BOC orders cement firm to pay P2.19-M fine

TCC Cement Corp. (TCCP Phils.), one of the biggest importers of cement into the country, is in hot water with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) for allegedly underdeclaring the volume of its cement shipments.

Official documents show that the customs bureau recently fined TCC Phils. P2.19 million for underdeclaring the quantity of some of its shipments from April to June this year. The said shipments were imported by TCC Phils. from its parent-company, Taiwan Cement Corp. (TCC), and were brought into the country through the Manila International Container Port.

Initial reports from the BOC also found instances of duplicate and tampered import entries filed by TCC Phils. Specifically, the committee noted several instances when TCC Phils. used one and the same invoice for two import entries. Some entries, on the other hand, were filed without the mandatory bill of lading, while several others contained erasures on invoices and other import documents. The matter has been referred to the office of Deputy Commissioner Rey Allas of the intelligence and enforcement group for further investigation.

The BOC is also investigating another importer, the Cebu-based Stanphil Industries, Inc., for allegedly filing tampered invoices for certain cement shipments brought in through the Bacolod and Iloilo ports. According to the bureau, Stanphil, in one instance, declared the taxable value of a cement shipment at $108,120, or way below the $289,000 taxable value indicated in its commercial invoice. For this shipment alone, the discrepancy of $180,000 resulted in foregone government revenues of roughly P1.2 million.

Earlier, the BOC had noted several cases of undervaluation involving at least three cement importers, which had declared the value of their shipments at a lower level than the prevailing import prices of cement. This prompted the bureau to order the recall of a number of import entries submitted by these importers for a closer "re-assessment."

Another method that some importers were found to have used is the misclassification of the cement they bring into the country, or falsely declaring their cement imports as another product that falls under a lower tariff bracket. While not as widespread as the other methods, there are fears that the practice of misclassification may become rampant, now that government has imposed a P20.60 tariff per bag of imported cement.