ATP/PTU validity removal most welcome
It is also a sign that the government is willing to listen and improve its processes to reduce the burden on taxpayers
Published in Daily Tribune on July 7, 2022
by: Vanessa Arrha A De Leon
A piece of welcome news for all business establishments this 2022 is the change brought about by Revenue Regulations (RR) 6-2022 with respect to the removal of the validity period of Authority to Print (ATP)/Permit to use (PTU) for Official Receipts (OR), Sales Invoices (SI), and other Commercial Invoices (CI).
It must be recalled that before the effectivity of the said RR, it was RR 18-2012 that regulated and laid down the policies of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) with respect to the processing of the ATP for receipts and invoices.
Under Section 3 of RR 18-2012, all persons who are engaged in business, whether in the private or government sector, shall secure/apply with the BIR for an ATP principal and supplementary receipts and invoices. For those newly registered taxpayers, the RR directs that the ATP be secured simultaneously with the BIR Certificate of Registration with one application for ATP per establishment.
With respect to the ATP’s validity, the RR provides that the BIR-approved ATP shall be valid until full usage of the inclusive serial numbers of the principal and supplementary receipts/invoices reflected in the said ATP or five years from the issuance of the same, whichever comes first. Once a taxpayer finds that the ATP for its invoices is expiring, it is mandated to apply for a new ATP not later than 60 days prior to the actual expiry date of the ATP.
All unused and/or unissued receipts/invoices shall be surrendered to the Revenue District Office where the taxpayer is registered on or before the 10th day of the validity period of the expired receipts/invoices for the destruction of the same. It is also provided that an inventory listing of such receipts shall also be submitted.
It is these provisions on the ATP’s validity that RR 6-2022 has updated by removing the five-year validity period of the same as well as its effects.
In its preliminary paragraphs, RR 6-2022 explains that it was being issued to address the practical concerns and clamor of taxpayers who, because of the said validity period, are incurring additional, unnecessary, and burdensome costs in applying for and printing new sets of manual receipts/invoices once their five-year validity period has lapsed despite the remaining inventory of unused receipts/invoices. Further, the BIR noted the additional burden to taxpayers if they will have to apply for the renewal/re-issuance of PTU whenever the five-year validity period expires.
Hence, to address the situation and in line with the policies laid down in Republic Act 11032, otherwise known as the “Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of 2018,” the taxing bureau issued such a rule removing the five-year validity period.
With the removal of the five-year validity period of the ATP/PTU receipts/invoices, all ATP/PTU existing and to be issued shall be and remain valid and may be used until exhausted unless revoked by the BIR for the following reasons: 1.) tampering of sales data/integrity of the data/software specification and features to alter or avoid the recording of a sale transaction; 2.) any major repair, upgrade, integration and modification/alteration without prior notification and approval by the BIR office concerned; and 3.) violation on the policies and procedures for registration under Revenue Memorandum Order 10-2005 and 9-2021 and other related revenue issuances which provide for the procedures and guidelines in the use of sales machines (i.e. cash register systems) or computerized accounting systems.
Note that the removal of the validity period is applicable to both existing and to be issued electronic and manual receipts. Thus, for those existing receipts, the validity date and phrase which limits the ATP receipts/invoice’s validity shall be disregarded while for those receipts and invoices to be issued, the machine printing them should be configured as to omit the phrase and period limiting the validity of such invoices.
As mentioned above, this is definitely welcome news, not only because it means less unnecessary expense and wastage for business owners but also a sign that the government is willing to listen and improve its processes to reduce the burden on the part of its clients- the taxpayers. In this current financial climate, this is of utmost necessity.
