Vietnam: Tax identification number (TIN) and 04 things you should to know

Vietnam: Tax identification number (TIN) and 04 things you should to know (Source: internet)

1. What is a tax identification number (TIN)?

According to Clause 5, Article 3 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019, “tax identification number” or “TIN” means a series of 10 or 13 digits and other characters assigned by tax authorities to taxpayers to serve tax administration.

2. Structure of TIN in Vietnam

Types of TINs:

- 10-digit TINs shall be issued to enterprises and organizations that are legal persons; representatives of households, household businesses and other individuals;

- 13-character TINs shall be issued to dependent units and other entities;

Structure of TIN: N1N2N3N4N5N6N7N8N9N10 - N11N12N13

Where:

- The first two digits N1N2 indicate the province that issues TINs

- Seven digits N3N4N5N6N7N8N9 are formed in a definite element in ascending order from 0000001 to 9999999.

- N10 is the check digit.

- Three digits N11N12N13 are formed in ascending order from 001 to 999.

- A dash (-) is used to separate the first 10-digit element and the last 3-digit element.

3. Issuance of TINs in Vietnam

Issuance of TINs:

- Each enterprise, business organization or other organization is issued with 01 unique TIN to use throughout its entire operation, from the date of taxpayer registration to the date of TIN deactivation. A taxpayer’s branches, representative offices and/or dependent units that pay their own tax shall be issued with separate TINs.

In case an enterprise, organization, branch, representative office or dependent unit combines taxpayer registration via the interlinked single-window system with business registration, the number of the certificate of enterprise registration, cooperative registration and/or business registration (hereinafter referred to as “business registration certificate”) is also the TIN;  

- Each individual is issued 01 unique TIN to use throughout their whole life. Any dependant of that individual shall be issued with a TIN for the purpose of claiming personal exemption for personal income taxpayers. The TIN issued to the dependant is also his/her personal TIN, which is used when paying his/her tax;

- Enterprises, organizations and individuals responsible for deducting and paying tax on behalf of taxpayers shall be issued with separate TINs for use when deducting tax;

- Issued TINs shall not be reissued to another taxpayer;

- TINs of enterprises, business organizations and other organizations shall remain unchanged after they are converted, sold, gifted or inherited;

- TIN issued to a household, household business or individual business is issued to the individual representing the household, household business or individual business.

(Clause 3, Article 30 of the Law on Tax Administration 2019)

4. Use of TINs in Vietnam

TINs are used as follows:

- Taxpayers must include their TINs in invoices, records and/or materials when making business transactions; opening deposit accounts at commercial banks and/or other credit institutions; declaring tax, pay tax, applying for tax exemption, tax reduction, tax refund and/or tax cancellation; filing customs declarations and making other tax-related transactions for all amounts payable to the state budget, including the case where taxpayers’ businesses operate across different locations.

- Taxpayers must provide their TINs to relevant agencies and/or organizations or include their TINs in their applications when following administrative procedures of tax authorities via the interlinked single-window system.

- Tax authorities, the State Treasury and commercial banks and other organizations authorized by tax authorities to collect tax shall use TINs of taxpayers for the purpose of tax administration and tax collection.

- Commercial banks and other credit institutions must include TINs in the taxpayers’ applications for opening accounts and in records of transactions via accounts.

- Other organizations and individuals participating in tax administration shall use TINs of taxpayers when providing information related to the determination of tax liabilities.

- When a Vietnamese party makes a payment to an organization/individual whose cross-border business is based on a digital intermediary platform outside of Vietnamese territories, it must use the TIN assigned to this organization/individual to deduct and pay tax on behalf of such organization/individual.

- Personal identification numbers shall replace TINs when they are issued to the whole population.

(Article 35 of Law on Tax Administration 2019)

Diem My

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