The Department of Finance (DOF) reported that collections from the government’s two main tax agencies showed strong double-digit growth in the first nine months of the year.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs collectively gathered P2.771 trillion from January to September 2024, a 10 percent increase from P2.518 trillion in the same period last year.
Of this total, the BIR, which is responsible for nearly 70 percent of the government’s annual revenue, collected P2.08 trillion by the end of September—a 12 percent increase compared to P1.858 trillion the previous year.
This nine-month collection accounted for 73 percent of the BIR’s full-year target of P2.842 trillion.
In contrast, the Customs bureau raised P690.8 billion as of September, a modest 4.6 percent increase from P660.39 billion in the previous year.
This amount represents 73.5 percent of its annual target of P939.7 billion.
In May, the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) revised its tax collection projections for the BIR and Customs downward, citing expectations of slower economic growth this year.
According to the DBCC's 2024 Quarterly Fiscal Program, approved on May 23, the BIR and Customs are now expected to collect P3.788 trillion this year, a reduction of 5.6 percent from the original target of P4.014 trillion.
The BIR's full-year collection target was adjusted down by 6.7 percent from the previous goal of P3.055 trillion, while the Customs bureau’s target was lowered by 2 percent from the earlier estimate of P959 billion.
Budget Secretary Amenah F. Pangandaman, who chairs the DBCC, explained to the Manila Bulletin that these adjustments were primarily driven by a lower-than-expected economic growth outlook, among other factors.
In April, the DBCC had already revised its gross domestic product target for 2024 to a range of 6.0 percent to 7.0 percent, down from the previous range of 6.5 percent to 7.5 percent.
The DBCC emphasized that these adjusted targets were based on a analysis of the country’s economic performance in 2023, along with the latest developments and forecasts concerning external factors such as global demand, trade trends, fluctuations in oil prices, and anticipated movements in exchange rates and inflation.