Philippines Court of Tax Appeals Issues Decision Clarifying Refunds of Final Withholding Taxes on Dividends

The Philippine Court of Tax Appeals Feb. 26 issued a decision in CTA Case Nos. 10710, 10878, and 11065, clarifying refunds of final withholding taxes (FWTs) on dividends. The taxpayer, a wholly owned company of the Norwegian government, sought a refund of FWTs on dividends declared by its Philippine subsidiary, claiming an exemption. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue (CIR) contended that the taxpayer failed to prove entitlement to the exemption due to issues in authenticating foreign documents. On appeal, the Court of Tax Appeals, Special Third Division, found that: 1) the administrative and judicial refund claims were timely filed within ...