10 December 2013 - The Protocol Amending the Convention between the Republic of the Philippines and the Italian Republic for the Avoidance of Double Taxation with Respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion was signed by Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Cesar V. Purisima and Italian Ambassador Massimo Roscigno at a ceremony held on December 09 at the DOF premises.

The Protocol amending the Convention seeks to guarantee compliance of the Philippine tax laws with internationally agreed tax standards (IATS) as set forth by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In particular, it seeks to convey the Philippines’ assurances that the country is willing to exchange information on tax matters with Italy, within the parameters set by IATS.

The signing of the Protocol which promotes practices in information exchange and the strengthening of transparency on tax information, is expected to boost investment flows between the two countries, benefiting the Philippine economy and reinforcing the confidence of the international community in the Philippines.

The Convention was originally signed in Rome on December 1980, and entered into force on June 1990.

Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Office of European Affairs Assistant Secretary Maria Zeneida Angara Collinson, First Secretary and Deputy Head of Mission of the Italian Embassy Alfonso Tagliaferri, and other officials of the DFA, DOF and BIR were present during the ceremony.  END