MANILA, Philippines - The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has filed its first tax evasion case against gold trader, Teofilo Oraa.

In a statement on Thursday, January 3, the BIR said Oraa’s deficiency tax liability is P731.67 million for 2009, inclusive of surcharge, interest and penalties.

Oraa is a gold trader who sold P1.12 billion-worth of gold to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in 2009, which he did not declare in his income tax return.

According to the complaint filed by the BIR, Oraa declared only P634,227 in sales in his income tax return for 2009, with the disparity between the actual income and declare income over 30%.

The bureau said it obtained a certification of the total sales and net payments received by Oraa and copies of the Letters of Delivery and Sale detailing the number of pieces and the weight of the gold and silver sold by him from BSP.

Under Sec. 248 (B) of the Tax Code, an under-declaration of taxable income by more than 30% constitutes a prima facie case of fraud tantamount to tax evasion. - Rappler.com