CTA affirms P65.8 M tax assessments vs Sirawai Plywood
For failure to file a timely protest on the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s (BIR) tax assessment, the Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) affirmed the P65.8 million in internal revenue taxes for 2017 levied against Sirawai Plywood and Lumber Corporation based in Zamboanga del Norte.
In its March 31, 2026 decision, the CTA also upheld the BIR’s Dec. 24, 2021 warrant of distraint and levy (WDL) and the warrants of garnishment (WOGs) issued against the lumber firm.
The BIR issued its formal letter of demand (FLD) with details of discrepancies and final assessment notices (FANs) for income tax, value- added tax (VAT), fringe benefit tax (FBT), and other taxes covering 2017 on June 4, 2021.
Sirawai Plywood filed before the CTA a petition for review on March 15, 2022 and sought the lifting of the BIR’s WDL and WOGs which enforced the collection of the 2017 assessed deficiency internal revenue taxes.
The firm said it is not liable for the 2017 deficiency internal revenue taxes as the BIR's assessments against it are "wanting in legal and factual foundation."
But the CTA said that Sirawai Plywood failed to timely file an administrative protest on its FLD. It also said that the audit conducted on the firm was in accordance with law and rules.
The tax court said that based on the firm’s own admission, it received the FLD on June 7, 2021. Counting 30 days from receipt, the court said that Sirawai Plywood had only until July 7, 2021 to file its protest.
The fact that the firm filed its protest only July 9, 2021, the FLD resulted in its incontestability and conclusiveness of the 2017 deficiency internal revenue tax assessments.
Thus, the CTA said: “Obeying the time-honored pronouncement, petitioner's defenses relative to the merits of the 2017 deficiency internal revenue tax assessments found under the BIR's FLD and formal assessment notice (FAN) should be ignored, while the 2017 deficiency internal revenue taxes embodied therein should be sustained in whole.”
The 17-page decision was written by Associate Justice Marian Ivy F. Reyes-Fajardo with the concurrence of Associate Justice Henry S. Angeles.