MANILA, Philippines — Finance Secretary Frederick Go has expressed strong confidence that the Bureau of Customs (BOC) will finally achieve its P1.003-trillion revenue target in 2026, a goal that has remained elusive in previous years.
Speaking during the BOC’s 124th founding anniversary celebration on Friday, February 13, 2026, Go emphasized that reaching this target is critical for maintaining the government’s fiscal deficit ratio and supporting prudent fiscal management.
Revised Targets and Challenges
- The Target: The Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC) slightly trimmed the 2026 goal to P1.003 trillion (down from P1.013 trillion) due to lowered economic growth expectations.
- Past Performance: In 2025, the BOC fell short of its P958.7-billion goal by 2.5 percent, collecting P934.4 billion.
- The Daily Grind: To hit the new goal, BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno says the agency must collect approximately P4 billion to P4.2 billion per day, or P82 billion to P84 billion per month.
Key Revenue Drivers for 2026 Commissioner Nepomuceno highlighted several factors that will aid the agency this year:
- End of Rice Ban: The lifting of the rice import ban is a major factor. Last year, the ban caused the agency to lose an estimated P3 billion to P4 billion per month in foregone collections.
- Agriculture and Petroleum: Stricter enforcement and assessment of tariffs on these key commodities remain the agency’s primary revenue engines.
- Digitalization: The BOC is moving toward full digitalization within the year, which is expected to improve collection efficiency and oversight.
- January Success: The agency has already started strong, collecting P80.744 billion in January 2026—exceeding its monthly target by P513 million.
Digital Tax to Boost BIR In a related development, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Charlie Mendoza stated that the Value-Added Tax (VAT) on digital services is expected to generate P21 billion this year. This will help the BIR work toward its own P3.431-trillion target. The BIR collected P8 billion from this tax during the last five months of 2025 following its initial rollout.
Finance Secretary Go noted that the “new leadership” and ongoing reforms across the entire Bureau of Customs are the primary reasons for his optimism. Commissioner Nepomuceno echoed this, stating that the agency has even set internal targets higher than the official DBCC mark to create a surplus “buffer” for the coming months.