Starting June 1, 2025, all Steam (games, workshop, etc.) purchases in the Philippines will be subject to a 12% value-added tax (VAT) as part of the government’s taxation of foreign digital services. This was confirmed in Steam’s updated tax documentation, which now lists the Philippines as one of the countries where VAT will be collected in the future.
The tax will be inclusive, meaning the displayed prices on Steam will already reflect the VAT rather than being added at checkout. This adjustment aligns with the Philippine digital services tax law, which aims to ensure that international platforms comply with the same tax obligations as local businesses.
With this change, Filipino gamers can expect a slight increase in game prices. For example, a ₱1,000 game purchase would effectively include ₱107 in VAT. As this policy takes effect, it’s advisable for consumers to plan purchases accordingly.
| To Be Collected in the Future | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country (?) | Country Name | Tax Rate | Tax Type | Effective Date |
| PH | Philippines | 12% | Inclusive | 1 Jun, 2025 |
Stay tuned for updates as Valve finalizes the rollout.
5 Comments
The article mentions that “Steam will already reflect the VAT rather than being added at checkout” . Also, “Filipino gamers can expect a slight increase in game prices.”
Is the price increase automatic, or dependent on the seller adjusting prices because of VAT? Please clarify, thanks.
There’s a lot of factors that a dev/publisher considers to make these adjustments. I do expect it not to be PHP 2995 + 12% for example.
In most cases it’d be 1) the dev/publisher absorbs the tax which would be more common for very large publishers and AAA games or 2) the tax is passed to the buyer which is likely the case to smaller dev/publishers.
Since Valve has regional pricing, based on how the dev/publisher performs in PH, the dev/publisher can adjust based on buying power. Ultimately, this would still likely see PH pricing after tax hit prices like PHP 3199, PHP 3499, PHP 4899, etc.
Thanks for the response. Just discovered this site. Love it!
who’s file the law?
https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/money/economy/916237/recto-confident-marcos-will-sign-vat-on-foreign-digital-services-bill/story/