The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has issued Bank Bulletin No. 2026-04 on 7 April 2026, outlining updated procedures for Authorised Agent Banks (AABs) in handling 2025 Annual Income Tax Returns, including acceptance of electronic filing confirmations, payment validation rules, and revised requirements for out-of-district and late filings. 

RF Report

The Philippines Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has issued Bank Bulletin No. 2026-04 on 7 April 7, 2026, which reiterates the procedures for Authorised Agent Banks (AABs) to follow regarding the 2025 Calendar Year Annual Income Tax Returns (AITR).

The directive instructs that AABs are required to accept Annual Income Tax Returns (AITRs) filed through the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) electronic filing platforms, provided taxpayers present either the emailed Tax Return Receipt Confirmation (TRRC) or, in cases of delay, a screenshot showing the “Submit Successful!” pop-up message as proof of filing.

The directive further instructs financial institutions to recognise electronic filing confirmations, comply with specific documentation requirements for out-of-district payments, apply strict stamping procedures for late submissions, and ensure all deposits are properly validated and remitted to the Bureau of the Treasury.

Filing and payment exceptions

While electronic filing is the standard, the bulletin outlines specific exceptions and alternative methods:

  • BIR Form No. 1701-MS: For individuals classified as Micro and Small Taxpayers, AABs are instructed to accept manual filings of this form (accomplished either in writing or electronically) and the corresponding payments, as this specific form is not yet available on the BIR’s electronic filing platforms.
  • Platform unavailability: If the BIR’s electronic filing platforms are unavailable, payments for accomplished AITRs must still be accepted, provided the unavailability is covered by an official Advisory published on the BIR website.
  • Out-of-district payments: AABs are required to accept tax payments from taxpayers registered outside their specific jurisdiction. These returns must be batched separately from those within the host Revenue District Office (RDO) jurisdiction.

Procedural requirements for AABs

For out-of-district payments, taxpayers must provide triplicate copies of the printed electronically filed AITR or payment forms and the BIR-Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) deposit/payment slip.

AABs must stamp the forms as “RECEIVED” and “Out-of-District”. If a payment is made late, it must be stamped “LATE FILING”; if the associated penalties are not paid at that time, the bank must also stamp “INCREMENTS NOT PAID”.

The BIR-prescribed deposit/payment slip must be machine-validated, reflecting the date of payment, amount paid, transaction number, and teller details.

Operational reminders

AABs are reminded to accept tax payments from any taxpayers who are already within the bank premises at the close of official banking hours.

Checks should be made payable to the “Bureau of Internal Revenue”. Even if a check is presented after the bank’s clearing cut-off time, the AAB should still accept it and stamp the form “Received after cut-off/clearing time”.

A critical update for taxpayers is that AABs are no longer required to accept or stamp manual attachments to the AITR (such as audited financial statements). These must instead be submitted through the Electronic Audited Financial Statement System (eAFS), eSubmission, or manually to the relevant BIR district office.