Japan Tobacco seeks 3-mo transition period

MANILA, Philippines - Japan Tobacco International Philippines (JTIP) Inc., which produces Winston and Mild Seven cigarette brands, is seeking a transition period of at least three months to affix the new tax stamps on its products.

In a letter to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), JTIP president and general manager Manousos Koukourakis said while the company fully supports the government’s stamp tax project, a reasonable transition period is necessary for imports as well as for products manufactured here.

“Under the current scheme, a lead time of at least three months is needed for (JTIP) to import its products. This period includes the placement of product orders with our overseas manufacturer/supplier, the advance requisitioning and pre-payment of tax stamps for sending abroad, stamp affixture on our products as the place of production as well as shipment and arrival of the products in the country,” Koukourakis said.

The BIR hopes to implement the use of secured tax stamps for cigarettes beginning this month in order to closely monitor product supply and sales.

The official tax stamps on products indicate that all tax obligations of the manufacturer have been settled.

Stamp size was also a concern for JTIP, which raked in revenues of $12.3 billion as of the end of December 2013.

Koukourakis also asked the government to take into account “practical realities, such as the lot size order, total industry production and the printing plant’s production capacity.”

“We assume that the government designated printer will be able to accommodate the entire industry’s demand,” JTIP said.