May 29, 2015
Visayan Daily Star by Carla P. Gomez | http://goo.gl/hZuUjT
Sugar leaders welcomed yesterday the issuance by the Bureau of Internal Revenue of Revenue Regulations No. 8-2015, finally amending its definition of raw cane sugar to be exempted from advance Value Added Tax, to include what the industry calls raw sugar.
RR 8-2015, signed by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, on recommendation of BIR Commissioner Kim Jacinto Henares, on May 22 amends the definition of raw cane sugar under RR 6-2015.
On May 5, President Benigno Aquino III, through the intervention of Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas, called for a high level meeting with members of the Cabinet, Henares and Sugar Regulatory Administrator Ma. Regina Martin to the look into the clamor of the sugar industry for the lifting of advance VAT on raw sugar.
It was then agreed that the BIR and SRA sit down to come up with a definition of the raw sugar that will be granted exemption from VAT.
Manuel Lamata, United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines president, said the new definition under RR 8-2015 is good, all raw sugar is now exempted from advance VAT.
Lamata said they are thankful to the president, Roxas, Martin, and Henares for helping thresh out the issue.
“We are very happy that the efforts of the Sugar Alliance and SRA Administrator Gina Martin finally paid off and we were able to successfully protect the welfare of sugar producers. We also thank Mar Roxas and President Noynoy Aquino for taking the side of the sugar industry in the interpretation of the National Internal Revenue Code that raw sugar is exempt from VAT,” Enrique Roxas, National Federation of Sugarcane Planters president, said.
He also said they appreciate Henares for eventually realizing that raw sugar is exempt from VAT and for immediately issuing a new revenue regulation to that effect.
Francis de la Rama, chairman of the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations Negros-Panay chapter, said they are very happy with the new RR and would like to thank the President though Roxas and Martin for their efforts.
RR 8-2015 now defines raw cane sugar as the natural sugar extracted from sugarcane through simple mechanical process by pressing for the juice, boiled to crystallize, filtered using centrifuge to separate these crystals, and dried, resulting to crystallized brown sugar (brown color due to natural molasses content present in sugar cane).
Raw cane sugar is produced from conducting only one stage of filtering and centrifugal without any other further process applied, such as but not limited to washing and bleaching, it added.
RR 8-2015 also defines raw cane sugar as having color greater than 800 ICU and that its content of sucrose by weight in dry state corresponds to a polarimeter reading of less than 99.5°.
The definition includes muscovado which has standard specifications as produced, namely: Powder Class A – polarization of 86° minimum; Powder Class B – polarization of 77° minimum; and, Lump – polarization of 57° minimum, it said.
Only those falling under the new definition of Raw Cane Sugar, including muscovado, are exempt from VAT, or from Percentage Tax, pursuant to Section 109 (1)(A) of the Tax Code, RR 8-2015 states.*CPG