MANILA – The Department of Energy (DOE) on Friday reminded oil industry players to not to impose the second round of fuel excise taxes starting January 2018 on petroleum stocks obtained in 2018.
Oil companies must first use up their 2018 oil inventories before applying the second round of the excise tax on petroleum products for 2019, under the Duterte administration’s Tax Reform for Acceleration and inclusion (TRAIN) law.
TRAIN imposed a P2.50 per liter excise tax on diesel from zero and hiked the levy on gasoline to P7.00 per liter starting Jan. 1, 2018. The measure was signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte in December 2017.
Under TRAIN, fuel excise taxes will go up by another P2.00 per liter starting Jan. 1, 2019. This means that the excise tax on diesel will go up to P4.50 and gasoline to P9.00.
“With the imposition of the additional excise taxes, we are stringently looking at the 2018 inventories of oil companies in order to protect consumers from unjust trading and profiteering once the second tranche is operationalized,” Energy secretary Alfonso Cusi said.
“The sale of old stocks, referring to the remaining balance of the inventory ending Dec. 31, 2018, which was not covered by the second tranche of excise taxes, should not be collected from consumers,” Cusi said.
Violators face administrative penalties such as closure of the enterprise and criminal penalty of large scale estafa.
In close coordination with the Department of Finance, Bureau of Customs, and Bureau of Internal Revenue, the DOE has devised a mechanism to closely monitor existing inventories after the once the new round of excise taxes are in place.
“We are ready to implement the second tranche of TRAIN, which imposes additional excise taxes to various commodities like petroleum products by New Year,” Cusi said.
“We have to ensure the proper implementation of the second tranche of TRAIN, because the new collection will be used to support our ‘Build Build Build’ programs, free tuition fee, and medical assistance for our kababayans,” he said. (GMA News)
