The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the government’s main tax agency, is expecting a substantial boost in collection this year due to enhanced tax administration measures. BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui Jr. has signed Revenue Memorandum Order 27-2023, stating a 1.5 percent increase in the agency’s tax collection target for 2023 from P2.599 trillion to P2.639 trillion. The rise was primarily attributed to a substantial surge in projected revenues from non-operational sources, which have increased by 44 percent to P99.7 billion from the previous estimate of P69.28 billion. The non-BIR operations category has seen a notable increase in taxes on net income and profits, rising 49 percent to P81.07 billion from the previous figure of P54.51 billion. Similarly, other taxes within the non-BIR operations category are now expected to reach P18.63 billion, surpassing the earlier estimate of P14.77 billion. On the other hand, revenues from BIR operations have been adjusted to P2.539 trillion, representing a slight increase from the previous target of P2.529 trillion. Within the BIR operations category, there has been a notable increase in the collection goal for value-added tax, which is now set at P538.13 billion, reflecting a 6.1 percent rise compared to the earlier target of P507.03 billion. Moreover, taxes on net income and profits under the BIR operations category have been slightly revised upward by P2 billion from P1.314 trillion to P1.316 trillion. Meanwhile, the BIR anticipated lower collections from excise tax, percentage tax, and other taxes this year, reflecting a more conservative outlook. The collection goal for excise tax has been revised downward, or 4.7 percent, from P352.87 billion to P336.09 billion. Similarly, the target for percentage taxes was lowered by 0.3 percent, from P125.05 billion to P124.64 billion. Additionally, the target for other taxes has been adjusted downward by 2.7 percent, going from P230.48 billion to P224.15 billion. The BIR is responsible for generating two-thirds of government revenues annually. On July 13, Lumagui had already forecasted that the BIR was poised to surpass its original collection target of P2.599 trillion for 2023. Lumagui attributed the BIR's enhanced tax enforcement initiatives as the driving force behind its revenue achievement in the first half of the year. According to data from the Bureau of the Treasury, the BIR collected P1.219 trillion from January to June this year, falling short by 1.4 percent compared to the target of P1.251 trillion.