page_title: History of the Philippines (1565–1898)
section_title: Taxation
hierarchical_section_title: History of the Philippines (1565–1898) / Spanish government / Economy / Taxation
caption_attribution_description: Català: Moneda d'un quarto encunyada a Manila el 1829, sota el regnat de Ferran VII, en coure. English: A cuarto coin minted in Manila in 1829, during the reign of Ferdinand VII of Spain, copper Español: Moneda de un cuarto acuñada en Manila en 1829, bajo el reinado de Fernando VII, en cobre.
context_page_description: The Spanish colonial period in the Philippines was the period during which the Philippines were part of the Spanish Empire as the Captaincy General of the Philippines from 1565 to 1898. The islands were part of the larger Spanish East Indies. Forty-four years after Ferdinand Magellan discovered the Philippines and died in the Battle of Mactan in 1521, the Spanish explored and colonized the islands, starting with the founding of Cebu by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi in 1565. Manila was made the capital of the Philippines in 1571. This was the time of the reign of King Philip II of Spain, whose name has remained attached to the country. The Spanish colonial period ended with the Philippine Revolution and Spanish-American War in 1898, which marked the beginning of the American colonization of the Philippines.
context_section_description: Also there was the bandalâ (from the Tagalog word mandalâ, a round stack of rice stalks to be threshed), an annual forced sale and requisitioning of goods such as rice. Custom duties and income tax were also collected. By 1884, the tribute was replaced by the cedula personal, wherein everyone over 18 were required to pay for personal identification. The local gobernadorcillos were responsible for collection of the tribute. Under the cedula system taxpayers were individually responsible to Spanish authorities for payment of the tax, and were subject to summary arrest for failure to show a cedula receipt.
  Aside from paying a tribute, all male Filipinos as well as Chinese immigrants from 16 to 60 years old were obliged to render forced labor called “polo”. This labor lasted for 40 days a year, later it was reduced to 15 days. It took various forms such as the building and repairing of roads and bridges, construction of public buildings and churches, cutting timber in the forest, working in shipyards and serving as soldiers in military expeditions. People who rendered the forced labor was called “polistas”. He could be exempted by paying the “falla” which is a sum of money. The polista were according to law, to be given a daily rice ration during their working days which they often did not receive.
caption: Spanish coin minted in Manila 1829, during the reign of Ferdinand VII of Spain
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