The Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Monday issued an apology to actress Bela Padilla after she raised concerns online about being charged steep duties on an imported shipment worth ₱11,000.
Customs Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno said he personally reached out to Padilla through her manager to explain the situation and extend his apology.
“Nagpapaumanhin ako kay Ms. Bela at sa lahat ng ating kababayan na nagkaroon ng ganyang hindi magandang karanasan po sa BOC,” Nepomuceno said in a DZMM interview, admitting that similar issues also affect many Filipinos using e-commerce platforms. He added that while he has only been in the post for five weeks, fixing these problems is a priority.
Hi @CustomsPH good morning! I’m being charged 4,600 php in taxes for a shipment with an 11k php value. I used your online calculator and should only be charged 1,650. I usually shop online and get packages with more value so I more or less know when the taxes are too high even…
— Bela Padilla (@padillabela) August 16, 2025
Padilla earlier posted that she was billed ₱4,600 in taxes for her package, even though the BOC’s own online calculator indicated she should pay only around ₱1,650. “Surely, we shouldn’t pay almost half of the value of our item in taxes, no?” she wrote.
Nepomuceno explained that the agency’s online calculator was inaccurate because it failed to factor in elements such as freight costs and documentary stamps. He has since ordered it taken down, saying it only “causes confusion and doubt.”
One error in Padilla’s case was that her bill mistakenly included freight charges, even though her shipment from Korea qualified for free delivery. “Entitled pala siya sa libreng pagpapadala. Hindi po alam ng BOC ‘yun,” he said, stressing the need for better coordination with couriers like DHL to avoid similar mistakes.
The Customs chief assured the public that the agency is working on correcting these flaws. “Marami po kami na natatanggap na complaint,” he admitted, vowing to improve transparency and accuracy in billing computations.
