What is the time limit for submission of license fee declaration in Vietnam?

What is the time limit for submission of license fee declaration in Vietnam?

Currently, the term "license tax" is no longer used in legal documents. From January 1, 2017, the term "license tax" has been replaced with "license fee," but in practice, people still use the term widely.

According to point a clause 3 Article 8 Decree 126/2020/ND-CP, the license fee is a state budget revenue declared annually.

Clause 1 Article 10 Decree 126/2020/ND-CP stipulates the deadline for submitting the license fee declaration form as follows:

(1) New license feepayers (excluding business households, individual business persons), including small and medium enterprises converted from business households, or those establishing additional dependent units, business locations, or commencing production and business activities, must submit the license fee declaration form no later than January 30 of the following year after the year of establishment or commencement of production and business activities.

In cases where there is a change in capital within the year, the license feepayer must submit the revised license fee declaration form no later than January 30 of the following year after the information change arises.

(2) Business households and individual business persons are not required to submit a license fee declaration form. The tax authority bases on the tax declaration file, tax management database to determine the revenue as a basis for calculating the payable license fee, and notifies the license feepayer to comply with the provisions of Article 13 Decree 126/2020/ND-CP.

Thus, according to the above regulations, the deadline for submitting the license fee declaration form is determined as follows:

- No later than January 30 of the following year after the year of establishment or commencement of production and business activities for:

+ New license feepayers, including small and medium enterprises converted from business households, excluding business households and individuals.

+ license feepayers establishing additional dependent units, business locations or commencing production and business activities.

- No later than January 30 of the following year after the information change arises for license feepayers with changes in capital within the year.

What is the time limit for submission of license fee declaration in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

Where to submit the license fee declaration form for multiple business locations in different provinces?

Based on the regulations at point k clause 1 Article 11 Decree 126/2020/ND-CP as follows:

Declaration submission location

Taxpayers comply with the regulations on the location for submitting tax declaration forms as stipulated in clauses 1, 2, and 3 of Article 45 of the Tax Administration Law and the following provisions:

1. The location for submitting tax declaration forms for taxpayers with multiple activities and businesses across multiple provincial jurisdictions as stipulated at points a and b clause 4 Article 45 of the Tax Administration Law is the tax authority where the business activities are conducted, separate from the province or city where the head office is located, in the following cases:

...

k) Submit the license fee declaration form at the location of the dependent unit, business location.

Therefore, in the case of having multiple business locations different from the province where the head office is located, the license fee declaration form should be submitted to the tax authority where the business location is.

Which entities are exempt from the license fee in Vietnam?

Based on the provisions of Article 3 Decree 139/2016/ND-CP (amended and supplemented by clause 1 Article 1 Decree 22/2020/ND-CP) on entities exempt from license fees, include:

(1) Individuals, groups of individuals, and households engaged in production and business activities with annual revenue of 100 million VND or less.

(2) Individuals, groups of individuals, and households engaged in irregular production and business activities; without a fixed location as guided by the Ministry of Finance.

(3) Individuals, groups of individuals, and households producing salt.

(4) Organizations, individuals, groups of individuals, and households engaged in aquaculture, fishing, and fishery support services.

(5) Commune cultural post offices; press agencies (print newspapers, radio, television, electronic newspapers).

(6) Cooperatives, cooperative unions (including branches, representative offices, business locations) operating in the field of agriculture according to the law on agricultural cooperatives.

(7) People's credit funds; branches, representative offices, business locations of cooperatives, cooperative unions, and private enterprises operating in mountainous areas. Mountainous areas are determined according to the regulations of the Committee for Ethnic Affairs.

(8) Exemption from license fees in the first year of establishment or commencement of production and business activities (from January 1 to December 31) for:

- Newly established organizations (granted new tax codes, new enterprise codes).

- Households, individuals, and groups of individuals starting production and business activities for the first time.

- During the period of exemption from license fees, if organizations, households, individuals, and groups of individuals establish branches, representative offices, or business locations, these branches, representative offices, or business locations are also exempt from license fees during the period that the organizing entities, households, individuals, and groups of individuals are exempt from license fees.

(9) Small and medium enterprises converted from business households (as provided in Article 16 Law on Support for Small and Medium Enterprises 2017) are exempt from license fees for a period of 3 years from the date of first-time issuance of the enterprise registration certificate.

- During the period of exemption from license fees, if small and medium enterprises establish branches, representative offices, or business locations, these branches, representative offices, or business locations are also exempt from license fees during the period that small and medium enterprises are exempt from license fees.

- Branches, representative offices, business locations of small and medium enterprises (exempt from license fees as provided in Article 16 Law on Support for Small and Medium Enterprises 2017) established before the effective date of this Decree, the exemption period is calculated from the effective date of this Decree to the end of the period that small and medium enterprises are exempt from license fees.

- Small and medium enterprises converted from business households before the effective date of this Decree, are exempt from license fees as provided in Article 16 Law on Support for Small and Medium Enterprises 2017 and Article 35 Law on Support for Small and Medium Enterprises 2017.

(10) Public primary education institutions and public preschool education institutions.