Abolition of a Mandatory Item on Accounting Documents
Clause 9, Article 2 of Law No. 56/2024/QH15 amending 9 Laws, effective from January 1, 2025, stipulates that accounting documents are no longer required to include the name and address of the agency, organization, unit, or individual receiving the accounting document.
Specifically, Clause 9, Article 2 of the Law amending 9 Laws states: “Abolish point d, Clause 1, Article 16 of the Accounting Law of 2015.”
According to Clause 1, Article 16 of the 2015 Accounting Law, accounting documents must contain the following main contents:
- Name and number of the accounting document;
- Date (day, month, year) of preparation of the accounting document;
- Name and address of the agency, organization, unit, or individual preparing the accounting document;
- Name and address of the agency, organization, unit, or individual receiving the accounting document;
- Content of the economic and financial transaction;
- Quantity, unit price, and amount of the economic and financial transaction recorded in numerals; the total amount of the accounting document used for cash receipts and disbursements recorded in numerals and words;
- Signatures, full names of the preparer, approver, and those involved in the accounting document.
In addition to the above, accounting documents may contain other contents depending on the type of document.
Therefore, from January 1, 2025, the name and address of the agency, organization, unit, or individual receiving the accounting document is no longer a mandatory item on accounting documents. Depending on the economic and financial transaction, enterprises can still include this information on accounting documents.
Accounting Documents Only Need to Be Translated into Vietnamese When Requested by State Agencies
Clause 3, Article 2 of the Law amending 9 Laws stipulates as follows:
- The language used in accounting is Vietnamese. In cases where a foreign language must be used on financial statements in Vietnam, both Vietnamese and the foreign language must be used simultaneously. Accounting documents in a foreign language must be translated into Vietnamese when requested by competent state agencies.
Currently, Clause 1, Article 11 of the 2015 Accounting Law stipulates that if a foreign language must be used on accounting documents, accounting books, and financial statements in Vietnam, both Vietnamese and the foreign language must be used simultaneously.
At the same time, Clause 5, Article 5 of Decree 174/2016/ND-CP provides the following guidance: Accounting documents recorded in a foreign language, when used for recording in accounting books and preparing financial statements in Vietnam, must have the main contents translated into Vietnamese.
That is, accounting documents, accounting books, and financial statements must all be translated into Vietnamese, and only documents attached to accounting documents such as contracts, documents attached to payment documents, investment project documents, finalization reports, and other related documents of the accounting unit are not required to be translated into Vietnamese unless requested by competent state agencies.
However, according to the new regulations, except for financial statements, all other accounting documents only need to be translated into Vietnamese when requested by competent state agencies.
Adjustments to the Accounting Period Regulations
The new Law amends and supplements the provisions in Clause 4, Article 12 of the 2015 Accounting Law as follows:
“4. In cases where the first or last fiscal year has a period of no more than 03 consecutive accounting months, it is permissible to combine it with the next or previous fiscal year to form one fiscal year; the first or last fiscal year must not exceed 15 months.”
Currently, the 2015 Accounting Law stipulates that the first or last fiscal year must not exceed 90 days. This regulation has led to problems in cases where the second and third quarters last 92 days; units are still required to prepare financial statements if the first or last period falls in the second and third quarters.
Accordingly, the new regulation is amended to unify the determination of the accounting period, allowing the combination of accounting periods if the first or last period is no more than 03 consecutive accounting months.
Adding Additional Methods of Confirming Electronic Documents Besides Electronic Signatures
The 2015 Accounting Law only recognized electronic signatures on electronic documents. The Law amending 9 Laws adds a provision that electronic documents can be confirmed through other forms of confirmation by electronic means in accordance with the law on electronic transactions.
This regulation is amended to comply with the provisions of the 2023 Law on Electronic Transactions, which allows the use of other forms of confirmation by electronic means to express the consent of the signing subject to the data message without being an electronic signature (such as biometric authentication, OTP, etc.).
Foreign E-commerce Platforms Must Register and Declare Taxes in Vietnam
Overseas suppliers conducting e-commerce business, business based on digital platforms, and other services are obligated to directly or authorize the registration, declaration, and payment of taxes in Vietnam in accordance with the regulations of the Minister of Finance (point a, Clause 5, Article 6 of Law No. 56/2024/QH15 amending and supplementing Clause 4, Article 42 of the 2019 Law on Tax Administration).
Accordingly, overseas suppliers conducting e-commerce business, business based on digital platforms, and other services in Vietnam, regardless of whether or not they have a permanent establishment in Vietnam, must declare and pay taxes as prescribed.
E-commerce Platforms Must Pay Taxes on Behalf of Business Households and Individuals
Organizations managing e-commerce trading floors and digital platform managers with payment functions (including domestic and foreign organizations) and other organizations with digital economic activities as prescribed by the Government must deduct and pay taxes on behalf of and declare the deducted tax amounts for business households and individuals doing business on e-commerce platforms and digital platforms, except in the following cases:
If business households and individuals conducting business on e-commerce platforms and digital platforms are not subject to tax deduction and payment on their behalf, they have the obligation to directly register, declare, and pay taxes.
The provisions in point b, Clause 5, Article 6 of the Law amending 9 Laws take effect from April 1, 2025. The Government will provide detailed regulations on:
- The scope of responsibility and methods for organizations managing e-commerce trading floors, managing digital platforms, and other organizations with digital economic activities to perform tax deduction, payment on behalf of, and declaration of deducted tax amounts for business transactions on e-commerce platforms and digital platforms of households and individuals;
- Documents and procedures for tax declaration, payment, and tax refund of households and individuals conducting business on e-commerce platforms and digital platforms.
No Supplementary Tax Returns Allowed When a Tax Inspection/Examination Decision Is Issued
Clause 6, Article 6 of Law No. 56/2024/QH15 amends Clause 1, Article 47 of the Law on Tax Administration as follows:
Taxpayers who discover errors or omissions in tax returns submitted to tax authorities are allowed to file supplementary tax returns within 10 years from the deadline for submitting the tax return of the tax period with errors or omissions in the following cases:
- Before the tax authority or competent authority announces a tax inspection or examination decision;
- The dossier does not fall within the scope and period of tax inspection or examination mentioned in the tax inspection or examination decision.
For contents within the scope of inspection or examination, taxpayers are allowed to supplement explanatory documents in accordance with the law on taxation, the law on inspection, and cases implemented according to conclusions and regulations of competent specialized agencies related to the content of determining the tax obligations of taxpayers.
Accordingly, from January 1, 2025, no supplementary tax returns are allowed when the tax authority or competent authority has announced a tax inspection or examination decision at the taxpayer’s headquarters.
Adjusting the Method of Determining the Time for Calculating Late Tax Payment Interest
Accordingly, Clause 7, Article 6 of the Law amending 9 Laws stipulates amendments and supplements to point b, Clause 2, Article 59 of the Law on Tax Administration as follows:
The time for calculating late payment interest is calculated continuously from the day following the last day of the tax payment deadline, the tax payment extension deadline, the deadline stated in the tax assessment notice or decision, or the handling decision of the tax administration agency to the day immediately preceding the date the tax debt, tax refund recovery, additional tax, assessed tax, or late transferred tax is paid into the state budget.
This regulation is amended to be consistent with the rules for determining the time for calculating late payment interest for cases subject to late payment interest as stipulated in points a and b, Clause 1, Article 59 of the Law on Tax Administration.
Abolition of the Regulation on Paying Interest to Taxpayers for Late Tax Refunds
Clause 3, Article 75 of the current Law on Tax Administration stipulates that tax administration agencies must pay interest at a rate of 0.03%/day calculated on the amount to be refunded and the number of days of late refund in cases of late issuance of tax refund decisions due to the fault of the tax administration agency.
The source of funds for paying interest is disbursed from the central budget in accordance with the law on the state budget.
However, the new Law has abolished this regulation and refers the regulations related to compensation for taxpayers to the Law on State Compensation Liability.
Specifically, Clause 3, Article 6 of Law No. 56/2024/QH15 amending and supplementing Clause 8, Article 16 of the 2019 Law on Tax Administration stipulates that taxpayers have the right to compensation for damages caused by tax administration agencies or tax administration officials.