God of My Dreams

"Because of who you are, I can live with hope,

Knowing that you'll always be

God of all my dreams

Everything I want to be is found in you"

(Who You Are by Gateway Worship)

November 4, 2012

Fresh from taking the 2012 Bar Examinations, exactly a week after the last of those 4 Sundays inside that room in UST that seemed like a big pressure cooker that time, I attended The Feast for the first time at PICC. To those of you who do not know what "The Feast" is, it is a weekly gathering to praise and glorify God, organized by Light of Jesus, a Catholic charismatic community founded by Bro. Bo Sanchez. Attending the Feast was a 4-year old plan that I was only able to do after I'm done with law school and the Bar review, when Sunday is no longer the busiest day of my typical week. Praise God!

So on that first slack Sunday, I met my friends at PICC and we attended The Feast. After the mass, I was amazed by the energy of every person inside the plenary hall. People were like in a rock concert, only that they were singing praise songs. My first impression was, "Parang born again!" But of course I've been a follower of Bro. Bo long enough to know that he is a Catholic lay preacher. I sang along.

And then they played that song that made me burst into tears as my entire law school and Bar review memories came playing inside my head like a scary movie. Then I saw my 10-year old self who, for the first time, decided that I wanted to be a CPA Lawyer. I also remembered taking my oath as a CPA in that very same place. While everybody was singing so loud, I cried out, "Lord, sana kasama ako sa mag-oath dito next year!" (Bar results come out the following year.)

"Who You Are" became my favorite song, my comfort song everytime fear of the Bar result would set in.

December 8, 2013

Fast-forward... I'm now a regular 'Feaster', actively attending (with some absences -- sorry) for more than a year. I've been into two (2) Kerygma Conferences, some CG (Connect Group) sessions, and a half-day retreat for singles. I also signed up for the Truly Rich Club. (You should register, too! Let me know so I can assist you.)

On the second week of the "Power Up" series, we sang my favorite song again. And again, tears came flowing down, and as my physical vision started to blur, memories played inside my head again. But this time, there were new images - my oath-taking, the day I signed my name in the Roll, my first baby steps as a lawyer, my struggles in this continuing journey to my bigger dreams, and the joys of finally being able to have time for myself and the people I love. I am just so thankful that the roles God gives me in this life are not hard to love and appreciate. Yes, I live my life dealing with everyday challenges. But at the end of each day, when my battery gets drained, I only have to tap into the Power Source, the God of all my dreams, who always reminds me of the reason why I have to go through all the stress and difficulties - LOVE. It is love that makes us want to be truly rich so that we can serve other people. It is love that puts balance between our desire to excel at work and to excel in our relationships. It is love that sets the strong foundation for our goals. And my goal is not to be a great lawyer, but to be a great person worthy of all the perks of being God's beloved daughter.

And so as the song was coming to its end, I thanked God for always staying by my side, for being my Dream-giver, my Coach and my Cheerleader. I bet He is also busy throwing big parties in Heaven for each little success I achieve on earth. That song will always remind me of how God shows His love through my dreams coming true one step at a time.

Sale of Precious Metals on Tighter Tax Watch

[Published in Business Mirror on May 22, 2013]

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has enforced a stricter measure to ensure that the government gets hold of its proper share in the sale of jewelry, gold and other metallic minerals.

A tax-collection scheme called the “advance payment of probable taxes due” was adopted by the BIR, pursuant to Revenue Regulations (RR) 5-2013, issued on March 21, 2013. According to the regulations, the revenue measure is the government’s response to the strategy being resorted to by the sellers of precious metals to avoid being taxed.

The Tax Code imposes the following taxes on the sale of gold and other metallic minerals: 1) excise tax; 2) value-added tax (VAT) or percentage tax; and 3) income tax. On the other hand, the sale of jewelry is subject to 1) VAT or percentage tax; and 2) income tax.

Excise tax is payable at the place of production. However, if the products have been removed from the place of production without the payment of excise tax, the person having possession thereof shall be liable. The rate is 2 percent, based on the actual market value of the gross output thereof at the time of removal, in the case of those locally extracted or produced; or the value used by the Bureau of Customs in determining tariff and Customs duties, net of excise tax and VAT, in the case of importation.

The sale of metallic minerals to persons and entities, except sale of gold to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), is subject to 12-percent VAT on the gross selling price if the gross selling price exceeds P1,919,500; otherwise, it is subject to 3-percent percentage tax. The sale of gold to the BSP is subject to 0-percent VAT if the seller is VAT-registered.

Since the sale is an income-generating activity, it is, likewise, subject to income tax. RR 2-98, as amended, has included income payments on purchases of minerals, mineral products and quarry resources among the payments that are subject to creditable withholding tax. The prevailing withholding tax rate is 5 percent.

Last year RR 6-2012 was issued to provide guidelines on the imposition of excise tax, VAT, and income tax on the sale of jewelry, gold and other metallic minerals to the BSP and to other entities. To facilitate the collection of taxes thereon, the regulations constituted all buyers as withholding agents for the collection of the 2-percent excise tax and the 5-percent creditable withholding tax.

The taxing authority, however, observes that sellers opt to sell jewelry, gold and other metallic minerals to foreign entities that come to the Philippines for a limited period and only for the purpose of buying such minerals, instead of selling to the BSP and other entities that withhold taxes. Consequently, the BIR finds it hard to collect the taxes rightfully due the government. To cover this loophole, the Department of Finance (DOF) prescribed the rules on the advance payment of business and income taxes and actual payment of excise tax by sellers of jewelry, gold and other metallic minerals to non-resident individuals not engaged in trade or business or to non-resident foreign corporations.

Under the new regulations cited, sellers are now required to pay the applicable taxes in advance to the RDO having jurisdiction over the place where the transaction occurs. The advance payments are creditable against the actual income and taxes due for the taxable period for which such payment pertains. As regards the VAT paid in advance, the same, together with any input tax, shall be deducted from the output tax to determine the VAT payable.

The regulations further impose upon the nonresident buyers the obligation to maintain a record of the transactions and require the seller to sign an order slip or any document which will be the basis of the revenue officers in assessing the correct tax due. Operators of establishments where the subject transactions are conducted are required to advise the concerned BIR Revenue District Office (RDO) about the sale. Failure to do so constitutes a violation of the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. On the basis of the information gathered, the Special Investigation Division (SID) of the concerned RDO shall check if the seller complies with his obligations. Any tax due shall be collected on the spot.

With this new tax-collection procedure, the BIR is looking at more revenues going into the government coffers. Such revenues are expected to come only from those transactions that are advertised or at least displayed, as it may still be hard for the BIR to monitor the selling of precious metals that is not ostensible. The BIR can easily spot purchasing in large scale, but transactions involving relatively small amounts may escape the eyes of revenue collectors.

If advance payment of taxes turns out to be very effective on sales of precious metals, the possibility of adopting this collection scheme to other hard-to-collect taxes may not be far away.