Can enterprise resume its business before the expiration of the business suspension period in Vietnam?

Can enterprise resume its business before the expiration of the business suspension period in Vietnam?

Article 66 of Decree 01/2021/ND-CP stipulates registration of business suspension and resumption of business ahead of schedule, specific can be as follows:

1. When an enterprise or its branch/representative office/business location suspends its business or resumes its business ahead of schedule, the enterprise shall send a notification to the Business Registration Office of province where the enterprise or its branch/representative office/business location is located at least 03 days before the planned date of suspension or resumption. If the enterprise or its branch/representative office/business location is still suspended after the notified suspension period, another notification must be sent to the Business Registration Office at least 03 days before the planned date of suspension. Each notified suspension period must not exceed one year.

2. In case of business suspension, the notification must be enclosed with the resolution or decision and the copy of the minutes of meeting of the Board of Members of the multi-member limited liability company or partnership, or of the Board of Directors of the joint-stock company, or the resolution or decision of the owner of the single-member limited liability company on business suspension.

3. After receiving the application for enterprise registration, the Business Registration Office shall give a confirmation slip, examine the validity of received documents, and issue a certification that the enterprise or its branch/representative office/business location has registered the business suspension or resumption of business ahead of schedule within 03 working days from the receipt of satisfactory documents.

4. When the enterprise applies for registration of business suspension, the Business Registration Office shall change the enterprise’s legal status and status of its branches/representative offices/business locations on the National Enterprise Registration Database to “business suspension”.

5. The enterprise may apply for resumption of business ahead of the notified schedule and notify the resumption of business ahead of the notified schedule for its branches/representative offices/business locations at the same time. The Business Registration Office shall update the enterprise’s legal status and status of its branches/representative offices/business locations on the National Enterprise Registration Database at the same time.

Thus, when your business wants to resume operation before the expiration of the business suspension period in Vietnam, you need to send a notice to the Business Registration Office where your business is located about the resumption of business ahead of schedule.

Does enterprise have to pay licensing fees when resumes its business in Vietnam? 

In Clause 3, Article 4 of Circular 302/2016/TT-BTC, as amended by Clause 4, Article 1 of Circular 65/2020/TT-BTC, it is stipulated as follows:

3. Any organization, branch, representative office or business location (that is not entitled to license tax exemption in the first year of establishment or do not commence its production/business) established and granted the tax registration certificate, TINs and enterprise ID number within the first 6 months of the year and within the last 6 months of the year shall pay license tax for the whole year and pay 50% of the license tax payable for the whole year respectively.

At the end of the period of exemption from the license tax (from the fourth year from the date of establishment), a SME converted from a household business (including its branches, representative offices and/or business locations) shall pay the license tax as follows: If its exemption period ends in the first 6 months of a year, it must pay the license tax for the whole year, if its exemption period ends in the last 6 months of a year, it must pay 50% the license tax payable for the whole year.

An operating license taxpayer that has notified its/his/her supervisory tax authority in writing of its suspension of production/business in a calendar year (from January 01 to December 31) is not required to pay the license tax for that year of production/business suspension if the taxpayer has sent a written notification of production/business suspension to its/his/her supervisory tax authority before the prescribed deadline for paying the license tax (January 30 annually) and has made no payment of the license tax for the planned year of suspension. The taxpayer must pay the license tax for the whole year in case of failure to meet the abovementioned conditions for production/business suspension.

According to this Article, if your business resumes operation and has previously submitted a written request for suspension of production and business activities to the tax office or business registration agency before the deadline for paying the fee and has not yet paid licensing fee for the year you apply for temporary suspension of production and business activities, you will be exempted from licensing fees in Vietnam.

Best Regards!