Title X, Chapter III – Penalties Imposed on Public Officers

SECTION 269.  Violations Committed by Government Enforcement Officers. – Every official, agent or employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue or any other agency of the Government charged with the enforcement of the provisions of this Code, who is guilty of any of the offenses hereinbelow specified shall, upon conviction for each act or omission, be punished by a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) but not more than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000) and suffer imprisonment of not less than ten (10) years but not more than (15) years but not more than (15) years and shall likewise suffer an additional penalty of perpetual disqualification to hold public office, to vote, and to participate in any public election:

• (a)        Extortion or willful oppression through the use of his office or willful oppression and harassment of a taxpayer who refused, declined, turned down or rejected any of his offers specified in paragraph (d) hereof;
• (b)       Knowingly demanding or receiving any fee, other or greater sums than are authorized by law or receiving any fee, compensation or reward, except as by law prescribed, for the performance of any duty;
• (c)        Willfully neglecting to give receipts, as by law required, for any sum collected in the performance of duty or willfully neglecting to perform any other duties enjoined by law;
• (d)       Offering or undertaking to accomplish, file or submit a report or assessment on a taxpayer without the appropriate examination of the books of accounts or tax liability, or offering or undertaking to submit a report or assessment less than the amount due the Government of any consideration or compensation, or conspiring or colluding with another or others to defraud the revenues or otherwise violate the provisions of this Code;
• (e)        Neglecting or by design permitting the violation of the law by any other person;
• (f)        Making or signing any false entry or entries in any book, or making or signing any false certificate or return;
• (g)        Allowing or conspiring or colluding with another to allow the unauthorized retrieval, withdrawal or recall of any return, statement or declaration after the same has been officially received by the Bureau of Internal Revenue;
• (h)       Having knowledge or information of any violation of this Code or of any fraud committed on the revenues collectible by the Bureau of Internal Revenue, failure to report such knowledge or information to their superior officer, or failure to report as otherwise required by law;
• (i)         Without the authority of law, demanding or accepting or attempting to collect, directly or indirectly, as payment or otherwise any sum of money or other thing of value for the compromise, adjustment or settlement of any charge or complaint for any violation or alleged violation of this Code; and
• (j)         Deliberate failure to act on the application for refunds within the prescribed period provided under Section 112 of this Act. (As amended by RA No. 10963 (December 19, 2017)).

Provided, That the provisions of the foregoing paragraph notwithstanding, any internal revenue officer for which a prima facie case of grave misconduct has been established shall, after due notice and hearing of the administrative case and subject to Civil Service Laws, be dismissed from the revenue service: Provided, further, That the term ‘grave misconduct,’ as defined in the Civil Service Law, shall include the issuance of fake letters of authority and receipts, forgery of signature, usurpation of authority and habitual issuance of unreasonable assessments.

SEC. 270.         Unlawful Divulgence of Information. – Except as provided in Sections 6(F) and 71 of this Code and Section 26 of Republic Act No. 6388, any officer or employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue who divulges to any person or makes known in any other manner than may be provided by law information regarding the business, income, or estate of any taxpayer, the secrets, operation, style or work, or apparatus of any manufacturer or producer, or confidential information regarding the business of any taxpayer, knowledge of which was acquired by him in the discharge of his official duties, shall, upon conviction for each act or omission, be punished by a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) but not more than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000), or suffer imprisonment of not less than two (2) years but not more than five (5) years, or both.

Any officer or employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue who divulges or makes known in any other manner to any person other than the requesting foreign tax authority information obtained from banks and financial institutions pursuant to Section 6(F), knowledge or information acquired by him in the discharge of his official duties, shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) but not more than One hundred thousand pesos (P100,000), or suffer imprisonment of not less than two (2) years but not more than five (5) years, or both. (As amended by RA No. 10021 (March 5, 2010)).

SECTION 271.  Unlawful Interest of Revenue Law Enforcers in Business. – Any internal revenue officer who is or shall become interested, directly or indirectly, in the manufacture, sale or importation of any article subject to excise tax under Title VI of this Code or in the manufacture or repair or sale, of any die for printing, or making of stamps, or labels shall, upon conviction for each act or omission, be punished by a fine of not less than Five thousand pesos (P5,000) but not more than Ten thousand pesos (P10,000), or suffer imprisonment of not less than two (2) years and one (1) day but not more than four (4) years, or both.

SECTION 272.  Violation of Withholding Tax Provision. – Every officer or employee of the Government of the Republic of the Philippines or any of its agencies and instrumentalities, its political subdivisions, as well as government-owned or- controlled corporations, including the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), who, under the provisions of this Code or rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, is charged with the duty to deduct and withhold any internal revenue tax and to remit the same in accordance with the provisions of this Code and other laws is guilty of any offense hereinbelow specified shall, upon conviction for each act or omission be punished by a fine of not less than Five thousand pesos (P5,000) but not more than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000) or suffer imprisonment of not less than six (6) months and one (1) day but not more than two (2) years, or both:

• (a)        Falling or causing the failure to deduct and withhold any internal revenue tax under any of the withholding tax laws and implementing rules and regulations;
• (b)       Falling or causing the failure to remit taxes deducted and withheld within the time prescribed by law, and implementing rules and regulations; and
• (c)        Falling or causing the failure to file return or statement within the time prescribed, or rendering or furnishing a false or fraudulent return or statement required under the withholding tax laws and rules and regulations.

SECTION 273.  Penalty of failure to Issue and Execute Warrant. – Any official who fails to issue or execute the warrant of distraint or levy within thirty (30) days after the expiration of the time prescribed in Section 207 or who is found guilty of abusing the exercise thereof by competent authority shall be automatically dismissed from the service after due notice and hearing.

(Manual encoding credits: Magdaleno Abdon, Sept. 2020)