Philippines Tax Bureau Files 75 Cases Against Illegal Vape Sellers, Liabilities Exceed $12.28 Million

Key Points:

• Scale of cases: 75 criminal complaints, with total liabilities amounting to ₱711.13 million.
• Enforcement background: Nationwide BIR raids uncovered large volumes of untaxed vape products, lacking excise stamps and proper registration.
• Charges: Tax evasion, unlawful possession or transfer of taxable goods, and failure to file excise tax returns.
• Follow-up: This move follows earlier major cases, including ₱1.2 billion (US$21.05 million) against the Tap Fog brand in 2024, and ₱8.7 billion (US$140.3 million) against large-scale illicit vape businesses such as Flava, Denkat, and Flare in April 2025.

According to a Philstar report, the BIR filed the cases on August 20, continuing its crackdown on the widespread sale of untaxed vape products.

BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui stated:

“We have filed cases against illicit vape traders. These are the retailers we raided, caught, and confiscated products from — and we confirmed that they failed to pay the excise taxes on the vapes they were selling.”

The cases stemmed from a series of nationwide enforcement operations, which uncovered rampant sales of untaxed vape products. Many lacked the required BIR excise tax stamps or registration. A large volume of illicit vape products was seized and confiscated during these operations.

Those implicated now face charges of tax evasion, unlawful possession or transfer of excise-taxed goods without payment, and failure to file excise tax returns.

This latest move is part of the BIR’s continuing campaign against the illicit vape market. Previously:

In February 2024, courts issued arrest warrants against the seller of Tap Fog vapes and associates for an estimated ₱1.2 billion in unpaid taxes.

In April 2025, the BIR filed tax evasion cases worth ₱8.7 billion against large-scale illicit vape businesses, including the brands Flava, Denkat, and Flare.

The BIR emphasized that it will continue to intensify enforcement efforts to ensure that all vape products comply with taxation and regulatory requirements, preventing untaxed products from flooding the market.