Law on Special Consumption Tax (amended) includes 4 chapters and 11 articles with the basic contents as follows:
Article table of contents
Scope of Adjustment
The current Law on Special Consumption Tax (SCT) regulates both the policy content and tax management. The Law on Tax Administration (effective from July 1, 2007) already covers content on tax management including taxpayer registration, tax declaration, tax payment, tax finalization, violation handling, and rewards, replacing the management regulations of the existing tax laws. Therefore, Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12 only regulates the tax policy content. The content regulating the scope of adjustment is specified in Article 1 of Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12.
Regarding the Basic New Contents of the Law on SCT
Taxable objects: The main new points in this regulation are: adding automobiles with less than 12 seats that can carry both people and goods to the taxable objects of SCT and specifically defining the criteria for this type of vehicle; adding automobiles with a cylinder capacity over 125cc to the taxable objects of SCT; adding airplanes and yachts (excluding aircraft used for tourism) to the taxable objects of SCT.
Non-taxable objects: Regarding non-taxable objects, Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12 inherits the regulations of previous SCT laws, simultaneously adding some cases to suit current realities. To be specific: airplanes and yachts used for the business of transporting goods, passengers, tourists are not subject to SCT; Automobiles with less than 24 seats used for specific purposes such as ambulances, prisoner transport vehicles, hearses; Automobiles designed with both seats and standing space carrying 24 or more people (urban and inter-provincial buses, airport shuttle buses) are not subject to SCT; Goods imported from foreign countries into non-tariff zones, goods sold domestically into non-tariff zones and used solely in non-tariff zones, and goods traded between non-tariff zones are not subject to SCT (except for automobiles carrying less than 24 passengers).
Regarding SCT Rates
For alcoholic beverages and beer.
To fulfill commitments upon joining the WTO and ensure practical consistency as well as relations with other alcoholic beverages, Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12 stipulates: Alcoholic beverages with 20 degrees or less have a tax rate of 25% (current rate is 20%); Alcoholic beverages above 20 degrees are subject to the following schedule: from 2010 to the end of 2012 a tax rate of 45%; From 2013 onwards a tax rate of 50%; Herbal and fruit wines are taxed according to alcohol content like other types of alcohol to ensure policy transparency and prevent fraud in implementation; All types of beer are uniformly taxed irrespective of packaging, with a similar schedule to that of alcoholic beverages. To be specific: from 2010 to the end of 2012, the tax rate is 45%, from 2013 onwards the tax rate is 50%.
For automobiles
For automobiles with 9 seats or less, the tax rates vary according to cylinder capacity with larger cylinders subject to higher rates. Specifically: cylinders up to 2,000cc: 45%; Above 2,000cc to 3,000cc: 50%; Above 3,000cc: 60%; For vehicles from 10 to below 16 seats, the current tax rate remains at 30%; For vehicles designed to carry both people and goods (e.g., VANs, pickup trucks with two or more rows of seats), a separate line in the SCT Schedule with a tax rate of 15%; For hybrid fuel vehicles (gasoline combined with electricity, bioenergy), a separate SCT Schedule line with a tax rate of 70% of the rate applied for similar conventional vehicles; For fully bioenergy-powered vehicles, a separate SCT Schedule line with a tax rate of 50% of the rate applied for similar conventional vehicles.
For fully electric vehicles, the tax rates are specified: for those with 9 seats or less the rate is 25%; For vehicles carrying 10 to below 16 people the rate is 15%; For vehicles carrying 16 to below 24 people the rate is 10%; Vehicles designed to carry both people and goods (with two or more rows of seats) the rate is 10%.
For motorcycles with a cylinder capacity above 125cc, the tax rate is 20%; For airplanes and yachts, the tax rate is 30%.
For nightclub businesses, the tax rate increases from 30% to 40%; For massage and karaoke services, the current tax rate remains unchanged.
For casino services, prize-winning electronic games, and betting businesses, the tax rate is adjusted from 25% to 30%.
For golf businesses, the tax rate is adjusted from 10% to 20%.
Regarding Tax Calculation Prices
According to the Law, the tax calculation price for domestically produced goods is the selling price at the production site excluding SCT; For imported goods, it is the import tax calculation price plus import tax. The current tax calculation price for canned beer excludes the value of the can. To guide consumption of beer products and ensure fulfillment of WTO commitments by applying a uniform tax rate on beer products, Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12 clearly stipulates the SCT calculation price as the selling price of the production site, and the import price excluding SCT.
This regulation that the tax calculation price is the selling price of the production site means that the tax calculation price for canned and bottled beer includes the value of the can and bottle. Moreover, not excluding the value of the can aligns with international practices and ensures equality with other products that also have packaging like alcohol and cigarettes.
Regarding Tax Exemption and Reduction
This content, Law on SCT No. 27/2008/QH12, inherits the existing law’s provisions to facilitate sharing risks with taxpayers encountering objective difficulties due to natural disasters or fires.
Source: daibieunhandan.vn
