Philippines winning tax stamp compliance battle

A recent report from the World Bank has shown that the Philippines’ Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has succeeded in its campaign to have tax stamps applied to all cigarette packs being sold legally in the country, according to a story in The Philippine Star.

Bank data covering the period from the week beginning August 23 to the week beginning November 29 revealed that more than 90 percent of cigarette packs in retail outlets adhered to the Internal Revenue Stamps Integrated System (Irsis).

Compliance during the week beginning November 29 was higher, with about 96.1 percent of cigarette packs bearing tax stamps and all 13 brands being monitored having at least 90 percent of their inventory bearing the stamps.

The brands Boss, LA and Plaza were said to have had 100 percent compliance, while the 10 others – Camel, Champion, Fortune, Hope, Mark, Marlboro, Mighty, More, Philip Morris and Winston – had had more than 90 percent compliance.

There was a 100 percent Irsis compliance in Bulacan, Pampanga and Pangasinan; 99.8 percent in Metro Manila; 93.5 percent in Quezon province; 90.2 percent in Negros Oriental; 85.7 percent in Laguna; and 66.7 percent in Cebu and Nueva Vizcaya. In Davao del Sur, only 30.3 percent of cigarette packs in retail outlets bore stamps.

The BIR had ordered that all packs of cigarettes produced in the country since December 1, 2014, had to include tax stamps. The order required also that only stamped locally-made cigarettes should be on the market from March 1, 2015, and that only stamped imported cigarette packs should be on the market from April 1, 2015.