TO encourage international vessels to register in the Philippines, the country’s shipping industry regulator has asked the Department of Finance (DOF) to remove withholding taxes included in registration fees.

If approved, shipping companies intending to register their vessels would instead pay revised tonnage dues, which are lower than the 4.5-percent tax.

According to a top official of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), a draft order regarding the said proposal has already undergone public hearing and will be ready for approval by transport officials within the next few months.

The said draft memorandum circular would simplify tonnage charges imposed on all vessels, as part of Marina’s bigger program to rationalize all government fees imposed on operators.

Once approved, the government would impose an across-the-board tonnage fee of P25 per gross tonnage (GT), or a minimum of P150 per ship.

The said order, which was supposed to be approved last year, would apply to all vessels, except to fishing boats of three gross tons and below which, in turn, would remit fees to their respective local government units.

“Annual tonnage fees shall be assessed on the total GT as of the end of December of the year immediately preceding the calendar year. A minimum payment, however, must cover the tonnage fee for at least one (1) ship,” the draft document said.

The said revised tonnage dues were also meant to replace supervision fees which were repealed when the Domestic Shipping Development Act (Republic Act 9295) was enacted in 2004.

Last year, the Commission on Audit asked Marina to replace supervision fees with other types of revenue generating measures after it saw that the agency incurred losses just one year after the said charges were annulled.

According to financial statements submitted by Marina, the agency exceeded income expectations in 2004, when it reported that profits were nearly P10 million more than earlier projected.

But in 2005, just a year after the said fees were abolished, it posted losses of P37.17 million.

THE Philippines may lose billions of pesos in future investments from the country’s largest port operator if the government allows another company to process foreign cargo containers at the Port of Manila, the country’s port agency warned.

TO encourage international vessels to register in the Philippines, the country’s shipping industry regulator has asked the Department of Finance (DOF) to remove withholding taxes included in registration fees.