Foodpanda riders in Davao City. MindaNews file photo
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 25 January) – A group of food delivery riders has urged the city government to exempt them from paying business permits, a requirement for them since 2021, among other requests.
In a dialogue with the City Mayor’s Office, the Davao Delivery Riders Community (DDRC) petitioned to amend the 2017 Revenue Code of the city to consider them as employees and not “business partners,” so they can be exempted from paying for business permits.
“The business permit requirement must be abolished for delivery riders and replaced with an occupational permit. This adjustment aligns with the nature of our work and eases the financial burden to our community,” the group’s petition read.
Currently, the delivery riders are mandated to pay an amount of P3,000 to P6,000 depending on the income they declare in their applications for a business permit.
In 2021, an ordinance was passed, amending the 2017 Revenue Code to declare delivery riders as independent service contractors and requiring them to obtain business permits.
The group also requested to possibly extend their business permit deadline for 60 days from its January 20 deadline should the exemption not push through, and to investigate food delivery companies to “ensure fairness and equity” between riders and companies’ financial obligations and working relationship.
“Maybe we will send a petition for DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) to call on food delivery companies, to have them explain how they identify the necessary taxes, why delivery riders must secure business permits, among others,” Rolando Jatico, DDRC spokesperson said.
Jatico said delivery riders would pay different fees to comply with various permits, “ranging from P2,000 to P6,000” depending on what they declare.
Meanwhile, Jeffry Cuyos, a member of DDRC, said they were requested to either pay only the occupational permit which is around P400, or to create an association and have them pay for a business permit as a single entity.
Cuyos also said Davao City delivery riders would earn more than P1,000 per day but “they would reach that amount working through 12 to 16 hours”.
In a privilege speech Tuesday, City Councilor Bernard Al-ag brought up this concern and said delivery riders should be exempted from obtaining a business permit.
Al-ag said riders should be exempted in compliance with the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 1 Series of 2021 or the Guidelines for Processing Business Permits, which was jointly issued by the Anti-Red Tape Authority, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Interior and Local Government and Department of Information and Communications and Technology.
Subsection 10.6.1 states that “LGUs shall comply with the provisions of this JMC and shall issue the appropriate orders or ordinances to adopt this JMC.”
It’s only in Davao City that delivery riders are required to pay for business permits, Al-ag said in an interview with reporters on Tuesday afternoon.
The petition will be referred to the committee on rules, privileges, laws and ordinances. (Ian Carl Espinosa/MindaNews)
