THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) collections likely exceeded the target last year, the tax chief said on Tuesday.
“The exact figures will be finalized by around mid-February, and by then, the collection figures will only increase past the DBCC (Development Budget Coordination Committee) target,” BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said in a statement.
“The BIR has collected at least P2.848 trillion for 2024, and all credit goes to the hardworking men and women of the agency,” he added.
BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr.
The interagency DBCC tasked the BIR with collecting P2.85 trillion last year, and Lumagui said it would be the first time in 20 years that the target was achieved.
“Our dedication to good governance reforms, manifested by our shift to a taxpayer-oriented agency, has increased the voluntary compliance of taxpayers. This goes to show that if government agencies improve their services, processes and programs, our countrymen will do the right thing and pay their proper share of taxes,” Lumagui said.
The BIR focused on the Four Pillars of Good Governance: 1) Fearless and Aggressive Enforcement Activities, 2) Excellent Taxpayer Service, 3) Integrity and Professionalism of the Institution and its Employees, and 4) Digitalization.
Commissioner Lumagui also pioneered the fight against “ghost receipts” through the creation of the Run After Fake Transactions (RAFT) task force. He also leveled the playing field between retail and online stores by implementing a withholding tax system against the latter.
The government aimed to end the year with P4.27 trillion in revenue collections, with taxes accounting for P4.07 trillion.
Finance Secretary Ralph Recto has said that the BIR could end up with P2.86 trillion in 2025, with total revenues likely to hit P4.42 trillion.
The BIR collected a total of P2.67 trillion as of end-November based on the latest official data, which was attributed to a double-digit rise in collections from income, value-added, excise and documentary stamp taxes.
The increase in income tax collections was said to be due to compliance with the Nov. 15 deadline to file third-quarter returns.
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