‘Sin’ tax take exceeds target

Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim Henares. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Total “sin” tax collections from the sale of alcohol and tobacco products were well above target in the first half of the year, providing extra cash to fund the government’s expensive infrastructure and social welfare projects.

Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares of the Bureau of Internal Revenue said better-than-expected collections were “vindication” for the agency, which played an instrumental role in the fight to raise excise taxes.

“We have always taken the position that, when we were passing the bill, it would generate the revenue that people said we couldn’t generate,” she told reporters. “In fact, it’s doing well.”

Data released by the BIR showed excise tax collections totaled P34.95 billion in the first semester of the year, exceeding last year’s level by 29.7 percent and exceeding this year’s goal by 31.6 percent.

The growth was driven by a 44.44-percent year-on-year increase in collections from tobacco products, which totaled P28.18 billion. Tobacco tax collections were almost double the target of P14.46 billion for the six-month period.

Alcohol tax collections also rose during the six month period to P17.8 billion, higher by 11.62 percent year-on-year. However, this was 13.08 percent short of the goal for the semester.