The study presents the collection performance of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) during the period 1991-2000. It notes that the BOC remains the second largest tax contributor to the government coffers, contributing on the average 27.8% of the national government (NG) tax revenue from 1991 to 2000. However, the trend of its collection was erratic for the last 10 years due to the various tax legislation enacted during the period and that the over-all effective tax rate (ETR) was declining through the years as the BOC collection was not able to keep pace with the continuous growth of the value of imports. The study recommends the following to further improve customs administration: (1) enhancement of the existing automated processes and the institution of new ones to address the present and emerging needs possibly to be extended to all ports of the country; (2) strict enforcement of laws and regulations providing for tax and duty exemptions to increase the ratio of dutiable goods to total imports; (3) close monitoring of importers who avail of the tax and duty exemptions under special laws; (4) full implementation of post-entry audit which allows customs authorities to scrutinize import transactions in an audit mode after the release of the goods; and (5) improved efficiency in arresting smuggling. Moreover, there is a need to improve trade databases that can be very helpful in forecasting revenue and analyzing import trade.
