination drive in the country’s remote villages. Presiding over the deliberation on the proposed 2025 Presidential Communications Office (PCO) budget, Legarda asked PIA Director General Joe Torres to submit a program proposal to the subcommittee. “As I promised, if I like a program, we can roll it out in other areas. I may not fund the whole country but I’ll select. Definitely, I will have a program in Antique,” Legarda said after getting

Manila: Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada on Thursday expressed his full support to the call of Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. for lawmakers to amend the country’s espionage laws. In a statement, Estrada pointed out that current Philippine laws on espionage were first instituted almost a century ago and have never been touched. “Given the significant changes in national defense and security over the years, it is important to review and update these policies to ensure they are relevant to the current landscape,” the chairperson of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security said. Estrada’s panel is currently

SEOUL – South Korea and the United States have completed a combined marine exercise in the East Sea to strengthen their interoperability, the South’s Navy said Thursday. The two navies held a two-day exercise, starting Wednesday, in waters off Pohang, about 270 km. southeast of Seoul, involving four naval vessels, including the ROKS Marado and the USS Boxer, both amphibious assault ships. A Wasp-class ship, the USS Boxer can carry about 40 aircraft, including F-35B stealth fighters. The 40,500-ton ship also took part in the Exercise Ssang Yong involving the South Korean and the US Navies and Marines. “The two

Manila: The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said on Thursday the value-added tax (VAT) on resident and non-resident digital service providers is not a new tax. ‘This is not a new tax. RA No. 12023 only ensures that the VAT being paid by local digital businesses, will also be paid by foreign digital businesses,’ BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said in a statement. Signed into law by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Wednesday, RA No. 12023 imposes a 12-percent VAT on electronic or online sale of services, such as online advertisement services and provision for digital advertising space; digital

BALER, Aurora – Six former New People’s Army (NPA) rebels from this province on Wednesday got financial assistance under the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP), the military said Thursday. Lt. Col. Aries Quinto, acting commanding officer of the Philippine Army’s 91st Infantry Battalion, said the former rebels (FRs) received PHP340,000 from Reynante Tolentino Jr., who represented his father, Governor Reynante Tolentino, at the Aurora Trading Center in Barangay Calabuanan, this capital town of Aurora. Quinto thanked the E-CLIP provincial committee for helping the FRs rebuild their lives. ‘Our FRs significant support is not just a financial boost; it also