AS OF January 2025, Cebu City recorded an 11.75 percent increase in revenue from business permit renewals compared to the same period last year.
According to a document revealed by Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia during a press conference on Monday, Feb. 10, 2025, the total collection from business permit renewals in January was P1,756,739,945.12, compared to last year’s P1,550,180,462.15.
As of Monday, the total collection had reached P1,769,803,131.57.
The mayor attributed this increase to over 1,000 new business establishments seeking permits this year.
Garcia said that this shows the economy has recovered and people are now more confident in opening businesses.
The City also collected over P45 million from delinquent taxpayers on real properties through the two-year tax amnesty program, which began in July 2024 and will run until July 2026.
Garcia reported that P22,303,819.78 in interest from October to December 2024 was waived due to the implementation of Republic Act 12001, also known as the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RPVARA).
Section 30 of the RPVARA provides a real property tax amnesty that covers penalties, surcharges and interest from all unpaid real property taxes, including Special Education Fund, idle land tax and other special levy taxes.
The amount to be collected from 2,005 properties in Cebu City, including surcharges and interests, was P67,410,940.73, covering lots and buildings.
Last Nov. 18, Garcia signed Executive Order (EO) 22, granting tax amnesty on penalties, surcharges and interests for unpaid real property taxes.
Garcia believes the EO will encourage greater tax compliance and boost the government’s revenue collection efforts, providing relief to taxpayers and creating a more efficient tax system.
He noted that many taxpayers had become delinquent due to exorbitant penalties exceeding the principal tax amount and that the amnesty would cover any year of delinquent taxes, increasing the City’s revenue as more people take advantage of it. / JPS