Teachers, both public and private, will be among the millions of income taxpayers that will benefit with the passage of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) bill.
Senate Bill 1592 or TRAIN seeks to exempt P150,000 annual taxable income, while retaining the P82,000 tax exemption for 13th month pay and other bonuses and the maximum P100,000 additional exemption for up to four dependents.
Under the bill, a Teacher I with a monthly salary of P20,179 (Salary Grade 11) can have annual savings from income taxes of up to P18,987, depending on the number of dependents.
If a Teacher I has three or four dependents, he or she will no longer have to pay income taxes. Currently, he or she is taxed at a high of 20%.
Senator Sonny Angara, since his days in the House of Representatives, has been filing a bill upgrading the salary grade of public school teachers from Salary Grade 11 to 19.
Angara explained that with the reduction of income tax rates, 99% of the 7.5 million individual income taxpayers will be able to take home bigger pay.
“Hindi lamang po ang ating mga public school teacher ang lalaki ang maiuuwing kita, pati na rin ang mga nasa private schools. All our workers who receive compensation income and even our self-employed and professionals will benefit,” the chairman of the ways and means committee said.
For instance, an assistant professor at a private college who receives a monthly salary of approximately P31,530 will be able to save at least P30,916 every year due to lower income tax rates.
“Halos katumbas na ng isang buwan niyang sahod ang matitipid niya kada taon dahil mas mababa na ang kanyang babayarang buwis. Ang isang propesor sa pribadong kolehiyo ay para na ring nakakuha ng 14th month pay gaya ng mga natatanggap ng public school teachers ngayon,” Angara said.
“We have long been pushing for higher pay for our teachers. Their salaries do not commensurate to their great contribution to our society. As we celebrate our teachers’ role in nation building, it is high time that we pay them back and give them due tax relief as they mold our children’s future,” the senator added.
Today, October 5, is World Teachers’ Day and the culmination of the celebration of the National Teachers’ Month. | Senate-PR
