Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. expressed optimism that the agency can achieve its ₱3.2 trillion revenue target for this year, provided major tax measures are passed.
If achieved, this would mark a second consecutive year of the BIR, the government’s main tax agency, meeting the target—a historic first, Lumagui told reporters on the sidelines of the recent Tobacco International Summit.
“Assuming that everything will pass, I think that's why I’m very optimistic and feel that we’ll be able to have a very historic year this year because it’s the first time ever that there will be a back-to-back attainment of the DBCC [Development Budget Coordination Committee] target,” Lumagui said.
Lumagui was referring to the passage of major tax measures, including excise taxes on single-use plastics (SUPs) and mining, which he noted were not signed in 2024. Other measures include Package 4 of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) and the reform on the motor vehicle users’ charge (MVUC).
Experts said Congress needs to pass these tax measures to boost the BIR and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) collections.
For instance, the P100-per-kilogram excise tax on SUPs proposed by the Department of Finance (DOF) is expected to generate ₱31.52 billion from 2025 to 2028.
Should there be no changes in the policies, meeting the excise tax targets this year is uncertain, especially for cigarettes, which has been a challenge, according to the BIR chief.
However, Lumagui noted that other excise taxes are on track, allowing a stronger focus on tobacco and vape products, with continued major enforcement actions.
Among the major developments led by the revenue collection agency is the planned implementation of the digital track and trace solution, which has been completed and is awaiting the procurement process.
If launched by year-end, this system will greatly enhance monitoring, allowing even ordinary citizens to help trace products using their mobile phones, unlike the current manual verification process.
In terms of e-cigarette tax collection, Lumagui sees the increased visibility of online transactions, following the implementation of online withholding tax in November last year, as a major driver to this.
As per the BIR chief, while the tax collected from withholding is relatively small, the primary goal is to track the entire digital marketplace.
He likewise noted that the agency now has better coordination with the central bank regarding digital financial service providers, allowing tax authorities to monitor online platforms and all digital payment channels.
Similar to how credit card transactions are taxed, this system captures the massive volume of online transactions, potentially leading to significant revenue from e-cigarette sales and other digital purchases.
“So, hopefully, we will be able to collect a significant amount from all these online sales,” Lumagui said.