The Bureau of Customs has surpassed its P65 billion revenue collection goal for the month of January by P5.31 billion, or 8.17 percent more than its target.
Ten of the 17 collection districts, including the Manila International Container Port (MICP), were also able to meet their respective goals and contributed to the P70.3 billion total collection of the agency for the month.
The MICP, one of the three major ports, collected P17,164,356,092 up by P14.206,468.60 or 0.08 percent, against its P17,150,149,623 target. The port in North Harbor Manila is where most of the bulk shipments were handled.
The other ports that surpassed their targets were Legaspi, San Fernando, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Clark, Batangas, Tacloban, Limay, and Subic.
Based on the bureau’s initial January 2023 collection reports, Legaspi posted the highest surplus collection with 76.3 percent followed by Tacloban (51.8 percent) and San Fernando (36.1 percent).
Batangas is also up by (29.5 percent) followed by Limay (23.2 percent), Clark (17.8 percent), Cagayan de Oro (6.8 percent), Subic (4.5 percent), and Iloilo (0.9 percent).
On the other hand, the major ports Manila and Ninoy Aquino International Airport, and five other ports Davao, Cebu, Zamboanga, Surigao, and Aparri did not meet their revenue collection targets for the month.
Commissioner Yogi Filemon Ruiz said with a revenue of P58.346 billion posted in January 2022, the bureau under his leadership increased its collection by 20.53 percent or P11.98 billion this year.
In January alone, he said the agency conducted 36 apprehensions and seized approximately P908.137 million worth of various commodities in violation of the Republic Act No. 10863 or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA).
Among the seized goods were P794.463 million worth of smuggled agricultural products and P104.833 million worth of illegal drugs.
Aligned with the priority programs of Ruiz, the Customs bureau sustains its positive performance by heightening border protection measures and strengthening its anti-smuggling program to ensure optimal lawful revenue collection.
