New cigarette tax stamps to be rolled out in January

The government has pushed back the rollout of new cigarette tax stamps with better security features as well as a new design to January next year.

“We are improving it but we will be moving the deadline a bit, maybe a few more months to January. There are still some things we tweaked on security features and things like that,” Finance Undersecretary Antoinette C. Tionko told reporters.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue’s previous target was to introduce the new cigarette tax stamp this month in order to combat the proliferation of fake stamps.

BIR Assistant Commissioner Teresita M. Angeles said they were still going through the testing of the new stamps and allowing the manufacturers to test the papers of the stamps.

Angeles said the new tax stamp would feature the Philippine tarsier, one of the smallest known primates endemic to the country. The existing design bears the “butanding” or whale shark.

Since the new stamp will have enhanced security features, it will cost 15 centavos a piece or two centavos more than the current price, which cigarette manufacturers shoulder.

Cigarette tax stamps ensure that the correct excise taxes are paid.

Meanwhile, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said in a statement yesterday that the additional excise taxes to be collected from Mighty products under its new owner could reach as much as P40 billion next year, higher than the previous estimate of P24 billion yearly.