The EOPT Act and your invoices: what replaced the official receipt

The Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act, RA 11976, changed the document you hand a customer. Before, goods got a sales invoice and services got an official receipt. Now the invoice is the main proof of sale for both. Here is what changed, what happened to old OR booklets, and what a sari-sari store, café or salon must do.

The dates that matter

The invoice is now the main document

RR 7-2024 says the EOPT Act "no longer requires the issuance of Official Receipts". The invoice is the primary evidence for sales of goods and services. The allowed names include Invoice, Cash Invoice, Charge Invoice, Credit Invoice, Billing Invoice and Service Invoice.

An official receipt still exists, but only as a supplementary document: proof that you were paid. So do a collection receipt, a payment receipt and an acknowledgement receipt. For VAT purposes a supplementary document can't support the buyer's input tax claim, and it must say "THIS DOCUMENT IS NOT VALID FOR CLAIM OF INPUT TAX."

What happened to your old OR booklets

Under RR 11-2024 you had two choices for unused official receipts:

• Convert them to invoices. Strike through "Official Receipt", stamp "Invoice" (or Cash Invoice, Service Invoice and so on), and add anything missing, like quantity, unit cost and description. Stamps are fine. You can use them until the booklet runs out.
• Keep them as supplementary documents. Stamp "THIS DOCUMENT IS NOT VALID FOR CLAIM OF INPUT TAX." on each one and use them as proof of payment until they run out.

Any manual official receipt issued from 27 April 2024 without the "Invoice" stamp counts as a supplementary document, not an invoice. RR 7-2024 first set 31 December 2024 as the end date for converted booklets, but RR 11-2024 replaced that with "until fully consumed". Older guides that still say 31 December 2024 are out of date.

When you order new booklets, they are printed as invoices. RMC 77-2024 says the invoice series continues from your last OR number.

When you must issue an invoice

• VAT-registered sellers must issue a registered invoice for every sale, whatever the amount.
• Non-VAT sellers must issue one for each sale of ₱500 or more. The Tax Code lets this amount be adjusted for inflation every three years. Under the TRAIN law it was ₱100.
• For a non-VAT seller's sales under ₱500, if they add up to at least ₱500 by the end of the day, issue one invoice for that day's total.
• Any seller must issue an invoice when the buyer asks, whatever the amount.

RMC 77-2024 words the ₱500 rule as "more than ₱500". The Tax Code and RR 7-2024 say "₱500 or more", so follow those.

What goes on the invoice

RR 7-2024 lists the required details. The main ones for a small store:

• Your registered name and business address.
• "VAT Reg TIN" or "Non-VAT Reg TIN", followed by your TIN and branch code.
• The word "Invoice" (or its allowed variant), the date, and a serial number.
• Quantity, unit cost, description and total amount.
• For VAT sellers, the VAT shown as a separate amount. A sale that mixes VATable, VAT-exempt and zero-rated items shows each part.
• For senior citizen, PWD, solo parent and national athlete discounts, the fields for the buyer's ID and discount. See how to compute SC and PWD discounts.
• On a POS or cash register invoice, the Machine Identification Number (MIN), the machine's serial number and the Permit to Use number.

Buyer details: for a sale of ₱1,000 or more to a VAT-registered buyer, show the buyer's registered name, address and TIN. For ordinary walk-in customers, the buyer's address and TIN aren't required. RMC 77-2024 says a business style isn't required either.

Non-VAT sellers must not show VAT. A non-VAT seller who issues an invoice showing VAT owes that VAT, with no input tax credit, plus a 50% surcharge. That comes on top of percentage tax. See VAT vs non-VAT.

Services are now taxed when billed

RR 3-2024 moved VAT and percentage tax on services from "when collected" to "when billed or rendered", the same as goods. For a salon, repair shop or laundry, that means tax follows the invoice, not the day the customer pays.

What if you use a POS or cash register?

RR 11-2024 said switching a registered cash register or POS from "Official Receipt" to "Invoice" counts as a minor change. It needs no re-accreditation and no new Permit to Use. The deadline was 31 December 2024. After that, a system-generated "Official Receipt" isn't evidence of a sale, and issuing one is treated like not issuing an invoice at all.

If you don't have a registered POS, a POS app's printout is not your invoice. Keep issuing your BIR-registered invoices. See how to register a POS with the BIR.

Checklist for a sari-sari store or café

1. Use booklets titled "Invoice", or old ORs stamped "Invoice" with the missing details added.
2. If you're non-VAT, issue an invoice for every sale of ₱500 or more, one for the day's small sales once they total ₱500, and one whenever a customer asks.
3. If you're VAT-registered, issue an invoice for every sale.
4. Take the buyer's name, address and TIN on sales of ₱1,000 or more to VAT-registered buyers.
5. Stamp any leftover ORs you use for payments "NOT VALID FOR CLAIM OF INPUT TAX".
6. If you sell online and aren't micro, read BIR EIS: who must e-invoice. The 31 December 2026 deadline may apply to you.