MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has added 19 maintenance and lifesaving medicines to the list of products exempted from value-added tax (VAT), in a move aimed at easing the financial burden on patients, BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. announced Thursday.

Speaking during the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing, Lumagui said nine medicines were listed under Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 59-2025 issued on June 11, while 10 more were added through RMC No. 62-2025.

The exemption was based on the recommendation of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), following a review of essential medicines that meet criteria under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law and the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) law.

“Ang mga ito ay mga maintenance at lifesaving medicines na ngayon ay hindi na papatawan ng VAT. Isang kongkretong hakbang para mas mapagaan ang gastusin ng mga pasyente,” Lumagui said.

Of the 19 newly exempted medicines, seven are for cancer treatment, while three each are for diabetes, hypertension, and mental illness. One medicine each for high cholesterol, kidney disease, and tuberculosis were also included.

The BIR chief said the agency is coordinating with the FDA and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to monitor the implementation of the exemption and ensure that the benefit translates to actual price reductions for consumers.

“(Ito ay) upang masiguradong maipapasa ang benepisyo, naipapasa ang benepisyo sa mga mamamayan,” Lumagui added.

Consumers may report non-compliance by pharmaceutical companies or drugstores to the BIR through contact_us@bir.gov.ph, as well as to the FDA and DTI. (PNA)