Press Release

WAR VS. TAX EVADERS. Bureau of Internal Revenue Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. during a press briefing after filing tax evasion cases against large-scale illicit vape businesses before the Department of Justice in Manila on April 29, 2025. Lumagui on Thursday (May 8) said the BIR will press forward with criminal charges against unregistered and non-compliant players in the growing vape market. (Photo courtesy of BIR)

MANILA – The Philippine government’s crackdown on illicit trade is intensifying, with tax authorities vowing to press forward with criminal charges against unregistered and non-compliant players in the growing vape market.

This was assured by Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. during a television interview on Thursday, according to a news release on Friday.

“There will be no letup in our fight against illicit trade. Just recently, we filed criminal cases against importers of vape products. This shows that that the campaign against the illicit trade on vape products is continuous and we will not stop until we address this issue,” Lumagui said in Filipino.

The BIR chief was referring to the tax evasion cases it filed on April 29 before the Department of Justice against large-scale illicit vape businesses for failure to pay PHP8.68 billion in taxes.

The charges involve illegal vape traders selling the brand names Flava, Denkat and Flare.

Lumagui stressed that the campaign’s reach extends beyond distributors and importers.

“All those involved in the trade of untaxed vape products, including sellers, endorsers and influencers, could face tax evasion charges under the tax code,” he said.

To avoid liability, Lumagui said sellers and endorsers could check on the list of registered vape brands in the BIR website.

The BIR has increased enforcement actions across the country, building on recent efforts that include the seizure of smuggled vape products and the destruction of PHP3.26 billion worth of contraband in coordination with the Bureau of Customs.

Since the BIR implemented the vape stamp system in June 2024 and tightened coordination with the Department of Trade and Industry, excise tax collections from vape products have increased significantly.

In 2023, only 11.2 million milliliters were removed or charged PHP223.75 million in excise taxes. That figure jumped to 130 million milliliters and PHP942 million in collections just six months after the stamping system was put in place. (PR)