Shall a closed production line be entitled to value-added tax credit in Vietnam?

Shall a closed production line be entitled to value-added tax credit in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 4, Article 14 of Circular 219/2013/TT-BTC, supplemented by Clause 5, Article 3 and Article 1 of Circular 119/2014/TT-BTC, specific regulations on the principles of deducting input value-added tax (VAT) are provided as follows:

Principles of value-added tax credit

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4. Deducting VAT in certain specific cases:

a) For business production facilities that organize vertical integration, keep centralized accounts, and use products exempt from VAT at various stages to produce VAT-liable goods, the input VAT at these stages can be fully deducted.

Example 58: Enterprise X invests in building a raw material area and a factory to process, fillet, and freeze catfish and shrimp for export. The enterprise practices vertical integration from farming, even in cases of outsourcing the farming process, where the enterprise invests entirely in breed, ponds, fences, irrigation systems, vessels, and other inputs like feed, veterinary medicines, and services, to the processing stage for export. Enterprise X is allowed to fully deduct the input VAT related to fixed assets and purchased goods and services not forming fixed assets in all production and processing stages.

Example 58a: Enterprise A invests in building a raw material area and a factory for fully integrated production from farming (including outsourced farming where Enterprise A invests in breeds, ponds, fences, irrigation systems, vessels, and other inputs like feed, veterinary medicines, services...), to processing and freezing catfish fillets for export and domestic sales. During production, Enterprise A purchases additional catfish from other enterprises or individual households. The purchased catfish are consolidated in ponds with the fish farmed by Enterprise A before processing. The catfish, both self-farmed and purchased, are processed into filleted products through stages like raw fish processing, cleaning, de-heading, skinning, gutting, filleting, salting, freezing, and then sold. Enterprise A can declare value-added tax credits as follows:

- Enterprise A can deduct the full input VAT on fixed assets and purchased goods and services not forming fixed assets at the factory for the preliminary processing phase of catfish fillets according to the above process.

- Catfish fillets sourced from Enterprise A’s self-farming for export are subject to a 0% VAT rate, and the enterprise can deduct all related input VAT for catfish fillet export activities. In cases where catfish are farmed and processed into fillets for both export and domestic sales, the input VAT is allocated proportionally to the percentage of export revenue over the total revenue (including export and domestic sales).

Example 59: Enterprise Y invests in building a raw material area and a factory to process products from fresh milk (such as sterilized milk, yogurt, cheese,...). The enterprise practices vertical integration from farming, including cases of outsourced farming with investment in breeds (cows, goats), barns, fences, milking equipment, and sanitation systems, to processing into milk products. Enterprise Y can fully deduct input VAT related to fixed assets and other non-fixed asset purchases at all production and processing stages.

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Therefore, according to the above regulation, production and business facilities with vertical integration and centralized accounting, if using non-VAT-liable products in production but producing end VAT-liable goods, can fully deduct the input VAT throughout the production process.

Shall a closed production line be entitled to value-added tax credit in Vietnam? (Image from Internet)

What are regulations on input value-added tax credit for business establishments which pay value-added tax according to the tax credit method in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 12 of the Value-Added Tax Law 2008, amended by Clause 6, Article 1 of the Amended Value-Added Tax Law 2013, regulations on value-added tax credit for businesses applying the value-added tax credit method are as follows:

- Input VAT on goods and services used for producing and trading VAT-liable goods and services is fully deductible, including input VAT that is not compensated on VAT-liable goods and services that incur losses;

- Input VAT on goods and services used concurrently for the production and trading of VAT-liable and non-VAT-liable goods and services is deductible only for goods and services used for the production and business of VAT-liable goods and services. Businesses must account for deductible and non-deductible input VAT separately; if separate accounting is not possible, the deductible VAT is based on the percentage ratio of the revenue from VAT-liable goods and services compared to the total sales revenue;

- Input VAT on goods and services sold to organizations or individuals using humanitarian aid funds and non-refundable aid is fully deductible;

- Input VAT on goods and services used for petroleum exploration, appraisal, and development activities is fully deductible;

- Input VAT arising in any month is declared and deducted in determining the tax payable for that month. If businesses identify errors in declared and deducted input VAT, they may declare and deduct supplementary amounts; the supplemental declaration period is a maximum of six months from the date the error arises.

What are the conditions for value-added tax credit in Vietnam?

According to Clause 2, Article 12 of the Value-Added Tax Law 2008, amended by Clause 6, Article 1 of the Amended Value-Added Tax Law 2013, the conditions for input value-added tax credit are regulated as follows:

- Have VAT invoices for goods and services purchased or documents proving VAT payment at importation;

- Have non-cash payment documents for purchased goods and services, except for individual purchases of goods and services with a value of less than twenty million dong;

- For exported goods and services, beyond the conditions specified in point a and point b, Clause 2, Article 12 of the Value-Added Tax Law 2008, there must also be: a signed contract with the foreign parties on the sale, processing of goods, and provision of services; sales invoices; non-cash payment documents; and customs declarations for exported goods.

Payment for exported goods and services under settlement methods, including settlement between exported and imported goods and services, and government debt substitution payment, shall be deemed non-cash payments.