Production hall cameras to ensure tax compliance

The Philippines’ Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has said it will require all domestic tobacco companies to install closed-circuit television cameras in their manufacturing halls and warehouses so that the government can monitor their production and ensure the payment of the correct taxes, according to a story in The Philippine Inquirer.

BIR Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares said the move would apply to all cigarette manufacturers, including market leader Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corporation (PMFTC) and rival Mighty Corporation (MC).

The announcement by the BIR came in the wake of the seizure recently of a large quantity of cigarettes not bearing tax stamps.

The apparently untaxed cigarettes were discovered during raids on various distribution and retail outlets in Batangas City and Talavera, Nueva Ecija, by anti-tax fraud agents.

The fraud division is now trying to establish where the seized goods originated.

Henares said the rule requiring all tobacco firms to install CCTVs at their plants would be included in a revenue regulation she would issue soon.

The BIR previously installed CCTVs at the Bulacan factory of Mighty Corporation, but Henares said the equipment was very expensive and that cigarette companies should buy it at their own expense.

In a press note and print notifications issued two weeks ago, PMFTC reminded all cigarette wholesalers and retailers that it was illegal to purchase cigarettes without the required tax stamp. “We will do all we can to support the success of the tax stamp system to ensure 100 percent tax paid compliance by all manufacturers,” the press note said.

It has been a BIR requirement since April 1 that all cigarette packs sold in the Philippines, whether locally manufactured or imported, should bear tax stamps.