THE Marcos administration is pushing to conclude double taxation agreement (DTA) negotiations with Oman and Singapore before the end of the year, a Finance official said.
“[W]ithin the year, we want to finalize and conclude the negotiations for the DTA,” Finance Assistant Secretary Euvimil Nina Asuncion told reporters last week.
Asuncion added that they were also working to advance discussions with other Asean states and begin negotiations with Luxembourg.
She said that for Oman, the Philippines had already secured the special authority needed to negotiate and was now coordinating with the Oman government on the schedule for the talks.
“[W]e [still] need to get the president’s approval to do the negotiations, it’s part of the process,” she said.
“Then we do the first round of negotiations ... hopefully we are able to conclude this year.”
Double taxation agreements are bilateral treaties designed to prevent individuals and companies from being taxed twice on the same income by two different jurisdictions.
Under these arrangements, taxes paid by investors in the Philippines can be credited against their liabilities in their home countries.
Finance Secretary Frederick Go has said that these agreements were particularly important in attracting foreign investors, who often seek certainty regarding their tax obligations before committing capital.
The Philippines is hoping to complete the Oman negotiations in just one formal round, but Asuncion noted that the final number of meetings would depend on the issues that need to be settled.
Under the usual process, pre-negotiation meetings are held to thresh out technical issues first before proceeding to formal negotiations.
“[H]opefully in that one round, we just confirm the items that we previously agreed upon and then do the more technical discussion on the items that are hanging from that pre-negotiation meeting,” Asuncion said.
Singapore is also being targeted for DTA completion this year, with a second round of talks scheduled in the last week of September.
“We don’t want any extensions to the Singapore negotiations anymore. We want to finish it as soon as possible,” Asuncion said.
The Philippines and Singapore are renegotiating an existing tax treaty that dates back to 1977. The Finance department has said the talks aim to update the agreement in line with the requirements of the modern economy.
Asuncion said concluding the Singapore negotiations would also contribute to the Philippines’ goal of completing its DTA network with fellow Asean member states.
The country has been stepping up its tax treaty efforts as part of a broader push to provide greater certainty for investors engaged in cross-border activities.
In June, Go said that DTAs with several countries were being negotiated.
The government has already demonstrated that it can complete such talks in a single formal round. The Philippines and Japan, for instance, finalized an updated tax treaty after one round in January 2026.
Beyond Oman and Singapore, the Philippines is also seeking to move forward with negotiations with Laos and Malaysia.
Asuncion said the government had asked both Asean partners if a second round of negotiations could be held within the year.
The Philippines is also targeting at least the first round of DTA negotiations with Luxembourg before the end of 2026.
“So far, Singapore and Oman. Hopefully the Luxembourg one also, one round,” Asuncion said.
“It all depends on both delegations. Sometimes, it’s the other party that wants another round,” she added.