Don’t blame the Aquino administration for the proliferation of fake cigarette tax stamps, former Internal Revenue Commissioner Kim S. Jacinto-Henares said on Tuesday, as the Duterte administration looked into alleged tax arrears of homegrown manufacturer Mighty Corp. since 2013. “Everyone should not forget that it was during our time that the tax stamp system was implemented, although this has been mandated since 1998. She was referring to the Internal Revenue Stamps Integrated System (Irsis) on tobacco products, which has been implemented since late 2014 to ensure the collection of correct excise taxes. The BIR is investigating Mighty for millions of cigarette packs bearing counterfeit tax stamps, which deprives the government of revenue. Security featuresFinance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III earlier noted that eight of the 10 security features of the current tax stamps had already been copied by counterfeiters.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 14, 2017 17:26 UTC