Amendments to Magna Carta for Persons with Disability

Legal basis and amendments made

Section 1 adds “Chapter 8. Other Privileges and Incentives” to Title Two of Republic Act No. 7277 by inserting new Sections 32 and 33.
Section 2 amends Republic Act No. 7277 by inserting Title Four, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and new Sections 39, 40, 41, and 42 after Section 38.
Section 3 amends Section 46 of Republic Act No. 7277 by revising its penal clause.
Section 4 amends the title of Republic Act No. 7277 to “Magna Carta for persons with Disability” and updates references from “disabled persons” to “persons with disability.”
Section 5 directs agencies to formulate implementing rules within six months from effectivity.

Core rights: discounts and access

Section 32 grants persons with disability specific monetary and service privileges tied to listed settings and activities.
Section 32(a) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount from all establishments relative to the utilization of all services in hotels and similar lodging establishments and restaurants and recreation centers for the exclusive use or enjoyment of persons with disability.
Section 32(b) provides a minimum of twenty percent (20%) discount on admission fees charged by theaters, cinema houses, concert halls, circuses, carnivals and other similar places of culture, leisure and amusement for exclusive use or enjoyment of persons with disability.
Section 32(c) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount for the purchase of medicines in all drugstores for the exclusive use or enjoyment of persons with disability.
Section 32(d) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount on medical and dental services including diagnostic and laboratory fees (including x-rays, computerized tomography scans and blood tests) in all government facilities, subject to guidelines by the Department of Health (DOH) in coordination with Philippine Health Insurance Cooperation (PHILHEALTH).
Section 32(e) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount on medical and dental services, including diagnostic and laboratory fees and professional fees of attending doctors in all private hospitals and medical facilities, in accordance with rules and regulations by the DOH in coordination with PHILHEALTH.
Section 32(f) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount on fare for domestic air and sea travel for the exclusive use or enjoyment of persons with disability.
Section 32(g) provides at least twenty percent (20%) discount in public railways, skyways and bus fare for the exclusive use and enjoyment of persons with disability.

Education, priority lanes, and proof requirements

Section 32(h) provides educational assistance to persons with disability to pursue primary, secondary, tertiary, post tertiary, as well as vocational or technical education, through scholarships, grants, financial aids, subsidies and other incentives to qualified persons with disability, including support for books, learning materialism and uniform allowance to the extent feasible.
Section 32(h) requires that persons with disability shall meet minimum admission requirements for educational assistance.
Section 32(i) provides, to the extent practicable and feasible, the continuance of benefits and privileges given by GSIS, SSS, and PAG-IBIG for those in actual service.
Section 32(j) provides, to the extent possible, that the government may grant special discounts in special programs for purchase of basic commodities, subject to guidelines by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Agriculture (DA).
Section 32(k) requires express lanes for persons with disability in all commercial and government establishments; where absent, priority shall be given.
Section 32 restricts availability of the listed privileges to Filipino citizens and requires submission of any of the following as proof of entitlement: an identification card issued by the city or municipal mayor or the barangay captain where the person resides; the passport of the concerned person; or a Transportation discount fare Identification Card (ID) issued by the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons (NCWDP).
Section 32 bars claims where the person with disability claims a higher discount granted by the establishment and/or under other existing laws or in combination with other discount programs.

Tax deductions for establishments

Section 32 authorizes establishments to claim discounts under sub-sections (a), (b), (c), (e), (f) and (g) as tax deductions based on the net cost of the goods sold or services rendered.
The cost of the discount is allowed as a deduction from gross income for the same taxable year the discount is granted (Section 32).
The law requires that the total amount of the claimed tax deduction, net of value-added tax if applicable, must be included in gross sales receipts for tax purposes.
Establishments must support the deduction with proper documentation and must comply with the National Internal Revenue Code (NIRC), as amended.

Incentives for caregivers and disability homes

Section 33(a) grants incentives to those who care for and live with a person with disability by treating the person with disability as a dependent under Section 35(A) of the National Internal Revenue Code, as amended, so that individual taxpayers caring for them receive the Code privileges applicable to dependents.
Section 33(b) grants incentives to individuals or nongovernmental institutions establishing homes, residential communities, or retirement villages solely to suit the needs and requirements of persons with disability.
Section 33(b) provides a realty tax holiday for the first five years of operation for qualifying disability-focused facilities.
Section 33(b) grants priority in building and/or maintenance of provincial or municipal roads leading to the homes, residential communities, or retirement villages.

Prohibition of ridicule and vilification

Section 39(a) defines public ridicule as an act of making fun or contemptuous imitating or making mockery of persons with disability whether in writing, in words, or in action due to impairment/s.
Section 40 prohibits any individual, group or community from executing acts of public ridicule against persons with disability in any time and place that could intimidate or result in loss of self-esteem.
Section 41(a) defines vilification; Section 41(b) further defines vilification to include an activity in public that incites hatred towards, serious contempt for, or serves ridicule of persons with disability.
Section 42 prohibits any individual, group or community from vilifying any person with disability in a manner that could result in loss of self-esteem.

Penalties and consequences for violations

Section 46(a)(a) provides that any person who violates provisions of the Act faces:
- For the first violation: a fine of not less than PHP 50,000 but not exceeding PHP 100,000 or imprisonment of not less than six months but not more than two years, or both at the discretion of the court.
- For any subsequent violation: a fine of not less than PHP 100,000 but not exceeding PHP 200,000 or imprisonment of not less than two years but not more than six years, or both at the discretion of the court.
Section 46(b) punishes abuse of privileges with imprisonment of not less than six months or a fine of not less than PHP 5,000 but not more than PHP 50,000, or both at the discretion of the court.
Section 46(c) imposes liability on officials directly involved if the violator is a corporation, organization, or similar entity.
Section 46(d) requires that if the violator is an alien or foreigner, the person shall be deported immediately after service of sentence without further deportation proceedings.
Section 46 authorizes proper authorities, upon filing of an appropriate complaint and after due notice and hearing, to cause cancellation or revocation of the business permit, permit to operate, franchise and other similar privileges of any business entity that fails to abide by the Act.

Implementation rules and timing

Section 5 requires the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the National Council for the Welfare of Disabled Persons, and the Bureau of Internal Revenue, in consultation with concerned Senate and House committees and other agencies, organizations, and establishments, to formulate implementing rules and regulations for the Act.
Section 5 sets a deadline of six months after effectivity for issuance of the implementing rules and regulations.
Section 6 fixes effectivity at 15 days after publication in any two newspaper of general circulation.