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President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Finance Undersecretary Charlito “Charlie” Mendoza as the new Commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), replacing Romeo “Jun” Lumagui Jr.
The appointment was confirmed by the Presidential Communications Office on Wednesday. Prior to this new role, Mendoza served as the Department of Finance (DOF) Undersecretary for the Revenue Operations Group.
PH Commitment to Crypto Tax Framework
In June 2025, DOF stated in a press release that Mendoza, in his then-capacity as Finance Undersecretary, led the Philippine delegation at the 8th Asia Initiative Meeting in the Maldives. At that event, he formally “signified” the country’s pledge to adopt the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) by 2028.
CARF is a global standard that mandates the automatic exchange of crypto-asset information between tax authorities to combat cross-border tax evasion. The Philippines was one of 68 jurisdictions to commit to the framework.
Previous public statements from Finance Secretary Ralph Recto said much about the eventual tax reporting framework for the digital asset market:
“We need faster and stronger systems for collaboration if we are to beat tax evasion and illicit transactions. This is a timely commitment as digital currency becomes one of the preferred means for transactions. The government must ensure that crypto-asset users are paying their fair share of taxes and that no illicit financial activity goes unpunished.”
Ralph Recto, Secretary, Department of Finance, on June 17, 2025 (source)
The finance secretary has previously estimated the value of cryptocurrency investments held by Filipinos at ₱6 trillion (approx. $107 billion), a figure that appears to have been taken from a previous data from Chainalysis.
BIR Revenue Target
The new commissioner takes leadership of the BIR as the agency works to meet its full-year 2025 adjusted target of ₱3.219 trillion.
To reach this goal, the bureau must collect approximately ₱897 billion by the end of the year. In October, Mendoza himself commented on the collection challenges, stating, “We might not be able to meet our tax revenues, but we will be able to cover for that from our non-tax revenues.”
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This article is published on BitPinas: New BIR Chief Previously Led PH Push for Crypto Tax Framework by 2028
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