Jakarta – The government has collected Rp 991.2 trillion (US$73.20 billion) in taxes and excise duties from January to October, or 67.3 percent of the Rp 1.47 quadrillion targeted in the 2017 revised state budget, kontan.co.id reported on Wednesday.
The government collected Rp 858.05 trillion in taxes, or 66.8 percent of the year's Rp 1.28 quadrillion target, and Rp 126.94 trillion in excise duties, or 67.11 percent of the year's Rp 189.1 trillion target.
Although only 66.8 percent of the 2017 target has been collected, this reflects a year-on-year increase of 13 percent from Rp 867.93 trillion.
Tax revenue and compliance director Yon Arsal at the Directorate General of Taxation said that the tax office was still optimistic that it would be able to meet the targeted tax collection. "We do not talk about shortfalls," he added.
Meanwhile, Director General of Customs and Excise Heru Pambudi also expressed his optimism that his office could meet the revenue target, saying that based on the last two years, the collection of customs and excise would peak in December.
For example, Heru said, the customs and excise office collected Rp 47 trillion in tobacco excise in December 2016. (bbn).