Customs beats collection goal anew in May

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Customs (BOC) continued its streak of exceeding its target collection with a haul of nearly P80 billion in revenues in May.

Data showed that Customs collections reached P77.793 billion in May, 7.5 percent above its monthly collection target of P72.35 billion.

The amount was also 17 percent higher than the May 2022 collection of P66.288 billion.

For the five-month period, Customs revenues reached P359.175 billion, 12 percent higher than the previous year’s P320.514 billion.

This was also four percent above the January to May 2023 target of P345.943 billion.

The revenue for the five-month period is now 39.8 percent of the P901.34 billion target for the year set by the Cabinet-level Development Budget Coordination Committee.

Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio attributed the agency’s collection performance to the implementation of the agency’s five-point priority program that allowed it to sustain its momentum since last year.

Rubio said BOC has intensified anti-smuggling measures that have curtailed illicit activities and resulted in the seizure of contraband valued at over P19 billion.

Customs is also ramping up its digitalization efforts, now at 96.39 percent, in order to streamline procedures, enhance trade operations, and improve processing times and accuracy in import and export transactions.

The BOC chief noted that the agency also continues to collaborate with other state offices to simplify Customs procedures and facilitate secured trade.

As the second largest revenue agency, the BOC is mandated to deliver financial resources to fund the government’s programs and projects.