The Department of Finance (DoF) categorically refuted reports alleging the imposition of new taxes and stressed that there is no need for additional revenue measures at this time, given the government’s robust fiscal position.

Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto on Tuesday said that the government is properly managing its finances, ensuring that public needs are met without burdening the citizenry with new taxes.

The Finance Chief explained that as the government’s chief steward of fiscal discipline, the DoF upholds the vital responsibility of securing ample resources to safeguard the economy, especially in times of crisis.

“Strategic measures were prepared to ensure fiscal sustainability and provide necessary buffers amid rising global economic uncertainty due to political tensions, prolonged higher interest rates, and unpredictable trade policies. But given our current strong fiscal performance, these are not needed at this time,” he said.

Secretary Recto particularly highlighted the strong double-digit growth of tax collections in the first quarter of the year, which reaffirms the country’s fiscal stability.

For the first quarter of 2025, total tax collections increased by 13.55% to P931.5 billion. Of which, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) posted P690.4 billion in collections, 16.67% higher than the same period last year. Similarly, BoC’s collections grew by 5.72%, reaching PHP 231.4 billion.

This was primarily due to both revenue agencies’ continued success in strengthening tax administration, digitalization, and enforcement efforts.

“At this point, current revenues are more than sufficient to support our expenditure requirements. We are meeting our obligations, funding key programs, and growing the economy without having to impose new taxes on our kababayan,” he stressed.

“We are also decisively managing our deficit level, while maintaining a sustainable debt trajectory aligned with our Medium-Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF),” he added.

To sustain this momentum, the DoF is committed to ensuring the successful implementation of critical measures that would retain and attract more investments as well as generate more revenues for the government, such as the CREATE MORE Act; the Ease of Paying Taxes (EOPT) Act; the amendments to the Foreign Investment Act, the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and the Public Service Act; and the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Code, among other measures.

At the same time, the DoF will continue to explore and strengthen non-tax revenue sources to meet the revenue targets set out in the Budget of Expenditures and Sources of Financing (BESF).

Meanwhile, the Cabinet secretary cautioned the public against disinformation, particularly with the national elections less than three weeks away.

“Disinformation tends to proliferate during the elections, especially online. With regard to fiscal policy such as taxes, we encourage the public to be more discerning, to verify information on social media, and to rely on statements from official government channels.”

Mr. Recto assured the public that fiscal policies adopted in recent years have strengthened the economy and that the government remains committed to balancing growth and stability without levying new taxes.

Spotlight is BusinessWorld’s sponsored section that allows advertisers to amplify their brand and connect with BusinessWorld’s audience by publishing their stories on the BusinessWorld Web site. For more information, send an email to online@bworldonline.com.

Join us on Viber at https://bit.ly/3hv6bLA to get more updates and subscribe to BusinessWorld’s titles and get exclusive content through www.bworld-x.com.