THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)’s digital transformation to boost revenue collection would get $809,450 (about P38.85 million) from the United States Trade and Development Agency (USTDA).
This after Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III and Chargé d’ Affaires John Law of the US Embassy in Manila (on behalf of the USTDA) signed the grant agreement last Tuesday. A statement said the grant is expected to provide the “much-needed financing” for BIR’s “Information Communication Technology Modernization Strategy and Data Center.”
The signing of the agreement comes as the government is hoping to raise more revenues this year to cover the expected higher budget deficit at P1.78 trillion or 8.9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). State revenues were down last year after the GDP posted two consecutive quarters of contraction.
The BIR managed to surpass its adjusted collection target by taking advantage of digital reforms, according to Dominguez.
“Now more than ever, we need more revenues to fund not only our Covid-19 response, but also our economic recovery program,” Dominguez said in his speech during the signing ceremony that was held at the Department of Finance office in Manila.
“A highly efficient revenue collection system, therefore, is critical to help us recover strongly from this pandemic and build back the best possible future for our people,” he added.
In 2020, the finance chief said 85 percent or P1.66 trillion of the total collections of the BIR was coursed through electronic channels, which was 44-percent higher than in 2015.
Moreover, Dominguez said “almost 100 percent” of the tax returns filed was done online last year.
“These figures are projected to dramatically increase in the coming years as the BIR accelerates its digital transformation,” he said.
For his part, Law said he is “confident that this USTDA grant will lead to “further efficiencies, improved performance, increased security, reduced costs and greater transparency—all of which are not only vital to the BIR’s tax administration duties, but are extraordinarily important in further strengthening the confidence of the public in its government institutions.”
“This partnership for us illustrates our continued close collaboration on economic development and transparency, including, of course Philippine digital infrastructure modernization,” Law said. “The United States is proud and honored to be one of your partners in this effort.”
The US grant aims to assist the BIR in undertaking an in-depth technical assessment of its current ICT environment, developing an Enterprise Architecture roadmap/framework, and assessing the organizational framework of its Information System Group (ISG), including recommended restructuring and training programs.
For 2021, BIR and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) are targeting to collect a total of P2.698 trillion, higher by 23.2 percent from the P2.19 trillion downscaled target in 2020.
The BIR and BOC are tasked to collect
P2.081 trillion and P616.7 billion this year, respectively. Last year, BIR collected P1.94 trillion, exceeding its P1.685 trillion downgraded target while the Bureau of Customs’ revenue-take stood at P539.7 billion, which was also above its adjusted goal of P506.2 billion.
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