The Bureau of Customs (BOC) remains on track in its collection performance so far this year, and is even eyeing to surpass the official goal for 2024.
Vincent Philip Maronilla, customs assistant commissioner, said on the sidelines of the ATA Carnet System launch in Manila yesterday the BOC is even hoping to hit an internal goal set by the customs chief.
“We’re very much confident that we will hit the official target. In fact, what we’re trying to hit now is the internal target of the commissioner. The commissioner wants a certain amount to be collected, which is higher than our target, to be able to help the government in its funding requirements,” Maronilla said.
“We’re trying to reach… maybe about… P20 billion to P30 billion more for the entire year than the official target. Hopefully we reach a little less than P1 trillion. If we can reach a trillion, then so much the better. If the trend continues and volume increases, then we’ll be able to reach our internal target,” he added.
According to the Development Budget Coordination Committee’s quarterly fiscal program approved on May 23, the BOC has a full-year goal of P939.69 billion.
The BOC earlier reported that it has surpassed its revenue collection goal for the first half of the year by 3.03 percent.
The bureau raked in P456.05 billion from January to June, exceeding the midyear target of P442.62 billion by P13.43 billion, based on preliminary reports.
Compared to the same period last year, the midyear collection marked a 5.22 percent increase, amounting to P22.62 billion.
“So far this month, we’re on track. Our problem, I think, would start about next month, only because of the ghost month. So historically, we have tackled some issues in the month of August but for the past years, we’ve been able to overcome them,” Maronilla said.
“So we’re still confident that we will overcome any challenges that will be faced by the Bureau for the month of August. But for the month of July, we’re very much confident that we will hit it. It’s a matter of how many surpluses we’re going to be able to create to add on to our goal of having a year-end double-digit surplus,” he added.
Meanwhile, Maronilla was also sought for comment on how the peso’s performance against the US dollar has impacted the bureau’s collection.
“Any increase in the value of the dollar, of course, has a positive effect on the bureau. But again, it’s a give-and-take situation because weaker peso also means more conservative approach for some of the importers and the exporters. So, it’s actually a balance that we do,” Maronilla said.
“There might be some increase because of the exchange rate. But there might be a decrease also because of hesitation to do business and to do importation activities. So, we’re happy that it helps. But we also want a stronger peso. Because a stronger peso means that we have a stronger economy,” he added.
Maronilla also said the value of apprehended smuggled products in the first half of the year has reached roughly P20 billion.
“We’re already more than half from (the same period) last year. So, I think if we continue this trend, we’ll beat the figure last year,” Maronilla said.
Counterfeit goods still topped the list of seized products, Maronilla said, while agriculture products and cigarettes and tobacco also remain as among the top apprehended imported items.
