During its hearing on Monday, February 23, the tourism committee deliberated on bills that sought to grant exemptions from the travel tax and to abolish it altogether. However, as Chair Eleandro Jesus Madrona pointed out, if Congress ultimately passes a measure scrapping the travel tax, the exemption bills would become unnecessary. "If the travel tax is repealed without a replacement revenue source, CHED's HEDF will lose 85.6% of its funding, which comes 40% of the travel tax. This is a structural loss that directly affects scholarships, research and institutional upgrading, and tourism education programs nationwide," she said. Agrupis also explained that travel tax revenues also help sustain 5.4 million students enrolled in 1,906 higher education institutions nationwide.

Source: Philippine Star February 24, 2026 01:34 UTC