BOC DOUBLES SURPLUS TAX TAKE IN FEBRUARY

THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) under Commissioner Ariel F. Nepomuceno, announced nearly doubling its tax collection surplus in February compared to the start of the year despite the expected sluggish flow of trade due to the nearly month-long closure of factories in mainland China due to its long Chinese New Year celebration.

Data provided by the Financial Service showed the agency collected ₱73.798 billion in February, surpassing its ₱72.592 billion target by 17.7 percent equivalent to ₱1.206 billion.

Year-on-year, the figure is also a notable improvement compared to its February 2025 collection of ₱71.765 billion or an increase of 2.8 percent equivalent to ₱2.033 billion.

The surplus, moreover, nearly doubled the agency’s surplus collection compared to the previous month.

In January, the BOC reported to Department of Finance Secretary Frederick Go that it collected a surplus of ₱513 million (Pinoy Exposé, February 3, 2026).

In the first two months of the year, the BOC’s aggregate collection now totals ₱154.747 billion that also represents a 2.5 percent increase, or ₱3.729 billion, compared to the same period last year.

Commissioner Nepomuceno underscored the agency’s commitment to sustaining and building upon this momentum, while recognizing the collective effort and contribution of the men and women of the BOC behind the achievement.

“The entire Bureau delivered more than the expected financial target for February.

“This is contrary to the expectation that, during the month of the Chinese New Year, bumababa yung collection natin,” he pointed out.

“But we were able to prove, with the efforts of everyone, especially our port collectors, that it can be done—with the proper assessment, with the stricter implementation of enforcement rules, and with the due diligence of our deputy commissioners, who keep on budging everyone to collect properly,” the Customs chief added.

Success in the anti-smuggling front

In another report, Commissioner Nepomuceno also lauded the success of the agency’s heightened campaign against all forms of smuggling that resulted to the confiscation of ₱1.8 billion worth of illicit cigarettes and more than ₱760 million in illegal drugs.

The accomplishment, the BOC said, only covers the period from the start of the year up to March 2.

Speaking during the BOC’s 1st Flag Raising Ceremony for the month last March 2, Commissioner Nepomuceno said the agency’s intensified, intelligence-led and inter-agency-coordinated enforcement operations are in line with the directive of Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to strengthen border security and combat illicit trade that resulted to hundreds of successful seizure actions across the country’s various ports of entry.

Among the Bureau’s significant accomplishments include:

• The seizure last February 9 of ₱272 million worth of shabu at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) declared as “marble” and left abandoned at the Sub-Port of North Harbor on its arrival last December 31. It ranks as the BOC’s largest illegal drug haul thus far this year.
• The seizure of ₱634.858 million worth of smuggled cigarettes across Western Mindanao and Zamboanga City during a grueling 24-hours operation last February 248 (see related article here).
• — the largest single-day cigarette-related crackdown since 2025. These operations signal the BOC’s sustained and aggressive push to dismantle smuggling networks, combatting the proliferation of smuggled tobacco products that may undermine public health and deprive the government of lawful revenues.

In 2025, Commissioner Nepomuceno also noted that the BOC conducted 1,024 interdiction operations, including 143 drug seizures valued at ₱5.630 billion and 317 cigarette-related seizures amounting to ₱1.8 billion.

The Customs chief attributed these results to stronger inter-agency cooperation and robust data-sharing with its partner-agencies in the government.

 “Our personal relationships with other heads of agencies are very strong, and this is the main reason why inter-agency trust is now high and effective,” he emphasized.