By Benjamin Pulta | Philippine News Agency
The Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has turned down a suit filed by a local agricultural firm seeking a tax refund of P8.419 million.
In a 25-page decision penned by Associate Justice Maria Rowena Modesto-San Pedro on Dec. 19, the tax court’s second division denied for lack of merit a petition by the Compostela Valley-based company MD Rio Vista Agri-Ventures, Inc.
The court said it found insufficiency in the documents submitted by the firm to prove that it covered zero-rated sales transactions which would entitle it to the sought tax refund under the law on value-added-tax (VAT) transactions.
The court said that in the absence of an itemized list, there is no way for the court to determine if the zero-rated sales were accounted for in accordance with the rules.
“(I)t is well-settled that tax refunds are in the nature of a claim for exemption and, therefore, the law is construed in strictissimi juris (most strictly) against the taxpayer. Accordingly, the pieces of evidence presented entitling a taxpayer to an exemption must also strictissimi scrutinized and must be duly proven,” the CTA ruling read.
“In this case, the petitioner was not able to prove with competent evidence its entitlement to a refund or issuance of a tax credit certificate.”