Guidelines on establishment and operation of eLounge

The BIR issued the following guidelines and procedures on the establishment and operation of eLounge facilities in its various Revenue District Offices (RDOs):

On the establishment of eLounge

The eLounge facility shall be established in the Tax Information and Education Division at the National Office and RDOs in Metro Manila. There shall be a phased roll-out of the establishment of eLounge in the RDOs.

The BIR web services that can be accessed in the eLounge shall include Electronic Filing and Payment System (eFPS), eSubmission, eAccreditation, eSales, eReg, Relief Data Entry and Validation Module, Alphalist Data Entry and Validation Module, taxpayer compliance guide, and interactive forms.

The eLounge shall be set up at or near the Taxpayer Service Area. A BIR personnel shall be assigned to assist taxpayers in the use of available services at the eLounge. An electronic logbook (e-logbook) shall be maintained to monitor the number of taxpayers availing of the eLounge facility.

On the operation of eLounge

The eLounge shall be open from 8 am to 5 pm or beyond office hours depending on the need of the taxpayers. Only official transactions shall be allowed to be performed in the eLounge. Depending on the degree of utilization, an eLounge facility in an RDO may be transferred to another RDO. To monitor usage of the Lounge facility, a report shall be prepared by the Taxpayer Service Section (TSS) to be submitted to the Revenue Data Center (RDC), which, in turn, shall consolidate all reports and submit them to the Taxpayer Assistance Service (TAS) for monitoring/evaluation of usage of eLounge facility.

(Revenue Memorandum Order No. 18-2012, August 28, 2012)

Tax Brief – September 2012

Punongbayan and Araullo