BIR exec says tax collections decreased in 2020 amid COVID pandemic

An official from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said Monday that taxes collected in 2020 decreased by over 10% amid the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa, the BIR collected a total of P1.956 trillion last year, which was lower compared to the more than P2 trillion collected in 2019.

"If we compare the tax types, collected tax types from the year 2019, on a year-on-year collection, there is a negative of 10.53&% or a total of P230.13 billion," Guballa said in a House committee hearing.

"Actually if you relieve the P1.9 trillion collection of the bureau, if you compare sa 2019 na negative 10% kung ano 'yung economy noong 2020 na lockdown, it commensurates with the collection of the BIR of P1.9 trillion," he added.

The BIR said one of the reasons for the decrease in collection was the closure of some businesses. Data from the agency showed that a total of 119,596 businesses shut down their operations and "have a foregone revenue of P7.767 billion."

Despite the decrease, the BIR still exceeded its tax collection target for 2020 which was P1.69 trillion.

The BIR surpassed its target by 15.14% in January to December 2020 — the highest percentage ever recorded in the Bureau’s history for the past two decades. — RSJ, GMA News