Customs continues to exceed goals

The Bureau of Customs extended its above-target collections of import duties and other taxes to seven straight months in August, raking in P51.7 billion last month.

Citing preliminary data from its financial service, the BOC said the actual revenue take last month exceeded by 4.7 percent the P49.3-billion target.

In a statement Tuesday, Customs Commissioner Isidro S. Lapeña said that collections last August jumped 35.1 percent from P38.3 billion during the same month last year.

As of end-August, total collections reached P384.3 billion, climbing 35 percent from P283.6 billion a year ago.

Of the country’s 17 ports, only two failed to hit their respective targets last August, namely the Manila International Container Port (actual collection of P14.8 billion against P15.2-billion target) as well as the Port of Subic (actual take of P1.5 billion vs P1.8-billion goal).

The BOC noted that “the one-strike policy of the Commissioner motivated the ports to consistently hit their targets.”

Since February, Lapeña had been firing the heads of ports that did not meet their collection targets.

Also, the BOCs financial service attributed the “consistent high revenue performance to the higher exchange rate, increased oil price in the market, proper valuation and strong enforcement and revenue-enhancing measures.”

The peso remained at a 12-year low against the dollar. A weaker peso raises the value of imported goods and, in turn, the amount of import levies slapped on them.

The latest government data showed that merchandise imports climbed 13.2 percent year-on-year to $51.8 billion at the end of the first half.

The BOC had been tasked to collect a total of P581.3 billion by yearend.

Last month, Lapeña said he was confident that the BOC would hit and even exceed its yearend target.

Last year, the BOC collected P458.2 billion in import duties and other taxes.

In an interview last July, Deputy Customs Commissioner Jesus Fajardo told reporters that Lapeña, who was barely a year as head of the country’s second-biggest revenue agency that time, already collected more revenues than his predecessor.

In August last year, Lapeña replaced former BOC chief Nicanor E. Faeldon following the latter’s resignation amid corruption allegations.

During the celebration of Lapena’s first anniversary as Customs Commissioner, he “commended the district collectors for their efforts to hit and exceed their collection targets,” the BOC said.