MANILA, Philippines — In a bid to shield low-income households from rising global energy costs, Finance Secretary Frederick D. Go signed a resolution removing excise taxes on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and kerosene.
Go announced the measure Tuesday during Senate deliberations on the Department of Finance’s (DOF) 2027 budget, following an appeal from Sen. Christopher Go to suspend excise taxes on petroleum products to provide relief to consumers.
Go said he signed the resolution late Monday evening, adding that the measure mirrored fiscal actions taken during the initial outbreak of conflict in the Middle East.
He said he had long pushed for tax relief on LPG and kerosene after global crude benchmark prices breached $80 per barrel.
Diesel, gasoline tax relief excluded The resolution excludes diesel and gasoline, with Go explaining that suspending excise taxes on major transport fuels would not constitute a progressive economic policy based on assessments conducted with the Development Budget Coordination Committee (DBCC).
“Removing excise taxes on diesel and gasoline would primarily benefit the wealthy, as they are the heaviest consumers of these fuels,” Go said, noting that higher-income households account for a significant share of private vehicle fuel consumption.
He added that suspending excise taxes on diesel and gasoline would result in an estimated ₱12 billion revenue loss for the national government.
Targeted Subsidies Preferred Instead of implementing across-the-board tax cuts on transport fuels, the DBCC agreed to retain existing excise tax rates on diesel and gasoline while providing targeted assistance to vulnerable sectors.
