News Summary - May/2025 | RSM Vietnam

RESOLUTION NO. 198/2025/QH15 ON SOME SPECIAL MECHANISMS AND POLICIES FOR PRIVATE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

On May 17, 2025, the National Assembly issued Resolution No. 198/2025/QH15 ("Resolution 198") on certain special mechanisms and policies to promote the development of the private economy. The key highlights of Resolution 198 are as follows:

1/ Principles for inspection, licensing, certification, competition, and access to resources

Article 4 of Resolution 198 stipulates:

• Each enterprise/household/individual shall be subject to inspection or examination no more than once per year (unless there is clear evidence of violation).

• Inspection and examination of the same content shall not be conducted in the same year (unless in case of serious violations).

• Priority shall be given to remote inspections and examinations based on electronic data, with direct inspections minimized.

2/ Provisions on tax, fee, and charge incentives

According to Article 10 of Resolution 198:

For income from innovative startup activities of innovative startups, venture capital fund management companies, and intermediaries supporting innovative startups:

-       Corporate income tax exemption for 2 years, followed by a 50% tax reduction for the next 4 years;

-       Personal/corporate income tax exemption for capital/share transfers;​

-       Personal income tax exemption for 2 years, followed by a 50% reduction for the next 4 years on salaries and wages of experts and scientists.​​​​​

For small and medium-sized enterprises:

-       Income tax exemption for 3 years from the date of initial enterprise registration.

For training and retraining expenses incurred by large enterprises for SMEs participating in supply chains:

-       Training costs shall be deductible for corporate income tax purposes.​

From January 1, 2026, the business license fee shall no longer be collected.​

For organizations, individuals, and enterprises undergoing restructuring of state apparatus in accordance with legal provisions:

-       Fees and charges for reissuance or replacement of documents shall be waived.

3 / Provisions on support for research, development, application of science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation

According to Article 12 of Resolution 198:

• Enterprises may allocate up to 20% of taxable income to establish a fund for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation.​

• Enterprises may deduct 200% of actual R&D expenses when calculating taxable corporate income, in accordance with government regulations.​

DECREE NO. 70/2025/ND-CP AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING CERTAIN ARTICLES OF DECREE NO. 123/2020/ND-CP DATED OCTOBER 19, 2020 ON INVOICES AND DOCUMENTS

On March 20, 2025, the Ministry of Finance issued Decree No. 70/2025/ND-CP (“Decree 70”) amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 123/2020/ND-CP dated October 19, 2020 of the Government on invoices and documents. Accordingly, the following points regarding the timing of invoice issuance should be noted:

1/ Timing of invoice issuance for sale of goods (including sale/transfer of public assets and sale of national reserve goods)

• The time of invoice issuance is the moment when ownership or usage rights of goods are transferred to the buyer, regardless of whether payment has been received.

• For exports (including outsourced exports), the time of issuing electronic commercial invoices, VAT invoices, or sales invoices is determined by the seller, but must not be later than the next working day after the goods have been cleared by customs in accordance with customs regulations.

2/ Timing of invoice issuance for service provision

• The invoice shall be issued upon completion of service provision (including for foreign entities or individuals), regardless of whether payment has been received.

• If the service provider collects payment before or during service provision, the invoice shall be issued at the time of payment (excluding deposits or advance payments to secure the execution of service contracts such as accounting, auditing, financial consultancy, tax services; valuation; survey and design; supervision consultancy; and investment project planning).

3/ Timing of invoice issuance for partial deliveries or handover of work items/service phases

• In cases where deliveries or handovers are made in parts, an invoice must be issued for each corresponding portion of goods or services delivered.

For specific situations requiring special attention, please refer to Decree 70

DECREE NO. 82/2025/ND-CP ON EXTENSION OF DEADLINES FOR PAYMENT OF VALUE-ADDED TAX, CORPORATE INCOME TAX, PERSONAL INCOME TAX, AND LAND RENT IN 2025

On 2 April 2025, the Government issued Decree No. 82/2025/ND-CP on the extension of deadlines for the payment of value-added tax (VAT), corporate income tax (CIT), personal income tax (PIT), and land rent in 2025 for the entities specified in Article 3 of this Decree. Key provisions include:

1/ For Value-Added Tax (excluding VAT on imports):

• Applicable to VAT declaration periods from February to June 2025 (for monthly declared VAT), and for the first quarters and second quarters of 2025 (for quarterly declared VAT).

• The extension period is: 6 months for VAT amounts payable for February, March 2025 and the first quarters of 2025, 5 months for VAT amounts payable for April, May, June 2025 and the second quarters of 2025.

• The extension period is calculated from the statutory tax payment deadlines in accordance with the Law on Tax Administration.

2/ For Corporate Income Tax:

• The extension period is: 5 months for provisional CIT payments for the first quarters and second quarters of 2025.

• The extension period is calculated from the statutory CIT payment deadlines in accordance with the Law on Tax Administration.

  
  

3/ For Value-Added Tax and Personal Income Tax of households businesses and individual businesses:

• Extension of deadlines for payment of VAT and PIT payable in 2025.

• The deferred tax amounts must be paid no later than 31 December 2025.

  
  

4/ For land rent:

• The extension period is: 6 months from 31 May 2025, for 50% of the land rent payable for the first installment of 2025.

CIRCULAR NO. 32/2025/TT-BTC PROVIDING GUIDANCE ON CERTAIN ARTICLES OF THE LAW ON TAX ADMINISTRATION 2019, DECREE NO. 123/2020/ND-CP DATED OCTOBER 19, 2020, AND DECREE NO. 70/2025/ND-CP DATED MARCH 20, 2025 AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING DECREE NO. 123.

On May 31, 2025, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 32/2025/TT-BTC (“Circular 32”) to provide detailed guidance on the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration 2019, Decree No. 123/2020/ND-CP (on invoices and documents), and Decree No. 70/2025/ND-CP (which amends and supplements the contents of Decree 123). These latest amendments directly affect the use of electronic invoices by enterprises; therefore, businesses should take note of the following new provisions:

1/ Removal of requirement for third-party authorization to be a related party

Under Point a, Clause 1, Article 4 of Circular 32, the Ministry of Finance no longer requires that a seller authorized to issue electronic invoices via a third party must be an “enterprise, economic organization, or other entity” and also does not require that the third party be a related party of the seller.

Additionally, Clauses 2 and 3 of Circular 32 introduce:

- Specific provisions on mandatory contents of the authorization contract/agreement (whereas Circular 78 only required such contracts/agreements to be in writing without specifying content);

- Additional provisions on the responsibilities of e-commerce platforms upon receiving authorization from sellers (Circular 78 did not address the responsibilities of e-commerce platforms in cases of authorization).

2 / Addition of new invoice code types for electronic commercial invoices

Clause 1, Article 5 of the Circular adds three new invoice form codes:

- Code 7: Represents electronic commercial invoices (New addition);

- Code 8: Represents value-added tax (VAT) invoices integrated with receipts for taxes, fees, and charges (New addition);

- Code 9: Represents sales invoices integrated with receipts for taxes, fees, and charges (New addition)

It also introduces the use of the letter “X” as a type identifier for electronic commercial invoices. Example: Invoice code 7K25XAB refers to a commercial electronic invoice without a code, issued in 2025, registered by the enterprise with the tax authority.

3 / Additional application of electronic invoices to certain cases

Article 6 of Circular No. 32/2025/TT-BTC has added several cases in which electronic invoices are to be applied, as follows:

Bulk and frequent sales/service transactions that require time for reconciliation between seller and customer/partner, including: Derivative products (as regulated under credit, securities, commercial, and VAT laws); Industrial catering services; Services provided by Commodity Exchanges; Credit information services; Passenger transportation by taxi (for customers that are organizations or enterprises)

For financial leasing activities involving assets subject to value-added tax (VAT), it is required to have an input VAT invoice (for domestically purchased assets) or proof of VAT payment at the import stage (for imported assets). Specifically,

- When issuing an invoice, the total VAT amount stated on the output invoice must match the input VAT amount of the leased asset (or the proof of VAT payment at the import stage).

- The VAT rate on the output invoice must be indicated using the special symbol “CTTC”.

- In cases where the leased asset is not subject to VAT, or there is no input VAT invoice or no proof of VAT payment at the import stage, VAT must not be shown on the invoice.

4 / Additional provisions on the contents of VAT invoices cum tax refund declarations

Pursuant to Article 7 of Circular No. 32, the contents of value-added tax (VAT) invoices cum tax refund declarations shall consist of three parts:

• Part A is for the exporting enterprise to prepare upon selling goods, and includes the following: Invoice title ("Invoice cum Tax Refund Declaration"), invoice symbol, invoice form number; seller information; buyer information; goods information; seller’s digital signature and buyer’s signature on the displayed version of the electronic invoice; payment method: clearly stating the amount paid by each method: in cash or by international card (specifying card name and number).

• Part B is for the customs authority to complete for recording inspection results and calculating the refundable VAT amount to the foreign customer, and includes: serial number of goods; item name; quantity; VAT amount recorded on the invoice and refundable; inspection time (specifying day, month, year); name and signature of the customs officer conducting the inspection.

• Part C is for the commercial bank acting as the tax refund agent to complete, and includes: flight/train number and date of the foreign customer’s departure; refundable VAT amount to the foreign customer; payment method: clearly stating the amount refunded by each method—cash or international card (specifying card name and number); time of payment.

5 / Additional criteria for identifying high tax risk in electronic invoice registration

According to Article 9 of Circular 32/2025/TT-BTC, there are 05 criteria for identifying high tax risk in electronic invoice registration:

• Criterion 1: The taxpayer’s owner or legal representative, business household representative, individual business operator, or private enterprise owner simultaneously holds such roles in other entities that have been officially determined by competent authorities to have committed fraud or traded invoices, based on the tax authority’s database.

• Criterion 2: The taxpayer’s owner or legal representative, business household representative, individual business operator, or private enterprise owner is listed as having suspicious transactions under the 2022 Law on Anti-Money Laundering.

• Criterion 3: The taxpayer registers a head office address that is either non-specific under administrative boundaries, located in an apartment (excluding those authorized for business use by law), or at a business location outside the province/city where the enterprise’s head office or branch is located.

• Criterion 4: The taxpayer has a legal representative or owner who simultaneously holds such positions in another taxpayer entity in the status of “Inactive but not yet completed tax code termination procedures” or “Not operating at the registered address”, or has committed violations in tax, invoices, or documents as instructed by the Minister of Finance.

• Criterion 5: The taxpayer shows other tax risk indicators as determined by the tax authority, with formal notice and opportunity for explanation provided to the taxpayer.

6/ Regulations on electronic personal income tax withholding certificates

According to Clause 2, Article 12 of Circular 32/2025/TT-BTC, from June 1, 2025, PIT withholding organizations must cease using the previous format of electronic personal income tax withholding certificates and transition to the new format in accordance with Decree 70/2025/ND-CP

DECREE NO. 44/2025/NĐ-CP OF THE GOVERNMENT ON LABOR MANAGEMENT, SALARIES, REMUNERATION, AND BONUSES IN STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES

On 28 February 2025, the Government issued Decree No. 44/2025/NĐ-CP on the management of labor, salaries, remuneration, and bonuses in State-owned enterprises (SOEs), with several new regulations on salaries in SOEs effective from 1 January 2025, as follows:

1/ Redefinition of Management Roles:

Management personnel are now classified into two main groups:

• Executive Board: General Director, Director, Deputy General Director, Deputy Director, Chief Accountant.

• Board Members: Chairperson and members of the Members' Council or Board of Directors, etc.

2/ Increased Autonomy in Salary Structuring:

• SOEs have the autonomy to set salary scales and tables without an upper limit for experts and high-quality personnel.

• Salaries for the Board, Supervisors, and the Executive Board are separated and linked to operational performance.

3/ Addition of Objective Exclusion Factors:

To ensure fairness in evaluating business results, the decree adds factors such as state policies, internal enterprise factors, and external impacts like market changes, natural disasters, epidemics, etc.

4/ New Salary Fund Determination Methods:

• In addition to the average method, a stable unit salary rate method is added.

• Enterprises can flexibly apply either method depending on the industry and business sector.

5/ Revised Method for Determining Basic Salaries for Management Positions:

Specifies salary levels according to position groups and enterprise size, categorized into Group I and Group II, each with four distinct levels.

6/ Regulation on Repayment of Excess Salary Advances:

If salary advances exceed actual amounts, the overpaid amount must be repaid before 30 June of the following year.

CIRCULAR NO. 03/2025/TT-BLĐTBXH ON STANDARDS FOR CLASSIFYING LABOR BASED ON WORKING CONDITIONS

On 11 February 2025, the Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs issued Circular No. 03/2025/TT-BLĐTBXH providing standards for classifying labor based on working conditions.

1/ Labor Classification Standards Based on Working Conditions:

Labor is classified into six categories based on working conditions:

- Type I

- Type II

- Type III

- Type IV

- Type V

- Type VI

Jobs and occupations with working conditions classified as Type I, II, or III are considered not arduous, toxic, or dangerous.

Jobs classified as Type IV are considered arduous, toxic, or dangerous.

Jobs classified as Type V and VI are considered especially arduous, toxic, and dangerous.

2/ Responsibilities of Sector Management Ministries, Employers, and Relevant Agencies

Accordingly, the sectoral management ministries, employers, and relevant agencies have the following responsibilities:

• Employers must control hazardous and harmful factors as stipulated in Chapter 2 of Decree No. 39/2016/NĐ-CP; based on results of labor environment monitoring and risk prevention to evaluate improvements in working conditions. If classification is needed, it must follow the method specified in Article 4 of Circular 03/2025/TT-BLĐTBXH.

• Annually, ministries managing specific sectors must proactively review the working conditions of jobs in their respective fields. If classification is needed, it must be done in accordance with Article 4 of Circular 03/2025/TT-BLĐTBXH.

• In case new jobs arise with hazardous, toxic, or dangerous elements, sectoral ministries and employers must evaluate and classify the working conditions in accordance with the provisions of Circular 03/2025/TT-BLĐTBXH.

OFFICIAL LETTER NO. 5624/NTL-QLDN2 GUIDANCE FOR TAXPAYERS ON ISSUING INVOICES WITH ALL MANDATORY DETAILS

On 12 May 2025, the Regional Tax Department I - Nam Tu Liem District Tax Team issued Official Letter No. 5624/NTL-QLDN2 to guide taxpayers on issuing invoices with all mandatory information as prescribed by the Law on Tax Administration and related guiding documents.

Accordingly, the Official Letter emphasizes the buyer’s information required when issuing invoices, as follows:

• When issuing electronic invoices for the sale of goods or provision of services to buyers (especially households businesses and individual businesses), taxpayers must include either the tax code (TC) or Citizen Identification Number (CIN) of the buyer on the invoice.

• For certain specific cases of selling goods or providing services to individual consumers as stipulated in Point c, Clause 14, Article 10 of Decree No. 123/2020/NĐ-CP dated October 19, 2020, by the Government (to be implemented from June 1, 2025, according to Point d, Clause 7, Article 1 of Decree No. 70/2025/NĐ-CP dated March 20, 2025), taxpayers are not required to include the TC or CIN of the buyer on the invoice. These cases include:

  • Electronic invoices for sales at supermarkets and shopping centers;

  • Electronic invoices for fuel sales to individual customers who are not in business.

• In case of any errors in the issued invoice, adjustments or replacements must be made in accordance with regulations.

• The use of invoices or documents that do not contain all mandatory information, especially the omission of the TC for buyers who are business entities with tax codes, is considered a violation of regulations on invoicing and will be subject to administrative penalties as prescribed by law.

OFFICIAL LETTER NO. 7629/CCTKV.XVI-QLDN2 ON TAX POLICY REGARDING THE PURCHASE OF GIFT VOUCHERS FOR EMPLOYEES

On April 22, 2025, the regional tax sub-department xvi issued a response to the inquiry from gs batteryVietnam co., ltd. concerning the purchase of gift vouchers for employees.

Pursuant to the provisions of decree no. 123/2020/NĐ-CP (as amended by decree no. 70/2025/NĐ-CP) and circular no. 96/2015/TT-BTC:

• When an enterprise purchases gift vouchers, the seller is required to issue a collection receipt.

• When employees use the vouchers to purchase goods or services, the seller of such goods or services must issue an invoice at the time of supplying the goods or services.

In addition, these expenses shall be considered deductible expenses for corporate income tax purposes, provided that they are supported by adequate invoices, documents, and are settled in accordance with prevailing regulations.

OFFICIAL LETTER NO. 195/CCTKV13-QLDN3 DATED 2025 ON DETERMINATION OF RELATED PARTY RELATIONSHIPS AND DEDUCTIBLE INTEREST EXPENSES

On March 25, 2025, the regional tax sub-department xiii issued official letter r No. 195/CCTKV13-QLDN 3 in response to Thinh Hung co., ltd. regarding the determination of related party relationships and deductible interest expenses in accordance with the provisions of decree Decree No. 132/2020/NĐ-CP.

Accordingly, if in the year 2024, the total loan amount (including both loans carried forward from 2023 and new loans in 2024) reaches or exceeds 10% of the owner's contributed capital, the company shall be deemed to have a related-party relationship with the owner. In such case, deductible interest expenses shall be subject to the cap not exceeding 30% of the total net profit before interest, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in the tax period.

OFFICIAL LETTER NO. 979/CTLAN-TTHT REGARDING CORPORATE INCOME TAX (“CIT”) POLICY ON YEAR-END REVALUATION OF FOREIGN CURRENCY-DENOMINATED ITEMS

On February 21, 2025, the tax department received official letter no. 0125cv-srsvn from Sanei technology Vietnam co., ltd. regarding the revaluation of monetary items denominated in foreign currencies at the end of the financial year.

pursuant to Circular No. 96/2015/TT-BTC and relevant guiding documents:

- Foreign exchange gains or losses arising from the revaluation of cash, deposits, cash in transit, and receivables denominated in foreign currencies at year-end shall not be included in deductible expenses or taxable income for corporate income tax (CIT) purposes.

- However, foreign exchange gains or losses from the revaluation of foreign currency-denominated payables at the end of the fiscal year shall be included in income or expenses when determining CIT obligations.

OFFICIAL LETTER NO. 672/CCTKV.XV RESPONSE REGARDING DEPENDENT TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS

On 5 May 2025, the Regional Tax Department XV issued Official Letter No. 672/CCTKV.XV in response to the letter from POMINA 2 Steel Joint Stock Company regarding tax identification numbers (TIN) for dependents. The document provides the following guidance:

If the dependent’s tax identification number is registered incorrectly, the Company must:

• Submit a declaration of changes (reduction) of dependents using Form 20-ĐK-TH-TCT,

• File it electronically via the eTax system at https://thuedientu.gdt.gov.vn,

• Not apply the personal deduction for dependents whose TINs were incorrectly registered,

• Adjust the amount of tax payable (if applicable) in accordance with regulations.

The Regional Tax Department provides this guidance to ensure the Company correctly follows the procedure when incorrect dependent TINs are registered, and emphasizes the responsibility to adjust tax obligations if any arise.

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