Revitalized Mighty boosted Sept tax take

“Sin” taxes collected from cigarettes increased by 14 percent to P11.1 billion in September, partly due to the jump in payments from homegrown Mighty Corp.

The latest Department of Finance (DOF) data showed excise tax collections from the tobacco industry rose from P9.7 billion in September last year.

Finance Undersecretary Antonette C. Tionko told reporters last week that collections from cigarette products accounted for the bulk of the P17.7 billion in total excise taxes collected last month, up 12 percent from P15.7 billion a year ago.

DOF data showed that collections from Mighty alone climbed 281 percent to P4.6 billion from P1.2 billion in the same month last year.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said he was optimistic that with the Mighty brand now owned by Japan Tobacco International, the government could collect even more excise taxes from the Bulacan-based manufacturer.

“I am happy with P3.3-billion increase [in excise tax collections from Mighty in September], but I think it will grow because you have an international company that is eager to compete in this market,” Dominguez told reporters.

In July, JTI’s Philippine unit remitted P3.4 billion to the Bureau of Internal Revenue as part of the tax settlement that allowed the global tobacco giant to acquire almost P47 billion in Mighty’s assets.

An additional P12.1 billion was received by the BIR from JTI last September. A month prior, the firm sealed the deal and absorbed Mighty, which had been slapped three tax evasion cases worth almost P38 billion for using fake tax stamps on its products.

In all, JTI will pay the government a total of P30 billion—P25 billion for the settlement on top of P5 billion in value-added tax—until April next year.

The government expects P5.8 billion from JTI this October, P8.5 billion in November and P500 million in April 2018.