The Bureau of Customs (BOC) collected P585.542 billion in 2018, beating its annual revenue collection target of P584.881 billion by 0.1%, preliminary data from the agency’s Financial Service showed.
Tax collection in 2018 grew 27.8% compared with last year’s P458.183 billion, BOC said in a statement.
Of the bureau’s 17 collection districts, 14 ports reached their annual revenue collection targets, namely:
- San Fernando – P3.532 billion revenue collection; P317 million or 9.9% surplus
- Batangas – P142.122 billion revenue collection; P4.121 billion or 3.0% surplus
- Legazpi – P407 million revenue collection; P118 million or 41.1% surplus
- Iloilo – P4.032 billion revenue collection; P812 million or P25.2% surplus
- Cebu – P28.904 billion revenue collection; P2.497 billion or 9.5% surplus
- Tacloban – P1.105 billion revenue collection; P764 million or 223.6% surplus
- Surigao – P36 million revenue collection; P15 million or 73.3% surplus
- Cagayan de Oro – P21.483 billion revenue collection; P4.467 billion or 26.3% surplus
- Zamboanga – P421 million revenue collection; P138 million or 48.6% surplus
- Davao – P25.966 billion revenue collection; P6.485 billion or 33.3% surplus
- Subic – P22.341 billion revenue collection; P1.171 billion or 5.5% surplus
- Clark – P1.935 billion revenue collection; P378 million or 24.3% surplus
- Aparri – P149 million revenue collection; P90 million or 151.1% surplus
- Limay – P40.714 billion revenue collection; P4.322 billion or 11.9% surplus
Manila International Container Port, the district with the highest annual revenue target at P180.656 billion, took in P165.075 billion.
Not far from reaching its collection target of P88.103 billion is the Port of Manila with a total collection of P86.191 billion.
Ninoy Aquino International Airport, meanwhile, collected P40.85 billion against its revenue target of P46.171 billion.
In 2018, BOC consistently hit and exceeded its monthly revenue goals for eight consecutive months from February to September. The Department of Finance, BOC’s mother agency, earlier lowered the bureau’s annual target by P10 billion from the initial target of P594.881 billion since the customs agency’s fuel marking system still has to be implemented.
“This feat is attributed to the strong collection performance of the 17 collection districts and the continuing support and cooperation of the men and women of the Bureau of Customs and of our stakeholders,” Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero said.
He noted that while they seek ways to stop corruption in BOC, the improvement of the bureau’s revenue collection performance will remain a top priority.
“We still need to strengthen our collection efforts and do better to achieve our goal of a consistent and enhanced collection performance,” he said.
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
