House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” Marcos aims for the quick abolition of travel tax after filing a house bill anew Wednesday morning.
The House Bill No. 77443 also referred to as “The Travel Tax Abolition Act of 2026,” is meant to erase travel taxes as Marcos described it as a “huge burden to Filipinos,”
“At present, the Philippines imposes a fiscal burden on travelers by charging P2,700.00 for first-class passage and P1,620.00 for economy class,” Marcos said in the explanatory note of the act.
The Ilocos Norte 1st district representative added that a travel tax for a family of four could reach P6,480.00.
Marcos then highlighted that most ASEAN member states abolished their travel taxes for the promotion of their tourism, but the Philippines has become a regional outlier as it still imposes the levies.
“The continued imposition of the travel tax runs counter to the ASEAN Tourism Agreement of 2002, which obligates member states to progressively eliminate travel-related levies on ASEAN nationals,” he explained.
The travel taxes originally fund programs under different agencies such as Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
In line with the abolishment of the travel tax, Marcos called for the continuity of the programs with renewed funding from the annual General Appropriations Act (GAA).
“Increased traveler volume will stimulate tourism-dependent sectors, including hotels, transportation services, tour operations, and retail establishments, resulting in broader economic activity and job creation,” Marcos mentioned
Yesterday, Marcos filed a bill highlighting the implementation of the House Bill No. 7432, also known as the No Work, No Pay for Members of Congress Act.