PALO:The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) in Eastern Visayas has collected PHP11.47 billion from January to September 2024, achieving its target for the first three quarters of the year and surpassing the earnings of the previous year, according to the tax agency’s recent report.
According to Philippines News Agency, the BIR regional office here exceeded its PHP11.38 billion target, marking a significant increase from the PHP9.61 billion revenue collected during the same period in 2023. BIR-Eastern Visayas Director Edith Yap expressed optimism about exceeding the PHP15 billion target set for the full year, attributing potential success to major infrastructure projects underway in the region. “We are very hopeful of good performance until the end of this year. As of September, we have been hitting the target. The infrastructure development in the region is very robust,” Yap stated during the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas forum.
During the past year, the Tacloban revenue district office (RDO) in Northern Leyte
and Biliran province led the tax collection with PHP4.97 billion, followed by Ormoc RDO in Western Leyte with PHP2.55 billion, and Calbayog RDO in Samar with PHP1.24 billion. Other RDOs like Catarman in Northern Samar, Borongan in Eastern Samar, and Maasin in Southern Leyte also contributed significant amounts despite some not meeting the targeted figures for this period.
Despite four out of six RDOs not achieving the targeted figures for January to September 2024, their collections still showed an improvement over the previous year’s figures. The leading contributors to the region’s overall tax collections were from Tacloban City and Ormoc City RDOs, both situated in Leyte province, which hosts numerous large businesses.
The BIR is also enhancing its revenue collection capabilities through technological advancements, including the deployment of an online system for transfer tax transactions, electronic certificate registration, and an electronic tax information system. Additionally, the agency continues to
reinforce compliance monitoring through initiatives such as the run against tax evaders and Oplan Kandado.