THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said it flagged 506 sellers of illicit vape products as of the end of October after nationwide raids.
The BIR estimated a tax liability worth P181.70 million, inclusive of penalties, through the continuous raids.
After the nationwide raid carried out on Oct. 16, there was a “substantial increase of elicit vape stores,” BIR Commissioner Romeo D. Lumagui, Jr. said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Non-payment of excise taxes, lack of internal revenue stamps, and lack of BIR registration of the vape products are the common violations of illicit vape retailers/resellers,” it said.
An estimated P1 billion collections from applications for vape stamps were collected from June to date in the repository system of the BIR. However, this is not enough to fill in the excise tax gap for the year as the program just started, and level of awareness. — Aubrey Rose A. Inosante
