More lawmakers have filed their own versions of the bill seeking to raise the income tax exemption ceiling following President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s fifth State of the Nation Address (Sona), but different threshold values have been pushed forward.
In a statement on Monday, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco said he filed House Bill (HB) No. 10451, which seeks to increase the income tax ceiling from the current P250,000 annual income to P350,000 – similar to what Marcos proposed in his Sona.
If enacted, HB No. 10451 will amend Section 24 of the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), or the provisions regarding income taxes’Under the bill, people who have an annual taxable income of P350,000 and lower will not be required to pay income tax. People earning beyond this will also benefit because they can save up to P15,000 per year,’ Tiangco said.
‘This corresponds to an additional P1,250 on their monthly income which they can use for food, transportation, electric bill, medicine, and other daily needs,’ he added.
Tiangco said the adjustment is needed because it has been almost a decade since the income tax exemption threshold was changed – in 2018, due to the enactment and implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law.
However, the lawmaker noted that since then, prices of goods have risen several times, effectively diminishing the people’s purchasing power.
‘While prices of food, electricity, fares and other basic needs continue to rise, our tax system should be in line with the reality of our people’s lives,’ he said.
‘The bill’s goal is not only tax exemption. This also addresses our tax schedule so that it will be fair to all workers, including the middle class stuck in the middle – earnings not being enough, but not qualified for aid, but very much affected by the rising prices of goods,’ he added.
While Tiangco’s bill seeks a tax exemption for individuals earning P350,000 annually, HB No. 10462 or the proposed Middle-Class Tax Relief and Inflation Protection Act filed by Marikina Rep. Marcelino Teodoro seeks exemption up to the P500,000 annual income of workers.
Teodoro’s bill, which was filed last Thursday, proposes the same threshold as the Akbayan Reform Bloc’s HB No. 104440.
‘Many Filipino workers have seen their salaries increase over the years, but these increases have merely allowed them to keep pace with rising prices rather than improve their quality of life. It is only fair that our tax system likewise adapts to present-day economic realities,’ Teodoro said.
Teodoro’s HB No. 10462 also seeks to amend Section 24 of the NIRC.
According to the lawmaker, the proposal is not only a tax-reduction measure but a way to stimulate the economy, since it would strengthen domestic consumption and support business activity.
‘When workers are allowed to keep more of what they honestly earn, they spend more, save more, invest more, and ultimately contribute even more to economic growth. Strengthening the middle class is one of the strongest investments we can make for the country’s future,’ Teodoro added.
The difference between the bills filed by Teodoro and Akbayan are the tax rates after the P500,000 exemption. Teodoro’s bill proposes taxing 10 percent of a person’s income that exceeds P500,000 but not goes above P1 million; 20 percent plus P50,000 for income exceeding P1 million but not over P2.5 million; and 25 percent for income exceeding P2.5 million but not over P8 million.
Akbayan’s bill on the other hand will require individuals with an annual income higher than P500,000 but not exceeding P715,000 to pay a 15 percent income tax on the amount exceeding P500,000.
After this, the following rates will apply:
For annual salary above P715,000 but not over P1.3 million: P32,000 plus 20 percent of the excess over P715,000
For annual salary above P1.3 million but not over P3 million: P145,000 plus 25 percent of the excess over P1.3 million
For annual salary above P3 million but not over P11.6 million: P580,000 plus 30 percent of the excess over P3 million
For annual salary above P11.6 million: P3.150 million plus 35 percent of the excess over P11.6 million
Akbayan party-list Rep. Chel Diokno said the increase in the threshold of the income tax exemption will be very important for workers and their families, especially in the face of hardships caused by internal and external factors.
‘The increase in the threshold for the income tax exemption is an important and timely assistance to workers and their families, in the face of higher prices of goods, services, electricity, and even petroleum products,’ Diokno said.
‘Through this, their take-home pay for their families will increase and the funds they need to sustain their needs will also be bigger,’ he added.
Aside from Diokno, Akbayan party-list Reps. Percival Cendaña and Dadah Kiram Ismula, along with Dinagat Islands Rep. Kaka Bag-ao, co-authored HB No. 10440.
Compromise
Cavite Rep. Jolo Revilla, another lawmaker who filed a bill seeking to increase the income tax exemption ceiling, urged the House to start tackling the several measures as soon as possible as it will be a big help to several families.
Revilla is the author of HB No. 7952, which also pushes for a higher ceiling. However, Revilla’s version filed in February 2026 seeks a P400,000 ceiling – higher than Marcos’ proposal, but lower than that of Akbayan’s.
‘The President has made it clear that the time has come to provide greater tax relief to Filipino workers,’ Revilla, chairperson of the House committee on labor and employment, said.
‘With this clear policy direction from the Chief Executive, Congress now has an opportunity to expedite deliberations on pending measures that will increase the income tax exemption threshold and allow our workers to keep more of what they earn,’ he added.
Revilla said that he is prepared to adopt Marcos’ proposal of a P350,000 income tax exemption ceiling if that will speed up the bill’s passage.
‘The important thing is to deliver tax relief to Filipino workers as soon as possible. I am willing to adopt the President’s proposed threshold if it will help accelerate the approval of this measure. What matters most is that our workers immediately feel the benefits,’ he said. /mr