BIR, BOC, DTI back proposal to unify vape tax rates
The BIR, BOC, and DTI support unifying vape tax rates due to enforcement issues and revenue losses from the current two-tiered system.Summary
Key Philippine government agencies – the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Bureau of Customs (BOC), and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) – are advocating for a unified excise tax rate on vapor products. They cite challenges in enforcing the current two-tiered system, which distinguishes between salt nicotine and freebase nicotine, leading to widespread misdeclaration and potential revenue losses. Officials from these agencies, along with representatives from the Department of Health (DOH) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA), testified before the House Ways and Means Committee, supporting the simplification of the tax structure. The current disparity in tax rates – P60.20 per milliliter for nicotine salt and P6.95 per milliliter for freebase – incentivizes companies to misreport product types. Furthermore, the BIR and BOC lack the capability to chemically verify nicotine types, relying heavily on DTI certifications and company self-declarations. A unified rate is seen as a practical solution to ensure fair taxation, close loopholes, and potentially support public health goals.
(Source：Philstar.com)
