A vice chairman of the House Committee on Tourism has expressed support for Ilocos Norte 1st district Rep. Sandro Marcos' effort to abolish the burdensome travel tax.

Palawan 3rd district Rep. Gil "KABARANGAYJR” Acosta, in a news forum on Saturday, Feb. 7 in Quezon City, agreed with Marcos in that the levy no longer fits present-day realities, and that change was needed.

“Parang sa lahat ng bansa sa ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations

ngayon, tayo na lang ang may outgoing tax. So nakakadagdag [sa gastos]. Although hindi ito ang [major na] dahilan kung bakit mababa ang pagpasok ng turismo, definitely one of the causes itong travel tax na imposition natin,” Acosta said.

(It seems that among all the ASEAN countries today, we’re the only one that still has an outgoing travel tax. So it adds to the expenses. Although this isn’t the main reason why tourism inflows are low, this imposition of a travel tax is definitely one of the causes.)

Acosta noted that Presidential Decree (PD) No. 1183, issued in 1977, imposes a travel tax on Filipinos and foreigners departing the country.

The Palawan lawmaker says several measures are pending before the House Committee on Tourism, including House Bill (HB) No. 7443 filed by Marcos, which calls for the immediate abolition of the travel tax.

Under HB No.7443, the travel tax imposed under PD No.1183 and related provisions of the Tourism Act of 2009 would be repealed. This would effectively end the collection of charges that now reach P2,700 for first-class passengers and P1,620 for economy travelers.

Marcos, the House majority leader, earlier said the levy had outlived its purpose and was working against economic recovery, mobility, and regional competitiveness.

Acosta reckoned that the flat nature of the tax makes it burdensome regardless of a person's income. “Regardless kung mayaman ka, middle-income ka o mahirap ka, basta umalis ka meron kang travel tax (Regardless of whether you’re rich, middle-income, or poor, once you leave the country, you’re subject to a travel tax)."

He also highlighted how high travel costs affected domestic tourism, particularly in provinces like Palawan.

“Ang problema na lang ay iyong fare ng eroplano dahil napakamahal. Tama ho minsan mas mura pang pumunta ng Vietnam kahit na may travel tax, pumunta ng Thailand kaysa pumunta sa amin o sa Siargao,” Acosta said.

(The remaining problem is the airfare, because it’s extremely expensive. At times, it’s actually cheaper to fly to Vietnam even with the travel tax, or to Thailand, than to travel within our own country, like going to Siargao.)

While Palawan is often cited as one of the world’s best island destinations, Acosta says this reputation is not matched by adequate government-built tourism infrastructure.

“But sometimes it is in paper only kasi wala akong masyadong tourism infrastructure. Now may magandang mga puntahan sa amin, yung Balabac, napakarami ang mga nagpupunta. Pero in terms of infrastructure ay halos non-existent pa,” Acosta said.

(But sometimes that advantage is only on paper, because we don’t have much tourism infrastructure. Now, there are beautiful destinations here like Balabac, which many people are visiting. But in terms of infrastructure, it’s still almost non‑existent.)

Acosta said travel tax collections average P4 billion to P5 billion annually, with proceeds divided among the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd), and the cultural sector.

Marcos’ bill proposed that funding for these agencies instead be sourced directly from the General Appropriations Act (GAA)--something that the Palawan solon agreed with.

“Mas maganda nga kasi kami we’re willing to put it doon sa [GAA] kesa ‘yung budget mo sa tourism infrastructure naka-depende doon sa dami ng mga aalis,” Acosta said.

(It’s actually better if we allocate it through the GAA, rather than having the budget for tourism infrastructure depend on the number of people leaving the country.)