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Audit approach overview
Our audit approach will allow our client's accounting personnel to make the maximum contribution to the audit effort without compromising their ongoing responsibilities
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Annual and short period audit
At P&A Grant Thornton, we provide annual and short period financial statement audit services that go beyond the normal expectations of our clients. We believe strongly that our best work comes from combining outstanding technical expertise, knowledge and ability with exceptional client-focused service.
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Review engagement
A review involves limited investigation with a narrower scope than an audit, and is undertaken for the purpose of providing limited assurance that the management’s representations are in accordance with identified financial reporting standards. Our professionals recognize that in order to conduct a quality financial statement review, it is important to look beyond the accounting entries to the underlying activities and operations that give rise to them.
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Other Related Services
We make it a point to keep our clients abreast of the developments and updates relating to the growing complexities in the accounting world. We offer seminars and trainings on audit- and tax-related matters, such as updates on Accounting Standards, new pronouncements and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) issuances, as well as other developments that affect our clients’ businesses.
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Tax advisory
With our knowledge of tax laws and audit procedures, we help safeguard the substantive and procedural rights of taxpayers and prevent unwarranted assessments.
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Tax compliance
We aim to minimize the impact of taxation, enabling you to maximize your potential savings and to expand your business.
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Corporate services
For clients that want to do business in the Philippines, we assist in determining the appropriate and tax-efficient operating business or investment vehicle and structure to address the objectives of the investor, as well as related incorporation issues.
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Tax education and advocacy
Our advocacy work focuses on clarifying the interpretation of laws and regulations, suggesting measures to increasingly ease tax compliance, and protecting taxpayer’s rights.
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Business risk services
Our business risk services cover a wide range of solutions that assist you in identifying, addressing and monitoring risks in your business. Such solutions include external quality assessments of your Internal Audit activities' conformance with standards as well as evaluating its readiness for such an external assessment.
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Business consulting services
Our business consulting services are aimed at addressing concerns in your operations, processes and systems. Using our extensive knowledge of various industries, we can take a close look at your business processes as we create solutions that can help you mitigate risks to meet your objectives, promote efficiency, and beef up controls.
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Transaction services
Transaction advisory includes all of our services specifically directed at assisting in investment, mergers and acquisitions, and financing transactions between and among businesses, lenders and governments. Such services include, among others, due diligence reviews, project feasibility studies, financial modelling, model audits and valuation.
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Forensic advisory
Our forensic advisory services include assessing your vulnerability to fraud and identifying fraud risk factors, and recommending practical solutions to eliminate the gaps. We also provide investigative services to detect and quantify fraud and corruption and to trace assets and data that may have been lost in a fraud event.
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Cyber advisory
Our focus is to help you identify and manage the cyber risks you might be facing within your organization. Our team can provide detailed, actionable insight that incorporates industry best practices and standards to strengthen your cybersecurity position and help you make informed decisions.
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ProActive Hotline
Providing support in preventing and detecting fraud by creating a safe and secure whistleblowing system to promote integrity and honesty in the organisation.
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Accounting services
At P&A Grant Thornton, we handle accounting services for several companies from a wide range of industries. Our approach is highly flexible. You may opt to outsource all your accounting functions, or pass on to us choice activities.
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Staff augmentation services
We offer Staff Augmentation services where our staff, under the direction and supervision of the company’s officers, perform accounting and accounting-related work.
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Payroll Processing
Payroll processing services are provided by P&A Grant Thornton Outsourcing Inc. More and more companies are beginning to realize the benefits of outsourcing their noncore activities, and the first to be outsourced is usually the payroll function. Payroll is easy to carve out from the rest of the business since it is usually independent of the other activities or functions within the Accounting Department.
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Our values
Grant Thornton prides itself on being a values-driven organisation and we have more than 38,500 people in over 130 countries who are passionately committed to these values.
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Global culture
Our people tell us that our global culture is one of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton.
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Learning & development
At Grant Thornton we believe learning and development opportunities allow you to perform at your best every day. And when you are at your best, we are the best at serving our clients
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Global talent mobility
One of the biggest attractions of a career with Grant Thornton is the opportunity to work on cross-border projects all over the world.
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Diversity
Diversity helps us meet the demands of a changing world. We value the fact that our people come from all walks of life and that this diversity of experience and perspective makes our organisation stronger as a result.
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In the community
Many Grant Thornton member firms provide a range of inspirational and generous services to the communities they serve.
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Behind the Numbers: People of P&A Grant Thornton
Discover the inspiring stories of the individuals who make up our vibrant community. From seasoned veterans to fresh faces, the Purple Tribe is a diverse team united by a shared passion.
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Fresh Graduates
Fresh Graduates
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Students
Whether you are starting your career as a graduate or school leaver, P&A Grant Thornton can give you a flying start. We are ambitious. Take the fact that we’re the world’s fastest-growing global accountancy organisation. For our people, that means access to a global organisation and the chance to collaborate with more than 40,000 colleagues around the world. And potentially work in different countries and experience other cultures.
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Experienced hires
P&A Grant Thornton offers something you can't find anywhere else. This is the opportunity to develop your ideas and thinking while having your efforts recognised from day one. We value the skills and knowledge you bring to Grant Thornton as an experienced professional and look forward to supporting you as you grow you career with our organisation.
On tax breaks and CREATE-ing tax cuts
06 Oct 2020With the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), many businesses have collapsed, unemployment rates have increased, while many Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are on the verge of bankruptcy. In cognizance of the adverse impact of the COVID-19 on the Philippine economy, government mechanisms are currently being put in place to contain the damage.
Republic Act No. 11494, also known as the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act or the Bayanihan II, has been passed to bolster the socioeconomic well-being of all Filipinos. Recently, the Department of Finance issued three Implementing Rules and Regulations, as described below (RR No. 23-2020, RR No. 24-2020, and RR No. 25-2020) for Bayanihan II. On the other hand, after the passage of the law, our legislators are now eager to pass another economic measure, the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) bill.
RR NO. 23-2020: A TAX BREAK FOR CORPORATE ISSUERS
Prior to the repeal of Section 127(B) of the Tax Code, as amended, a percentage tax is imposed on every sale or other disposition through initial public offering (IPO) of shares of stock in closely-held corporations, based on the specified rates therein. Although the reflected tax bases were lowered, some PSE insiders at the time believed that the tax discourages many companies from going public. Consequently, the growth and development of the capital markets are adversely affected.
Now with the amendment introduced by the Bayanihan Act II, specifically the repeal of Section 127(B), which removed the percentage tax, it may be expected that more closely-held corporations will find it attractive to go public, encouraging investors to participate in public offerings. One other possible outcome is to enable SMEs and those from low-income sectors to actively participate in the development of the capital market.
RR NO. 24-2020: A TAX BREAK FOR LENDERS AND BORROWERS
Part of the response and recovery interventions is the exemption from the DST on loans extended or credits restructured. The BSP has likewise issued Memorandum No. 074, which implements Section 4(uu) of Bayanihan II. Rule IV provides for the scope of the mandatory one-time 60-day grace period and is being made applicable to multiple loans of individuals and entities, with principal and/or interest, including amortizations, falling due on or before Dec. 31, 2020. For multiple loans, the grace period applies to each loan, without incurring interest on interests, penalties, fees or other charges,and for which may be settled on a staggered basis without interest on interests, penalties and other charges until Dec. 31, 2020.
As a tax break for covered institutions, as defined in RR 24-2020, as well as to the borrowers, no additional DST shall be imposed on the loan term extensions and credit restructuring, micro-lending including those obtained from pawnshops.
RR NO. 25-2020: A TAX BREAK FOR BUSINESSES WITH OPERATING LOSSES
Businesses that suffered operating losses incurred in taxable years 2020 and 2021, will be allowed to carry over the losses as deductions from gross income over the next five consecutive taxable years immediately following the year of such loss, as opposed to the three years granted by the Tax Code, as amended. Here, the losses for the taxable years 2020 and 2021 may be carried over as a deduction even after the expiration of Bayanihan II, provided that the same are claimed within the next five consecutive taxable years immediately following the year of such loss.
CREATE BILL
Not long before the passage of Bayanihan II, the CREATE bill (previously CITIRA), is awaiting deliberations at the Senate. As advised by the economic team, there is a need to recalibrate the bill to make it more relevant and responsive to the needs of the businesses negatively affected by the pandemic, and to improve the country’s ability to attract investment.
For enterprises that have not enjoyed any type of income tax incentive, an accelerated corporate income tax reduction to 25% will surely boost the efforts of businesses, especially the MSMEs, in protecting jobs and recovering from the challenges they have encountered due to COVID-19. According to some experts, once this bill is passed, the Philippines will be the only government to confer tax breaks on MSMEs.
Aside from the outright deduction of the CIT rate, CREATE, if passed, will promote job creation via performance-based incentives. Based on the latest working draft of the CREATE, the Minimum Corporate Income Tax (MCIT) rate will be lowered from 2% to 1%.
For registered business activities enjoying the 5% tax on gross income earned incentive, the sunset period is prolonged to four to nine years, as opposed to the previous version’s two to seven years.
With the Bayanihan II now in place, we can also hope for the passage of the CREATE bill any time soon. Nevertheless, let us hope that these tax breaks currently in place and those being proposed and pursued help taxpayers on the road to a faster recovery after COVID-19.
Let’s Talk Tax is a weekly newspaper column of P&A Grant Thornton that aims to keep the public informed of various developments in taxation. This article is not intended to be a substitute for competent professional advice.
Note: In the Sept. 29 edition of Let’s Talk Tax, Tax Breaks in Bayanihan II, under the portion Tax Exemption of Retirement Benefits, the period June 5 to Dec. 31 pertains to this year, 2020.
Ma. Jessica A. Guevarra is a senior associate of the Tax Advisory & Compliance division of P&A Grant Thornton, the Philippine member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd.
As published in BusinessWorld, dated 06 October 2020