What is the deployment roadmap for the e-invoice administration system by tax authorities in Vietnam?

What is the deployment roadmap for the e-invoice administration system by tax authorities in Vietnam?

Based on Clause 5, Article 11 of Circular 78/2021/TT-BTC, the deployment roadmap for the e-invoice administration system by tax authorities is as follows:

- The General Department of Taxation is responsible for investing in upgrading the technical infrastructure of the e-invoice system to be ready to receive proposals and connect with all organizations providing e-invoice services that meet all the criteria stipulated in Clause 2, Article 10 of Circular 78/2021/TT-BTC from July 1, 2022.

- For organizations, individuals wishing to deploy e-invoices before July 1, 2022, the General Department of Taxation is responsible for utilizing all available information technology infrastructure resources to implement.

Organizations with the capability are encouraged to participate in providing the service of receiving, transmitting, and storing e-invoice data with tax authorities.

- The General Department of Taxation is responsible for announcing the roadmap, and criteria for selecting service providers of e-invoices that connect with tax authorities to ensure transparency and publicness.

In cases where the number of organizations meeting all the criteria set in Clause 2, Article 10 of Circular 78/2021/TT-BTC and requesting connection with tax authorities exceeds the system's capacity, the General Department of Taxation will select organizations with a large customer base using e-invoice services as of August 31, 2021 (according to tax authority administration information) to enter into contracts to provide the service of receiving, transmitting and storing e-invoice data as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 10 of Circular 78/2021/TT-BTC.

What is the deployment roadmap for the e-invoice administration system by tax authorities in Vietnam? (Image from Internet)

What is the tax authority’s authentication code on e-invoices in Vietnam?

Based on Clause 2, Article 3 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP, it is regulated as follows:

Terminology Explanation

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

1. An invoice is an accounting document created by an organization or individual selling goods or providing services, recording information about the sale of goods or provision of services. The invoice is expressed in the form of an e-invoice or an invoice printed by the tax authority.

2. An e-invoice is one with or without a tax authority’s authentication code, expressed in e-data created by the selling organization or individual to record information about the sale of goods or provision of services according to the legal provisions on accounting and taxation, including cases where the invoice is generated from a cash register with data e-connection to the tax authority, in which:

a) An e-invoice with a tax authority’s authentication code is an invoice that receives a code from the tax authority before the selling organization or individual sends it to the buyer.

The tax authority’s authentication code on the e-invoice includes a transaction number, which is a unique sequence of numbers created by the tax authority's system, and a character string encoded by the tax authority based on the information made by the seller on the invoice.

b) An e-invoice without a tax authority’s authentication code is an invoice sent by the selling organization or individual to the buyer without the tax authority's code.

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Thus, according to the above regulation, the tax authority’s authentication code on e-invoices includes a transaction number, which is a unique sequence of numbers created by the tax authority's system, and a character string encoded by the tax authority based on the information created by the seller on the invoice.

What are regulations on storage of invoices in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 6 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP, it is regulated as follows:

Storage and retention of invoices, records

1. Invoices and records are stored and retained ensuring:

a) Safety, confidentiality, integrity, completeness, non-alteration, non-misrepresentation during the retention period;

b) retention for the correct and full duration as prescribed by the accounting law.

2. e-invoices, e-records are stored and retained by e-means. Agencies, organizations, and individuals have the right to choose and apply forms of storage and retention of e-invoices and e-records suitable to their operational characteristics and technology application capacity. e-invoices, e-records must be ready to print on paper or retrievable when required.

3. Invoices printed by tax authorities, printed records, self-printed records must be stored and retained according to the following requirements:

a) Unissued invoices and records are retained and stored in accordance with the retention policy of records with value.

b) Issued invoices and records in accounting units are retained according to the retention, storage provisions of accounting records.

c) Issued invoices and records in organizations, households, and individuals not being accounting units are retained and stored as their personal assets.

Therefore, according to the above regulation, e-invoices are stored through e-means.

Additionally, authorities, organizations, and individuals have the right to choose and apply methods of preserving and storing e-invoices and e-records that are appropriate for their operational characteristics and technological application capabilities.