Silkair vs CIR

FACTS

Petitioner Silkair is an online international carrier plying the Singapore- Cebu-

Singapore and Singapore-Cebu-Davao-Singapore routes. Petitioner filed a claim with the
BIR the for reimbursement of P3.9M in excise taxes which it allegedly erroneously paid
on its purchase of aviation jet fuel from Petron. Silkair based its claim on:
Sec. 135(b) NIRC – exempts from excise taxes the entities covered by tax
treaties,conventions and other international agreements, provided that the country of
said carrier or exempt entity likewise exempts from similar taxes the petroleum
products sold to Philippine carriers or entities Article 4(2) of the Air Transport
Agreement between the Philippines and Singapore – fulfills the proviso in Sec. 135
BIR took no action on the claim, which led Silkair to file a petition for review with
the CTA. This was denied; hence, this petition.

ISSUE

W/N Silkair is exempt from the payment of excise tax

RULING – NO

Excise taxes are considered taxes on production as they are collected from the
manufacturer or producer of goods. They are indirect taxes which are levied upon the
manufacturer or importer (in this case, Petron) upon removal of the taxable goods from
its place of production or from the customs custody. These taxes, however, may be
passed on to the end consumer (in this case, Silkair) as part of the transfer value or
selling price of the goods sold. The proper party to question, or claim a refund or tax
credit, of an indirect tax is the statutory taxpayer, which is Petron in this case, as it is
the company on which the tax is imposed by law and which paid the same, even if the
burden was shifted or passed on to another. Even if Petron shifted or passed on the
burden of the tax to Silkair, the additional amount which petitioner paid is not a tax but
a part of the purchase price it had to pay to obtain the goods.