BIR collections rose by 8.01% in August

Revenue Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares: Below-target collection AP FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–Collections of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) rose by 8.01 percent in August, although still short of its target for the month as the truck ban slashed profits of tax-paying companies.

In a statement Tuesday, the BIR said it collected P127.56 billion last month, higher than the P118.11 billion reported in August last year.

Last month’s haul, however, was below the P142.5-billion target set for August.

Revenue Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares explained that the agency’s below-target collection for August was a result of the truck ban implemented in the city of Manila.

“The performance of the BIR was affected by the low income tax payments received for the second quarter of taxable year 2014, which can be attributed to lower corporate income of large corporations, which could also be brought about by the port congestion experienced during the past months,” she said.

In an interview last July, Henares said tax collection during the first half of the year had been “very difficult,” as businesses and industries were facing various challenges that affected their revenues.

“The first-quarter GDP [gross domestic product] went down from 7.7 percent [last year] to 5.7 percent. Government spending slowed down because of the DAP [Disbursement Acceleration Program] ruling, then the port collections also slowed down because of the truck ban,” she pointed out.

Recently, the Supreme Court ruled that the DAP—a stimulus package aimed at fast-tracking public spending to spur economic growth—was unconstitutional. The daytime truck ban implemented in Manila since February until last week, meanwhile, had stalled the movement of goods in and out of the country’s biggest and busiest port.

“If the economy slows down, businesses’ revenues slow down, so tax payments also go down,” she noted.

In August, revenue from BIR operations reached P125.02 billion, up 7.59 percent year on year. Collections from non-BIR operations, meanwhile, grew by a third to P2.55 billion.

That same month, the regional offices contributed P42.09 billion, or over a tenth more year on year. Also, collections under the large taxpayers service went up 6.26 percent year on year to P82.93 billion.

The BIR aims to collect a total of P1.456 trillion by yearend.