What is BIR Form 2316?

BIR Form 2316 is the Certificate of Compensation Payment and Tax Withheld — an annual document your employer issues to you, summarising your total compensation and the income tax withheld for the year.

By the Orkids payroll engineering team · Reviewed against the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC) §51A and §83, Revenue Regulations No. 11-2018 (substituted filing), and BIR Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 29-2024 (mandatory employee signature) · Updated June 2026

Who issues BIR Form 2316, and to whom?

Your employer prepares and signs a Form 2316 for every employee who received salary or other compensation during the calendar year.

You receive a copy with your details — gross compensation, mandatory contributions to SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG, and the income tax the employer withheld and remitted to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

What are the BIR Form 2316 deadlines?

Your employer must give you your copy on or before January 31, and submit copies to the BIR with Form 1604-C on or before February 28.

What is substituted filing?

If you had one employer for the whole year and your tax was correctly withheld, your signed Form 2316 stands in for your annual income tax return — you do not file a separate return.

This is called substituted filing. If instead you had two or more employers during the year, earned mixed income, or your tax was not correctly withheld, you must file Form 1700 yourself by April 15 and attach your 2316.

What do you use BIR Form 2316 for?

It is your official proof of income and tax paid.

Banks ask for it on loan applications, embassies on visa applications, and a new employer will ask for it so they can annualise your tax correctly for the rest of the year. Keep every year's copy.

What each part of BIR Form 2316 reports

Form 2316 is laid out in numbered parts. The figures you most need for a loan, a visa, or a new employer's annualisation sit in Parts IV-A and IV-B. Use this map to find them, and to check that your employer filled in the right boxes. (Box numbers follow the BIR's current 2316 layout; confirm against your own copy, as the BIR re-numbers the form from time to time.)

The income tax itself is computed on the annual graduated rates under the TRAIN law (RA 10963), as adjusted from 1 January 2023: the first ₱250,000 of annual taxable income is taxed at 0%. Mandatory SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG contributions are non-taxable and reduce taxable compensation.

BIR Form 2316 — frequently asked questions

What is BIR Form 2316 used for?

It is your proof of income and the income tax withheld from your salary for the year. Employees use it for loan and visa applications, for a new employer, and for substituted filing in place of an annual income tax return.

Who prepares and issues BIR Form 2316?

Your employer prepares Form 2316 for each employee who received salary or other compensation during the year, and issues you a signed copy.

When should I receive my BIR Form 2316?

Your employer must give you a copy on or before January 31 of the following year. Employers then submit copies to the BIR with Form 1604-C on or before February 28.

What is substituted filing?

If you had one employer for the whole year and your tax was correctly withheld, your signed BIR Form 2316 stands in for your annual income tax return (Form 1700) — you do not need to file a separate return.

Do I still need to file an income tax return if I have Form 2316?

Not if you qualify for substituted filing. If you had two or more employers during the year, mixed income, or tax was not correctly withheld, you must file Form 1700 yourself and attach your 2316.

What if my employer does not give me a Form 2316?

Employers are required to issue it. Request it in writing from your HR or payroll department; if it is still withheld, you can raise the matter with the BIR.

What are the exact conditions for substituted filing?

Under Revenue Regulations No. 11-2018, an employee qualifies only if ALL of these are met for the year: (1) they earned purely compensation income, regardless of amount; (2) from one employer in the Philippines only; (3) the tax due exactly equals the tax withheld by that employer; (4) the spouse, if also employed, likewise meets all the conditions; and (5) the employer filed Form 1604-C and issued the 2316. Fail any one — a second employer, mixed income, or under-withholding — and you must file Form 1700 yourself.

Does BIR Form 2316 need both the employer's and the employee's signature?

Yes. Under Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 29-2024, the BIR will no longer accept a Form 2316 submitted without the signature of the concerned employee. Both the authorised employer representative and the employee must sign. Electronic signatures are accepted on the 2316 under earlier BIR circulars (RMC No. 29-2021), so a properly applied e-signature counts as a valid signature.

Key terms

Substituted filing.

An arrangement under NIRC §51A and RR 11-2018 where a qualified employee's BIR Form 2316, filed by the employer, is treated as the employee's own annual income tax return — so the employee files no separate return.

Annualisation (year-end adjustment).

The employer's December reconciliation of tax actually withheld against the full-year tax due, refunding any over-withholding or deducting any shortfall before issuing Form 2316.

Form 1604-C.

The Annual Information Return of Income Taxes Withheld on Compensation, which the employer files with the BIR by 31 January; the issued 2316s are submitted as its alphalist / attachment.

Annex F (RR 11-2018).

The employer's Certified List of Employees Qualified for Substituted Filing, submitted to the BIR together with the employees' 2316 copies.

eAFS.

The BIR's Electronic Audited Financial Statements portal, the online facility employers use to upload scanned, signed 2316 copies instead of filing them over the counter.

Minimum-wage earner (MWE).

An employee paid the statutory regional minimum wage, whose basic pay, holiday pay, overtime, night-shift differential, and hazard pay are exempt from income tax; this is reported in the 2316's MWE items.

Sources

• Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) — Form 2316, Certificate of Compensation Payment and Tax Withheld.
• BIR Revenue Regulations on substituted filing of income tax returns.
• For your specific situation, confirm with the BIR (bir.gov.ph) or a tax professional.

Last reviewed: June 2026