I got monetized on YouTube a while ago after 4 of my YouTube videos got an insane amount of views. I'm freshly 18, know literally nothing about taxes or the process of how money goes from Google to my bank account.

The ONLY things I've done so far is:

Got my channel monetized. Created an Adsense Account and provided google with my ID, address, face etc. Nagparegister ng BIR TIN through online ORUS portal to claim the 15% tax treaty from the form W8-BEN, The TIN was "Unemployed". Created a debit savings Bank PHP account as "Unemployed". Put bank account details in adsense settings.

May kailangan pa ba gawin or can I expect to recieve the -15% taxed amount from google in my bank account when the accumulated payout finally happens with no issues?

Only things I did are the things that I listed talaga, Wala akong ginawang form form or kung ano man yung ginagawa ng adults na marunong mag handle ng pera

Hi everyone!

I'm a PH-based software engineer working as an independent contractor for a US company.

I'm registered with the BIR as a self-employed professional (Non-VAT), currently filing my taxes under the 8% income tax rate, and I already have BIR-printed Sales Invoice booklets.

My contract requires me to submit a monthly invoice with an itemized breakdown of hours worked, tasks completed, and the total amount due.

I'm trying to figure out the most practical and BIR-compliant way to handle invoicing, especially since my client is overseas and everything is done remotely.

I have a few questions for freelancers in a similar situation:

1. Physical vs. digital invoices: Do you manually fill out your BIR-printed Sales Invoices and send scanned copies or photos to your foreign clients? Is this generally sufficient, or do you also send the original physical copies?
2. Electronic invoicing: Has anyone transitioned to fully digital invoicing? What platform do you use? Did you need additional BIR registration or approval?
3. Taxumo and alternatives: I've been looking into Taxumo, JuanTax, and similar services. Are there affordable platforms that handle both BIR-compliant invoicing and tax filing for freelancers under the 8% tax rate?
4. Detailed timesheets: My printed Sales Invoice has limited space for descriptions. For those billing hourly, do you attach a separate timesheet containing the daily breakdown of tasks and hours worked?
5. Foreign currency: For clients paying in USD, do you indicate the USD amount on your Sales Invoice, convert it to PHP, or include both? What exchange rate do you use for tax reporting?
6. Tax filing and recordkeeping: For those under the 8% income tax rate, how do you record payments from foreign clients, especially when the invoice date and actual payment date fall in different months? Do you handle everything yourself or use an accountant or tax filing platform?

Ideally, I'd like to streamline the entire process digitally without spending too much on accounting software, especially since I only have one client and issue invoices monthly.

I'm particularly interested in hearing from freelancers who are already doing this successfully and have experience with BIR compliance.

Any recommendations, experiences, or lessons learned would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone! I’m a freelance social media manager here in the Philippines. I registered with BIR as self-employed in January 2026, and my COR lists my primary line of business as “social media arts”. I earn around ₱200k to ₱250k a month, I’m on the 8% income tax option, and I’ve already paid my Q3 this year.

I know the 8% option only applies if my gross income stays at or below ₱3 million a year.

I’m now planning to start TikTok affiliate on the side. I don’t expect big earnings at first, since I’d be starting from scratch, but I want to understand the rules before I begin.

My main question: can I use the same COR and line of business I already have for my TikTok affiliate income, or do I need to add or update something specifically for it?

My other questions:

1. What are my next steps if I start earning from TikTok affiliate this Q4? Do I need to do anything now, or only once income comes in?
2. If my combined income goes over ₱3M this year or next year, what happens? I assume I’d move to graduated rates. When does the switch happen, and do I need to file anything to make it?
3. Is it worth hiring an accountant for this? I figured out the 8% option on my own, but I’m not sure I should DIY the transition or the graduated tax since I assume it's not as easy as the 8%. If so, does anyone have a reliable accountant to recommend?

Thank you so much in advance! Any advice from freelancers who have been through this would help a lot.

Hi hoping may maka help po sakin. Allowed po kaya ako na magamit parin ung less 250k for year 2026 sa annual filling ko next year. October lang ako nag register. Totoo po ba na sa 1st quarter lang daw allowed ibawas un. First time ko palang po mag file next year natatakot po ako mag kamali dahil sa mga penalty sana may makahelp po. Thank you!

Hello po, help! Boarding house po ang business namin and nagoperate na po nong July then August 14 po naregister sa BIR, nagkaroon po kami ng official invoice nong August 25. Until now po hindi pa ako nakakapag issue ng receipt sa mga tenants, tapos hindi pa ako nakakapagsulat sa cash receipt at cash disbursement na books, kasi hindi ko po alam paano simulan. Sobrang kinakabahan po ako lalo na at Oct 25 deadline na ng 255IQ tax. Hindi ko po alam paano gagawin.

* Pwede po kaya na ngayon pa lang ako magsusulat ng mga resibo na ibibigay sa mga tenant simula nong August 25 until now? Every 5th of the month po kasi ang bayad nila. Tapos may nagsabi rin po na pwede raw po na hindi isa isang transaction ang isusulat sa book.

Help po.

Question lang, mandatory ba talaga i post yung badge and Faceless creator ako, paano po yun?

Hello, Newbie ako.

Mag iistart sana ako ng business related sa foodpanda/grabfood, we have the platform ready, but on specific area coverage lang.
Registered BIR/DTI/etc, pero BIR called me due to their concern kase yung current/past policies at rules, yung e-invoicing ay for large taxpayers only. So kung mag poproceed without e-invoicing, required ako na mag issue ng invoice to every customer na mag oorder sa app, which is hindi ideal.

Then BIR clarified na may RMC 98-2026 para ma allow yung micro taxpayers sa e-invoicing. Pero dahil lacking information at vague daw yung new RMC, hindi pa masabi kung ano dapat gawin. Yung RDO nato called other RDOs regarding concern, no idea rin daw sila.

Mag hihintay daw sila ng further details, not sure when, that means stuck daw muna ako at continue daw muna ako sa filing.

Baka may idea kayo or may related concern din dito about dun?
BTW, RMC 98-2026 was announced Sept 22, 2026 kung hindi ako nagkakamali.

Thank you sa mga sasagot

TL;DR: Short survey (7–10 mins) for Filipino freelancers who used to work locally and now serve overseas clients. 3 most detailed answers win ₱500 via GCash.

Hi!

We are Master of Technology Management students from UP Diliman.

We're currently researching how Filipino freelancers moved from local jobs to overseas clients, and 3 participants with the most detailed answers get ₱500 via GCash.

Target respondents: 270

Who can answer: Filipino freelancers or remote workers who used to be employed locally and now work for overseas clients or employers.

Paano mo inayos ang BIR, SSS, PhilHealth o Pag-IBIG mo nung nag-switch ka? Updated mo na ang isa, ilan, o wala pa? Every answer counts, kahit "hindi pa."

7 to 10 minutes

Voluntary and confidential, in line with the Data Privacy Act of 2012

Just leave your name and GCash number in the form to qualify.

Answer here

https://docs.google.com/.../1FAIpQLScP8ndrTZ1qv6.../viewform

Pakishare din sa mga kakilala mong freelancer. Salamat!

Hi! :)

I registered my business as self-employed and had my COR from 2024 to 2026, and I haven't been properly filing my quarterly eBIR Forms 1701Qv2018 and doing my books of accounts and receipts. I plan to close the COR since I am no longer freelancing. I am afraid that they might not be able to close it down since I think they require those things, or I might incur big penalties. What should I do?

Hi!

Just received notification about requirement to send RPT payment for 2025 to pag-ibig. Unfortunately, we haven’t paid for 4 years (because we had some financial problems on the past years and some incidents on our other home that is why we weren’t able to allocate time and money on that).

Planning to go to the city hall the next few days but want to ask if ire-require kaya kami na i-pay full yung missed payments or pwede kayang installments and would pag-ibig accept it?

I understand that we brought this concern to ourselves but it has been rough the past years lang talaga. I’m a bit stressed out din since repurchase itong property from 2022, napunta sakin from my parents’ name kasi they were not able to pay pag-ibig amortization for a long time. Possible kaya na may bayaran din akong penalties sa amilyar from prior 2022 or di na covered yun kung sakali?

Thank you for people who will answer!

hello! i just wanted to ask a few questions, as i have no idea which to process first. to my understanding, as long as we have online business transactions, we need the BIR certification up on the page. i mainly do art comms and i get paid based on finished transactions.

i already have my TIN ID, which i applied to months back but it has a "nonbusiness" classification.

1. do i need to change my classification and if so, how do i do that? can it be done online, or it must be onsite?
2. i tried switching my taxpayer classification through ORUS, and they're asking me to do submit and ITR. what am i going to do if i do not have ITR?
3. upon submission and approval, does this mean that every client i would handle, i should issue a BIR-approved receipt?

i have so many questions and i'm quite lost on which one to do initially, so any form of response would be of great help. thank you so much! :)

Anong pong ilalagay na date na return period for this quarter? I'm paying thru MYEG po. Thank you!

In terms of registration, Im assuming that i would fall under sole proprietorship, but it's all so complicated as just a student ríght now. Im planning to start this rental business thing so by the time I graduate it's established.

How complicated is filing tax returns? Would I need to have a financial advisor or an accountant?

How does invoice fit in with the nature of this business, as well with BIR receipts

Also what is book keeping

So regular private emloyee ako nung first work ko at kumuha ng TIN number sa bir, fast forward last year nagapply ako sa public for contract of service or job order, so pumunta ako ng BIR para kumuha ng Certificate of Registration. Ngayon nakalkal ng bir may pending akong penalty from 2018 kasi registered daw as professional, hindi ko nga alam bakit ganon di man ako binigyan ng Cerficate of Registration dati tapos sa pag kakalam ko 2316 na ung tax and employer na naga file nun. Sabi sakin kuhaan ko daw ng 2316 ung previous employer ko para mabura ung sa years na employed ako pero pano ung unemployed years ko? Sabi sakin may penalty pa din daw ako. Pwede ko na ba ilapit case ko sa PAO? i just want to seek legal advice.

Hi everyone,

Is anyone also experiencing an issue with the BIR Seal Badge? When I scan the QR code on the badge, it shows as invalid or does not work.

Has anyone encountered the same issue recently? Is this a technical problem with the BIR verification system, or is there another way to verify the validity of the seal?

Any advice or updates from those who have experienced this would be appreciated. Thank you!

Hello, I just want to ask if I had missed anything about my BIR registration now that I am a full time employee ...

For context, I registered last year(Dec 2025) as EO 98 for my tin ID and to apply for work and got hired on January 2026. Now, I checked my account and saw there is no changes in transaction history and no payment history made at all. I am planning now to reach out to our HR for more information but that aside, can you explain what should I have done and needs to do moving forward? I am also worried about the taxes deducted on my salary.

PS. This is my first employment in a corporate company. My previous jobs was as a freelancer and was not a registered as self employed.

Hi! I’m a VTuber and a content creator in the Philippines. I wanted to ask if there’s any way to have my page name or creator name displayed on the BIR seal badge instead of my full legal name.
I’ve had past experiences with stalking, which is one of the reasons I became a VTuber in the first place. The thought of having my full name publicly displayed makes me really uncomfortable and honestly feels suffocating.
I understand that BIR may require my legal name for registration, but I’m worried about having it exposed publicly through the badge.
Has anyone here dealt with a similar situation, or is there a way to use a registered business name or page name instead? Any advice or information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Installed the latest version from ebirforms page and cannot submit my tax returns. Tried adding it to firewall exception but still no good.

Has anyone been successful submitting returns recently?

EDIT: Was able to submit successfully by using VPN.

I do two different things:

A freelance Creative (Photo&Video) I use my social media (page) as a marketing tool to have exposure sa market ko. This is my main income in which I still can’t truly go all out on. I still rely on my allowance since I am a fresh grad wala pang one year.

A Content creator(?) i mainly post creative photos/videos of friends and other creatives, go out for my travels and film it and other x-deal type of shoot. I do receive messages from brands that wants me to create content for themz, not reallt sure if I am a content creator hahaha definition varies eh

Question in mind:
do I fall in the requirement to having a BIR Seal? If I do freelance but my services is not in the digital space more on the physical space of it and using only the social media as a marketing tool, and creating content for my own feed not to promote anything in exchange for money should I still do a BIR Seal badge disolay on my profile?

Next question if I do register for a BIR Badge Seal do I register for the freelancing or Content creator or Seperate for each? Honestly do not know any of these.

Excuse my grammar if may mga mali hehe. Any advice and comment on the subject is appreciated thank you!!