What acts are considered tax evasion in Vietnam in 2025?

What acts are considered tax evasion in Vietnam in 2025?

Acts considered as tax evasion in 2025 are defined under Article 143 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 and include:

- Failure to submit taxpayer registration documents; failure to submit tax declarations; submission of tax declarations more than 90 days after the deadline for submission of tax declarations or the extended deadline for submission of tax declarations as prescribed by the Law on Tax Administration 2019.

- Failure to record in accounting books the income related to determining tax payable.

- Failure to issue invoices when selling goods or services as prescribed by law, or recording on sales invoices a value lower than the actual payment value of the goods or services sold.

- Using illegal invoices, documents, or illegally using invoices to account for input goods and materials in activities subject to tax obligations, reducing tax payable, or increasing tax exemptions, reductions, deductions, refunds, or non-payable taxes.

- Using invoices and documents that do not reflect the true nature of the transaction or actual transaction value to incorrectly determine tax payable, tax exemption, reduction, refund, or non-payable tax.

- Declaring incorrect information regarding exported and imported goods without additional declaration of tax profiles after the goods have been cleared.

- Intentionally not declaring or declaring incorrectly about the tax of exported, imported goods.

- Conspiring with the sender to import goods for the purpose of evading taxes.

- Using goods not subject to tax, exempt from tax, or under tax exemption review for improper purposes without declaring the change of use purpose to the tax authorities.

- The taxpayer engages in business activities during the period of business suspension without notifying the tax authorities.

- The taxpayer is not penalized for tax evasion acts but is penalized under the provisions of Clause 1 of Article 141 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 in the following cases:

+ Failure to submit taxpayer registration documents, failure to submit tax declarations, submission of tax declarations after 90 days but no tax payable arises;

+ Submission of tax declarations after 90 days with tax payable arises and the taxpayer has paid the full amount of tax and late payment interest to the state budget before the tax authorities announce the decision to inspect or audit taxes or before the tax authorities make a report on the late submission of tax declarations.

What acts are considered tax evasion in Vietnam in 2025? (Image from Internet)

What is the time limit for imposition of administrative penalties on tax evasion in Vietnam?

According to Article 137 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 on the time limit for administrative violations in tax management:

time limit for imposition of administrative penalties in tax management

1. For violations of tax procedures, the Time limit for penalties is 02 years from the date of committing the violation.

2. For acts of tax evasion not reaching the level of criminal prosecution, acts of incorrect declaration leading to a deficiency in payable tax, or an increase in exempted, reduced, or refunded tax, the Time limit for penalties is 05 years from the date of committing the violation.

3. Beyond the time limit for imposition of administrative penalties in tax management, the taxpayer will not be penalized but must still pay the full amount of lacking, evaded, improperly exempted, reduced, refunded, or non-payable tax, and late payment interest to the state budget within 10 years preceding the date of discovering the violation. In cases where the taxpayer does not register, they must pay the full amount of lacking, evaded tax, and late payment interest for the entire period preceding the discovery of the violation.

Thus, the time limit for imposition of administrative penalties on tax evasion not reaching the level of criminal prosecution is 05 years from the date of committing the violation.

What are the penalties for tax evasion in Vietnam?

Based on Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree 125/2020/ND-CP regarding the main forms of penalties for tax evasion:

Forms of penalties, remedial measures, and principles for applying fines when sanctioning administrative violations in taxes and invoices

1. Main forms of penalties

a) Warning

A warning applies to minor infractions of tax and invoice procedures, where there are extenuating circumstances and where the warning form of penalty is applicable according to this Decree.

b) Fine

The maximum fine does not exceed 100,000,000 VND for organizations committing administrative violations regarding invoices. The maximum fine does not exceed 50,000,000 VND for individuals committing administrative violations regarding invoices.

The maximum fine does not exceed 200,000,000 VND for taxpayers that are organizations committing procedural tax violations. The maximum fine does not exceed 100,000,000 VND for taxpayers that are individuals committing procedural tax violations.

A fine of 20% of the deficient tax amount or the amount of tax exempted, reduced, or refunded higher than the regulations for incorrect declarations leading to a deficiency in tax payable or an increase in exempted, reduced, or refunded tax.

A fine ranging from 1 to 3 times the evaded tax amount for tax evasion acts.

Fines corresponding to the amount not allocated to the state budget account for violations according to Clause 1, Article 18 of this Decree.

...

Thus, those who engage in tax evasion but not to the extent of criminal prosecution may face fines ranging from 1 to 3 times the evaded tax amount.