Arthur Fuentes

Bureau of Internal Revenue. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Bureau of Internal Revenue

Jekki Pascual

ABS-CBN News

MANILA -- The Philippine Chamber of Cooperatives has filed a petition for certiorari before the Supreme Court questioning the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s order on the Tax Identification Number (TIN) requirement for all members of the cooperatives.PH Coop Chamber Secretary General Edwin Bustillos said the BIR order has prevented thousands of cooperatives in the country from applying for a Certificate of Tax Exemption (CTE). He said the law states that cooperatives should be tax-exempt and there is no need for the individual members’ TIN.“It is enshrined in the Constitution that the state shall support the development of the cooperatives, particularly in poverty alleviation,” said Bustillos, who added that this BIR policy is a barrier to growth.Of the nearly 21,000 cooperatives registered with the Cooperative Development Authority, Bustillos said, only less than 7,000 have a CTE. And the biggest cause is the BIR policy, he said.The chamber added that members of cooperatives are mostly from the marginalized and poor sector who have no TIN. Some members, they said, are also no longer working.“Wala nga birth certificate. Sabi ko nga 49 years na ang aming kooperatiba, senior na ang marami sa amin. Bakit mo pa ire-require ang TIN?,” said Marlene Sindayen, Board of Trustee of the PH Coop Chamber.She added, “Karapatan ng lahat ng kooperatiba na ma tax exempt, bakit pinapahirapan niyo para dito.”Coop Chamber officials also said that because many cooperatives have no CTE, they are forced to pay taxes, affecting their operations and loan programs. They lament that many cooperatives are forced to downsize, which also affects ordinary citizens who lose an option for loans, for example.The BIR has yet to issue a statement on the filing of the petition for certiorari. But in its Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 038-2025 issued in April this year, the agency is requiring all cooperatives’ members to possess a valid TIN in compliance with the National Internal Revenue Code.The circular added that the cooperatives are given 9 months to comply with the TIN requirement. Cooperatives can also submit a sworn affidavit stating justifiable reasons for failure to comply with the TIN policy.Meanwhile, the PH Coop Chamber is supportive of amending Republic Act No. 9520 or the Cooperative Code of 2008, except for one proposed revision. They said there is a proposal to allow foreign investors to join through shares or equity.PH Coop Chamber Chairperson Noel Raboy said cooperatives are people-centered and not profit-centered. It should not be run like a corporation that has shares, since cooperatives are run and owned by individual members.“Sinasabi nila na iaallow ang mga federation na hindi na maging democratically controlled, kung hindi gusto nila maging korporasyon na pwede siya mag invest ang mga foreign at the same time the methods of, manner of voting becomes a shareholder,” Raboy said.He added, “Kapag share voting na kasi, it&#x27;s not anymore a cooperative. The way to put up shareholding because they want to evade paying taxes.”The chamber hopes the government will fully support the growth of cooperatives, which have over 13 million members nationwide. Cooperatives are where many Filipinos first apply for a loan or seek assistance, so they said, it’s vital to empower the cooperative system and make it truly tax-exempt.

The chamber said members of cooperatives are mostly from the marginalized and poor sector who have no TIN.

The chamber said members of cooperatives are mostly from the marginalized and poor sector who have no TIN.

Cooperatives group files petition vs BIR over TIN requirement

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Cooperatives group files petition vs BIR over TIN requirement

Jekki Pascual,

ABS-CBN News

Published October 10, 2025 05:29 PM PHT

Read More:

coop chamber

cooperatives

philippine chamber of cooperatives

bir

bureau of internal revenue

tax-exempt

supreme court

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