BIR tax collections surpass P3 trillion mark

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January 15, 2026 | 12:00am

Trust-based reforms in 2025

MANILA, Philippines — The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) closed 2025 with a late-year rebound that pushed full-year tax collections past the P3-trillion mark, reversing a mid-year slowdown and strengthening confidence in the agency’s shift toward a trust-based tax system.

Preliminary data showed total collections reached P3.105 trillion, net of refunds, up by 8.62 percent from 2024.

While the figure fell short of the P3.232-trillion target, the BIR said the outcome remained strong given the agency’s deliberate suspension of audit operations during a major institutional reform phase.

The year opened with double-digit growth, but momentum weakened in the second semester as revenue expansion slowed beginning in July and dropped to nearly one percent in October.

When new leadership assumed office in mid-November, only two weeks remained in the month. Even so, revenue growth recovered to 2.7 percent in November and accelerated to 8.62 percent in December, signaling what the BIR described as a rapid restoration of taxpayer confidence.

Collections reached P199.55 billion in December, one of the strongest monthly performances of the year, lifting fourth-quarter revenues to P782.68 billion and pushing full-year collections beyond P3 trillion.

BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said the turnaround was driven not by stepped-up pressure on taxpayers but by the restoration of credibility in the system.

“Even while audits were paused, taxpayers continued to pay. That tells us that predictability, fairness, and institutional trust are now driving compliance,” Mendoza said.

He added that the bureau’s transition from enforcement-heavy methods to credibility-based administration is now delivering measurable results.

The improved revenue trajectory also provides a firmer base for the BIR’s 2026 reform rollout, which will include audit restructuring, legal safeguards and expanded digital systems.