Customs take up but still short of target
Reforms at the Bureau of Customs (BOC) continued to pay off as revenues for May rose by over a tenth, despite a drop in the value of goods imported by the country.
Collections were still below the target for the month, but Customs officials remained optimistic, noting that the continued growth in revenues was a sign of more efficient operations.
“Looking beyond the revenue target, our collection efficiency is improving as we enhance our reference valuation figures and improve enforcement of customs policies and procedures, surveillance and apprehension of smuggled goods,” Customs Commissioner John Philip Sevilla said.
The BOC said collections rose by 11 percent in May 2014 to reach P28.8 billion. This was 18 percent short of the target of P35.09 billion for the month on the back of lower volume of importation.
From January to May 2014, revenues were up by 20 percent year-on-year to P146.07 billion.
“As we sustain process improvements, equip our people with better ICT tools and continue plugging sources of revenue leaks, we expect collections to become better,” Sevilla said in a statement.
Based on the report of the Bureau of the Treasury, the Ports of Subic, Cebu and Davao showed positive revenue traction brought on by increased economic activity. In May 2014, revenue collections from Subic grew 45 percent to P1.072 billion; while that of Cebu and Davao totaled P1.16 billion and P836 million, respectively.
For June, the BOC was tasked to collect P33.29 billion by the interagency Development Budget Coordination Committee.
Earlier this week, the Bureau of Internal Revenue reported that collections rose to P128.27 billion in May—up by 14.63 percent, or P16.37 billion, from that of the same month in 2013. May was the first month this year when growth in tax collections outstripped the rise in the BOC’s take.
Despite the double-digit year-on-year increase, the BIR’s haul last May was 4.24 percent below, or P5.68-billion lower, than the agency’s collection goal of P133.95 billion for the month. Paolo G. Montecillo
