A Philippine lawmaker has moved to abolish travel taxes for Filipinos departing the country, arguing that the levy restricts the right to travel and runs counter to regional tourism commitments.
According to PhilStar Global, in a bill filed in the Senate, Senator Erwin Tulfo said the travel tax, imposed on all departing Filipino passengers except certain exempt groups, should be scrapped in line with the ASEAN Tourism Agreement, which the Philippines signed in 2002 to promote freer movement across Southeast Asia.
“Nearly 14 years since the Philippines signed the ASEAN Tourism Agreement, we still impose travel tax,” Tulfo said, calling the measure a step toward making travel “more equitable, accessible and reasonably priced for Filipinos.”
Currently, travelers pay between PHP1,620 ($27.63) and PHP2,700 ($46.03) for economy to first-class tickets, with reduced rates of PHP810 ($13.80) to PHP1,350 ($23) and PHP300 ($5.13) to PHP400 ($6.84) for dependents of overseas Filipino workers.
Half of travel-tax revenues go to the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, 40 percent to the Commission on Higher Education and 10 percent to the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
