BIR exceeds April collection target

Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares FILE PHOTO

The annual tax season made it for the Bureau of Internal Revenue as collections reached P149 billion in April, surpassing a month’s goal for the first time this year.

Documents released by the BIR Monday showed that the April tax-take was P6.3 billion or 4.4-percent more than the target and P32.8 billion or 28.4-percent higher than the year-ago revenue.

However, tax inflows in the four months to April reached P393.1 billion, missing the target of P399 billion by 1.5 percent or P5.9 billion. The four-month collection was 13.9-percent or P47.8 billion higher than the P345.3 billion posted in the same period of 2012.

At P142.7 billion, the BIR’s goal for April was the highest for any month this year, particularly because the deadline for the filing of tax returns falls on that month.

Last month, when available data showed that the BIR had failed monthly targets during the first quarter, Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares expressed confidence that collections in the coming months would be stronger.

Of total tax revenues in April, P145.6 billion accounted for cash inflows, which were P6.8 billion or 4.9-percent higher than the target. The amount also represented an increase of P32.2 billion or 28.4 percent year-on-year.

The rest of the revenue in the first four months accounted for P3.3 billion in non-cash inflow, such as payments that were made using tax credits.

“Aside from the various reforms being instituted by the BIR and the Run After Tax Evaders program, the increase in collection can be attributed also to the intensified tax campaign, including an appeal from (President Aquino) for people to pay the right taxes and a multi-media advertising campaign,” Henares said in a statement.

The bureau’s regional offices continued to show double-digit growth rates in collections with a 31.9-percent year-on-year surge to P42 billion in April.