Mighty takeover boosts excise tax collections in September
EXCISE tax collections grew 12% in September, boosted by payments in connection with the Mighty Corp. tax evasion case, the Department of Finance said.
The Finance department collected P17.66 billion in September in excise taxes, against P14.71 billion a year earlier.
Collections from the tobacco industry accounted for P11.1 billion of the collections that month, up 14% from a year earlier.
Of the industry total, P4.6 billion was from Japan Tobacco and Mighty Corp., against P1.2 billion a year earlier. Japan Tobacco took over Mighty Corp. and agreed to make good on the latter’s tax payments in arrears.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue collects excise taxes from alcohol, tobacco, petroleum, automobiles, minerals, and miscellaneous articles. A breakdown of the tax takes from other products was not immediately available.
“This is the gift that keeps on giving,” Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said.
The new Mighty Corp. owners are expected to pay a minimum of over P3 billion a month starting 2018, more than offsetting the taxes previously evaded.
Finance Undersecretary Antonette C. Tionko meanwhile expects collections to grow.
“I think it will grow… you have an international company (Japan Tobacco) that is eager to compete in this market,” she said. —