(Bloomberg)

A measure outlawing bulk foreign currency smuggling for any person found concealing through fraud, willful misdeclaration, or other means the amount exceeding $10,000 when arriving or leaving any point of entry in the Philippines has moved past the House of Representatives. 

Unanimously approved on third and final reading during plenary session Wednesday night, Aug. 9, was House Bill (HB) No. 8200 or the “Anti-Bulk Foreign Currency Smuggling Act. 

A total of 266 House members voted "yes" to the bill, which taps the Bureau of Customs (BOC) as the lead agency in implementing its provisions. 

“The measure is aimed at preserving the integrity of the country’s monetary system. It also ensures that the Philippines will not be used as a transport point for money laundering. We will not allow our points of entry, like our ports and airports, to be used for any part of unlawful activities,” House Speaker Martin Romualdez said in a statement following the passage of HB No.8200. 

The bill mandates the enforcement of a written or electronic declaration system for the physical cross-border transfer of foreign currency and other foreign currency-denominated bearer monetary instruments in and out of the Philippines. 

If a person carries an amount that exceeds $10,000 or its equivalent in other currency, he or she has to make a written or electronic declaration form that contains the following: personal information of the person transporting foreign currency; details of travel, including arrival or departure date; legal capacity in which the person filing the declaration is acting; information on the owner or sender, including that of the recipient, of the foreign currency; information on the foreign currency being transported; and additional information as may be required under the rules and regulations to be issued to implement this Act. 

The measure defines the criminal offense of bulk foreign currency smuggling in two ways (1) when a person not registered with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) as an entity engaging in periodic transfer of bulk currency transports or transfers $200,000 in and out of the country; and (2) when a person evades currency declaration as specified under the measure. 

These include concealing an amount exceeding $10,000 in articles of clothing worn by the person, in luggage, merchandise or other containers; failing to declare the unaccompanied foreign currency; making a false declaration considered as fraud as defined in the bill; or structuring the physical cross-border transfer of foreign currency or foreign currency denominated bearer monetary instruments. 

“Fraud refers to false declaration of foreign currency or bearer monetary instruments being transported with a discrepancy of more than thirty percent (30%) between the amount declared and the amount found by the Customs Officer after examination,” the measure read. 

Any person found guilty of bulk foreign currency smuggling can be penalized with imprisonment of up to 14 years and a fine of up to twice the amount of the smuggled foreign currency 

“Bulk foreign currency smuggling under Section 9 of this Act shall be a predicate offense to money laundering as defined in Republic Act (RA) No. 9160,” HB No.8200 also stated. 

The bill also authorizes the BOC to hold temporarily or seize foreign currency or foreign currency-denominated bearer monetary instruments from persons it may suspect or find violating provisions of the measure. 

The BOC is also mandated to report any incident of bulk foreign currency smuggling to the Anti-Money Laundering Council for further investigation of possible violations under RA No. 9160, also known as the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001; RA No. 10168, also known as the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012; and RA No. 11479, otherwise known as the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020.