Hi everyone! Please be kind. No judgment sana because I'm already extremely stressed about this, and I'm trying to figure out how to fix my situation. 🙏

I'm a breadwinner, and managing my finances has been really difficult over the past several years. Between supporting my family, dealing with business losses, and paying off medical expenses, I've honestly struggled to keep up with my tax obligations.

Here's my situation:

• I left my corporate job in 2018 and started freelancing.
• I registered with the BIR as self-employed in September 2019. My COR lists Income Tax and quarterly Percentage Tax, with my line of business registered as Advertising (7430).
• Around 2019, I stopped issuing official receipts. I also haven't filed tax returns because I was dealing with serious financial difficulties and honestly didn't know how to manage everything properly.
• We also had a business that closed during the pandemic. I'm not sure if our accountant properly processed the closure because they eventually stopped responding to us. I'm worried that the business could have accumulated penalties, too.
• I'm currently freelancing again, earning less than Php 1 million annually. However, I haven't been issuing receipts for my current freelance work because I'm afraid that addressing my BIR registration will expose my unfiled returns and possible liabilities.
• I'm also starting to create content online. They're still small, and I barely earn anything from them aside from occasional affiliate commissions.
• Now that the BIR Registration Seal Badge requirement for online content creators has come up, I'm wondering if I should finally sort everything out. I want to be compliant, especially in case my freelance client starts requiring proper receipts and tax documents.

The problem is that I'm barely getting by financially. I'm still paying off debts from 2 major surgeries I underwent, as well as medical expenses from my parent's recent surgery. As a breadwinner, I have a lot of financial responsibilities, and I have very little money left after paying for necessities and debts.

I've been reading posts about BIR penalties and open cases, and I've seen people mention amounts exceeding Php 50,000. I honestly don't know how I could afford that right now. I've been worrying about this for weeks, and it's affecting my peace of mind.

Here are my questions:

1. If I apply for the BIR Registration Seal Badge through ORUS, could this flag my unfiled returns and trigger an investigation or assessment for the years I haven't filed?
2. How can I find out which returns I failed to file and whether I actually have open cases or penalties? Is there a way to check this before proceeding with the badge?
3. What's the proper way to fix my existing BIR registration? Should I consult my RDO first, hire a tax practitioner, or try to resolve the open cases myself?
4. Is there any way to minimize the penalties if I voluntarily correct my noncompliance? Are compromise penalties or other forms of relief possible, especially if I had very little income during some of those years?
5. Our old business also closed during the pandemic, but I'm unsure whether the closure was properly processed. How should I check its status and address any outstanding obligations?
6. Can I register a new business or obtain a new registration for my current freelance/content creation activities, or do I need to resolve my existing registration first? I understand that I shouldn't get a second TIN, but I'm unsure what the proper procedure is.
7. Since my freelance income is below Php 1 million annually and my content creation earnings are minimal, what would be the most practical and affordable way to become compliant?
8. Can I hire an accountant to help me with all my tax issues like sya na mag-aayos or magchecheck for me?

I'm not trying to avoid paying legitimate taxes. I genuinely want to fix this so I can stop worrying about it and properly document my income moving forward. I'm just scared that the penalties will be so high that I won't be able to pay for them while still supporting my family and paying off our medical debts.

If you've gone through something similar, especially as a freelancer in the Philippines, I'd really appreciate hearing about your experience.

Please share practical advice on what steps to take first, what costs I should prepare for, and whether it's possible to resolve this without spending tens of thousands of pesos upfront.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate any guidance. 🙏

I have some questions i hope professional cpa’s will see this and other knows about taxes. I recently got registered to bir and dti since oct 13, 2026

1.) I started my digital excel templates/commision 2023 then I register Oct 2026 do i need to say that I receive payments before I got registered to bir? and if so do I have penalties?
2.) Before bir i deposit 300k to my newly registered banks to bir will know it?
3.) When should i start filling? Do i need to start filling monthly before oct ends, november ends, december ends? or should i start january 1, 2027
4.) When should i pay my taxes? is it montly? and can i deduct my expenses on my fb ads to show to my consumed my digital excels and commissions?

Thank you so much for the response! 🥹

Ang daming nagpopost but I have not seen specifically for this type of product yet. I sell different digital products(apps, subscriptions, etc.) and I have TIN as a corp employee.

I recently registered in DTI for my business name but I honestly don’t know what’s next. Ang daming overwhelming na conflicting info sa BIR. I don’t have a shop, I don’t have an office, and I don’t have employees. Not too big din naman yung revenue and walang guarantee. Ang nagreremit sakin is Apple and Google.

I want to pay my taxes properly pero after seeing posts, if I decide to close the business, hassle pa. Abonado pa ako. Baka not worth the trouble.

Can anyone advise please? Thank you in advance!

Need ko po ba gamitin yung dalawa kong 8 columnar na book? tsaka pano ko po malalaman kung ano ron yung ledger at journal? registered po ata yung books na yun kasi may pirma ng taga bir at may parang seal/badge din eh, kaso walang laman kasi di ko po alam ang gagawin don. I also have this service invoice, di ko po alam kung pano gamitin, required din po ba yon gamitin as a self employed vat earner? and I would also like your opinion about my yt income being counted as a zero rated sale since ang laki po ng binayaran ko noon sa mga 2550q's ko from 2025 q4 to 2026 q1 and q2. This q3 ginawa ko na syang counted as zero rated sale. Yung fb income ko first time ko lang po natanggap nung q3 2026 so yun nalang ginawa kong 12% na payable since di po ako sure if maccount ko sya as zero rated sale. Also kaya ko po nacount as zero rated sale kasi nakalagay po dun sa pnb transaction ko na inward remittance intl, and nung dinownload ko yung receipt/transaction directly from adsense, usd po ang nakalagay, is that enough evidence para macount po as zero rate sale yung yt ko? ty po sa sasagot!

Hi, Im not one to usually make posts but I need some advice as Ive been seeing this all around socials, and its so confusing to try and understand all of it.

Currently, I started dabbling into the idea of offering digital templates online. So far, I havent gotten much success aside from a single sale, and Ive been pretty inactive about the page ever since. I was thinking about reviving my efforts on this but with the BIR badge situation, Im not so sure what to do, especially when I am unsure of whether it will do well.

do I register even if I havent earned consistently and am just reviving the page? Will having this also impact my role as a full time employee, where i also pay taxes? I am so lost that I dont know where to start

registered my business sa DTI during 2022 and will expire on 2027. honest mistake, i have no knowledge na need pala i register sa BIR after 30 days. operating ang business until now and planning to register it sa BIR. any advice po if wait ko na lang ma expire DTI or i-cancel ko po and register a new business name? thanks in advance po :((( sofer overthink na aq

Hello po! May small printing and photocopy business po ako sa Pilipinas, operating since 2021.

Updated naman po ako sa pag-renew ng business permit at pagbabayad ng quarterly taxes. Ang problema ko po, hindi ko na-update nang maayos ang books of accounts at sales records/invoice records ko since 2023.

May daily sales tracker naman po ako sa laptop kung saan ko nire-record ang daily sales ng business. Ang akala ko po kasi noon, basta naitatala ko ang sales at nakakapagbayad ako ng taxes, okay na. Hindi ko po lubos na naiintindihan noon ang requirements tungkol sa books of accounts at mga resibo/invoices.

Ngayon po, gusto ko nang ayusin ang lahat ng records ko at maging compliant sa BIR.

May mga tanong lang po sana ako sa mga naka-experience na ng ganitong situation:

1. Magkano po kaya ang possible penalty sa hindi updated na books of accounts at sales invoice records since 2023?
2. Per violation po ba ang penalty, o may computation depende sa taon at sa mga hindi nagawang requirements?
3. Dahil nagbabayad naman po ako ng quarterly taxes, makakaapekto po ba iyon sa magiging penalties ko?
4. Ano po ang dapat kong ihanda at unahing ayusin bago pumunta sa BIR RDO?
5. May naka-experience na po ba rito ng similar situation? Magkano po ang naging total penalty ninyo?

Small business owner lang po ako kaya gusto ko sanang magkaroon ng idea kung magkano ang dapat kong ihanda bago magpa-assess sa BIR.

Hindi ko po intensyong takasan ang obligasyon ko. Gusto ko lang pong maitama ang records ko at maayos ang compliance ko moving forward.

Maraming salamat po sa mga sasagot at magbabahagi ng kanilang experience. 🙏❤️

Hello

I have a physical COR and I want to update my line of business/PSIC code online. Do I still need to go to my RDO to surrender old COR and get new one? Or would the electronic COR be enough na?

Thank you

Thank you po.

I want to close my bir I registered to BIR and DTI since oct 13, I have a page to I need to delete or close it after that? I want to have cor kasi para madeposit yung savings ko nabaha kasi yung pera ko its either deposit or exchange and bank said deposit, other bank said they need cor to deposit it kaya nakapag register ako sa bir.

Ano ano kayang steps need ko to close it sa bir? and questions they might ask saakin. Super stress na po talaga ako huhu im working student pa lang. Hindi pa naman ako nakakapag atp and register ng book deadline is nov 12 mas madali kaya ito maclose?

magkano kaya ipapabayad sa akin ng BIR sa ganito? i have executed an affidavit of loss and personal letter to the RDO head. wala pa sila feedback as of today. dun sa nawala, its mostly blank with only 0001 used. tama ba ginawa ko na nag report ako agad na nawala yung booklet? first time ko pa lang mag self employed tax payer.

Ano po yung isesend sa email? First time ko pong gagawin and wala pa po yung accountant sa office.

Si company A nagfa-file sa EBIR App tapos si company B, efps website po.

Si Company A, hindi nasesend kapag "encrypted". Tinry kong isend yung sa "alpha" , nasend naman kaso hindi ko alam kung tama?

Hello, does anybody have a template for affidavit of no operation for business that actually operated for 5 months but closing rn in SEC (finished closing in bior, municipal)?

We opened a corp for our thesis and operated from nov 2024 to april 2025, we started closing in bir then. Now we are closing in SEC and they keep classifying as as no oeprations? Is this the correct category for us? If yes does anybody have a template for it? I can't find a template for business who actually operated since incorporation or should i just submit a certificate of no operation saying we didnt have any operation right from the start to end?

P.s we issued official receipts and we already have certificate of no tax liability from BIR

Hello, nagopen yung family business namin noong pandemic, around 2021 at nagsara ito noong December 2023. I got my TIN registered to prove na employee ako sa shop na iyon. Yung mama ko usually ang nagfi-file ng tax returns and other BIR requirements since siya yung employer/owner ng family business.

After magsara ng shop dahil sa sudden situation namin, natengga ako at wala akong source of income from January to September 2024. Nakakuha ako ng side gig around October 2024 hanggang December 2025. Project-based remote work siya for a US-based company (e-commerce), monthly binabayaran pero hindi umaabot sa ₱250k ang total na kinikita ko bawat year since hindi fixed yung rate/payment sa akin ng company. Binabayaran kami through Payoneer.

After that, natengga ulit ako dahil sa burnout, and right now, 10 months na akong walang work or income.

Hindi ako nakapagfile ng ITR habang may gig ako noong 2024–2025 dahil ang dami rin naming bayarin at nag-focus ako sa health ko, including checkups, meds at lab tests. I know na naging irresponsible ako as a taxpayer sa situation na ito. Sabi naman ng mama ko, huwag muna akong mag-update habang wala pa akong stable or full-time work. Saka ko na lang raw asikasuhin once may stable work na ako at mag-focus muna ako sa paghahanap ng trabaho.

Lately, may nababasa ako tungkol sa BIR Seal (balak ko sanang kumuha kapag nagopen ako ng online commission pero hindi muna ngayong month), kaya nagwo-worry ako kung may magiging penalty ba ako lalo na't may existing TIN ako na active dahil sa previous employment ko :(

Salamat po sa advice.

Yun sa Bir Badge ko kasi...26 nakalagay kahit registered na ako sa bir ng 2024.....inassume ko kasi na year 2026 yun pero kasi may nakita ako influencer na 24 nakalagay sa kanya ano kaya reason bakit yun iba ganun..

I am a faceless adult content creator sa isang site earning 6digits per month for the past 3 years at balak ko na sana mag register sa BIR and mag bayad ng tax starting January (3years na po ako di nagbabayad ng tax) Ngayon, hindi ko po alam saan mag sisimula, ano ilalagay ko e hindi naman pwede adult streamer or NSFW content creator tapos sobrang nakaka overwhelmed pa mga nabasa ko dito lalo na yung seal badge 🥲

Balak ko din po kase magtravel abroad this 2027 visa free countries then 2028 Schengen, US and Japan visa so need ng ITR at balak ko din pagawan parents ko ng grocery store next year para may paglibangan sila at maka travel din kami outside PH. I’d really appreciate any tips or advice. Thankyou po!

Recently decided to pursue making art for a living. Accepting commissions and workshops. Way of promoting is thru online platforms. Do I need to register even if income is unstable?

Title: Looking for a CPA Experienced in Cross-Border E-Commerce and International Business Structuring (Philippines)

We're looking for recommendations for a CPA or accounting firm, preferably based in Metro Manila, with experience helping Philippine-based business owners structure international e-commerce businesses.

Background:

• The business owners are Filipino citizens with no residency in other countries.
• We manufacture a physical consumer product locally in the Philippines and plan to launch internationally within the next few months.
• Our primary markets will be the United States and European Union.
• We plan to export our products to Amazon fulfillment warehouses in the US and EU, where they will be sold through Amazon FBA.
• All customer sales and fulfillment will take place overseas.
• We estimate initial international sales of approximately USD $10,000–$20,000 per month.

Current Business Situation:

We're considering establishing a Philippine corporation and potentially using the 40% Optional Standard Deduction (OSD), as our business has significant cost of goods sold (COGS) but relatively low manpower and overhead expenses.

However, we're open to other corporate structures if they offer a more practical and tax-efficient solution.

Import and Export Logistics:

We currently source components from China using freight consolidators such as CargoBoss.

We do not currently have our own import or export permits, and for our initial shipments to the US and EU, we're considering using freight consolidators to handle the export process as well.

What We're Looking For:

We need an experienced CPA or tax adviser who can help us determine the most appropriate corporate and tax structure for this type of business.

Ideally, someone with firsthand experience advising Philippine-based entrepreneurs who sell physical products internationally, particularly businesses that hold inventory and fulfill orders through overseas warehouses.

We're not simply looking for someone to handle routine BIR filings. We need practical advice on cross-border taxation, business structuring, international revenue, and Philippine compliance obligations.

If anyone has worked with a CPA or accounting firm experienced in this type of setup, we'd really appreciate your recommendations.

Thank you!

Magpapatulong lang sana ako sa mga accountant, bookkeepers, o kapwa business owners dito re: BIR Form 2551Q (Percentage Tax).

May dalawa lang po ako sanang gustong itanong:

1. Kailangan pa ba talaga ng SAWT / DAT file para sa 2551Q? May hawak kasi akong Form 2307 mula sa client na may ATC Code na ⁠WB080⁠ (Percentage Tax withheld).

2. Bakit nag-e-error kapag 07 (July) ang period? Kapag nagpo-process kasi ako ng DAT file para sa July (⁠07/2026⁠), laging nare-reject at nag-e-error sa eSubmission validation (lumalabas na Form Type Invalid / Period Empty).

Baka may nakaranas na nito o nakakaalam ng tamang proseso? Pa help po

hi, fresh grad here so need advice lang!

context: worked in a company for only 1 month (including my rendering period). we had de minimis benefits (~2k). during my first paycheck, nasobrahan sila sa akin ng send ng de minimis. they sent me 50k+. obviously, hr called me and asked na i return it, which i did.

now, i am working in a new company where i have to submit documents. i requested my form 2316 from my previous employer.

concern: my total non taxable benefits came to a total of 80k+. i am assuming na it’s because of the 50k na mali nilang sinend sa akin.

i clarified and asked if tama ba yun. sabi nila na tama raw kasi kapag iniba nila yung amount, hindi na magbabalanse. 😭

super concerned lang with all the legalities and tax stuff huhu. need advice on how i should move forward. if hayaan ko lang ba na 80k+ nakastate sa 2316 ko? wala naman ba siyang impact cos it is non taxable? or should i insist na itama nila?

please help a lost fresh grad 🥹

Help please. I just installed new ebirforms package and I'm getting a confirmation of TIN and email prompt but a pop up says TIN does not match profile information. What gives 😅

Hi everyone! I need some advice regarding BIR registration and the ORUS/ORS system.

I’ve already successfully registered with the BIR and obtained my Certificate of Registration (COR), which was a requirement from my agency.

I was told that a digital stamp, seal, or QR code would be generated after creating my ORUS/ORS account. However, I previously encountered issues with my account, so I was only able to complete the process now, after successfully linking my TIN and RDO to my account.

The problem is that after completing these steps, no stamp, seal, or QR code was generated. does this mean that i’m already penalized or something?

Hi!

I have acquired a house thru Pag-ibig last 2022 and have not paid any RPT/amilyar yet (I know, I should have but financial circumstances and some accidents happened in between).

Because of unfortunate accidents, I lost all my mortgage documents. Can I pay amilyar without this and just by having the title details and property address?

Or do I have to bring title/condition of deed of sale since it would be my first time paying amilyar?

Thank you!