BOC Partners with PayMaya for Enhanced Payment System

In its pursuit to ensure tax collection efficiency and seamless customs services, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) inked on 11 June 2020 a Memorandum of Agreement with the Bureau of the Treasury (BTr), Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), and PayMaya for the implementation of an online payment system for the collection, transmittal, and remittance of BOC Fees and other payments.

Under the MOA, PayMaya shall accept payments from BOC clients of miscellaneous fees and charges, other than customs duties and taxes, through its online Checkout payment gateway which can accept credit and debit cards as well as PayMaya e-Wallet payments for local and cross-border payments; through the One by PayMaya POS terminal that can accept card and PayMaya QR payments at BOC premises; and through bills payment via the PayMaya app or through the more than 30,000 Smart Padala centers nationwide.

“We have been looking forward to having an online payment system at the BOC simply because this is the missing element that would complete our online transactions process. This will help improve not only efficiency and customer service, but also transparency in our agency. This is timely considering the current need for physical distancing and quarantine in light of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said BOC Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero.

“We are honored to provide digital payments acceptance support to the BOC, the second-largest generator of revenues for the government. This partnership is especially important at this time as the government needs to maximize revenues to fund the country’s recovery and stimulus programs in the wake of the current crisis,” added PayMaya Founder and CEO Orlando Vea.

The Agreement also covers the payment of client service fees specified under the MOA, as well as the arrangement of depositing the collected BOC Fees and other payments to the DBP. Additionally, the obligations of each party are set forth under the Agreement with the Bureau of Customs to submit to the BTr Office, the List of Deposited Collections (LDC) Report of the daily remittance of collected BOC Fees to BTr-BOC-PayMaya Clearing Account wherein all collections/payments accepted and deposited by PayMaya under the Agreement shall be credited. The LDC report shall be prepared by the Collection District who issued Order of Payment and validated by the Bureau of Customs-Revenue Accounting Division, (BOC-RAD) based on the detailed reports generated/submitted by PayMaya using its payment collection service.

It is through Republic Act No. 8792, also known as the “E-Commerce Act of 2000” and RA 11032, or the “Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Services Delivery Act of 2018” mandating all offices and agencies to improve transactions systems and procedures that made the Bureau of Customs enter into the Memorandum of Agreement to streamline its cash transactions.

The BOC ensures the public that it will continue to adopt measures necessary to facilitate and minimize disruption to the supply chain amid the crisis.