Is the taxpayer required to have a digital signature for e-tax transactions in Vietnam?

Is the taxpayer required to have a digital signature for e-tax transactions in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 4 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC, the regulations are as follows:

Principles of e-tax transactions

1. A taxpayer conducting e-tax transactions must have the ability to access and use the Internet, have an email address, possess a digital signature as stipulated in Article 7 of this Circular, or have a mobile phone number issued by a telecommunications company in Vietnam (for individuals not yet issued with a digital certificate) registered for use in transactions with tax authorities, except in cases where the taxpayer chooses the method of e-tax payment as prescribed in Point đ, Clause 2 of this Article, which is conducted according to regulations of banks or intermediary payment service providers.

2. Taxpayers may choose the following methods to conduct e-tax transactions through:

a) The e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam.

b) The national public service portal, the e-portal of the Ministry of Finance interconnected with the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam.

c) The e-portal of other competent state agencies (except for those in Point b of this clause) interconnected with the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam.

d) A T-VAN service provider organization that is accepted by the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam for connection with its e-portal.

đ) e-payment services by banks or intermediary payment service providers for executing e-tax payment.

Thus, it can be seen that the regulation requires taxpayers conducting e-tax transactions to have the ability to access and use the Internet, have an email address, possess a digital signature as prescribed in Article 7 of the aforementioned Circular, or have a mobile phone number issued by a telecommunications company in Vietnam (for individuals not yet issued with a digital certificate) registered for transactions with tax authorities, except in certain prescribed cases.

Regarding the requirement for a digital signature, the regulation is not compulsory if the individual has a mobile phone number issued by a telecommunications company in Vietnam (for individuals not yet issued with a digital certificate) registered for transactions with the tax authorities.

Is the taxpayer required to have a digital signature for e-tax transactions in Vietnam? (Image from Internet)

Shall registration for e-tax transaction methods be done through the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam’s e-portal?

Pursuant to Clause 3, Article 4 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC guiding e-transactions in taxation issued by the Minister of Finance, the regulations are as follows:

Principles of e-tax transactions

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3. Registration for e-tax transaction methods

a) Taxpayers conducting e-tax transactions through the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam must register for e-tax transactions in accordance with Article 10 of this Circular.

b) Taxpayers conducting e-tax transactions through the national public service portal, the e-portal of the Ministry of Finance interconnected with the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam must register following the guidance of the system managing agency.

c) Taxpayers conducting e-tax transactions through the e-portal of another competent state agency interconnected with the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam must register following the guidance of the competent state agency.

d) Taxpayers conducting e-tax transactions through a T-VAN service provider organization accepted by the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam to connect with its e-portal must register for e-tax transactions in accordance with Article 42 of this Circular.

During the same period, taxpayers are only allowed to choose and register for one of the administrative tax procedures stipulated in Point a, Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular through the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam, the national public service portal, the e-portal of the Ministry of Finance, or a T-VAN service provider organization (except as stated in Article 9 of this Circular).

dd) Taxpayers choosing the e-tax payment method through e-payment services of banks or intermediary payment service providers must register following the guidance of the bank or intermediary payment service provider.

e) Taxpayers who have registered to transact with tax authorities by e-means must conduct transactions with tax authorities within the scope stipulated in Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular by e-means, except for cases stipulated in Article 9 of this Circular.

Therefore, depending on the specific case, for example, if a taxpayer conducts e-tax transactions through the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam, they must register for e-tax transactions as prescribed in Article 10 of this Circular (which will be registered via the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam) and many other agencies like the national public service portal, the e-portal of the Ministry of Finance.

What are current methods for creating and submitting e-tax dossiers and e-state budget payment documents in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 5, Article 4 of Circular 19/2021/TT-BTC, regulations for taxpayers in creating and submitting e-tax dossiers and e-state budget payment documents are as follows:

a) Create e-tax dossiers, and e-state budget payment documents online via the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam/the e-portal of the competent state agency/through a T-VAN service provider organization:

a.1) Taxpayers access the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam/the e-portal of the competent state agency/the portal of the T-VAN service provider organization; create and submit e-tax dossiers, e-state budget payment documents online on the selected e-portal, sign electronically, and send them to the tax authorities.

a.2) T-VAN service provider organizations are responsible for transferring e-tax dossiers, and e-state budget payment documents of taxpayers to the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam as prescribed in Point b, Clause 1, Article 46 of this Circular.

b) Regarding tax declaration dossiers, taxpayers may choose an additional method of creating tax declaration files using software or declaration support tools provided by tax authorities or taxpayers that meet the data format standards of the tax authorities; then accessing the selected e-portal, signing electronically, and sending the e-tax declaration files to the tax authorities.

c) Regarding e-tax payment via e-payment services of banks or intermediary payment service providers, taxpayers access the information exchange portal of the bank or the intermediary payment service provider and create e-state budget payment documents according to the guidance of the bank or intermediary payment service provider. The bank or intermediary payment service provider will transfer the e-tax payment information of the taxpayer to the e-portal of the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam as prescribed in Article 21 of this Circular.