What is the e-invoice format in Vietnam? How to handle errors in e-invoices?

What is the e-invoice format in Vietnam?

Based on Clause 2, Article 3 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP, it is stipulated that:

An e-invoice is an invoice with or without a tax authority code, displayed in e-data format created by organizations or individuals selling goods or providing services using e-means to record the information of the sale of goods or services according to legal regulations on accounting and taxation, including cases where the invoice is generated from cash registers connected for e-data transmission to tax authorities, in which:

a) An e-invoice with a tax authority code is an e-invoice that is coded by the tax authority before the organization or individual selling goods or providing services sends it to the buyer.

The tax authority code on the e-invoice includes a transaction number as a unique sequence created by the tax authority's system and a character string encoded by the tax authority based on the seller's information on the invoice.

b) An e-invoice without a tax authority code is an e-invoice sent by the organization selling goods or providing services to the buyer without a tax authority code.

Thus, according to the regulation, an e-invoice is represented in e-data format.

What is the e-invoice format in Vietnam? How to handle errors in e-invoices? (Image from the Internet)

What are regulations on recording buyer information in e-invoices in Vietnam?

Based on Clauses 5 and 13, Article 10 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP, the invoice contents are stipulated as follows:

Contents of the invoice

...

5. Name, address, and tax identification number of the buyer

a) If the buyer is a business establishment with a tax identification number, the name, address, and tax identification number on the invoice must be the same as those on the business registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, household business registration certificate, taxpayer registration, tax identification notification, investment registration certificate, cooperative registration certificate.

If the name or address of the buyer is too long, the seller may abbreviate some common nouns such as "Phường" to "P"; "Quận" to "Q", "Thành phố" to "TP", "Việt Nam" to "VN" or "Cổ phần" to "CP", "Trách nhiệm Hữu hạn" to "TNHH", "khu công nghiệp" to "KCN", "sản xuất" to "SX", "Chi nhánh" to "CN"... but must ensure full information on house number, street name, ward, commune, district, city to correctly identify the business name and address and conform with business registration, taxpayer registration of the business.

[...] 13. Script, numbers, and currency displayed on the invoice

a) The script displayed on the invoice is in Vietnamese. If it is necessary to add a foreign language, foreign words must be placed to the right in parentheses () or directly below the Vietnamese line and with a smaller font size than Vietnamese. If the writing on the invoice uses Vietnamese without accents, the writing must ensure no misunderstanding of the invoice content.

Thus, according to the regulations for an invoice to be valid, it must comply with the criteria stipulated in Article 10 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP.

Specifically, for the seller's name, it must be accurately recorded according to the business registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, household business registration certificate, taxpayer registration, tax identification notification, investment registration certificate, cooperative registration certificate depending on the type of organization.

Some common nouns can be abbreviated, such as "Trách nhiệm hữu hạn" to "TNHH," and if using Vietnamese without accents, the writing on the invoice must ensure no misunderstanding of the invoice content.

Thus, if the invoice records the buyer's name as "Cong ty TNHH giai phap moi truong Tan An" without altering the content of the company name, the invoice is still considered valid.

If it causes confusion with other companies in the same field such as "Tan An", "Tan An", "Tan An",... depending on the specific case, it may be considered invalid and classified as an invoice with errors regarding the buyer's name, which must be handled according to regulations.

How to handle errors in e-invoices in Vietnam?

Based on Point a, Clause 2, Article 19 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP regarding the handling of invoices with errors, it states:

Handling of invoices with errors

...

2. For e-invoices with or without a tax authority code already sent to the buyer but the buyer or the seller discovers errors, handle as follows:

a) If there are errors regarding the name or address of the buyer but the tax identification number is not incorrect, and other contents are not incorrect, the seller informs the buyer about the invoice errors and does not need to re-issue the invoice. The seller informs the tax authority of the e-invoice errors using Form number 04/SS-HDDT Appendix IA issued with this Decree, except in cases where e-invoices without a tax authority code with the above errors have not yet sent invoice data to the tax authority.

Thus, it can be seen that the method of handling is for the seller to notify the buyer of the errors, not to re-issue the invoice, and to notify the tax authority of the e-invoice errors according to Form number 04/SS-HDDT Download Appendix IA issued with Decree 123/2020/ND-CP.

*Note: except in cases where e-invoices without a tax authority code with the above errors have not sent invoice data to the tax authority.