From CREATE MORE to E-Invoicing: Joseph Plazo Explains the Latest Tax Law Updates in the Philippines

In the southern corridor of Metro Manila, where high-growth startups share the same skyline, joseph plazo walked into a packed forum with a message that felt less like a lecture and more like a survival guide.


What followed was a civic-minded walk-through of the latest tax law updates in the Philippines—not as technical trivia, but as a coherent story about enforcement modernization. Speaking alongside a bonifacio global city law firm team used to translating complexity into action, Plazo treated tax as national strategy—invisible when aligned.

Tax Law as Competitive Reality


According to joseph plazo, the old mindset—file, pay, forget—has become structurally outdated.

Today’s tax environment is shaped by:
cross-border consumption rules


“Tax used to be reactive,” he noted. “Now it punishes slow adaptation.”

And in Taguig—where platform businesses move at high velocity—“latest updates” become operational questions: Do our systems match the rules?

Administrative Tax Reform Became a Business Reality

Plazo began with the reform that quietly reshaped the relationship between taxpayers and the state: the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act, Republic Act No. 11976.

“EOPT is the system admitting that friction creates noncompliance,” he explained. “So the system is reducing friction.”


In broad strokes (without turning the forum into a statute recital), he framed EOPT as an attempt to modernize tax administration and strengthen taxpayer rights—an objective also emphasized by the Department of Finance.

From a bonifacio global city law firm perspective, the practical meaning is that organizations should treat administrative reform as a process change—not just a legal headline.

Update Two: CREATE MORE Recalibrated Incentives and the Investment Narrative



Next, joseph plazo moved to the update that CFOs tend to feel in their bones: the incentives landscape.

He referenced Republic Act No. 12066 (CREATE MORE), signed on November 8, 2024, which amended multiple provisions of the Tax Code relating to incentives and related rules.

“Incentives are not charity,” Plazo said. “They are economic steering.”


He emphasized two practical consequences for businesses:
(2) incentives increasingly come with governance, transparency, and compliance expectations

“The incentive era rewards clean documentation,” he noted.

RA 12023 and Implementing Regulations Changed the Digital Tax Map


Then came a shift that signals the direction of modern tax: the expansion of VAT to digital services.

Plazo referenced Republic Act No. 12023 (VAT on digital services) and the implementing regulations issued by the BIR (including Revenue Regulations No. 3-2025, as discussed in professional tax advisories).
He noted that major firms and tax publications have tracked the practical effectivity timeline and compliance expectations for providers and market participants.

“This is the State following the money,” joseph plazo said.


For a bonifacio global city law firm audience, the implication is not only for foreign platforms. It also touches:
contracts that allocate tax responsibilities

“The lesson is bigger than VAT,” Plazo said. “The lesson is: borders don’t protect you from taxation when consumption is local.”


Update Four: Mandatory E-Invoicing and Digital Sales Reporting—Deadlines and Reality



Plazo then covered the update that has been driving system upgrades and procurement decisions: e-invoicing and electronic sales reporting.

He cited BIR Revenue Regulations No. 11-2025 (February 27, 2025) as a key regulatory issuance for electronic invoicing and sales data transmission, tracked in firm guidance.
He also referenced Revenue Regulations No. 26-2025, which extended certain compliance timelines—stating that affected taxpayers have until December 31, 2026 to comply, per the regulation itself and multiple professional summaries.

“And visibility changes enforcement,” he added, “because the system can see faster than humans can argue.”

He framed the extension not as a retreat, but as an acknowledgment of implementation realities—also reflected in contemporary commentary on rollout challenges and deadline adjustments.

From the bonifacio global city law firm viewpoint, Plazo translated this into executive language:
“Systems are now part of legal compliance,”


Employee Benefits Got a Regulatory Tune-Up

Plazo then highlighted a change that touches nearly every employer: Revenue Regulations No. 29-2025 on de minimis benefits, which updated ceilings for non-taxable employee benefits under prior rules.

“This is where compliance meets culture,” he explained. “Because benefits are morale—and morale is retention.”


He framed the update as a reminder that even “employee-friendly” tax changes require:
policy alignment


From a bonifacio global city law firm standpoint, the lesson is clean:
benefits are tax-sensitive design, not informal generosity


The Amnesty Extension Is Being Pushed as a Relief Measure


Plazo carefully distinguished between enacted law and policy momentum.

He referenced the Department of Finance’s public support for a House bill extending the estate tax amnesty until December 31, 2028—a proposal, not an enacted final statute at the time of the cited DOF post.

“Because businesses and families plan around likelihood.”

He used the example to teach a broader principle:
tax planning is not only about reading what passed; it’s also about tracking what’s being prioritized.

The New Direction of Philippine Tax Policy


Plazo refused to let the talk become a list. He stitched the updates into one story:

Administrative reform is reducing friction (EOPT).

Incentives are being recalibrated for competitiveness and governance (CREATE MORE).

Digital consumption is being taxed where value is consumed (VAT on digital services).

Reporting is shifting toward real-time data visibility (EIS / e-invoicing).

Employer-side rules are being refined with compliance implications (de minimis).

Relief mechanisms remain politically relevant (estate tax amnesty extension proposal).

“And the system is moving toward digitization,” he added.

And then he delivered the line that got the most silent nods in the room:

“If tax authorities can see faster, they can assess faster.”


Why Taguig City—and Why a Bonifacio Global City Law Firm Lens—Matters



Plazo leaned into the symbolism of location.

Taguig is where:
regional HQ functions

often cluster—and these business models are precisely the ones most affected by:
e-invoicing mandates


“That’s why a bonifacio global city law firm view is useful,” he added, “because it’s built for velocity.”

What Changes for Businesses Without Turning This Into Legal Advice



Plazo then shifted from “what changed” to “what it changes,” offering a business translation that stayed safely in the lane of education:

1) Systems must match the reporting direction


E-invoicing and sales reporting requirements push businesses toward system readiness.

2) Incentives require governance-grade documentation


CREATE MORE’s incentives context elevates internal controls.

3) Digital transactions require tax-aware contract design


VAT digital services rules expand the compliance perimeter.

4) Payroll “small” changes are rarely small


De minimis adjustments can change take-home pay and compliance expectations.

“Most tax losses don’t happen because people are evil,” joseph plazo said.


The Purpose of Tax Law, Reframed



Plazo closed by stepping back into purpose.

Tax law exists to:
support economic strategy


But modern tax law must also handle:
digital economies


“Tax is how a state stays functional,” joseph plazo concluded.


From Awareness to Action

To end the session, joseph plazo offered a practical framework—designed for executives and operators who don’t have time to read everything, but can’t afford to miss the big moves:

Start with what is binding

Treat BIR regulations as operational triggers


Treat DOF-backed proposals as signals


Translate every update into systems, policies, and proof


Tax is risk governance

He ended with a line that felt made for Taguig’s blend of ambition and velocity:

“And if you want to read more grow fast,” he added, “your compliance has to grow faster.”