THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) marked 7.7 billion liters of fuel nationwide since the start of the fuel-marking program in September 2019 last year.
Despite the imposition of quarantine restrictions, the BOC continued to inject markers into 135.44 million liters of fuel in a bid to plug revenue leakages, especially at a time the country needs funds badly to properly respond to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a statement on Thursday, the BOC said the government has already marked 7.705 billion liters of fuel nationwide as of May 21.
Twenty petroleum companies participated in the program.
Of the total volume of marked fuel, Luzon accounted for 76 percent while Mindanao accounted for 20 percent and Visayas, 4 percent.
The government earlier said it aims to collect P20 billion this year following the full implementation of the fuel-marking program. This is equivalent to half of the estimated P40 billion in revenue lost to oil smuggling in the country.
Under Republic Act 10963, or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law, petroleum products that are refined, manufactured, or imported to the Philippines, such as but not limited to unleaded premium gasoline, kerosene, and diesel shall be marked by an official marking agent after payment of taxes and duties.
Fuel marking makes use of a unique chemical marker capable of being embedded at a molecular level in petroleum products—gasoline, diesel and kerosene—thereby enabling authorities to test, identify and distinguish petroleum products with paid excise taxes.
The Fuel Marking Program—spearheaded by the Department of Finance, BOC, BIR—was officially launched on August 2019 with the intention of putting a halt to illegal importation, manufacturin g and other fraudulent activities relating to the use and sale of petroleum products in the country.