ALBAY Representative Joey Salceda said that he had filed a bill that aims to incentivize the use of e-motorcycles, to which it includes the list of electric vehicles benefiting from tariff reduction.

In a statement, Salceda said that House Bill 9573 was made as an amendment for Executive Order No. 12 series of 2022.

It aims to modify the tariff rates for certain EVs and their parts and components to boost green transportation in the country.

Also, the lawmaker noted that while e-motorcycles were the most affordable electric vehicles and may be a possible solution to congestion, they were not included in the current measure.

"Some 60 percent of electric vehicles are two-wheeled, meaning that the vast majority of electric vehicles do not benefit from the tax incentives granted under the law... encouraging electric cars while locking out electric motorcycles does not address congestion issues, but merely substitutes petroleum-fueled cars for their space on the road," Salceda said.

"In order to address these issues, this proposal clarifies in its definition of terms that electric vehicles include two-wheeled vehicles. Additionally, the measure provides a zero-percent duty treatment on completely-built electric vehicles to accelerate the shift to these types of vehicles," the lawmaker added.

Under EO 12, e-motorcycles are still subjected to a 30% tariff rate, while only two-wheeled e-vehicles not exceeding 250w and with a maximum speed of 25 km/hour have 0% import duties.