Customs posts biggest monthly haul in November
The Bureau of Customs in November collected its biggest-ever monthly take of import duties and other taxes to date, but still missed its target due to the official holidays during the recently held Asean Summit in Manila.
Citing preliminary data, the BOC said in a statement Saturday that its collections amounted to P46.47 billion last month, with five ports—Batangas, Cagayan de Oro, Clark, Davao and Tacloban—surpassing their respective targets for the month.
However, the country’s second largest tax-collection agency said its actual take fell short of the November target, which it did not disclose.
The BOC’s website showed a different collection figure for November of P41.05 billion against a P45.12-billion goal.
“We have been achieving [record] collection figures since September, but the latest November collection is really a milestone for the BOC, being the highest monthly collection ever achieved by the BOC despite having only 19 working days. I think we could have surpassed our monthly target if November had the usual number of working days,” Customs Commissioner Isidro S. Lapeña said.
The BOC collected P41 billion in September and P42 billion in October.
“Apart from the efficient collection of the BOC and the ‘no tara policy’ strictly being enforced, the increase in the November collection is marked by the increase in oil prices. It is also attributed to the increase in the volume of importation by 7.9 percent compared to last year,” Lapeña explained.
“Auction proceeds, a
nontraditional source of revenue, also contributed significantly to this latest collection feat,” Lapeña added.
According to data from the BOC’s port operations service, for the month of November alone, total proceeds from auctions reached P62.52 million. Meanwhile, total auction proceeds from January to November were at P256.83 million. “This collection came from auction proceedings of the BOC’s ports nationwide,” Lapeña noted.
For 2017, the BOC must collect a total of P459.6 billion in import duties and other taxes. —BEN O. DE VERA
