The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) said that it is now giving honoraria and allowances to the people who worked at polling stations during the national and local elections (NLE) on May 9.
Jomel Ordas, spokesperson for COMELEC Palawan, said that the release had already begun after the elections, as long as they had already turned in the necessary documents, like election returns and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) forms.
“Before ang release sa [kanila] ang honorarium, need muna nila na mai-submit sa Comelec ang mga required election documents kagaya ng ERs pati ung mga required BIR Forms na dapat nila i-fill up,” Ordas said.
COMELEC Palawan has said that about 8,500 poll workers will get their allowances and honoraria within 15 days of the election date.
Republic Act 10756, also called the Election Service Reform Acts, and COMELEC Resolution No. 10727 say that allowances have to be given out.
BIR ruling No. 494-2018 from March 14, 2018, says that allowances and honoraria, no matter how much they are, are money that flows into the recipient and are subject to income and withholding taxes.
Poll workers with an annual gross income of less than P250,000 are exempted from the withholding tax.
The Electoral Board Chairperson will receive a P7,000 honorarium; P6,000 for EB poll workers and EB third members; P5,000 for DESO; and P3,000 for other poll workers, including medical personnel. Travel allowance amounts to P1,000 to P2,000; communication allowance is P500-P1,000; and anti-COVID allowance is P500.
In total, COMELEC will pay a total of P64 million to more than 8,500 poll workers in the province who served in 1,216 clustered precincts.
