ANOTHER ONE FROM THE BIR

Here’s the recap.

While I was away, my colleague forwarded a letter from the Bureau of Internal Revenue. The letter claimed that I failed to file several tax returns listed in an attached “Annex O.”

Except… there was no Annex attached.

Naturally, I was confident. I’ve always been meticulous with filings. “Probably a glitch,” I thought. But just to be sure, I had someone check what those missing returns were.

And that’s when the plot twist came in:

the BIR was asking for 8 tax filings—some dating back to 2016.

Out of those eight, I was certain 7 were properly filed. The only one that wasn’t? A 2016 filing I already paid a penalty for.

Still, I learned a few things worth sharing.

💡 Lessons Learned

1️⃣ Filing doesn’t mean you’re safe.

Even if your return was confirmed “received,” the BIR can still tag it as missing years later. Yes—even 9 years later. Keep a permanent trail of proof for every submission.

2️⃣ Know your tax map.

All your required filings and their frequencies are spelled out in your BIR Certificate of Registration (Form 2303). Use it as your checklist. Then, have a system to double-check your accountant’s work—because ultimately, it’s your name on the letter, not theirs.

3️⃣ Keep digital proof—always.

Every valid filing should have 2 official emails from the BIR:

“Tax Return Receipt Confirmation” and

“eSubmission Validation Report.”

Without these, you may technically have no filing record in their system.

4️⃣ Request an Open Case Report yearly.

This simple step tells you whether the BIR considers any of your returns “missing.” It can save you from a future panic attack.

5️⃣ When you pay a penalty, archive it.

If you’ve already settled an issue, keep digital and printed proof forever. Because “settled” in your world doesn’t always mean “closed” in theirs.

I’ve changed accountants three times in ten years. The first one—the best—was a former big-firm auditor who later moved abroad. Thankfully, she sent me soft copies of every filing before leaving. Those old PDFs saved me from a major tax nightmare.

So here’s my new rule: never outsource memory.

Your accountant can file your taxes—but you’re the one who lives with the paper trail.