How many parts does the format of e-invoices have? If individual businesses no longer use tax authority-ordered printed invoices in Vietnam, how long do they have to destroy them?

Vietnam: How many parts does the format of e-invoices have?

Pursuant to Article 12 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP stipulates as follows:

Format of e-Invoices

1. The format of e-invoices is a technical standard specifying the data type, data length of information fields serving the transmission, storage, and display of e-invoices. The format of e-invoices uses the XML format language (XML is an abbreviation of the English phrase "eXtensible Markup Language" created with the purpose of sharing e-data between information technology systems).

2. The format of e-invoices consists of two components: a component containing the business data of the e-invoice and a component containing the digital signature data. For e-invoices with codes from the tax authority, there is an additional component containing data related to the tax authority code.

3. The General Department of Taxation develops and announces the business data component of the e-invoice, the digital signature data component, and provides the tool to display the contents of the e-invoice according to the regulation of this Decree.

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Thus, it can be seen that the format of e-invoices will have 2 components [1] a component containing the business data of the e-invoice and [2] a component containing the digital signature data.

*Note: For e-invoices with codes from the tax authority, there is an additional component containing data related to the tax authority code.

How many parts does the format of e-invoices have? If individual businesses no longer use tax authority-ordered printed invoices in Vietnam, how long do they have to destroy them? (Image from the Internet)

Shall e-invoices be referable after being destroyed in Vietnam?

Pursuant to clause 11, Article 3 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP stipulates as follows:

Interpretation of Terms

In this Decree, the following terms are understood as follows:

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11. Destruction of invoices and documents:

a) Destruction of e-invoices and documents is a measure to ensure e-invoices and e-documents no longer exist on the information system, making it impossible to access and reference the information contained in the e-invoices, e-documents.

b) Destruction of invoices printed by the tax authority, destruction of self-printed or printed documents is using measures such as burning, cutting, shredding, or other forms of destruction, ensuring the invoices and documents destroyed cannot be used again for information and data on them.

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Destruction of invoices is a measure to ensure e-invoices and e-documents no longer exist on the information system, making it impossible to access and reference the information contained in the e-invoices.

Thus, it can be understood that destroying e-invoices means the invoices will no longer exist on the system, thereby making it impossible to access or reference them anymore.

If individual businesses no longer use tax authority-ordered printed invoices in Vietnam, how long do they have to destroy them?

Pursuant to Article 27 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP stipulates as follows:

Destruction of tax authority-ordered printed invoices

1. Enterprises, economic organizations, households, and individual businesses that no longer use invoices must carry out the destruction of invoices. The deadline for invoice destruction is no later than 30 days from the date of notification to the tax authority. In cases where the tax authority has announced that the invoice is no longer valid (except in cases of notification due to tax debt enforcement measures), enterprises, economic organizations, households, individuals must destroy the invoice within no later than 10 days from the date the tax authority announces the invoice is no longer valid or from the date the lost invoice is found.

Invoices issued by accounting units are destroyed according to the legal provisions on accounting.

Invoices not yet issued but are evidence in legal cases shall not be destroyed but handled according to the legal provisions.

2. The destruction of invoices by enterprises, economic organizations, households, and individuals is carried out as follows:

a) Enterprises, economic organizations, households, and individuals must make an inventory of invoices to be destroyed.

b) Enterprises, economic organizations must establish an Invoice Destruction Council. The Invoice Destruction Council must include representatives from leadership, accounting department of the organization. Households, individual businesses are not required to establish a Council when destroying invoices.

c) Members of the Invoice Destruction Council must sign the invoice destruction report and are responsible before the law for any errors.

d) The invoice destruction dossier includes:

- The decision to establish the Invoice Destruction Council, except in cases of households and individual businesses;

- An inventory of invoices to be destroyed detailing: Invoice name, form symbol of the invoice, invoice code, quantity of invoices destroyed (from number... to number... or detailed list of each invoice number if the invoice numbers to be destroyed are not continuous);

- The invoice destruction report;

- The notification of invoice destruction results must include: type, symbol, quantity of invoice destroyed from number... to number, reason for destruction, date and time of destruction, method of destruction according to Form No. 02/HUY-HDG Appendix IA issued together with this Decree.

The invoice destruction dossier is retained by the enterprise, economic organization, household, individual businesses using invoices. Specifically, the Notification of invoice destruction results is made in 02 copies, one retained, one sent to the direct managing tax authority no later than 05 days from the date of invoice destruction.

3. Destruction of invoices by tax authorities

a) The Tax Authority carries out the destruction of invoices printed by the Tax Department that have been announced for issuance but not yet sold or issued but will not be used further.

b) The General Department of Taxation is responsible for specifying the process of destroying invoices printed by the Tax Department.

Thus, it can be seen that individual businesses who no longer use tax authority-ordered printed invoices must carry out the destruction no later than 30 days from the date of notification to the tax authority.