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AAC Tax Code.

The National Internal Revenue Code of 1997 as it currently stands — consolidated by the firm to carry the TRAIN Law, the CREATE Act, the Ease of Paying Taxes Act, the VAT on Digital Services Act, CREATE MORE, the CMEPA and the amendatory laws in force to 1 August 2026, with a footnote at every provision naming the law that changed it.

Text current as at 1 August 2026. This is an unofficial consolidation prepared by the firm and not the official text of the Code. Repealed provisions are kept, struck through, so that references in earlier records stay traceable.
Download the PDF edition →

The printed edition runs to 240 pages and carries the same text, footnotes and references as the browser below. Every section here shows the page it sits on in that PDF, so a citation taken from the screen matches the one taken from the book.

TITLE IV — VALUE-ADDED TAX › CHAPTER I. IMPOSITION OF TAX

SEC. 112-A. VAT Refund for Tourists

Page 91 of the PDF edition

(a) A tourist shall be eligible for a VAT refund on locally purchased goods if the following requisites are present:

(1) The goods are purchased in person by the tourist in duly accredited stores;

(2) Such goods are taken out of the Philippines by the tourist within sixty (60) days from the date of purchase; and

(3) The value of goods purchased per transaction is equivalent to at least Three thousand pesos (P3,000.00): Provided, That such threshold shall be subject to review and adjustment every three (3) years by the Secretary of Finance, upon recommendation of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue, taking into consideration the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as published by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

(b) The Department of Finance shall engage the services of one (1) or more reputable, globally recognized, and experienced VAT refund operators to provide end-to-end solutions to the government for the establishment and operation of a VAT refund system for tourists.

(c) The refund under this Section may be made either electronically or in cash.

(d) The amount necessary for the VAT refund system for tourists under this Code shall be charged against the special account in the General Fund as provided under Section 106 of this Code.

For purposes of this Section, the term ‘tourist’ means a non-resident foreign passport holder.

Amendment notes

  1. Introduced as a new Section by Republic Act No. 12079, approved 6 December 2024, creating a value-added tax refund mechanism for non-resident tourists. The implementing rules and regulations were signed in March 2025 and circularised by Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 53-2025 of 4 June 2025. The Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Act against an equal protection challenge in a decision reported in July 2026.
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