Payment documents via bank for tax refund consideration, tax exemptions, and non-tax collections defined as follows?
What are Bank Payment Vouchers?
Pursuant to the regulations at Point a, Clause 3, Article 16 of Circular 219/2013/TT-BTC:
Payment via bank is the transfer of money from the importing party's account to the exporting party's account opened at a bank according to payment methods agreed upon in the contract and the bank's regulations.
A payment voucher is the credit advice from the exporter’s bank regarding the amount received from the importer’s bank account.
In the case of deferred payment, the agreement must be recorded in the export contract, and by the payment due date, the business must have bank payment vouchers.
In the case of entrusted export, there must be bank payment vouchers from the foreign party to the trustee. The trustee must also make payment for the exported goods via the bank to the entrusting party. If the foreign party directly pays the entrusted exporter, the trustee must have bank payment vouchers, and this payment must be stipulated in the contract.
How are bank payment vouchers for tax refund and tax exemption consideration regulated? (Image from the Internet)
Regulations on bank payment vouchers for tax refund consideration?
Recently, the General Department of Customs issued Official Dispatch 4066/TCHQ-TXNK in 2022 regarding the tax refund issue of Nguyen Phuong Development Co., Ltd.:
1. Bank payment vouchers for tax refund consideration (or tax exemption) are implemented according to the guidelines in this Annex.
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4. The following cases of final payment are considered as bank payments:
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4.6. For payment between the Vietnamese exporter and the foreign party by offsetting the value of exported goods or processing fees with the value of goods or services purchased from the foreign party, the exporter must meet the following conditions and procedures:
a) The goods traded between the exporter and the foreign party must clearly state the payment method in the export contract;
b) A written confirmation from the foreign party on the payment offset amount between the exported goods and the goods or services purchased from the foreign party;
c) In case there is a remaining balance after offsetting the value of exported goods and the value of imported goods/services, the remaining balance must be paid via the bank. Bank payment vouchers must follow the guidelines in this Annex.
Cases where transactions for purchasing and selling goods between the Vietnamese exporter and the foreign party, conducted by offsetting the value of exported goods or processing fees with the value of purchased goods or services from the foreign party, are still considered bank payments if the above conditions are met.
What are the special cases where bank payment vouchers are not required but still eligible for VAT refund?
Based on the regulations at Point d, Clause 3, Article 16 of Circular 219/2013/TT-BTC on cases where exported goods without bank payment vouchers are eligible for tax deduction and refund:
Conditions for input VAT deduction and refund for exported goods and services
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3. Exported goods and services must be paid through the bank
d) Cases of export without bank payment vouchers eligible for tax deduction and refund:
d.1) For cases where the foreign party is unable to pay, the exporting business must provide a detailed explanation and use one of the following documents to replace the bank payment voucher:
- Customs declaration for imported goods from Vietnam registered with the customs authority in the importing country (1 copy); or
- Lawsuit petition to the court or competent authority in the country where the buyer resides, along with a notification or documents confirming the lawsuit is being processed (1 copy); or
- Foreign court's judgment favoring the business (1 copy); or
- Document from a competent foreign organization confirming (or notifying) that the foreign buyer is bankrupt or insolvent (1 copy).
d.2) For cases where exported goods do not meet quality standards and must be destroyed, the exporting business must provide a detailed explanation and use a record of destruction (or a confirmation of destruction) of goods overseas by the authority conducting the destruction (1 copy), along with bank payment vouchers for destruction costs payable by the exporting business or documents proving that the costs are borne by the buyer or a third party (1 copy).
In cases where the importer has to handle the destruction overseas, the destruction record (or confirmation of destruction) must name the importer.
d.3) For cases where exported goods are damaged, the exporting business must provide a detailed explanation and use one of the following documents to replace the bank payment voucher:
- Document confirming the damage outside Vietnam by a competent authority (1 copy); or
- Record detailing the damage of goods during transportation outside Vietnam, specifying the cause of damage (1 copy).
If the exporting business has received compensation for the damaged goods outside Vietnam, it must provide bank payment vouchers for the received amount (1 copy).
Copies of documents guided in points d.1, d.2, and d.3 in this Clause must be certified true copies by the exporting business. If the documents, confirmations from third parties replacing bank payment vouchers are not in English or do not have English versions, there must be one certified translation attached. If the involved parties issue, use, and store documents electronically, a printed paper copy is required.
The exporting business is fully responsible for the accuracy of documents replacing bank payment vouchers in the cases mentioned above.
Therefore, in the absence of bank payment vouchers, parties are still eligible for input VAT deduction and refund, but replacement documents must be used and the parties must fully bear the responsibility for the transparency of these replacement documents.
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