QAP vs SAWT: What's the Difference Between These BIR Alphalist Attachments?

QAP and SAWT are both DAT files built from Alphanumeric Tax Code (ATC) withholding data, but they’re filed by opposite parties to the same transaction. QAP (Quarterly Alphalist of Payees) is filed by the withholding agent who paid income and deducted tax, as an attachment to BIR Form 1601-EQ or 1601-FQ. SAWT (Summary Alphalist of Withholding Tax) is filed by the payee who received that income, as an attachment to their own income tax or VAT return, consolidating the BIR Form 2307 certificates they were issued.

This guide contrasts who files each, when each is due, what data each contains, and walks through one transaction as it appears on both sides.

Who files QAP, and who files SAWT? #

QAP is filed by the withholding agent — the payor. Any business or government office that made payments subject to expanded or final withholding tax during a quarter must list every payee it withheld from in that quarter’s QAP, attached to BIR Form 1601-EQ or 1601-FQ under Revenue Regulations No. 11-2018.

SAWT is filed by the payee — the party claiming the credit. Any taxpayer who received one or more BIR Form 2307 certificates and wants to apply the withheld tax against their own income tax or VAT liability must consolidate those certificates into a SAWT, governed by Revenue Regulations No. 2-2006 and Section 2.57.2 of Revenue Regulations No. 2-98.

A single company can be required to file both: it withholds tax on payments to its own suppliers (QAP) while also receiving Form 2307 certificates from its own clients (SAWT). The two filings don’t overlap — one reports what the company withheld from others, the other reports what was withheld from the company.

How do QAP and SAWT compare side by side? #

The clearest way to see the difference is to line up who files, what triggers the filing, and what deadline governs each one. Both share the same row-level data — TIN, ATC, income amount, and tax withheld — but populate it from opposite perspectives on the same transactions.

Worked example: one transaction, two alphalists #

Take a single professional-fee payment and follow it through both filings. Suppose Company A (the client) pays Company B (a consulting firm) ₱150,000 for services in Q1 2026, withholding 10% under ATC WC010.

On Company A’s side (QAP):

1. Company A withholds ₱15,000 from the ₱150,000 fee and remits it with BIR Form 1601-EQ for Q1 2026.
2. Company A issues Company B a BIR Form 2307 certificate documenting the ₱150,000 income and ₱15,000 withheld.
3. That payment appears as one row in Company A’s Q1 QAP: Company B’s TIN, ATC WC010, ₱150,000 income, ₱15,000 tax withheld — filed alongside every other payee Company A withheld from that quarter.

On Company B’s side (SAWT):

1. Company B receives the BIR Form 2307 certificate from Company A.
2. When Company B files its quarterly income tax return, it wants to credit the ₱15,000 already withheld against its tax due.
3. That same certificate appears as one row in Company B’s SAWT: Company A’s TIN, ATC WC010, ₱150,000 income, ₱15,000 tax withheld — filed alongside every other certificate Company B received that period.

The TIN, ATC, and peso amounts match on both filings — they describe the same payment. What differs is whose alphalist it lands on and which return it supports.

Frequently asked questions #

What is the main difference between QAP and SAWT? #

QAP (Quarterly Alphalist of Payees) is filed by the withholding agent — the party that paid income and withheld tax — as an attachment to BIR Form 1601-EQ or 1601-FQ. SAWT (Summary Alphalist of Withholding Tax) is filed by the payee — the party that received the income and had tax withheld — as an attachment to their own income tax or VAT return. They report the same underlying transactions from opposite sides.

Do QAP and SAWT report the same transactions? #

Yes, for any transaction where withholding tax applied. If Company A pays Company B and withholds tax under an ATC, that payment appears as a line in Company A’s QAP (the payor’s side) and, once Company B receives the resulting BIR Form 2307 certificate, the same certificate appears as a line in Company B’s SAWT (the payee’s side).

Who files QAP and who files SAWT? #

QAP is filed by withholding agents — businesses and government offices that made payments subject to expanded or final withholding tax during the quarter. SAWT is filed by any taxpayer, whether individual or corporate, that received BIR Form 2307 certificates and wants to claim the withheld amounts as a tax credit on their income tax or VAT return.

Are QAP and SAWT due on the same date? #

No. QAP is due on or before the last day of the month following the close of the taxable quarter, tied to the Form 1601-EQ or 1601-FQ deadline. SAWT has no separate deadline of its own — it is due whenever the income tax or VAT return it supports is due, which follows a different filing calendar.

Can one company need to file both QAP and SAWT? #

Yes. A business that both withholds tax on payments to its suppliers and receives BIR Form 2307 certificates from its own clients needs to file QAP for the withholding it performed and SAWT for the certificates it received — the two filings track opposite sides of that business’s transactions and are not mutually exclusive.

Summary #

QAP and SAWT both convert the same kind of withholding data — TIN, ATC, income, tax withheld — into a BIR DAT file, but from opposite ends of the transaction: QAP is the payor’s record of what it withheld, filed quarterly with Form 1601-EQ or 1601-FQ under RR No. 11-2018; SAWT is the payee’s record of what was withheld from it, filed with its income tax or VAT return under RR No. 2-2006, on that return’s own deadline rather than a fixed quarterly date. A business that withholds from its suppliers while also receiving Form 2307 certificates from its clients typically needs both.

For the step-by-step conversion process, see How to Convert Excel to BIR DAT File for QAP and How to Convert Excel to BIR DAT File for SAWT. For exact due dates, see QAP Filing Deadlines.