The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) will collect P19.6 billion in taxes from Panay and Guimaras taxpayers this year.
“This year 2024, we are tasked to collect P19.6 billion or 23 percent higher than our actual collection for the year 2023. This is one of the highest growth rates for the past 10 years in the Bureau of Internal Revenue. The goal seems huge, but I remain confident that it is achievable,” BIR Region 11 director Joseph Catapia said during the 2024 tax campaign kick-off led by the Revenue District Office 74 at the Iloilo Convention Center on Thursday, March 14.
BIR Region 11 covers the provinces of Capiz, Iloilo, Aklan, Antique, and Guimaras.
In his message, Catapia identified several factors, including the continuing robust economy in the region, the consistent increase in the value of real estate, and the increasing number of business registrants, that would ensure collection targets are met.
The aggregate P2 billion hike in the national tax allocation of local government units in the five provinces, higher budget and funding for government infrastructure projects under the “Build Better More (BBM)” program and the Pambansang Pabahay para sa Pilipino Program are expected to contribute in the tax collection.
He said that in the past five years, Region 11 performed well in tax collection with an increasing yearly collection, except in 2020 when the collection dropped compared with 2019.
“For the calendar year 2023, actual collection was P15.9 billion, exceeding actual collection in 2022 by P1.22 billion or 8.25 percent increase in collection. However, compared to the goal, our region fell short by P668 million or a deficit of a negative 4 percent,“ he added.
He said shared partnership among taxpayers, BIR, and tax practitioners as key for the collection to succeed.
“To be successful, all of us do our fair share of our sacred responsibility and duty in the tax collection process,” he added.
Catapia announced that BIR has gone digital and taxpayers can register their businesses and pay taxes from the comfort of their homes.
He said BIR has an online registration and update system (ORUS) that will provide online all registration-related transactions of taxpayers.
“We appeal to your responsibility and sense of patriotism for you to realize that paying your correct taxes is your sacred duty in making our beloved country a better place to live with, for our children, our children’s children, and the next generation to come,” he added.
During the launch program, BIR 11 awarded the Top 5 taxpayers in individual, non-individual, and national government agencies/local government unit (LGU) categories.Perla Lena/PNA
