Do e-documents in e-tax transactions have the same value as paper documents in Vietnam?

Do e-documents in e-tax transactions have the same value as paper documents in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 6 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC guiding e-transactions in the field of taxation issued by the Minister of Finance, the regulations are as follows:

e-documents in e-tax transactions

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2. Legal value of e-documents: e-documents stipulated in this Circular have the same value as dossiers, documents, notices, and paper texts. An e-document is considered an original if it is implemented through one of the measures stipulated in Article 5 of Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP.

3. Conversion of e-documents to paper documents and vice versa:

e-documents are converted to paper documents and vice versa according to the provisions of the e-Transactions Law and Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP and must ensure data formats and technical standards according to current legal regulations.

The recovery of e-documents for remittance to the State budget is carried out according to the provisions of the e-Transactions Law, Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP, and Article 23 of this Circular.

4. Amendment of e-documents: e-documents are amended according to regulations in Article 8 of Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP.

5. Storage of e-documents: The storage of e-documents in taxation is implemented according to the time limit stipulated by law, similar to paper documents, suitable for the e-storage environment, and relevant legal regulations on storage, ensuring the conditions stipulated in Clause 1, Article 15 of the e-Transactions Law. In cases where the e-document storage period has expired, if it relates to the integrity of the system's information and the e-documents in circulation, they must continue to be stored until the destruction of e-documents does not affect other e-transactions, then they can be destroyed.

Current regulations indicate: The legal value of e-documents: e-documents stipulated in this Circular have the same value as dossiers, documents, notices, and paper texts. Additionally, an e-document is considered an original if implemented through one of the measures mentioned above.

Do e-documents in e-tax transactions have the same value as paper documents in Vietnam? (Image from Internet)

Are notices about payment of tax debt into the State budget considered e-documents in Vietnam?

According to Point c, Clause 1, Article 6 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC guiding e-transactions in the field of taxation issued by the Minister of Finance of Vietnam, the regulations are as follows:

e-documents in e-tax transactions

1. e-documents include:

a) e-tax dossiers: taxpayer registration dossiers; tax declaration dossiers; confirmation of tax obligation performance; verification of tax payment information; tax, late payment, refund, surplus payment offset procedures; tax refund dossiers; tax exemption and reduction dossiers; waiver of late payment; non-calculation of late payment; deferral of tax debt; tax debt write-off dossiers; tax payment extension; installment payment of tax debt and other tax-related dossiers, documents in e-form as prescribed by the Tax Administration Law and guiding documents.

b) e-State budget remittance documents: State budget remittance documents as prescribed in Decree No. 11/2020/ND-CP dated January 20, 2020, of the Government of Vietnam regarding administrative procedures in the field of State Treasury (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 11/2020/ND-CP) in e-form. In the case of tax payments through e-payment methods of banks or intermediary payment service providers, then the State budget remittance document is the transaction document of the bank or intermediary payment service provider that must ensure all information on the State budget remittance document form.

c) Other notifications, decisions, documents from tax authorities in e-form.

d) e-documents under this clause must be electronically signed in accordance with Article 7 of this Circular. In cases where e-tax dossiers have accompanying documents in paper form, they must be converted to e-form according to the provisions of the e-Transactions Law, Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP dated December 24, 2018, of the Government of Vietnam on e-transactions in financial activities (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 165/2018/ND-CP).

According to this regulation, e-documents include: Notifications, decisions, and other documents from tax authorities in e-form. Therefore, it can be seen that notifications, decisions, and other documents from tax authorities in e-form are considered e-documents as per the regulations.

What are regulations on registration of digital certificates and mobile phone number for the purpose of conducting e-transactions in taxation in Vietnam?

According to Clause 2, Article 7 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC regulating e-registration in e-tax transactions, it states:

- Taxpayers when conducting e-tax transactions must use a valid digital certificate issued by a public digital signature certification service provider, or a competent state agency, or a competent state agency that recognizes digital signatures on tax dossiers, e-tax documents except in the following cases:

a) The taxpayer is an individual who already has a tax code but has not been issued a digital certificate.

b) The taxpayer conducts the first taxpayer registration and is granted a tax code according to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 13 of this Circular.

c) The taxpayer chooses the e-tax payment method according to the provisions of Point đ, Clause 2, Article 4 of this Circular as prescribed by the bank or the intermediary payment service provider.

- Registration of digital certificates and mobile phone number for the purpose of conducting e-transactions in taxation

a) Taxpayers are allowed to register one or more digital certificates to conduct e-tax transactions; they can use multiple digital certificates for one tax administrative procedure.

b) Before using a digital certificate to conduct e-tax transactions, taxpayers must register the digital certificate with the tax authority.

c) For individuals mentioned at Point a, Clause 1 of this Article, one unique mobile phone number can be registered to receive e-transaction authentication codes via "messages" for each e-transaction with the tax authority.

d) For taxpayers as prescribed at Point b, Clause 1 of this Article, one unique mobile phone number of the individual or the individual as the legal representative of the organization can be registered to receive e-transaction authentication codes via "messages" when submitting the first taxpayer registration dossier electronically to the tax authority.