General Department of Customs: Guidelines for determining the authority to refund VAT for dissolved enterprises in Vietnam

General Department of Customs: Guidelines for determining the authority to refund VAT for dissolved enterprises in Vietnam

The General Department of Customs issued Official Disspatch 5621/TCHQ-TXNK dated December 23, 2022 concerning the determination of competence to refund value-added tax, the enterprise is in the process of dissolving. 

Specifically, guidelines for determining the authority to refund VAT for dissolved enterprises in Vietnam are as follows:

Cases of tax refund in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 70 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019, cases of tax refund in Vietnam include:

- Tax authorities shall refund tax in the cases specified by tax laws.

- Tax authorities shall refund overpaid amounts in accordance with Clause 1 Article 60 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019.

Guidelines for determining the authority to refund VAT for dissolved enterprises in Vietnam

Pursuant to Clause 1, Article 47 of the Law on amending Law on Tax administration 2012, the settlement excess taxes, late payment interest, and fines is as follows:

The tax payer of which the paid tax, late payment interest, and fine payable are bigger than the tax, late payment interest, and fines payable within 10 years as from they day of making payment to the State budget,

They shall have the excess tax, late payment interest, and fines offset against the outstanding amount, including the offset among the taxes;

Or against the tax, fines the next payment;

Or returned, if the tax payer has no tax debts, late payment interest, and fines.

Clause 1, Article 49 of Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC stipulates the handling of taxes, late payments, and fines, as follows:

Rent, late payment, and fines for export and import goods are overpaid in the following cases:

Taxpayers have more taxes, late payments, and fines paid than they have taxes, late payments, and fines.

(including value added taxes for imported goods but re -export returns of foreign owners or re -exported to third countries or re -exporting to non -tariff areas; goods have been exported but imported back to Vietnam;

Imported goods for production and export goods have paid value added tax as prescribed, then actually export products)

For each tax within 10 years from the date of payment of money into the state budget, the tax amount, late payment, and fines are overpaid with the amount of tax, late payment, and fine debt, including clearing between taxes;

Or deducted from taxes, late payment, payable fines of the next tax payment;

Or refund the amount of taxes, late payments, and overpaid fines when taxpayers no longer owe taxes, late payments, and fine money;

Except for cases where the sanctioning is not exempted from implementation of decisions on sanctioning of tax violations of tax laws by tax administration or competent state agencies as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 111 of the Law on Tax Administration;

Based on the guidance at Point 3 of Official Dispatch 18304/BTC-TCHQ 2014, the authority to refund tax is prescribed as follows:

Customs offices shall return VAT refunds of imported and overpaid goods to enterprises for registration declarations from January 1, 2014 (the time that Circular 150/2013/TT-BTC took effect) onwards and the declarations that enterprises have not yet declared, deducted, and refunded to the tax authorities.

Overpaid imports and enterprises that have declared, deducted, and refunded to the tax authorities will be subject to tax deduction adjustment and tax refund recovery if the customs authority confirms the incorrect VAT amount.

Eg:

If the imported wood shipment company has paid the import VAT, the wood will be exported to a third country (the export declaration was filed on December 5, 2015).
 
It is in the case of handling overpaid VAT.

However, the company has deducted a portion of input VAT with the provincial Tax Department.

Therefore, the provincial Customs Department coordinated with the provincial Tax Department to accurately determine the amount of VAT for excess imported goods, the amount of VAT deducted at the tax office, the amount of tax debt, late payments, fines, and other payable amounts.

In case, after clearing the amount of overpaid VAT, the deductible VAT amount at the provincial Tax Department, the amount of tax debt, late payment, fines, and other payable amounts mentioned above, If there is excess money, the provincial Customs Department shall pay the taxpayer as prescribed.

More details can be found in Vietnam's Official Dispatch 5621/TCHQ-TXNK dated December 23, 2022

Vo Ngoc Nhi

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