BIR, BOC collections down in H1

MANILA, Philippines  — The government’s tax revenues saw an improvement last June, but still remained lower year-on-year in the first half amid the coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Finance (DOF) reported yesterday.

Citing preliminary data, DOF said the combined collections of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and Bureau of Customs (BOC) picked up in June, climbing by 28.03 percent to P270.77 billion from P211.5 billion in the same month in 2019.

The bulk or P228.23 billion of this amount came from the BIR, 42.47 percent higher than the P160.2 billion it collected in the same month last year.

This was, however, 19.86 percent short of the bureau’s P284.8 billion target for the month.

According to the DOF, the improvement in the BIR’s performance came as most of the deadline extensions granted by the bureau for the filing and paying of various taxes ended last month.

In particular, the filing of income tax returns for the calendar year ending Dec. 31, 2019 was due on June 15.

The DOF said the BIR’s Large Taxpayer Service was able to deliver P145.81 billion in revenues during the month, 35.05 percent higher than P107.97 billion in June last year.

Of this amount, P83.73 billion came in the form of income taxes, 82.58 percent up as compared to the P45.86 billion reported a year ago.

Meanwhile, Customs was able to generate P42.54 billion last June, surpassing its goal of P40.74 billion.

This was, however, lower than the agency’s collection last year, which amounted to P51.3 billion.

In a separate statement, the BOC said the above-target revenue collection performance last June was a result of the gradual improvement in the volume of importations.

“It can also be attributed to the government’s effort in ensuring unhampered movement of goods domestically and internationally considering the pandemic situation,” BOC said.

The BOC said 11 out of 17 collection districts were able to hit their respective goals for the month.

Despite the improvements seen last June, the DOF said the combined collections of the two revenue generating agencies went down by 16 percent to P1.155 trillion in the first six months of 2020 from P1.375 trillion in the same period last year.

This was likewise 2.76 percent below the first half revenue target of both bureaus amounting to P1.187 trillion.

The DOF attributed this drop to the economic standstill brought about by the COVID-19, as well as the movement restrictions imposed in Metro Manila and other parts of the country.

DOF data showed that the BIR, which accounts for the bulk of the government’s tax collections, reported P901.96 billion in total revenues in the first semester.

This was 15.9 percent lower than the P1.072 trillion it posted the same period last year, and 3.38 percent short of its P933.49 billion target.

For its part, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) was able to raise P253.04 billion from January to June 2020.

The DOF said the bureau’s performance was 16.49 percent lower as compared to P303.01 billion a year ago. This was, however, only 0.47 percent short of the BOC’s adjusted target amounting to P254.25 billion.

For 2020, the BIR is targeting to collect P1.74 trillion, while the BOC’s goal is to raise P541.7 billion in revenues. Both agencies’ targets were slashed during the Development Budget Coordination Committee’s meeting last May due to the projected impact of the COVID-19 crisis on economic growth.