The Philippine government is setting its sights on ₱5.5 trillion in total revenues by 2028, with the Department of Finance (DOF) banking on stronger tax collections, tighter compliance and new tax reforms to reach the ambitious target.
Finance Secretary Frederick Go said tax collections are projected to grow by an average of 9% annually from 2026 to 2028, putting total government revenues at ₱5.5 trillion by the end of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s term. The DOF expects revenues to climb further to more than ₱6 trillion by 2030.
The target comes as the administration prepares to push both collection agencies and tax reforms. The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and Bureau of Customs (BOC) are expected to improve collection efficiency, strengthen taxpayer compliance and use technology more aggressively to reduce leakages.
BIR already ahead of its midyear target
The government’s revenue push is already showing some results.
From January to July 2026, the BIR collected ₱2.003 trillion, exceeding its seven-month target of ₱1.990 trillion by about ₱13.53 billion, or 0.68%, according to figures cited by GMA News.
The BOC is also under pressure to raise collections. Earlier this year, Customs officials said the bureau was aiming to breach the ₱1-trillion mark in 2026, with petroleum and agricultural products among its major revenue drivers. Officials have also pointed to stronger enforcement, digitalization and anti-smuggling operations as ways to improve collections.
But the government’s bigger revenue ambition comes with an apparent balancing act: collect more while simultaneously giving some taxpayers relief.
Marcos wants a higher tax-free income threshold
During his fifth State of the Nation Address in July, Marcos asked Congress to raise the annual income-tax exemption threshold from ₱250,000 to ₱350,000.
That proposal would allow workers earning up to ₱350,000 annually to remain exempt from personal income tax, while the administration also wants corresponding reductions for some other income brackets. The President additionally called for small businesses to be exempted from the 2% minimum corporate income tax for a period of 12 months.
The proposal has received support from the Department of Labor and Employment, which said a higher exemption ceiling could allow more workers to keep a larger share of their income.
Congress has already begun moving on the proposal. House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III said lawmakers were prepared to prioritize measures expanding the tax exemption to ₱350,000, reducing taxes for other workers, providing relief to small businesses and granting tax amnesty on certain unpaid taxes.
So where will the additional revenue come from?
The DOF is also counting on new tax measures.
Among those being considered are the Multinational Minimum Tax Bill and the General Tax Amnesty Bill. The former is intended to help the Philippines preserve taxing rights over income generated by multinational companies, while the latter could encourage taxpayers with outstanding obligations to settle their liabilities and return to the formal tax system.
The DOF and BIR have also begun drafting legislation to implement the Global Minimum Tax, which is designed to discourage multinational companies from shifting taxable income to jurisdictions with lower tax rates.
The Philippines has separately been working on international tax arrangements. In June, the Philippine News Agency reported that the government was negotiating or working on double-taxation agreements with 10 countries, while the DOF was pushing for the multinational minimum tax measure.
The bigger fiscal picture
The ₱5.5-trillion figure should also be understood as a projection, not money already collected or guaranteed.
Earlier government fiscal projections had placed revenue targets at different levels depending on the economic assumptions and revisions being used. The current ₱5.5-trillion projection specifically reflects the DOF’s latest expectation of roughly 9% annual tax-collection growth through 2028.
That distinction matters because revenue performance depends on economic growth, consumption, imports, inflation, taxpayer compliance, legislation and the effectiveness of collection agencies.
For taxpayers, the administration’s strategy therefore presents two seemingly opposing directions: collect more from the economy while reducing the tax burden for selected workers and small businesses.
The government’s argument is that better compliance, stronger enforcement and new tax measures can broaden the revenue base enough to offset some tax relief.
Whether that equation works will depend on how quickly Congress acts on the proposed reforms—and whether the BIR and BOC can continue beating their collection targets without placing additional pressure on compliant taxpayers.
For now, ₱5.5 trillion is the government’s number to beat by 2028. The bigger question is whether stronger collection systems and new tax reforms can produce that amount while Filipinos actually feel the promised relief.
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