The bill that seeks to abolish the travel tax, filed by lawmakers led by House Majority Leader Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” A. Marcos of Ilocos Norte, moved a step closer to plenary consideration after the House Committee on Ways and Means on Monday approved the unnumbered substitute measure consolidating several proposals to scrap the levy.
During a hearing presided over by Marikina Rep. Miro Quimbo, chairman of the committee, House Deputy Majority Leader Ernesto “Ernix” Dionisio of Manila, the panel’s senior vice chair, moved for the approval of the substitute bill.
“I would like to move now that we approve subject to style sections 2 and 3 of the unnumbered substitute bill of House Bill Nos. 7443, 7367, 7612, 7703, 7757, 150, 3529, 3890, 4793, 5821, 6228, 6979, 7155, 7307, 7631, 7695, and 7758, entitled ‘AN ACT ABOLISHING THE TRAVEL TAX, I so move Mr. Chair,” Dionisio said.
Quimbo, hearing no objection, declared the motion approved, effectively advancing the measure that seeks to scrap the decades-old levy imposed on departing Filipino travelers.
It will now be taken up by the House Committee on Appropriations for further deliberations.
Representatives from the Department of Finance (DOF) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) aired support for the proposal during the hearing.
The Marikina City solon said that while programs funded by travel tax collections remain important, their funding should come directly from the national budget instead of relying on the number of travelers.
“Allow me to bounce off from last week’s session on the issue of the travel tax. Narinig na natin sa mga ahensya ang mga programang pinopondohan ng Travel Tax - para sa turismo, edukasyon at kultura. Kinikilala natin na importante ang lahat ng ito - pero hindi ito dapat magpatuloy at the expense and sacrifice of our Filipino travelers na karamihan ay middle class at kabataan,” Quimbo said.
“Dahil importante ito, dapat pinopondohan ito directly ng National Budget or ang General Appropriations Act. The survival of these programs should not be dependent on the number of travelers. They are far too important to be dependent on unpredictable numbers,” Quimbo added.
He emphasized that the tax system should remain progressive and should not place an undue burden on ordinary Filipinos.
“Today, there are tens of millions of middle-class Filipinos whose voices, together with the poorest of the poor, are too often unheard in policy discussions. As Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, I must emphasize a basic principle that this committee shall continue to uphold: our tax system must remain progressive,” he said.
“Hindi natin maaaring payagan na maging regressive ang ating sistema ng pagbubuwis—na ang pondo para sa mahahalagang programa ng gobyerno ay nanggagaling sa bulsa ng mga ordinaryong Pilipino na nagsisikap lamang makaahon sa buhay,” Quimbo added.
The substitute bill consolidates several proposals seeking to repeal the travel tax, including HB 7443 filed by Marcos and similar measures authored by other lawmakers.
The proposal seeks to repeal the travel tax imposed under Presidential Decree No. 1183 and related provisions of the Tourism Act of 2009, with funding for programs currently supported by the levy to be provided through the General Appropriations Act.
Earlier, the House Committee on Tourism chaired by Romblon Rep. Eleandro Jesus Madrona approved measures seeking the abolition of the travel tax.
Travel tax collections currently fund programs of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
Lawmakers backing the measure said abolishing the levy would ease travel costs for Filipinos, particularly middle-class families and young travelers, while ensuring that tourism, education, and cultural programs continue to receive funding through the national budget.