The Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) has denied the petition of Global Catering Services Corporation which sought from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) P35.8 million in tax refund or credits for its alleged excess and unutilized input value-added tax (VAT) for its zero-rated sales in 2018.

On Sept. 25, 2020, the BIR denied the plea of Global Catering, then Miascor Catering Services Corporation, for a refund of P35,851,451.10.

In its petition for review, Global Catering told the CTA that its sales of services to clients engaged in international air transport operations are subject to zero percent VAT, and the excess input VAT is attributable to zero-rated sales.

But the CTA found Global Catering’s allegation unmeritorious.

The tax court said that based on the documents it provided, only three of Global Catering's clients -- Air China Limited, Asiana Airlines, Inc., and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines -- have satisfied all the requisites for VAT zero-rating, as evidenced by their Articles of Incorporation (AOI).

It also said that Global Catering failed to substantiate its claims with official receipts.

At the same time, the court found that the corporate purpose and business activities of Global Catering’s other clients -- Delta Air Lines, Inc., Malaysia Airlines Berhad and United Airlines, Inc. -- were not clearly stated or not indicated at all even if their certificates of Incorporation were submitted.

In view of the foregoing, petitioner's claim for refund in the amount of P35,851,451.10, allegedly representing excess or unutilized input VAT attributable to its zero-rated sales for 2018, must be denied, the CTA ruled.

The 41-page decision was written by Associate Justice Jean Marie A. Bacorro-Villena with the concurrence of Presiding Justice Roman G. Del Rosario and Associate Justice Lanee S. Cui-David.