Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Law on Export Tax and Import Tax No. 04/1998/QH10

LAW

AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS TO CERTAIN ARTICLES OF THE LAW ON EXPORT DUTIES AND IMPORT DUTIES

Based on the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in 1992;
This Law amends and supplements certain articles of the Law on Export Duties and Import Duties which was adopted at the tenth session of the Eighth National Assembly on December 26, 1991, and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Law on Export Duties and Import Duties which was adopted at the third session of the Ninth National Assembly on July 5, 1993.

Article 1 Amendments and supplements to certain articles of the Law on Export Duties and Import Duties:

Organizations and individuals involved in handling accidents in port waters and shipping channels shall follow Circular No. 27/2012/TT-BGTVT dated July 20, 2012 issued by the Minister of Transport on reporting and investigating maritime accidents. In cases where a vessel encounters an incident or accident that cannot be resolved within 30 minutes, it must immediately report to the Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Center for rescue operations or assistance."

"Article 9
1. The rate of import duties includes general rates, preferential rates, and special preferential rates:
a) General rates apply to imported goods originating from countries without most-favored-nation treatment agreements in their trade relations with Vietnam. General rates shall be higher than preferential rates for each corresponding commodity category, as prescribed by the Government, but not exceeding seventy percent.
b) Preferential rates apply to imported goods originating from countries with most-favored-nation treatment agreements in their trade relations with Vietnam. The Standing Committee of the National Assembly shall prescribe the Tariff Schedule according to the list of taxable commodity groups and the tariff range for each group. Based on the Tariff Schedule issued by the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, the Government shall prescribe the Tariff Schedule according to the list of taxable commodities and specific rates for each commodity.
c) Special preferential rates apply to imported goods originating from countries with which Vietnam has concluded special preferential agreements on import duties. The Government shall prescribe special preferential rates for each commodity according to the agreements signed with those countries.
2. Imported goods in the following cases, in addition to being subject to duties under Clause 1 of this Article, shall also be subject to additional duties:
a) Goods imported into Vietnam at prices significantly lower than normal due to dumping, causing difficulties for the development of similar domestic production industries;
b) Goods imported into Vietnam at prices significantly lower than normal due to export subsidies provided by the exporting country, causing difficulties for the development of similar domestic production industries;
c) Goods imported into Vietnam originating from countries that have discriminatory measures regarding import duties or other discriminatory measures against Vietnamese goods. The Government shall submit to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly for the determination of the application of additional duty rates in each case specified in Clause 2 of this Article."

2. Article 11 shall be amended and supplemented as follows:

"Article 11

Exemption from tax shall be granted in the following cases:
1. Imported goods specifically used for direct service of national security, defense, scientific research, education, and training;
2. Equipment, machinery, and transportation means specifically imported in accordance with Article 47 of the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam and Article 25 of the Law on Encouraging Domestic Investment;3. Gifts and presents from foreign organizations and individuals to Vietnamese organizations and individuals and vice versa within the limits prescribed by the Government."

3. Article 16 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"Clause 16
1. Organizations and individuals must declare and submit the export declaration form and pay taxes to the tax collection agency each time they are permitted to export goods.
2. Organizations and individuals must declare and submit the import declaration form and pay taxes to the tax collection agency at the place where the goods are imported through a border gate each time they are permitted to import goods. In necessary cases to avoid congestion of goods at border gates, the Government may specify additional locations for importing goods procedures. The tax collection agency is responsible for inspection, processing, and collecting taxes."

(i) Loans and financial leasing (including loans and financial leasing to other credit institutions and branches of foreign commercial banks in Vietnam), except:

"Clause 17
1. The date for calculating export duties and import duties is the date of registration of the export or import declaration form.
2. Within eight working hours from the date of registration of the export or import declaration form, the tax collection agency shall officially notify the taxpayer of the amount of tax payable. For certain commodities with large quantities imported or requiring complex inspections, the notification period may be extended up to three working days. The Government shall specify particular commodities in cases where inspections must be extended beyond three working days.
3. The deadline for paying export duties and import duties is as follows:
a) For exported goods, fifteen days from the date the taxpayer receives the official notification from the tax collection agency about the amount of tax payable;
b) For imported raw materials and components used for producing exported goods, nine months from the date the taxpayer receives the official notification from the tax collection agency about the amount of tax payable. In exceptional cases, the payment deadline may be extended in line with the production cycle and inventory of raw materials and components of enterprises, as prescribed by the Government;
c) For temporarily exported goods re-imported or temporarily imported goods re-exported, fifteen days from the end of the temporary export or import period as prescribed by the competent authority;
d) For imported machinery, equipment, raw materials, fuel, materials, and transport vehicles used for production, thirty days from the date the taxpayer receives the official notification from the tax collection agency about the amount of tax payable;d) For imported consumer goods, the tax must be paid in full before receiving the goods. In cases where there is a guarantee for the tax payment amount from credit institutions or other organizations authorized to conduct certain banking activities under the Law on Credit Institutions, the payment deadline is thirty days from the date the taxpayer receives the official notification from the tax collection agency about the amount of tax payable. If the taxpayer fails to pay the tax within the above deadline, the guarantor organization shall be responsible for paying the tax on behalf of the taxpayer."

5. Article 20 is amended and supplemented as follows:

"Article 20

Taxpayers who violate the Law on Export Duties and Import Duties shall be handled as follows:

1. If the tax or penalty is paid late compared to the prescribed payment date or the decision on tax handling, in addition to paying the full amount of tax and penalty, a daily fine of 0.1% (one thousandth) of the amount of overdue payment shall be imposed for each day of delay."

2. Failure to comply with registration and tax declaration requirements as prescribed by this Law shall be subject to administrative penalties for tax violations depending on the nature and severity of such violations;

3. Misstating taxes or evading taxes shall require, in addition to payment of the full amount of tax as stipulated by this Law, a fine ranging from one to five times the amount of fraudulent tax, depending on the nature and severity of the violation;

4. Failure to pay taxes or fines pursuant to a tax enforcement decision shall be enforced through the following measures:

a) Seizing funds deposited by the taxpayer at banks, credit institutions, or treasuries to settle tax payments and fines. Banks, credit institutions, and treasuries are responsible for deducting funds from the taxpayer's deposit account to settle tax payments and fines into the state budget according to the tax enforcement decision of the tax authority or the competent authority before collecting debts;

b) Detaining goods or evidence to ensure collection of the full amount of tax and fines;

c) Seizing assets in accordance with the law to ensure collection of the full amount of tax and outstanding fines;

d) Customs authorities shall not process export or import procedures for subsequent shipments of the taxpayer until such taxpayer has fully paid all taxes and fines;

5. Upon discovery and determination of fraud or tax evasion, the tax authority shall recover taxes and fines within five years from the date of detection of such fraud or evasion; in cases where taxpayers have made errors in declarations, the tax authority shall recover or refund taxes within one year from the date of detection of such errors;

6. Large-scale tax evasion or repeated tax violations after being administratively penalized for tax offenses, or other serious violations, shall result in criminal liability under the law;

The authority, procedures, and sequence for handling violations related to export taxes and import taxes shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 2 This Law shall take effect from January 1, 1999.

Article 3 The Government shall amend and supplement detailed implementing regulations of the Export Tax and Import Tax Law that have been issued to be consistent with this Law.