THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) on Monday reported collecting P784.54 billion in the first 10 months of the year, exceeding the year-earlier result and also its target for the period.

The revenue take was P44.445 billion more than the P740.095 billion recorded in January-October 2023 and P4.550 billion over the 10-month goal of P779.99 billion.

The agency said that it was close to hitting its P939.7 billion revised full-year target for 2024.

In October alone, the agency collected P89.502 billion, surpassing the P86.102-billion goal for the month by P3.4 billion.

Customs chief Bienvenido Rubio attributed the increase to efficient and accurate duty and tax collections backed by thorough verification of the imported goods' values and classifications.

Rubio said that Customs had also benefited from key initiatives like the value-added tax refund program and the fuel marking scheme.

The bureau also secured P3.35 billion from tax credit certificates, he added, further enhancing revenues for the period.

"We are resolute with our commitment to strengthening our collection capabilities and promoting fiscal growth," Rubio said.

"Our efforts are directed toward driving sustainable development and advancing our nation's economic resilience," he added.

Last month, Finance Secretary Ralph Recto said that tax collections by the BoC and the Bureau of Internal Revenue could fall short of the target this year but added that the overall revenue goal could still be hit via higher non-tax revenues.

Latest Treasury data show that the BoC was 0.46 percent short of target as of end-September, with cumulative collections at P690.7 billion. The BIR, meanwhile, was 0.98-percent behind, with its take having hit P2.095 trillion.

Non-tax revenues for the nine-month period were 52.3 percent higher at P481.1 billion.

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