(Eagle News) — Senator Sonny Angara on Thursday, Jan. 17, called for the passage of a law that would grant tax exemptions to small-scale miners who would sell their gold to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
In a statement, Angara said if passed, the Gold Bill, as it is called in the Senate, will “ensure the strength of the country’s (gross international reserves)” promote the Philippines’ “greater monetary and external sector stability,” and “help support the development of the small-scale mining industry as envisioned by Republic Act 7076, or the People’s Small-Scale Mining Act of 1999.”
He noted that the country’s GIR, or the sum of all foreign currencies, including gold, held by the BSP, dropped to a seven-year low in October last year.
“The bill also helps small-scale miners, who prefer to sell their gold to the BSP, which ensures that they would be able to receive a fair price for their gold, instead of selling the gold to the black market where prices are below market levels,” Angara said.
Under the bill, Sections 32 and 151 of the National Internal Revenue Code will be amended to make the sale of gold from small-scale miners to the BSP exempt from income and excise taxes.
According to Angara, the tax exemptions cover proceeds from “sale of gold to the BSP by registered small-scale miners” and “sale of gold by registered small-scale miners to accredited traders for eventual sale to the BSP.”
“The proposed legislation would have the effect of assisting the BSP in the fulfilment of its mandate under its charter, returning to the formal sector the sale of gold from small-scale mining, and support the trade of small-scale miners as originally envisioned under RA 7076,” Angara said.
