What are cases of tax declaration and tax payment in convertible foreign currencies in Vietnam?

What are cases of tax declaration and tax payment in convertible foreign currencies in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 4 of Circular 80/2021/TT-BTC, cases where tax declaration and payment in convertible foreign currency are required include:

- Activities of searching, exploring, and exploiting oil and gas (except for crude oil, condensate, natural gas sold in the Vietnamese market or other regulations by the Government of Vietnam) include: resource tax, corporate income tax, surcharges for the oil profit portion shared when crude oil prices fluctuate, profits from oil and gas shares, signature bonuses, commercial discovery bonuses, production bonuses, fees for reading and using oil and gas documents, compensation for non-fulfillment of minimum commitments, corporate income tax on profits from the transfer of participation rights in oil and gas contracts, special tax, surcharges, and corporate income tax from the residual oil portion of the oil and gas activities of the Vietsovpetro joint venture in Lot 09.1 must be declared and paid to the state budget in convertible foreign currency used in payment transactions.

- Fees, charges, and other revenues collected by the representative agencies of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam abroad:

Declaration and payment to the state budget in convertible foreign currency as prescribed in the documents on the rates of fees, charges, and other revenues.

- Fees, charges collected by agencies and organizations in Vietnam that are permitted to collect fees and charges in foreign currency:

Declaration and payment to the state budget in convertible foreign currency as prescribed in the documents on the rates of fees and charges.

- E-commerce business activities, business activities based on digital platforms, and other services of overseas suppliers without permanent establishments in Vietnam:

Declaration and payment to the state budget in convertible foreign currency.

The actual exchange rate is implemented according to the legal provisions on accounting.

What are cases of tax declaration and tax payment in convertible foreign currencies in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

Shall import and export goods be taxed in convertible foreign currency?

The currency for tax declaration and payment according to Article 7 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 is as follows:

- The currency for tax declaration and payment is the Vietnamese Dong, except in cases where declaration and payment in convertible foreign currency are allowed.

- Taxpayers who account in foreign currency according to the provisions of the Law on Accounting must convert it to Vietnamese Dong using the actual exchange rate at the time the transaction occurs.

- For export and import goods, the currency for tax payment is the Vietnamese Dong, except in cases where declaration and payment in convertible foreign currency are allowed. The tax rate is calculated according to customs regulations.

- The Minister of Finance regulates the currency for tax declaration and payment in convertible foreign currency as stipulated in Clauses 1, 3 and the actual exchange rate stipulated in Clause 2, Article 7 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019.

Therefore, normally for import and export goods, tax payment is in Vietnamese Dong. However, except in cases where declaration and payment in convertible foreign currency are allowed.

What are the principles of tax declaration and calculation in Vietnam?

The principles of tax declaration and calculation according to Article 42 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 are as follows:

- Taxpayers must accurately, truthfully, and fully declare the contents in the tax declaration form according to the form prescribed by the Minister of Finance and submit all documents and materials required in the tax declaration dossier to the tax administration agency.

- Taxpayers self-calculate the amount of tax payable, except in cases where tax calculation is carried out by the tax administration agency according to the regulations of the Government of Vietnam.

- Taxpayers declare and calculate taxes at the local tax authority with jurisdiction where the headquarters is located.

In cases where taxpayers account centrally at the headquarters, with dependent units in another provincial administrative unit where the headquarters is located, taxpayers declare taxes at the headquarters and calculate taxes, allocate tax liabilities to be paid in each locality where state budget revenue is enjoyed.

- For e-commerce business activities, business activities based on digital platforms, and other services performed by foreign providers without permanent establishments in Vietnam, the foreign provider is obligated to directly or authorize taxpayer registration, tax declaration, and tax payment in Vietnam according to the regulations of the Minister of Finance.

- The principles of declaration, determination of transaction prices for intercompany transactions are regulated as follows:

+ Declaration, determination of intercompany transaction prices based on the principle of analysis, comparison with independent transactions and the principle of the essence of activities, transactions decisive tax obligations to determine tax obligations as if in the condition of transactions between independent parties;

+ Intercompany transaction prices are adjusted to independent transactions for declaration, determination of the amount of tax payable on the principle of not reducing taxable income;

+ Taxpayers of small scale and low tax risk are exempt from implementing the provisions at Points a and b, Clause 5, Article 42 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019 and are entitled to simplified mechanisms in the declaration, determination of intercompany transaction prices.

- The principles of tax declaration for the advance pricing agreement mechanism on the method of determining taxable prices are regulated as follows:

+ The application of the advance pricing agreement mechanism on the method of determining taxable prices is implemented based on the taxpayer's proposal, the consensus between the tax authority and the taxpayer in a unilateral, bilateral, and multilateral agreement between the tax authority, taxpayer, and foreign tax authority, relevant territory;

+ The application of the advance pricing agreement mechanism on the method of determining taxable prices must be based on the taxpayer's information, commercially-verified databases to ensure legality;

+ The application of the advance pricing agreement mechanism on the method of determining taxable prices must be approved by the Minister of Finance before implementation; for bilateral and multilateral agreements involving foreign tax authorities, they are implemented according to the regulations of the law on international treaties and agreements.