President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has signed Executive Order No. 105, extending the reduced 15 percent tariff on imported rice until the year end, December 31, 2025, and establishing an Inter-Agency Group on Rice Tariff Adjustment to monitor and adjust rice import taxes in response to changes in world market prices.
The EO signed on Friday, November 7, aims to provide tariff adjustments, beginning January 1, 2026, based on movements in international rice prices, with rates ranging from 15 to 35 percent.
The order specifies that rice tariffs will rise by five percentage points whenever global rice prices fall by five percent, and conversely, they will drop by five percentage points for every five percent increase in prices.
Tariff adjustments, however, are capped, ensuring that the Most Favored Nation (MFN) rate remains no lower than 15 percent and no higher than 35 percent.
The new order also modifies EO No. 62 and establishes an Inter-Agency Group on Rice Tariff Adjustment to manage implementation, including setting threshold prices, DA certification, monitoring periods, and procedures for adjusting MFN rice duties.
According to the directive, the group should be composed of representatives from the Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev), the Department of Agriculture (DA), the Department of Trade and Industry, the Department of Finance, and the Office of the Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs.
Malacañang also emphasized that the EO is aligned with the Philippines’ commitments under the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement.
EO 105 will take effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or a widely circulated newspaper.
