Circular No. 194/2016/TT-BTC stipulates the rates of customs fees and airport entry-exit charges for foreign flights to Vietnamese airports.

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the level of collection, collection system for customs fees and port entry and exit service fees for foreign flights to Vietnamese airports

Pursuant to the Law on Fees and Registration Fees dated November 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the State Budget Law dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Civil Aviation Law of Vietnam dated June 29, 2006 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the Civil Aviation Law of Vietnam dated November 21, 2014;

Pursuant to Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP dated August 23, 2016 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Fees and Charges;

Pursuant to Decree No. 215/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 23, 2013, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Tax Policy,

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular to regulate the level of collection, collection system for customs fees and port entry and exit service fees for foreign flights to Vietnamese airports.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

Article 1. This Circular regulates the level of collection, collection system for customs fees and port entry and exit service fees for foreign flights to Vietnamese airports.

Article 2. This Circular applies to organizations and individuals from foreign countries with flights to Vietnamese airports; organizations collecting fees and other related organizations and individuals.

Article 3. In cases where international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member provide different regulations than those stipulated in this Circular, such treaties shall be applied.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In this Circular, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. Official flight: means military aircraft flights, specialized aircraft of customs and police forces, and civil aircraft flights entirely used for state official purposes.

2. Special aircraft flight: means flights exclusively used separately or combined with commercial transportation and confirmed or announced by competent state authorities according to Decree No. 03/2009/NĐ-CP dated January 9, 2009 of the Government on ensuring safety for special aircraft flights.

Article 3. Fee Payers and Organizations Collecting Fees

Clause 1. Foreign organizations and individuals with foreign flights to Vietnamese airports must pay customs fees and port entry and exit service fees according to this Circular, except for the following cases:

Point a. Special aircraft flights (excluding special aircraft flights combined with commercial transportation);

Point b. Official aircraft flights;

Point c. Search and rescue flights, humanitarian aid transportation, disaster relief, flood relief, and other humanitarian missions;

Point d. Flights landing but not undergoing customs procedures or border security procedures such as technical landings for refueling or return flights due to bad weather.

Clause 2. Organizations collecting fees are Vietnamese Civil Aviation Authorities.

Article 4. Rates of Fees and Charges

Clause 1. Port entry and exit service fee: 50 US dollars (USD) per arrival flight.

Clause 2. Customs fee: 50 US dollars (USD) per arrival flight.

Clause 3. For foreign flights transporting internationally and stopping at multiple points within Vietnam in the same trip, the customs fee and port entry and exit service fee will only be collected once at the first airport of arrival.

Article 5. Declaration, Collection, Payment of Fees and Service Charges

Clause 1. Fee payers must pay fees before the aircraft takes off. In scheduled flights, fee payers must pay fees before takeoff or monthly, no later than the 20th day of the following month.

Clause 2. By the 5th of each month, the organization collecting fees must transfer the collected fees of the previous month into the tax account opened at the State Treasury.

Clause 3. The organization collecting fees must declare and pay fees monthly and settle accounts annually according to the guidance provided in Clause 3, Article 19 and Clause 2, Article 26 of Circular No. 156/2013/TT-BTC dated November 6, 2013 issued by the Minister of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Tax Administration and Decree No. 83/2013/NĐ-CP dated July 22, 2013 of the Government.

Clause 4. The organization collecting fees must remit 100% of the collected fees into the state budget (central budget) according to the chapters, sections, and sub-sections of the State Budget Manual.

Article 6. Implementation organization and enforcement provisions

Clause 1. This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2017, and replaces Decision No. 179/2000/QĐ-BTC dated November 13, 2000 of the Minister of Finance on port entry and exit service fees and customs fees for international flights to Vietnamese airports.

Clause 2. Other contents related to collection, payment, management, use, revenue receipts, publicizing the collection system for fees and service fees not mentioned in this Circular shall be implemented according to the Law on Fees and Service Fees; Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP dated August 23, 2016 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Fees and Service Fees; Circular No. 156/2013/TT-BTC dated November 6, 2013 of the Minister of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Tax Administration and Decree No. 83/2013/NĐ-CP dated July 22, 2013 of the Government; Circular No. 153/2012/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2012 of the Minister of Finance guiding the printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of revenue receipts for fees and service fees under the state budget and any amended or replaced documents (if any).

3. During the implementation process, if there are difficulties, it is requested that agencies, organizations, and individuals promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Finance for research and guidance on necessary amendments and supplements to ensure compliance.