What are the penalties for late submission of financial statements in Vietnam?

What are the penalties for late submission of financial statements in Vietnam?

According to Article 12 of Decree 41/2018/ND-CP, it has the following provisions:

1. A fine ranging from VND 5.000.000 to VND 10.000.000 shall be imposed in the following cases:

a) The financial statement is submitted less than 3 months after the specified deadline;

b) The financial statement is disclosed less than 3 months after the specified deadline.

2. A fine ranging from VND 10.000.000 to VND 20.000.000 shall be imposed in the following cases:

a) The financial statement's contents are not fully disclosed;

b) The financial statement submitted to the competent authorities does not include the audit statement when required by law;

c) The financial statement is submitted 3 months after the specified deadline or later;

d) The disclosed financial statement does not include the audit statement when required by law;

dd) The financial statement is disclosed 3 months after the specified deadline or later.

3. A fine ranging from VND 20.000.000 to VND 30.000.000 shall be imposed for in the following cases:

a) The financial statement’s figures are falsified;

b) Provide or publish financial statements which have inconsistent figures within an accounting period for use in Vietnam.

4. A fine ranging from VND 40.000.000 to VND 50.000.000 shall be imposed for one of the following violations:

a) Failure to submit financial statement to the competent authorities;

b) Failure to disclose financial statements.

5. Remedial measure:

Submit and disclose the audit statement attached to the financial statement mentioned in Points b and d, Clause 2 of this Article.

According to Clause 2, Article 6 of this Decree as amended by Clause 2, Article 5 of Decree 102/2021/ND-CP stipulates as follows:

2. The fines specified in Chapter II and Chapter III of this Decree are imposed upon organizations except cases specified in Clause 1 Article 7; Article 8; Article 9; Article 10; Article 11; Article 13; Article 14; Article 15; Article 16; Article 17; Article 19; Clauses 1 and 3 of Articles 21; Article 22; Articles 23; Article 24; Article 26; Article 33; Article 34; Clauses 1 and 3 Article 36; Clauses 1 Article 38; Clauses 2 and 3 Article 39; Clauses 1 and 2 Article 48; Clause 1 Article 57; Clauses 1 and 2 Article 61; Article 67, which are fines that apply to individuals. For organizations with the same violations, the fines will double those of individuals.

Thus, according to the above provisions, in case enterprises in Vietnam submit financial statements to competent state agencies with a delay of less than 03 months compared to the prescribed time limit, they may be subject to a fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 for organizations, while for individuals, the fine shall be reduced by half compared to organizations. If the payment is delayed for more than 3 months, the fine may be from VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000.

When must financial statements be submitted in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 29 of the 2015 Accounting Law , the financial statements of the accounting units are as follows:

1. Financial statements of an accounting unit are used for aggregating and describing its financial conditions and performance. Financial statements of an accounting unit include:

a) Financial condition statement;

b) Business performance statement;

c) Cash flow statement;

d) Note to financial statements;

dd) Other statements defined by law.

2. Financial statements of an accounting unit are made as follows:

a) Each accounting unit shall make the financial statement at the end of the annual accounting period, unless otherwise prescribed by law;

c) Financial statements shall be based on figures after accounting books are closed. The superior accounting unit shall make a general financial statement or consolidated financial statement based on financial statements of inferior accounting units;

c) Financial statements must be made correctly in terms of contents, method, and consistency accounting periods; any difference in presentation of financial statements of different accounting periods must be explained;

d) Financial statements shall bear the signatures of the makers, the chief accountant, and the legal representative of the accounting unit. The persons who sign a financial statement are responsible for its content.

3. The annual financial statement of an accounting unit shall be submitted to the competent authority within 90 days from the end of the annual accounting period as prescribed by law.

4. The Ministry of Finance shall promulgate specific regulations on financial statements in each field; responsibility, maker, period, method, deadline, places for submission of financial statements, and publishing of financial statements.

According to this Article, financial statements must be submitted to competent Vietnamese state agencies within 90 days from the end of the annual accounting period.

Best Regards!