Earlier this year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) announced Department Administrative Order (DAO) No 20-11 in connection with the Safeguard Measures Act (Republic Act No. 8800), levied on car imports, which imposes an additional safeguard duty of P 70,000 and P 110,000 per unit for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles respectively. In relation to this, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) has started to collect the provisional safeguard duty in the form of cash bond starting February 1, 2021 for imported vehicles.

Honda shall abide by the government’s directives on the matter, and at the same time, will continue to strongly prioritize its customers’ welfare, most especially during these trying times. With this, HCPI will be requiring lesser amount of cash deposit, on top of the suggested retail prices from the customers when buying the following models:

• Honda City 1.5 S MT – P 7,000
• Honda City 1.5 S CVT – P 7,000
• Honda City 1.5 V CVT – P 7,000
• Honda City 1.5 RS CVT – P 7,000
• Honda Civic 1.8 E CVT – P 10,000
• Honda Brio 1.2 S MT – P 40,000
• Honda Brio 1.2 V CVT – P 40,000
• Honda Brio 1.2 RS CVT – P 60,000
• Honda Brio 1.2 RS CVT Black Top – P 60,000
• Honda HR-V 1.8 RS Navi CVT – P 30,000

For other models affected by the provisional safeguard duty namely Jazz, Mobilio, BR-V, Civic RS, CR-V (2.0 Gas and V Diesel), Honda Cars will issue separate information on the amount of required deposit. The top-the-line CR-V 1.6 Diesel S-X Honda Sensing, Accord, Civic Type R, and Odyssey are not included in the safeguard duties.

In the event that the Bureau of Customs (BOC) returns the amount of the provisional safeguard duty in the form of cash bond depending on the outcome of the investigation by the Tariff Commission, Honda will refund the amount of cash deposit to its customers accordingly.

Meanwhile, for customers who may not have the extra budget for the Safeguard Duty, they may opt to discuss or avail of other financing options such as personal loans with their preferred banks in order to help them cover the safeguard duty bond.

For those who would like to purchase a Honda model without the required cash deposit, customers may enjoy the pre-safeguard duty stocks with limited volume available at their preferred Honda dealerships nationwide.

“Our dear customers continue to be Honda’s top priority at all times. We are hoping that with the aforementioned efforts, we will be able to extend a helping hand to our customers in addressing this challenge. Moreover, we remain hopeful that the automotive industry will be able to find the light of recovery in the coming months.” said Mr. Masahiko Nakamura, Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. (HCPI) president.