BIR Form 2551Q
Quarterly percentage tax
A 3% tax on gross receipts for non-VAT taxpayers on graduated rates. Choose the 8% option and this one disappears.
The official form
BIR Form 2551Q
Quarterly Percentage Tax Return
January 2018 (ENCS)
Mirrored from bir.gov.ph so you can look at a blank copy without hunting the BIR site. File the real thing through eBIRForms, eFPS, or ORUS, not this copy.
Why this exists, and why it covers you
Section 116 of the Tax Code taxes the business activity itself, separate from the income tax on your profit. Businesses above 3 million pesos pay VAT for this; percentage tax is the lighter substitute for everyone below the threshold, 3% of gross instead of 12% with input crediting.
The 8% option was created precisely to fold this tax and income tax into one payment, which is why electing it makes the 2551Q disappear.
Who this is for
- Non-VAT freelancers and sole proprietors on graduated income tax rates
- Not you, if you validly elected the 8% option. The 8% replaces this entirely
When
- Every quarter
- Within 25 days after each quarter ends: April 25, July 25, October 25, January 25.
How to do it
- 01Multiply the quarter's gross receipts by 3%. No deductions, no brackets.
- 02File via eBIRForms or eFPS and pay through any channel, same as income tax.
- 03If your 2303 lists percentage tax and you did not elect 8%, file every quarter, including zero quarters.
What bites beginners
- This is on top of income tax, not instead of it. Graduated-rate freelancers file both 2551Q and 1701Q.
- Percentage tax is the reason the 8% option usually wins for service freelancers with few expenses: one tax instead of two.
- Cross 3,000,000 pesos in gross receipts and you exit this regime into VAT. Watch your running total.
Sources
Statute first, explainers second. When a link and the law disagree, the law wins.
Checked against BIR rules on
Related
TAXKAYA tracks this deadline and computes the numbers this form asks for, from records you were keeping anyway.
Open the appPractical guidance, not legal or tax advice. Written against the rules in force as of July 2026. Verify current dates on bir.gov.ph before filing.