Do I have to issue a fuel invoice after each retail sale in Vietnam?

Do I have to issue a fuel invoice after each retail sale in Vietnam?

In Section 1 of Official Dispatch 5468/TCT-DNL of 2023, there are instructions for implementing electronic invoice regulations for each sale for petroleum retail business according to Decree 123/2020/ND-CP as follows:

1. Organize full and timely dissemination to each leader and civil servant in the unit about the views and directions of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance in the above documents to further enhance recognition awareness of the organizational and individual responsibilities of officials and civil servants at the unit in organizing the implementation of legal regulations on invoices and documents in the Law on Tax Administration No. 38/2019/QH14, especially Regulations on making electronic invoices after each sale at petroleum retail stores according to the provisions of Decree No. 123/2020/ND-CP is one of the mandatory and important tasks that must be performed.

Assign the Director of the Tax Department to directly direct this task to the leaders of the Tax Department, leaders of Departments, Tax Branches and civil servants to carefully study the content of Official Dispatch No. 13384/BTC-TCT and instruct Directed by the General Department of Taxation in Official Dispatch No. 5080/TCT-DNL to advise the People's Committees of provinces and cities to direct the implementation of the issuance of electronic invoices to businesses and petroleum retail stores to issue electronic invoices after each sale at petroleum retail stores according to regulations.

Thus, issuing gasoline invoices after each retail sale at gasoline retail stores is mandatory, which the General Department of Taxation requests the Director of the Provincial and City Tax Departments to thoroughly implement.

When is time to issue electronic invoices for petroleum retail activities in Vietnam? 

At Point i, Clause 4, Article 9, Decree 123/2020/ND-CP stipulates invoicing time as follows:

Invoicing time

1. Invoices for sale of goods (including the sale of state-owned property, property confiscated and put into state fund, and the sale of national reserve goods) shall be issued when the right to own or use goods is transferred to buyers, whether the payment of the invoiced amount is made or not.

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4. Invoicing time in some specific cases:

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i) In case of retailing of oil and gas, e-invoices shall be issued to buyers upon completion of each sale. The seller shall retain e-invoices for sale of oil and gas to non-business individuals and business individuals, and make sure they can be accessed at the request of competent authorities.

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Thus, the time of issuing electronic invoices for petroleum retail activities is the time when the petroleum sale ends for each sale in Vietnam.

Do I have to issue a fuel invoice after each retail sale in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What rules should be followed when issuance and use of electronic invoices in Vietnam?

According to Article 4 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP regulating rules for issuance, management and use of invoices and records as follows:

- When selling goods or providing services, the seller must issue an invoice to deliver to the buyer and must fully state the content. In case of using an electronic invoice, it must follow the standard data format of the tax authority. .

1. When selling goods or providing services, the seller shall issue and send invoices to buyers (including goods/services used for sales promotion, advertising or as samples, goods/services gifted, donated, exchanged or used as salary payment to employees and internal use (except goods which are internally rotated in production process), and goods rented, lent or returned). Such invoices shall have adequate contents written according to the provisions in Article 10 hereof, except e-invoices which must follow the standard format prescribed by tax authorities as prescribed in Article 12 hereof.

2. When deducting personal income tax or collecting taxes, fees or charges, the organization responsible for tax deduction or the tax, fee or charge collector shall make and give certificates of personal income tax withholding or receipts of taxes, fees or charges to persons whose income is deducted or payers. Such records/receipts must contain adequate information as prescribed in Article 32 hereof. If electronic receipts are used, they must follow the standard format prescribed by tax authorities. If an individual authorizes tax declaration, no certificates of personal income tax withholding are issued.

If a person does not sign an employment contract or signs an employment contract for less than 03 months, the income payer is entitled to issue a certificate of personal income tax withholding for either each deduction or multiple deductions within a tax period. If a person signs an employment contract for 03 months or longer, the income payer shall issue a certificate of personal income tax withholding in a tax period.

3. Before using invoices/receipts, enterprises, business entities, other organizations, household/individual businesses, and tax/fee/charge collectors must apply for registration for the use of such invoices/receipts with tax authorities or follow procedures for announcement of issue of such invoices/receipts in accordance with the provisions in Article 15, Article 34 and Clause 1 Article 36 hereof. Tax authorities shall make announcement of issue of invoices/receipts which are printed according to their orders according to the provisions in Clause 3 Article 24 and Clause 2 Article 36 hereof.

4. Organizations, and household/individual businesses shall submit reports on their use of invoices purchased from tax authorities and reports on their use of externally- or internally-printed receipts or receipts purchased from tax authorities according to the provisions in Article 29 and Article 38 hereof.

5. The registration, management and use of e-invoices/electronic records shall comply with regulations of the Laws on electronic transactions, accounting, taxation and tax administration, and regulations herein.

6. Data of invoices/records issued when selling goods or providing services, and data of records issued when conducting tax payments, tax deduction and payments of taxes, fees and charges shall be collected to build the database used for the purposes of tax management and meeting the needs of concerned organizations and individuals for invoice/record information.

7. Good sellers or service providers that are enterprises, business entities or other organizations are allowed to authorize third parties to issue e-invoices for their sale of goods or provision of services. An invoice issued by a third party under authorization must still bear the name of the seller that is the authorizing party. The authorizing party and the authorized party must enter into a written authorization which must contain adequate information on invoices to be made under authorization (purposes and duration of authorization, and method of payment for invoices made out under authorization). Such authorization must be notified to tax authorities when applying for use of e-invoices. In case invoices to be made out under authorization are unauthenticated invoices, the authorizing party shall transmit e-invoice data to tax authorities through the e-invoice service provider. The Ministry of Finance shall provide specific guidance on this content.

8. Collectors of fees and charges are allowed to authorize third parties to issue fee/charge receipts. A receipt issued by a third party under authorization must still bear the name of the fee/charge collector that is the authorizing party. The authorizing party and the authorized party must enter into a written authorization which must contain adequate information on receipts to be made under authorization (purposes and duration of authorization, and method of payment for receipts made out under authorization). Such authorization must be notified to tax authorities when following procedures for announcement of issue of such receipts.

Best regards!