The Senate approved on third and final reading the proposed Customs
Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) which aims to simplify, modernize and align
the country’s customs procedures with global best practices by amending the
Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines (TCCP).
“We
want to overhaul and modernize the bureau which has long been perceived as one
of the most corrupt and underperforming government agencies in the country.
Approximately $277 billion in revenues was lost by the government from 1960 to
2011 due to technical smuggling according to a 2014 study of Global Financial
Integrity,” Senator Juan Edgardo ‘Sonny’ Angara said.
Mr.
Angara, chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means and sponsor of
Senate Bill No. 2968 or the proposed Customs Modernization and Tariff Act
(CMTA), said the measure aims to amend the TCCP in compliance with the Revised
Kyoto Convention (RKC) which is a blueprint for “modern and efficient customs
procedures” of the World Customs Organization.
Senate President Franklin Drilon
said that upgrading the current Bureau of Customs (BOC) systems to electronic
processing, would make the BOC’s importation and exportation procedures faster,
more effective and more convenient, especially for the public.
‘The modernization under the CTMA
will benefit millions of ordinary Filipinos who suffer from the inefficiencies
in the handling of incoming and outgoing goods, especially during holiday
seasons when Filipinos endure the cumbersome process of trying to claim gifts
or packages which are stuck at the ports," he stressed.
The
bill proposes the use of information and communications technology and other
appropriate applications to reinforce the BOC’s functions towards simplified,
secured and harmonized trade facilitation.
Mr. Angara said the passage of the bill into law would increase
transparency and simplify procedures in the BOC, increase the de minimis value,
raise the tax exemption ceiling for packages sent by balikbayans and returning
residents, and provide harsher penalties for smuggling. De minimis are small
items that are usually minor or lacking importance.
The bill proposes an increase in the
tax-exempt value of balikbayan boxes from P10,000 to P150,000 and the de
minimis value from P10 to P10,000. Tax-exempt and de minimis values may also
change every three years. Donation and relief goods will also be duty- and
tax-free during times of calamity.
Mr.
Angara said the bill aims to ingrain
transparency and accountability into the BOC, as apart from drastically reducing
human intervention due to the electronification of customs procedures, higher
penalties and punishments will be prescribed as a further deterrent to
smuggling.
“Our measure clearly defines the
exercise of customs police authority, customs jurisdiction and customs
control,” Mr.
Angara said.
BOC officials said they anticipate a
10 percent increase in revenue collection once the bill is enacted into law.
The BOC pegged revenue collection at P369 billion in 2014. (Apple
Buenaventura)
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