The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has entered into a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to promote and encourage cooperation and coordination to effectively prevent, control, detect, investigate and prosecute money laundering activities, terrorism financing and unlawful activities in the country.
In a statement, the tax agency said the BIR was represented by commissioner Lilia Catris Guillermo while AMLC was represented by executive director Matthew David at the recent signing.
Based on the MOA, AMLC may enlist the assistance of the BIR in the detection and investigation of money laundering activities and other violations of the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA), as amended, terrorism financing and prosecution of offenders, particularly on the violation of Section 254 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) of 1997 (Attempt to Evade or Defeat Tax), as amended, as a predicate offense to money laundering where the final assessment is in excess of P25,000,000.
The BIR, on the other hand, may request for financial information, including bank records, in relation to any violation of laws that it is tasked to implement, which would give rise to the commission of any unlawful activity (money laundering activities and terrorism financing) that is a violation of Section 254 of the NIRC of 1997.
Requests from the BIR shall include an evaluation of the case under investigation and/or disclosure of all relevant information necessary for the AMLC to properly process the requests, including but not limited to the following: a description of the suspicious activities under analysis and the basis for the suspicion; details of the persons or companies involved as well as the transactions and the accounts used; the information requested and the purpose for which it will be used; and range of the period to be analyzed.
AMLC and BIR shall cooperate in the areas of information exchange and capacity building measures to enhance their capability in addressing the said unlawful activities.
AMLC is the primary government agency mandated by law to implement and enforce the AMLA of 2001, as amended, and the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012.
These laws were issued to ensure that the Philippines shall not be used as money laundering haven for the proceeds of any unlawful activity to protect the life, liberty and property from acts of terrorism by condemning terrorism and those who support and finance it. – Angela Celis
