Updated Filipino Online Workers Guide To Paying Taxes

Update 2021: This post is still correct and relevant today.

Due to the numerous changes in our tax system, we opted to create a new post as an update. But you can still read the original post here.

A lot of online workers have been getting away with NOT paying taxes. I understand that many of us justify not giving our hard-earned money to corrupt government officials. Why pay taxes when you know most of what you’re paying will just line the pockets of greedy and corrupt politicians?

But paying taxes is each Filipino citizen’s obligation. Contrary to popular belief, taxes don’t just go to dirty politicians’ pockets. They also go to building schools, bridges and hospitals. Not paying taxes actually hurts the people who need it most– like students, patients, and farmers– more than it punishes corrupt officials.

With the recent barrage of high profile stories in the media about online workers earning millions, the BIR is looking for ways to catch and punish people who don’t pay taxes. It won’t be long before the BIR finds an online worker and makes an example of him.

Besides helping those who need it most and avoiding becoming a public example, paying your taxes also makes it easier for you to obtain a loan, credit card, passport or visa because these applications all require your tax documents.

Think about it this way– filing and paying your taxes NOW will protect you from the wrath of the BIR in the future.

Why Now?

Since the implementation of the Ease of Doing Business Act (RA 11032) and the TRAIN law (RA 10963), there has been a lot of changes made in how online Filipino workers can pay their taxes. The process was made easier and more comprehensive. Now, we’ll look at this process step by step to make paying taxes so much easier for you.

All over the internet, you’ve probably seen in forums all the different things that freelancers need to sign up for.

Should you need to sign up for the DTI and the BIR? What about a business permit?

If you’re a virtual assistant who plans to just work from home, you only need to register with the BIR. DTI (where you register your business name) and the City/Municipal Business Permit (where you register your place of business) are optional.

If you’re a freelancer who eventually to eventually have their own BPO, you will need to also register with the DTI and get a business permit from the city.

For the purposes of this guide, we will be sticking to the BIR process for virtual assistants working from home.

Over the past few years, the BIR has made it easier to pay your taxes. Registering, filing and paying has become a bit easier. It’s still mostly offline but there’s less red tape.

It’s still location specific, which means you have to be registered in the right Revenue District Office (RDO). And different RDOs may ask for different requirements.

So to make sure we get it right, we consulted with the BIR to make sure we get it right. We also crowdsourced information from different parts of the Philippines so we can get as much information as possible. Below, we’ve broken down the process, step-by-step, to avoid any confusion.

Contents

Registration Preparation
Registration Process
Record Keeping
Paying and Filing Your Taxes
Other Important Things You Need To Remember

Registration Preparation

Before you can start your registration process, it helps to have everything you need readily available so you don’t have to go back and forth. You will need:

1. Your Tax Identification Number
If you don’t have a TIN yet, you can do this with your registration process through the form 1901. You will need to bring:

  • Gov’t issued IDs
  • A filled up form 1901
  • Any of the following:
    • photocopy of Mayor’s Business Permit; or Duly received Application for Mayor’s Business Permit, if the former is still in process with the LGU;
    • Professional Tax Receipt (PTR)/Occupational Tax Receipt (OTR) issued by the LGU [For Professionals where PTR is not required (e.i. Consultants, Agents, Artist, Underwriters & the like)]
    • DTI Certificate;

In most cases we’ve seen, the easiest thing to obtain would be the OTR. All you need to do is go to your city or municipal hall and ask for information where you can get an OTR. The cost of an OTR would vary depending on where you live.

If you’ve been employed before, it’s likely you got your TIN through your employer. If this is the case, you’ll need to check if your TIN is registered in the right RDO. How would you know if you’re in the right RDO? You’ll need to go to your local BIR office to check and confirm.

income tax 2020-7

If they’ve checked and your TIN is in the RDO AND, the personal information associated with your TIN is still accurate you can move on.

However, if you need to change:

  • Your RDO
  • Your status (single to married)
  • Your name (single to married women)

You’ll need to fill up and file a form 1905.
The form 1905 is used for updating information associated with the taxpayer. How quickly you can update your information depends on what details you want to change and whether or not you have all the documentation ready.

For issues like change of status and name, you will be asked for PSA certified copies of your marriage certificate

If you do need to change your RDO, you can do either one of 2 things:
1. Go to the RDO where you first got your TIN and ask them to transfer your TIN to the RDO of your home address (you will be asked to fill in a Form 1905), or
2. If you can’t go back, ask for a form 1905 from the correct RDO (you can ask the BIR staff to help you fill it up with the correct information) and mail that the Client Support Section of the RDO where you got your TIN.

The process should take around 2 weeks.

If you already have your TIN and you’re sure it’s in the right RDO, also prepare the following documents.

2. Primary ID, which is your valid, government issued IDs with a picture, address, and signature.

These include:

  • Driver’s license
  • SSS ID
  • Pag-ibig ID
  • Passport

To speed up things, make sure you also have multiple photocopies of your IDs for whenever you need to submit them.

3. PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) documents of identification that include:

  • Birth certificate
  • Marriage license

Same thing with the primary IDs, have multiple copies made of this to make the process faster.

4. General Journal.

You can buy this from almost any bookstore. This is where you will record your receipts. BIR will need to stamp the 1st page to register this.

5. Barangay certificate declaring that you are a virtual assistant residing in your barangay with a certificate of employment (COE) OR an occupational tax receipt (OTR)/occupational permit OR a Mayor’s Permit

Regarding requirement #5 varies depending on where you live. We found that in Luzon, they ask for the Mayor’s Permit. They ask for OTR in the Visayas and barangay certificate in Mindanao. This might be your first hurdle depending on how cooperative or knowledgeable your local government unit will be.
The barangay certificate, for example. Before you can even get your certificate, you may be asked to fulfill certain requirements like paying for trash dues, cedula and the like, depending on your barangay. So make sure you get your cedula and pay all dues as soon as you can. Once you’ve completed that, you can request for a barangay certificate. In some places, you can easily get your OTR or Mayor’ permit from city hall through their one-stop-business registration. Not everybody is going to have the same experience so be prepared to be extra patient.

Based on our experience, some barangay halls only give out residence certificates. Some don’t know how to create a certificate that also indicates that you’re an online worker. To make sure there would be minimal issues in getting this certificate (or OTR or Mayor’s Permit), ask your client if they can provide you a certificate of employment (COE). The certificate of employment should indicate the work that you do and your address. Here’s an example below:

income tax 2020-8

In addition to the COE, it would also help to bring a copy of a barangay certificate that verifies you as an online worker. You can use the sample below:

income tax 2020-9

And as soon as you get your barangay certificate/OTR/Mayor’s Permit, start the registration process right away. This certificate is only valid for a limited amount of time (30 days). If you register with an expired certificate, you can be fined and penalized.

To make sure you have the right requirements prepared, make sure you visit your local BIR office FIRST and get the requirements in writing as much as possible. That way, you can show your LGU that the order comes directly from BIR.

So to summarize, to prepare for registration you’ll need the following:

  1. TIN registered in the right RDO
  2. At least 2 primary, government issued IDs
  3. Multiple (at least 5) photocopies of your at least 2 gov’t issued IDs
  4. PSA issued certificates for secondary identification (birth certificate or marriage certificate)
  5. Multiple photocopies of your PSA issued certificates
  6. General journal
  7. And depending on where you live:
    • Certificate of employment (COE)
    • Multiple photocopies of your COE
    • Barangay certificate/OTR/Mayor’s Permit indicating your address and occupation
    • Multiple photocopies of your Barangay certificate/OTR/Mayor’s Permit

Registration Process

With the documents listed above, you’re now ready to register. Once you’re there, you will need to the following:

  1. Form 1901 for the application of certificate of registration (COR)
  2. Form 0605 to pay for your COR
  3. Form 1905 to register your general journal
  4. P500 for your certificate of registration
  5. Form 1906 to register your receipts and get your authority to print (ATP)

Here’s how you fill up your 1901

income tax 2020-34

 

income tax 2020-32

If you’re wondering what happened to page 2, your BIR personnel is responsible for filling up that page.
With the 1901, this is where you will make your first big decision, should you go for the graduated income tax or 8% gross income tax? Which is better? Well, it depends really.

income tax 2020-1

 

It’s really up to you on which you find more convenient and cost effective. Either works depending on whether you value convenience or cost savings. If you want to check out how the math is done, we’ll show that in the Filing and Payment Section.

Remember that once you make that choice, you’ll be stuck with it for the rest of the year. So choose wisely.

Here’s how your fill up your 0605

income tax 2020-31

Once you’re inside your RDO, you will be directed where to go to submit and pay for your registration. You’ll need to fill up the 1901 and 0605 in triplicate. Once you’ve paid and you’re given copies of these forms, make sure you photocopy them. You will need extra copies in the future.
Unlike before when you need to have your COR before you can register your books and receipt, now you can do them at the same time. They also simplified the process by requiring only one book, a general journal. And to register your journal, you need a 1905. Here’s how you fill up your 1905.

income tax 2020-30

Once you’re done, submit this with your journal. They stamp the book, document the book in your 1905 and then you’re done. No need to pay for it.

The BIR accredited printing press will be the ones responsible in filling up and submitting the 1906. The BIR will provide you with a list of which printing presses you can work with. If you’re lucky, a printing press representative would be present in the RDO to help you with the process. You will need to give the printing press the following:

  • Copy of your completed and paid 1901
  • Copy of COE/barangay certificate/OTR
  • COR claim stub

Make sure to follow up on your printing press. The BIR places a deadline on when the form 1906 should be submitted and when you should get your receipts. To get your receipts, you will need the documents below. Failure to meet the deadline will result in penalties.

income tax 2020-29

income tax 2020-28

income tax 2020-27

Once you’ve filled up and submitted all the requirements, you will have copies of all these documents. However, it’s strongly encouraged that you also photocopy these documents in case you need them for any BIR transactions in the future.

Once all of this is done, you can either get your COR the following business day OR on the day of the next new registrant seminar (this is done once a week), depending on the RDO.

income tax 2020-26

The seminar is required and you will be asked to submit a certificate of attendance. If you don’t attend the seminar, you won’t get won’t get a tax notice, which looks like this

This is that piece of paper you see displayed in most businesses. This is what tax mappers will look for when they do audits.

income tax 2020-10

Failure to comply with these requirements could result in penalties.

So, to summarize, the registration process would require the following forms:

  • Form 1901 for the certificate of registration
  • Form 0605 to pay for the certificate of registration
  • Form 1905 to register your general journal
  • Form 1906 to print and issue receipts
  • Certificate of attendance for the new registrant seminar

Once you’ve accomplished all of this, you will have the following:

  • Certificate of registration (COR)
  • Stamped and registered general journal
  • Official receipts
  • Tax notice

Record Keeping

Before we can answer the question of how to pay and file your taxes and how much you should pay, we first need to know the income. This income is determined by the receipts you issue and record in your journal.

Issuing a receipt simply means documenting the sale so you and your customer/client/employer would have a copy of the transaction. Ideally, receipts should be issued with every sale or income. And ideally, both parties should have a copy of the receipt. But the BIR recognizes that this isn’t the situation for a lot of taxpayers.

For example, a sari-sari store. It doesn’t make sense for them to issue a receipt to every person who buys from that store for the day. It takes too much time to fill up a receipt by hand. It doesn’t make sense to issue one for cheap items. And lastly, the customer may not even want a receipt because it’s not necessary.

So what they do instead is to just compute for the total sales they made for the day and just issue one receipt. They don’t need to give that receipt to anyone. They just keep it and record the amount they indicated in the receipt in their journal. Their tax for each quarter and for the year is determined by the total amount listed in the journal and receipts.

This is the same situation for us online workers. We don’t need to send our employers the actual receipts. The important thing is we issue and record the receipts.

So, how do you fill up a receipt? The important things you need to record are:

 

income tax 2020-11

1. The date

2. Who you received the money from (your employer)

3. How much  (sum of pesos)

4. Your authorized signature

And here’s one way you can record it in your journal:

income tax 2020-12

The amounts in parentheses are expenses. The ones without parenthesis are sales/income. You can also exchange the parenthesis with a minus sign for expenses and a plus sign for sales. Some record their expenses in red ink and sales in black or blue.

Or if you chose the 8% gross sales or optional standardized deduction for the graduated income tax, you don’t have to record expenses, just sales.

Regardless of how you record it, the important thing is that you record ALL your receipts accurately and diligently. When you record your income, make sure you include your receipt number so you can keep track of the amounts going in. and at the end of each month, make it a habit to total everything. So that at the end of each quarter, you can easily total all your income.

Paying and Filing Your Taxes

What you would need to file and how much you need to pay depends on which tax type you selected in your 1901. Your tax obligations will be indicated in your COR.

Even if you didn’t earn anything for that quarter, you still need to file your income taxes. Just indicate in the forms that you have no income and you won’t be charged anything.

To make things easier, we suggest you use the downloadable BIR eforms. Once you download them, they will be installed in your computer (usually the C: drive) and runs like a form application where you pre-fill some of your information and that information would be filled in the selected form. This is what it looks like:

income tax 2020-13

The application saves the documents you have filled up and keeps a record of what you have already filed. And when you click on the list of BIR forms, this will appear:

income tax 2020-14

Make sure you always choose the latest version of the form, the v2018 version.

8% Gross Sales Tax

If you opted for the 8% Gross Sales Tax, all you need is the form 1701Q for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quarters and a 1701 for the annual income tax.

Here’s your tax schedule:

income tax 2020-3

This means you’ll need to pay for your taxes every quarter. You could compute for your taxes on your own or use the eBIR forms which computes the your taxes for you. But if you want to know how they’re computed, check out the examples below.

Taxes Per Quarter

income tax 2020-4

Now let’s see how we work the 1701 Q works
Here’s how you fill up page 1.

income tax 2020-15

Fill in all the relevant information. Don’t forget to tick the right dots.

Once you are done with that, scroll down the eforms and go to page 2.

income tax 2020-16

It will take you here where you can fill in your income and it will compute how much you need to pay.

income tax 2020-17

If you’re earning less than P250,000 per year, that you don’t need to put anything. You just need to put something there when you have something to declare. Like this one

income tax 2020-18

Once you’re done filling that in page 2, go back to page 1. It will reflect what you have to pay. If you’re tax exempt, it should look like this

income tax 2020-19

But if you have taxes you need to pay, it should look like this

income tax 2020-20

Once you’re done, go back here:

income tax 2020-16

Click on “Validate”. This will check to see if you completed the form correctly. Once you are done, click on “Submit/Final Copy”. This will prompt you to file your taxes through email.
If you have taxes you need to pay, you can pay through GCash Mobile Payment, PayMaya, Landbank’s Linkbiz Portal or DBP’s Tax Online. Payment through these online portals may come with some convenience fees.

Graduated Income Tax

If you opted for the graduated income tax, you will need the form 1701Q and 2551Q (quarterly percentage tax). The tax schedule for the income tax is the same but the quarterly percentage is a bit earlier.

income tax 2020-5

The BIR eForm 2551Q also autocomputes for your percentage tax. But if you want to see the math, here’s an example below.

 

income tax 2020-6

In this example, we chose optional standard deduction because it’s easier to compute for and you don’t have to record anything in your journal for this. If you want to opt for an itemized deduction, this is where you’ll need the help of a bookkeeper.

Here’s how you fill out the following forms.

For the 1701Q, it’s practically the same as the 1701Q for the 8% gross sales tax. All you need to do is tick a different circle.

income tax 2020-21

Like in the 8% gross, when you’re done with this part, go to page 2. It will direct to where you can fill in your income.

If you’re earning under P250k per year (after deductions), you’re tax exempt. If you earn more, the tax will be auto-computed.

And like in the 8% gross, all you need to do is validate and submit. You will be prompted on how to submit through email.

For the 2551Q, this is what the forms would look like

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Same thing with the 1701Q, once you’re done filling in your details, go to page 2 and input your income. It will automatically compute the quarterly percentage tax.

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And once you’re done with that, just go back to page one and check if it has appeared.

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Once again, when you’re done, validate, submit and pay using GCash Mobile Payment, Landbank’s Linkbiz Portal or DBP’s Tax Online

For the 1701, the 1st page is essentially the same. Although it is 4 pages long, we only need to concern ourselves with pages 1 and 2 (for graduated IT) OR page 1 and 3 (for the 8% gross sales tax). Just follow the sections indicated in the form to know where you need to go.

And when you’re done, validate then submit. And that’s it.

Other Important Things You Need To Remember

In addition paying and filing your taxes quarterly and your annual income tax every year, you also need to remember to do the following:

  • Renew your certificate of registration every year
  • Change your receipts every 5 years
  • File a 1905 if there are any significant changes to you or your business (eg. change of location, change name, hiring employees, etc)
  • Go to the BIR if ever you choose to stop working as a VA to “close” your business.

Registering , paying and filing your taxes have never been easier. Now is definitely the time to take the plunge and finally be a taxpayer!

Comments

  1. Alex says

    WOW. THIS ARTICLE IS SUPER HELPFUL. THANK YOU FOR THIS!!!

    This really helped me clear out some of the confusion I have in paying and filing my taxes. I think I will opt for the 8% gross. Just one clarification on that, if we opt for the 8% gross, aside from filing the quarterly and annual tax form, we only need to pay the taxes quarterly right? No need to pay annual tax? Just the annual tax form? Is that right?

    Thank you again for this super helpful article!

    • Chris says

      Hi Alex,

      The tax that you will file and pay on the 4th quarter will already be you annual tax filing. That’s the BIR form 1701.
      You can revisit the tax schedule above, but here’s the recap

      Q1 – 1701Q
      Q2 – 1701Q
      Q3 – 1701Q
      Q4/Annual – 1700

      Hope this clarifies your confusion. ?

  2. Alex says

    Thank you again for this article. I went to the BIR website https://www.bir.gov.ph/index.php/eservices/ebirforms.html and clicked on the link for Offline eBIRForms Package. Yesterday it was the V7.8 and the form 1701Q is still not updated. It will give a prompt that I must download the latest version for 2018 and up. Plus, the boxes on the form are not updated (different from your screenshots and the downloadable PDF one from the BIR website)

    Today, I went back to the BIR website and a new version is up which is V7.9. Installed and run it but it is the same outdated 1701Q form 🙁 There is still no box for me to pick the 8% tax rate on gross plus It still says I need to update the form for 2018 and up.

    Can you help where to get the latest eBIR package?

  3. Paul says

    Hi, ung may deduction base sa screenshot mo, pwede ilagay yung internet bill, electricity, phone, at food? Since expenses mo naman talaga yun as you do work from home? Please clarify. Paano if Nag start lang ako Jan of this year then now lang paparegister may consequences ba? Hope to hear from you!

    • says

      Hi Paul,

      Apologies on the late reply. Thank you for your comment. Yes you can put it there as your utility bill, and for me it is better to register as soon as you can rather than being late. Hope this helps

  4. Angelique Abad says

    Can I just ask someone to do all these on my behalf? Like I’ll just give them authorization letter ganun? Thank you!

  5. RAYMON BOSQUILLOS says

    Hi. Thank you for this very informative blog. May I ask if this is the same process if I already have a full-time job and works as a freelancer on the side?

    • says

      Hi Raymon,

      Thank you for your comment. If you already have a TIN from BIR, you can skip the TIN application process. But other than that, it’s mostly the same.

      The thing not explained in detail here (but can easily be added in the BIR e-forms) is when you file for taxes. When you declare both your employment income AND your freelancing income. The income from the job would be pure compensation income. The freelancing income would be sales

  6. Camille says

    Hello!

    Your blog is really helpful, especially for us who’s having a hard-time figuring out the right process. 

    I have a few questions, I started working as a freelancer on March. Since the annual and quarterly income has passed, and there’s the third quarter next month. I’m planning to register my profession as a business, what’s the best thing to do?

    Pay the previous months with penalties, or declare that I only hired this month to avoid the penalties? And also, I chose the 8% Gross Receipt Tax, is it a zero rated sales, vatable, or vat exempt sale? 

    Thank you.

    • says

      Hi Camille,

      Thank you for your comment. To get the most out of your registration, I recommend that you register your business at the start of next year. That way, you can start paying on the month you registered (January 2022). And choose the 8% since it is easier to compute for

  7. JD says

    Hello, thank you very much for the comprehensive article! Appreciate the time and effort you put into it. This guide makes everything much easier because the process can be really daunting.

    I was just wondering, if I go with the 8% gross sales tax, how do I record payments received on Paypal? When the invoice is paid, Paypal fees are automatically deducted from the payment. Should I record the full amount in the invoice or the amount after the Paypal fee?

    Thank you!

  8. Justin says

    What if i am currently working only as a freelancer and lands a job with a company in another location (meaning a different RDO). Does this mean my RDO needs to get changed? or will this be an addition to my current registration?

  9. Da says

    Hello!

    Thank you for this information. Would just like to ask po, in form 1901 under taxpayer type – in the example above “Sole Proprietor” was selected.

    Will there be a difference po if I select “Professional – In General”?

    Which is a better choice po?

    Thank you!

  10. Rissie says

    Hello, thank you for this helpful information. Would just like to ask, Can I just use my BIR registered business as Sole Proprietor in filing my taxes as VA or do I need to refile to changing the nature of my business as a VA? Since the last quarter of 2021, the online business has not yielded sales because the operation and supply are inactive due to the economic downturn.

  11. Mary says

    Hi,

    I’m currently, planning to work part time in addition to my permanent job. Is there a need for us to go through the same process?

    Thank you for the advise 🙂

    • says

      Hi Mary,

      Thank you for your comment. No need to register for a new TIN, but you do need to update your information with the BIR to declare that you are earning additional income as an independent contractor.

  12. Lei says

    Hi,

    I couldn’t proceed with registering and filing taxes because no one wants to answer my question.

    As a freelancer, we earn money inconsistently. We do not know if we will make less or more than 250k, So what will I put in all of that 1701Q form?

    • says

      Hi Lei,

      Thank you for your comment. 1701Q are usually due 1 month after the quarter is done. For example, the 1701 for q1 2023, (Jan – Mar) is due on April. This would give you time to record all your earnings for the quarter.

      Same thing with the annual income tax. The deadline for 2022 income tax filing is on April 2023, again to give time for people to record all earning. This way, even if your earnings aren’t consistent, you would have time to file.

  13. Ri says

    Hi! Thank you for this wonderful article.

    I am working as a VA for a year now to the company that’s US-based (no physical office here in the Philippines) and have been trying to figure out how to pay my taxes since I started but did not do so for the same reason as above, that it will go to corrupt officials.

    I have questions and I’d be grateful for all the your answers. I am choosing the 8% Gross Income Tax.

    1. Will there be penalties that I have to pay if I start filing now? Given that COE is one of the requirement and that it’ll show when I was hired.
    2. Can I declare a salary lesser than the actual one but still more than 250K?
    3. Can I declare that I was just recently hired? (there will be a conflict on the COE but just wanted to ask)

    Thank you!

    • says

      Hi Ri,

      Thank you for your comment.

      1. Will there be penalties that I have to pay if I start filing now? Given that COE is one of the requirement and that it’ll show when I was hired
      – No, there will be no penalties. What’s more important for the BIR is that you start paying taxes once you register and file as a taxpayer.
      2. Can I declare a salary lesser than the actual one but still more than 250K?
      – Salaries are self-declared.
      3. Can I declare that I was just recently hired? (there will be a conflict on the COE but just wanted to ask)
      – You won’t be asked when you were hired. The basis for taxation is when you registered.

      Jessica

  14. Marcela says

    Thank you for this information!
    I am a newbie, and applying freelance job here now.

    I have some questions:
    1. Do I need to register first at the BIR before applying for job as a freelancer, or should I have a freelance job first before registering at BIR?
    2. What if I started to work for a client now and working for a few months, will BIR accept late registration for freelancer?
    3. Will there be consequences if I will not register my job as a freelancer at BIR, before working?

    I hope you’ll answer my questions to ease my mind. I am so hesitant to apply for jobs here knowing that I have to do some legal documents first to say that I am working as a freelancer.

    Thank you in advance!

    • says

      Hi Marcela,

      1. Ideally, you need to register first before you start applying for jobs but you don’t need to.
      2. Yes, they will.
      3. No. It’s more important for them that you register and just don’t take too after you start working to register

  15. Caroline Manongsong says

    This is really helpful. Thank you for sharing.
    I have question. Is this business permit acceptable when applying visa abroad (tourist) to show them that I have business to run although we can work anywhere? I’m working as VA 2 years already and planning to register my job as a business.
    Wala kasi ako maipresent na business permit or any other reason para maconvince na babalik ng Pinas. Thankfully I saw this blog.

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