THE BUREAU of Customs has collected P286.33 billion in duties and taxes from 29.4 billion liters of marked fuel in the two years since the fuel marking program was launched, according to the Department of Finance (DoF).
The fuel marking program generated P286.33 billion in revenue between September 2019 and Sept. 10 this year, according to Customs data the DoF released Monday.
The Bureau of Customs, which oversees fuel imports, collected P256.55 billion in duties and taxes during the period.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), which oversees locally-produced oil products, collected P29.78 billion between December 2019 and July this year.
Some 73% of marked fuel or 21.47 million liters generated taxes in Luzon, followed by 21% in Mindanao and the remainder in the Visayas.
Diesel accounted for 61% of the total volume marked or 17.9 million liters, while 39% or 11.317 million liters was gasoline.
The fuel marking program deters smuggling by injecting the products with a special dye to signify tax compliance. The absence of the dye is deemed prima facie evidence that the fuel was smuggled.
The program was authorized by Republic Act No. 10962 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) in a bid to curb smuggling after the law hiked the excise tax rate slapped on fuel products.
Customs and the BIR started collecting in September 2020 a fuel marking fee of P0.06884 per liter, inclusive of value-added tax, charged on all manufactured, refined or imported petroleum products.
The DoF has estimated that revenue foregone due to oil smuggling was between P20 billion and P40 billion a year. — Beatrice M. Laforga