The Philippine government has withdrawn draft legislation that would have raised taxes on property transactions after stronger-than-expected revenue collections in the first quarter, easing worries across the real-estate industry.
Finance Secretary Ralph Recto told Congress in a letter that the Department of Finance is shelving the Government Revenues Optimization through Wealth Tax Harmonization (GROWTH) bill, which would have lifted capital-gains, donor’s and estate taxes to 10% from 6% between 2025 and 2030.
The reversal was welcomed by A Better Real Estate Philippines (ABREP), a group representing brokers, developers and allied professionals. “Raising taxes is not the solution,” ABREP President Anthony Gerard O. Leuterio said. “The issue isn’t a lack of funds, but how those funds are managed. Without accountability, higher taxes risk punishing property owners and ordinary families.”
ABREP and the Management Association of the Philippines had argued that the proposal would chill investment and disproportionately hit middle-income households disposing of inherited assets. They urged the administration to plug fiscal leakages and improve spending efficiency before imposing new levies.
The GROWTH bill formed part of a wider plan to generate as much as 300 billion pesos ($5.2 billion) in extra annual revenues for infrastructure, health and education. But resistance from the private sector intensified after business groups pointed to inefficiencies in agencies such as state health insurer PhilHealth and chronic underfunding of public hospitals.
Recto said the government would instead pursue “revenue-neutral” measures and expand non-tax income, signalling a greater emphasis on structural reforms over fresh imposts while still aiming for long-term fiscal consolidation.
PropertyNews.ph
