Wednesday, July 18, 2007 Stronger peso, transfer of remittances blamed on collection deficit By Bong S. Sarmiento
* Revenue collections shortfall for January to June this year reached at least P55 million
* BIR projects to collect P997 million from some 7,000 business establishments in Gensan and nearby Sarangani province
TAX collections of the Bureau of Internal Revenue office in General Santos City are smarting from the appreciation of the peso against the greenback and the transfer of remittances of business establishments to other revenue offices in the country, a top revenue official said on Tuesday.
Noel Gonzales, Revenue District Office 110 head, said revenue collections shortfall for January to June this year reached at least P55 million due to the aforementioned factors.
Gensan contributes to the country's dollar receipts through the exports of tuna products to many parts of the world, particularly in the United States, Europe and Japan.
"Our tuna exporters' income has been reduced by the strengthening of the peso versus the dollar. In a meeting with other revenue district officers last month, most of my counterparts share the same sentiments," Gonzales said.
Although he failed to give actual figures on the impact of the appreciation to the export firms' income, Gonzales said "some of them used to pay millions in taxes to the government when the peso was still weaker against the dollar."
This year the local revenue district office projects to collect P997 million from some 7,000 business establishments in Gensan and nearby Sarangani province.
But from January to June this year, the local revenue office has collected only P432.7 million as against the mid-year goal of P487.8 million, or a deficit of P55.1 million, the local revenue office's data showed.
Among the firms that transferred their remittances to Cebu City are tuna industry players Philbest Canning Corp. and Asia Pacific Tuna, the official said.
The National Transmission Corp. and the Philippine Ports Authority branches in Gensan moved their remittances to their main offices in Manila, Gonzales added.
Various players in the tuna industry interviewed late last year claimed the stronger performance of the peso reduced their income by at least 10 percent.
Bayani Fredeluces, executive director of the Socsksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries, Inc., said the strong performance of the peso did not augur well of for the tuna canneries in Gensan.
Foreign buyers usually get orders ahead of time and the price is fixed by then and these foreigners rarely adjust the price to suit present realities at the local level, he said.
Gonzales said the local revenue office here is conducting a "tax mapping" in a bid to get more businesses pay their obligations to the government.
"Not only small but big businesses cheat on the government through under declaration of sales," he noted.
He disclosed that the local revenue office here had recommended to their regional office the filing of necessary charges against three tax payers, including one in the construction industry.
Gonzales said they are gathering evidence against a player in the tuna industry who is allegedly not paying correct taxes.
