The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said Tuesday its collection net of tax refund reached P274.429 billion in October, surpassing its target by 8.57 percent or P21.654 billion.
BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said the October collection also climbed 46.94 percent, or P87.670 billion, from the same month last year.
“With the intensification of the bureau’s tax enforcement activities, specifically on the campaign against sellers and buyers of fake receipts, and with the continuous streamlining and digitization of the BIR’s core services, we hope to encourage all non-compliant taxpayers to comply fully with the provisions and requirements of the tax laws so we can attain, and even surpass, our annual collection target this year,” Lumagui said.
The agency said total tax collection from January to October reached P2.132 trillion, up by 11.11 percent, or P213.214 billion, over last year’s level.
The BIR has a collection target of P2.639 trillion for 2023, representing an increase of 12.99 percent or P303.500 billion, from the 2022 actual collection.
Meanwhile, Lumagui said the agency was committed to pursuing digitalization plans together with Asian Development Bank.
The ADB recently approved a $400-million loan to help the efforts of the Philippines and the BIR to modernize tax administration, systems and processes.
“The BIR commits to pursuing the digitalization and modernization of its services. We commit to being a service-oriented agency. We thank the ADB for being a partner in nation-building,” said Lumagui.
The ADB in a statement cited the digital transformation initiative of the BIR.
“Among the reforms pursued by the government in line with the DRM [domestic resource mobilization] program is the digital transformation Initiative of the Bureau of Internal Revenue. The project aims to modernize key taxpayers’ services, including online tax registration, return filing and payment. This can potentially increase the ratio of actual tax revenues to tax potential, from 75 percent in 2020 to at least 85 percent by 2026,” the multilateral lender said.
The ADB said it aims to foster economic growth and co-operation in tAsia and the Far East and to contribute to the acceleration of the process of economic development of the developing member countries in the region, collectively and individually.
