CA justice cautions staffers: Judiciary not exempt from taxes

ANY legal action against the 30 percent tax deduction in the benefits of both judges and court employees should have solid legal basis, Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of the Court of Appeals Cebu station said yesterday.

“If other employees from private companies or other government institutions are subjected to the same tax, there is no reason for us, in the judiciary, to be exempted,” Ingles said in response to a nationwide silent protest by the judiciary against a 30 percent tax deduction on their allowances.

Ingles said in previous years the Special Allowance for the Judiciary (SAJ) received by judges, justices, and employees every month had no tax deductions.

But after the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) examined the High Court’s Books of Account and other accounting records, the allowances had to be taxed by 30 percent starting June.

Justices, judges and court officials receive every month a SAJ equivalent to 100 percent of their basic monthly salary. The SAJ is funded from legal fees and other collections.

“We’re hoping that it won’t be retroactive because it’s difficult to look for funds to pay past taxes,” said Ingles.

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