Conditions and methods for provision of transboundary accounting services in Vietnam

Conditions for provision of transboundary accounting services in Vietnam

Pursuant to the provisions of Article 2 of Decree 151/2018/ND-CP and Article 30 of Decree 174/2016/ND-CP, foreign accounting firms may provide transboundary accounting services if the following conditions are satisfied:

- It is permitted to provide accounting services as prescribed by law of the nation where its headquarters are situated (home country);

- At least 02 of its employees are granted the Certificate of Accounting Service Registration by the Ministry of Finance, including its legal representative;

A foreign accounting firm may only provide transboundary accounting services in Vietnam if it has been registered and granted the certificate of eligibility to provide transboundary accounting services in Vietnam by the Ministry of Finance of Vietnam. The methods for provision of transboundary accounting services must comply with provisions of Article 31 of Decree 174/2016/ND-CP.

A foreign accounting firm must maintain fulfillment of the conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article throughout the effective period of the certificate of eligibility to provide transboundary accounting services in Vietnam. In the cases where any of such conditions is not fulfilled, the foreign accounting firm must inform the Ministry of Finance within 20 days from such date.

Conditions and methods for provision of transboundary accounting services in Vietnam (Internet image)

Methods for provision of transboundary accounting services in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 31 of Decree 174/2016/ND-CP, the methods for provision of transboundary accounting services in Vietnam include:

- When providing transboundary accounting services in Vietnam, a foreign accounting firm must form a joint venture with an accounting firm in Vietnam which is qualified for provision of accounting services as prescribed by law.

- To form a joint venture with a foreign accounting firm to provide transboundary services, the accounting firm in Vietnam must satisfy all conditions for provision of accounting services specified in Article 60 of the Law on Accounting and Decree 174/2016/ND-CP and obtain the certificate of eligibility to provide accounting services.

- The foreign accounting firm and the accounting firm in Vietnam must conclude a joint venture contract for provision of transboundary accounting services. The contract must specify the obligations of each party for provision of transboundary accounting services.

- When forming such a joint venture to provide transboundary accounting services, the foreign accounting firm and the accounting firm in Vietnam shall conclude an accounting service contract with the client in accordance with Vietnam’s law.

The accounting service contract must bear the signatures of the legal representatives of the foreign accounting firm, the accounting firm in Vietnam and the client.

- The foreign accounting firm and the accounting firm in Vietnam shall appoint an accountant to perform their services specified in the accounting service contract.

- The accounting service contract, the joint venture contract and accounting service documents must be made in both Vietnamese and English languages.

- The payment of service charges must be transferred through a credit institution operating under the law on foreign currency management of Vietnam.

Mai Thanh Loi

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