Balikbayan Boxes Worth Up To P150,000 And Below Will Be Tax-Free Starting December 25

Starting December 25, Christmas Day, Balikbayan boxes worth up to P150,000 and below sent by Filipino Overseas Workers (OFWs) will be exempted from taxes.

On Sunday, the Bureau of Customs and the Department of Finance have signed Customs Administrative Order (CAO) 05-2016, which concerns the consolidated shipment of said boxes.

Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon was quoted as saying that the CAO 05-2016  serves as the implementing rules and regulations on Section 800 (g) of the Customs and Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA) that covers balikbayan boxes.

The tax exemption will cover only balikbayan boxes sent through consolidated shipments by Filipinos abroad to their families and relatives in the Philippines.

Under the CMTA, QFWA are the following: 

1) holders of valid passports issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and certified by Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) or Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) for overseas employment purposes regardless of profession;

(2) non-resident Filipinos who have established permanent residency abroad but retained their Filipino citizenship; and,

(3) resident Filipino citizens who temporarily stay abroad (may include holders of student visa, investors' visa, tourist visa, and similar visas which allow them to establish temporary stay abroad).

*To be granted this privilege, the following requirements below must be met.

1) A QFWA shall submit  the following supporting documents

(2) A QFWA must accomplish, sign and submit the Information Sheet, which will be issued by BOC and will serve as the packing list;

(3) The international forwarder and/or consolidator shall submit these Information Sheets and supporting documents in a secured electronic format to local (Philippine) forwarder and/or deconsolidator; and

(4) The local forwarder and/or deconsolidator shall transmit to the Bureau the Information Sheet and supporting documents in a secured electronic format before the arrival of the balikbayan boxes to the Philippines and within the period prescribed below.

*For consolidated shipments by sea:

a. For shipments that will take 3-day shipping time: 24 hours prior to arrival;

b. For shipments that will take 7-day shipping time: 48 hours prior to arrival; and

c. For shipments coming from America, Europe, Middle East, and other parts of the world that does not fall under the above shipping time: 10 days prior to arrival.

*For consolidated shipments carried by aircraft:

a. For those coming from Asia - 1 hour prior to arrival

b. For those coming from other countries - 6 hours prior to arrival

(5) A QFWA shall also certify that only personal effects and household goods, which shall not be in commercial quantities, are sent through balikbayan boxes.

With this, Faeldon asked all international and local forwarders, foreign consolidators and local deconsolidators to strictly follow these guidelines, to enable customs to expedite clearance procedures, and for them to ensure that all balikbayan boxes are delivered to their receiver with utmost care.

In November, Senators Ralph Recto and Juan Edgardo Angara urged the BOC to immediately implement the CMTA in view of the expected high number of OFWs coming home for Christmas.

Source : GMA