BIR files raps vs husband of Donna Cruz

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED/CORRECTED) – The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has filed a tax evasion case against the husband of former singer-actress Donna Cruz on Thursday, May 2. 

In a statement, the BIR said it filed a criminal complaint against Cebu-based ophthalmologist Dr. Potenciano Sto. Domingo Larrazabal III for having a tax deficiency of P21.14 million. 

The BIR said Larrazabal received a total of P29.14 million in professional fees from 2009 to 2011 from Philhealth alone but he only declared P4.72 million income for the 3-year period. (Editor’s’ note: The earlier version of this report said Larrazabal “only paid” P4.72 million. The amount refers to the the income he declared.)  

“Larrazabal should have registered as a value added tax payer and filed the required quarterly VAT returns as his earnings was well above the threshold required to register as a VAT taxpayer,” the BIR said.

“Larrazabal underdeclared his income, did not pay the correct income tax on it and failed to pay the VAT and file his VAT returns,” it added.

This is part of the Aquino government’s name-and-shame campaign to improve tax administration in the country. – Rappler.com