Independently-funded studies show the Philippines hurting from the disappearance of up to 1.6 bn packs of cigarettes worth an estimated P28.7 bn each year, making imperative the adoption of technology helping revenue units deal with rampant smuggling of tobacco products. The high cost of smuggling, at 47% of the annual tax take from excisable products, is nearly half the more or less P60 bn the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) actually collected each year from sin-product makers.rnNotes from legislative proceedings looking into a possible adoption of proprietary technology show this number uncovered by research conducted by the United States Assistance for International Development and by another study done by a Filipino researcher. Swiss-based Sicpa Products SA has proposed a technology-driven solution already helping countries such as Brazil and Malaysia deal with the Illicit global trade on tobacco products with the help of bar-coded or fuse-on excise stamps.
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