The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) flagged 25 of 65 gasoline stations tested during the first three days of its large-scale Fuel Marking enforcement drive across Luzon, with affected fuel inventories placed under prescribed procedures pending confirmatory testing and further action.

BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin R. Mendoza said the agency is making greater use of Fuel Marking and other enforcement tools to identify tax leakages and protect compliant businesses from unfair competition.

“We are making fuller use of Fuel Marking and our other enforcement tools to identify revenue leakages, act on them quickly, and protect compliant businesses from unfair competition in the petroleum sector,” Mendoza said.

Fuel Marking is used to detect possible tax noncompliance involving gasoline, diesel and kerosene. A special chemical marker is added to petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel, and kerosene. The marker is not a visible dye, with authorized personnel using field-testing equipment to determine whether the required marker is present and at the prescribed level.

Petroleum products that fail field tests are subjected to inventory, sealing or padlocking, and confirmatory testing procedures.

If noncompliance is confirmed, the BIR will determine the applicable taxes, penalties and other amounts due and pursue the appropriate enforcement, assessment and collection actions under existing laws and regulations.

The operations, which began on 17 August, will continue for several weeks, with BIR enforcement teams deployed across Luzon in coordination with the Bureau of Customs (BOC). The authorized Fuel Marking Service Provider is conducting fuel sampling and testing in accordance with existing rules.

“This is not a one-time operation. We will continue using Fuel Marking and our other enforcement tools wherever the risk of tax leakage is high, and we will expand these operations to other parts of the country,” Mendoza said.

Under existing rules, taxpayers may request corrective marking of affected petroleum products after settling applicable tax liabilities and meeting prescribed requirements. The authorized service provider may then conduct corrective marking, followed by the appropriate lifting or unsealing procedures.

The fuel-marking campaign is being carried out alongside other BIR enforcement activities, including inventory stock-taking, registration and invoicing verification, and Tax Compliance Verification Drive operations.

While the current deployment covers Luzon, the BIR said the initiative will eventually expand to other parts of the country.