Circular No. 68/2019/TT-BTC guides the implementation of certain provisions of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP dated September 12, 2018 of the Government on electronic invoices when selling goods and providing services.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for Implementing Certain Provisions of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP

dated September 12, 2018 of the Government on

electronic invoices when selling goods and providing services

_______________________

Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization dated June 19, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Tax Administration dated November 29, 2006 and the Laws Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Tax Administration;

Pursuant to the Law on Value Added Tax dated June 3, 2008 and the Laws Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Value Added Tax;

Pursuant to the Law on Accounting dated November 20, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Electronic Transactions dated November 29, 2005;

Pursuant to the Law on Information Technology dated June 29, 2006;

Pursuant to Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP dated September 12, 2018 of the Government on electronic invoices when selling goods and providing services;

Pursuant to Decree No. 87/2017/NĐ-CP dated July 26, 2017 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the proposal of the Director General of the State Revenue Administration,

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular guiding the implementation of certain provisions of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP dated September 12, 2018 of the Government on electronic invoices when selling goods and providing services as follows:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular guides certain contents regarding electronic invoices as prescribed in Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP dated September 12, 2018 of the Government on electronic invoices when selling goods and providing services (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP), including: content of electronic invoices, time of issuance of electronic invoices, format of electronic invoices, application of electronic invoices, provision of electronic invoice services, management and use of electronic invoices, construction and management of electronic invoice database, and organization of provision of electronic invoice services.

Article 2. Applicability

1. Organizations, enterprises, households, and individuals selling goods and providing services include:

a) Enterprises established and operating in accordance with the Law on Enterprises, the Law on Credit Institutions, the Law on Insurance Business, the Law on Securities, the Law on Oil and Gas, and other regulatory legal documents in the forms of: Joint Stock Company; Limited Liability Company; Partnership; Private Enterprise;

b) Public service organizations selling goods and providing services;

c) Organizations established and operating in accordance with the Law on Cooperatives;

d) Other organizations;

đ) Households and individuals engaged in business.

2. Organizations and individuals purchasing goods and services.

3. Organizations providing electronic invoice services include: organizations providing electronic invoice solutions; organizations providing services for receiving, transmitting, storing electronic invoice data, and other services related to electronic invoices.

4. Tax administration agencies at all levels and organizations and individuals related to the management, registration, and use of invoices.

Article 3. Content of Electronic Invoices

1. Content of electronic invoices:

a) Name of invoice, invoice code, invoice model number, invoice number

a.1) The name of the invoice is the name of each type of invoice specified in Article 5 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, displayed on each invoice, such as: VALUE ADDED TAX INVOICE, SALES INVOICE, ELECTRONIC WAREHOUSE EXPORT AND TRANSPORTATION ORDER, STAMP, TICKET, CARD...

a.2) Invoice model number code

The invoice model number code is a single digit character representing the types of invoices as follows:

- Number 1: Reflects the type of Value Added Tax Invoice.

- Number 2: Reflects the type of Sales Invoice.

- Number 3: Reflects the type of Electronic Warehouse Export and Transportation Order.

- Number 4: Reflects other types of invoices such as electronic stamps, electronic tickets, electronic cards, electronic receipts, or other electronic documents with different names but containing the content of electronic invoices as stipulated herein.

a.3) Invoice code

The invoice code is a group of six characters consisting of letters and numbers to reflect the invoice code to reflect information about the type of invoice with tax authority code or without tax authority code, year of invoice issuance, and type of electronic invoice used. These six characters are defined as follows:

- The first character is one (01) letter defined as C or K to indicate whether the electronic invoice has a tax authority code or not, where: C indicates an electronic invoice with a tax authority code, K indicates an electronic invoice without a tax authority code.

- The next two characters are two Arabic numerals indicating the year of electronic invoice issuance determined by the last two digits of the Gregorian calendar year. For example: If the year of electronic invoice issuance is 2019, it is represented as 19; if the year of electronic invoice issuance is 2021, it is represented as 21.

- The next character is one (01) letter defined as T or D or L or M to indicate the type of electronic invoice used, specifically:

+ Letter T: Applied to electronic invoices used by businesses, organizations, households, and individuals engaged in business registered with the tax authority.

+ Letter D: Applied to special electronic invoices that do not necessarily have specific criteria used by businesses and organizations registered with the tax authority.

+ Letter L: Applied to electronic invoices issued by the tax authority for each occurrence.

+ Letter M: Applied to electronic invoices generated from cash registers.

- The last two characters are letters determined by the seller based on management needs, and if there are no management needs, they are represented as YY.

- On the display, the invoice code and the invoice model number code are shown on the upper right side of the invoice (or in a visible position).

- Examples of displaying the characters of the invoice model number code and the invoice code:

+ "1C21TAA" – is a value added tax invoice with a tax authority code issued in 2021 and is an electronic invoice used by businesses, organizations, households, and individuals engaged in business registered with the tax authority.

+ "2C21TBB" – is a sales invoice with a tax authority code issued in 2021 and is an electronic invoice used by businesses, organizations, households, and individuals engaged in business registered with the tax authority.

+ "1C22LBB" – is a value added tax invoice with a tax authority code issued in 2022 and is an electronic invoice issued by the tax authority for each occurrence.

+ "1K22TYY" – is a value added tax invoice without a tax authority code issued in 2022 and is an electronic invoice used by businesses and organizations registered with the tax authority.

+ "1K22DAA" – is an added-value invoice without a tax authority code issued in 2022 and is a special electronic invoice that does not necessarily have to include all mandatory fields, registered for use by businesses and organizations.

+ "3K22TAB" – is an electronic warehouse exit slip without a tax authority code issued in 2022 and is an electronic document with the content of an electronic invoice registered by the business with the tax authority.

a.4) Invoice number

- The invoice number is the serial number displayed on the invoice when the seller issues it. The invoice number must be recorded using Arabic numerals with a maximum of 8 digits, starting from number 1 on January 1 or the start date of using invoices and ending at number 99,999,999 on December 31 each year. Invoices must be issued in consecutive order from the smallest to the largest number within the same invoice type and invoice number model.

- If the invoice number is not issued according to the above principle, the electronic invoice system must ensure that the numbering increases over time, each invoice number being used only once and having a maximum of 8 digits.

b) Name, address, taxpayer identification number of the seller

The name, address, and taxpayer identification number of the seller must be shown on the invoice in accordance with the information recorded in the business registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, business household registration certificate, tax registration certificate, tax identification number notification, investment registration certificate.

c) Name, address, taxpayer identification number of the buyer (if the buyer has a taxpayer identification number)

c.1) Where the buyer is a business entity with a taxpayer identification number, the name, address, and taxpayer identification number of the buyer shown on the invoice must be recorded according to the information in the business registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, business household registration certificate, tax registration certificate, tax identification number notification, investment registration certificate.

c.2) Where the buyer does not have a taxpayer identification number, the taxpayer identification number of the buyer need not be shown on the invoice. In certain cases where goods or services are sold to individual consumers as specified in Clause 3 of this Article, the name and address of the buyer need not be shown on the invoice. When selling goods or providing services to foreign customers visiting Vietnam, the address of the buyer may be replaced with information about the customer's passport number or entry-exit documents and nationality.

d) Name, unit of measurement, quantity, unit price of goods and services; total amount before value-added tax, VAT rate, total VAT amount according to each tax rate, total VAT amount, total payment including VAT.

d.1) Name, unit of measurement, quantity, unit price of goods and services

- Name of goods and services: The invoice must show the name of goods and services in Vietnamese. Where different types of goods are sold, the name of goods must be detailed to each type (for example: Samsung phone, Nokia phone...). Where goods require registration of usage rights or ownership rights, the invoice must show specific identifiers of the goods required by law during registration (for example: chassis number, engine number of cars and motorcycles, address, floor level, length, width, number of floors of a house...). For special goods and services such as electricity, water, telecommunications services, television services, information technology services, insurance sold on a periodic basis, the invoice must specify the period of supply of goods and services.

Where additional foreign language text is required, the foreign language text must be placed in parentheses ( ) to the right of the Vietnamese text or directly below the Vietnamese text in a smaller font size. Where goods and services transactions are subject to product codes, the invoice must record both the name and the product code.

- Unit of measurement: The seller bases the nature and characteristics of the goods to determine the name of the unit of measurement of the goods shown on the invoice according to units of measurement (such as: ton, hundredweight, picul, kg, g, mg or liang, jin, piece, head, item, can, barrel, bag, packet, tube, meter).³, m²- For services, the unit of measurement is determined based on each service provision and the content of the service provided.

- Quantity of goods and services: The seller records the quantity using Arabic numerals based on the aforementioned unit of measurement.

- Unit price of goods and services: The seller records the unit price of goods and services according to the aforementioned unit of measurement.

d.2) Value-added tax rate: The value-added tax rate shown on the invoice corresponds to the applicable rate for each type of goods and services as stipulated by the law on value-added tax.

d.3) Total amount before value-added tax, total value-added tax amount according to each tax rate, total value-added tax amount, total payment including value-added tax must be shown in Vietnamese dong using Arabic numerals, except in cases of sales in foreign currency that do not require conversion to Vietnamese dong, which should be shown in the original currency.

The total payment amount on the invoice must be shown in Vietnamese dong using Arabic numerals and in Vietnamese text, except in cases of sales in foreign currency that do not require conversion to Vietnamese dong, where the total payment amount should be shown in the original currency and in foreign language text.

Where a business applies commercial discounts to customers or promotions as prescribed by law, these must be clearly indicated on the electronic invoice. The determination of the taxable amount (total amount before value-added tax) in cases of applying commercial discounts to customers or promotions shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on value-added tax.

đ) Digital signature, electronic signature of the seller and the buyer

- Where the seller is a business or organization, the digital signature of the seller on the invoice is the digital signature of the business or organization; where the seller is an individual, the individual's digital signature or that of the authorized representative must be used.

- In case the buyer is a business entity and the buyer and seller have agreed that the buyer will meet the technical conditions to sign digitally on the electronic invoice issued by the seller, then the buyer shall sign digitally on the electronic invoice.

- In cases where the electronic invoice does not necessarily require the digital signature of both the seller and the buyer, the parties shall comply with the provisions set forth in Clause 3 of this Article.

e) The time of issuance of the electronic invoice

The time of issuance of the electronic invoice is determined based on the time when the seller's digital signature on the invoice is displayed in the format of day, month, year (for example: April 30, 2019) and in accordance with the guidance provided in Article 4 of this Circular.

g) The tax authority code for electronic invoices bearing a tax authority code as stipulated in Clause 5, Article 3 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

h) Fees, charges under state budget, trade discounts, promotions (if any) in accordance with the guidance at point d.3 of this clause and other related contents (if any).

2. Text, numerals, and currency displayed on the electronic invoice

a) The text displayed on the invoice must be in Vietnamese. If it is necessary to record foreign text, the foreign text should be placed in parentheses ( ) to the right or directly below the Vietnamese text in smaller font size. In cases where the text on the invoice is Vietnamese without diacritical marks, the text without diacritical marks on the invoice must ensure that it does not lead to a misinterpretation of the content of the invoice.

b) The numerals displayed on the invoice must be Arabic numerals: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. The seller may choose to place a period (.) after thousands, millions, billions, trillions, quadrillions, quintillions, and to place a comma (,) after the units digit if there are digits following the units digit, or to use a comma (,) as a natural number separator after thousands, millions, billions, trillions, quadrillions, quintillions, and a period (.) after the units digit on accounting vouchers.

c) The currency recorded on the invoice must be Vietnamese Dong, with the national symbol being "đ".

- In cases where economic and financial transactions occur in foreign currency as prescribed by laws on foreign exchange, the unit price, total amount, total value-added tax according to each tax rate, total value-added tax, and total payment amount must be recorded in the original currency. The seller must simultaneously display on the invoice the exchange rate of the original currency to Vietnamese Dong according to the regulations of the Law on Tax Administration and its implementing documents.

- The international standard code for foreign currency (for example: 13,800.25 USD - Thirteen thousand eight hundred US dollars and twenty-five cents, for example: 5,000 EUR - Five thousand euros).

- In cases where goods sales transactions occur in foreign currency as prescribed by laws on foreign exchange and taxes are paid in foreign currency, the total payment amount displayed on the invoice must be shown in the original currency, without conversion to Vietnamese Dong.

3. Some cases where the invoice does not necessarily need to contain all contents

a) On the electronic invoice, it is not necessarily required to have the buyer's digital signature (including cases where the electronic invoice is issued when selling goods or providing services to customers abroad). In cases where the buyer is a business entity and the buyer and seller have agreed that the buyer will meet the technical conditions to sign digitally on the electronic invoice issued by the seller, the electronic invoice will bear the digital signatures of both the buyer and the seller as agreed between the two parties.

b) For electronic invoices issued at supermarkets and shopping centers where the buyer is an individual not engaged in business, the invoice does not necessarily need to include the buyer's name, address, taxpayer identification number.

c) For electronic invoices issued for gasoline sales to individuals not engaged in business, it is not necessarily required to include the invoice name, invoice model number, invoice code, invoice number; the buyer's name, address, taxpayer identification number, buyer's digital signature; seller's digital signature, VAT rate. The seller must ensure full storage of electronic invoices for gasoline sales to individuals not engaged in business as prescribed and ensure they can be retrieved upon request by authorized authorities.

d) For electronic invoices that are stamps, tickets, cards, it is not necessarily required to include the seller's digital signature (except in cases where stamps, tickets, cards are electronic invoices issued by the tax authority with a code), buyer's information (name, address, taxpayer identification number), tax amount, VAT rate. In cases where electronic stamps, tickets, cards have a fixed denomination, it is not necessarily required to include the unit of measurement, quantity, unit price.

đ) For electronic service transportation documents issued through websites and e-commerce systems according to international practices for individuals not engaged in business who are identified as electronic invoices, the invoice does not necessarily need to include the invoice code, invoice model number, invoice serial number, VAT rate, buyer's taxpayer identification number, seller's digital signature.

In cases where a business entity or non-business organization purchases air transportation services, the electronic service transportation documents issued through websites and e-commerce systems according to international practices for individuals within the business entity or non-business organization cannot be identified as electronic invoices. Air transportation service providers or agents must issue electronic invoices containing all required contents and provide them to organizations using air transportation services.

e) For invoices of construction and installation activities; construction of houses for sale with payments made according to the progress specified in the contract, the invoice does not necessarily need to include the unit of measurement, quantity, unit price.

g) For Electronic Outbound Shipment and Transportation Notes, the note does not display the buyer's information but instead shows the transporter's name, transport vehicle, outbound warehouse address, inbound warehouse address; it does not show the tax amount, tax rate, total payment amount.

h) An invoice used for Interline payment among airlines, if established according to the regulations of the International Air Transport Association, does not necessarily have to include the following indicators: invoice code, invoice form code, buyer's name and address, buyer's tax number, buyer's electronic signature, unit of measurement, quantity, unit price.

4. Other contents on electronic invoices

a) In addition to the contents specified in Clause 1 and Clause 3 of this Article, businesses, organizations, households, and individual traders may create additional information about trademarks or logos to display the brand, trademark, or representative image of the seller. Depending on the nature of the transaction and management requirements, the invoice may also include information about the Sales Contract, shipping orders, customer codes, and other relevant information.

b) For Electronic Outbound Warehouse Order and Transportation Documents, the document shall include information related to internal dispatch orders, recipient, shipper, warehouse address for shipment, warehouse address for receipt; specific transportation means:

- Shipper's name, Internal Dispatch Order.

- Shipment warehouse address, carrier's name, and transportation means.

- Recipient's name.

- Receipt warehouse address.

5. The display model of certain types of invoices attached as Appendix No. 1 issued together with this Circular serves as a reference.

6. For combined Value Added Tax Invoice and Export Refund Declaration, continue to follow the guidance of the Ministry of Finance as stipulated in Circular No. 72/2014/TT-BTC dated May 30, 2014, concerning the refund of Value Added Tax for goods brought out by foreigners and overseas Vietnamese when leaving the country.

Article 4Time of issuance of electronic invoices

1. The time of issuance of electronic invoices for selling goods, providing services, or delivering goods multiple times or transferring service items and stages is determined according to the provisions of Clause 1, Clause 2, and Clause 3 of Article 7 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. The time of issuance of electronic invoices for other cases is guided as follows:

a) The time of issuance of electronic invoices for electricity supply, water supply, telecommunications services, television services, and information technology services sold periodically shall be completed no later than seven (7) days from the date of recording the consumption meter readings or the end date of the agreed period for telecommunications, television, and information technology services. The agreed period for calculating the amount of goods and services provided is based on the agreement between the service provider and the buyer.

b) The time of issuance of electronic invoices for construction and installation activities is the time of acceptance and handover of the project, project components, or completed construction and installation work, regardless of whether payment has been received or not.

c) For real estate trading organizations, infrastructure construction, house construction for sale, or transfer:

c.1) In cases where ownership or usage rights have not been transferred: If there is actual collection of money according to the project implementation progress or the payment schedule stipulated in the contract, the time of issuance of the electronic invoice is the day of money collection or according to the payment terms agreed in the contract.

c.2) In cases where ownership or usage rights have already been transferred: The time of issuance of the electronic invoice shall be carried out according to the provisions of Clause 1 of this Article.

d) The time of issuance of electronic invoices for purchasing air cargo transportation services through websites and e-commerce systems shall be established according to international practice no later than five (5) days from the date of issuance of the air cargo transportation service document on the website and e-commerce system.

3. For exploration, development of crude oil, condensate, natural gas, associated gas, coalbed methane activities, the time of issuance of invoices for the sale of crude oil, condensate, natural gas, processed oil and gas products is based on the provisions of Clause 1 and Clause 3 of Article 7 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP, regardless of whether payment has been received or not.

Article 5. Format of Electronic Invoices

1. The format of electronic invoices is a technical standard specifying the data types and lengths of information fields for transmission, storage, and display of electronic invoices. The format of electronic invoices uses the XML text formatting language (XML stands for "eXtensible Markup Language", created with the purpose of sharing electronic data between information technology systems).

2. The format of electronic invoices consists of two components: a component containing business data of electronic invoices and a component containing digital signature data. For electronic invoices with tax authority codes, there is an additional component containing data related to the tax authority code.

3. The General Department of Tax constructs and publishes the component containing business data of electronic invoices, the component containing digital signature data, and provides tools to display the contents of electronic invoices according to the provisions of this Circular.

4. Organizations and businesses selling goods or providing services when transferring data to the tax authority through direct submission must meet the following requirements:

a) Connecting to the General Department of Tax via a dedicated channel or MPLS VPN Layer 3, including one main transmission channel and one backup transmission channel. Each transmission channel has a minimum bandwidth of 5 Mbps.

b) Using Web Services or Message Queue (MQ) with encryption as the method of connection.

c) Using the SOAP protocol to package and transmit data.

5. Electronic invoices must be displayed fully and accurately, ensuring that all invoice contents are clear and not misleading so that buyers can read them using electronic means.

Article 6. Application of electronic invoices when selling goods or providing services

1. Cases of using electronic invoices with tax authority codes, and using electronic invoices without tax authority codes shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and Clause 6 of Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

For cases of using electronic invoices without tax authority codes as stipulated in Clause 2 of Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, the sectors include electricity; petroleum products; postal and telecommunications; air, road, rail, sea, inland waterway transport; clean water; financial credit; insurance; healthcare; e-commerce; supermarket retail; trade, determined according to the fourth-level economic sector classification under the National Economic Industry Classification accompanying Decision No. 27/2018/QĐ-TTg dated June 7, 2018 of the Government Prime Minister, where for e-commerce activities, it is determined according to the retail industry code for online orders; supermarket retail is determined according to the retail industry code within supermarkets and convenience stores; trade is determined according to wholesale and retail industry codes.

2. Cases of using electronic invoices with tax authority codes generated from cash registers connected electronically to the tax authority include:

a) Businesses and organizations mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article registering to use electronic invoices connected from cash registers.

b) Individual households engaged in business as prescribed in Clause 5 of Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

3. The application of electronic invoices for high-risk tax cases shall be carried out as follows:

a) Sellers of goods or providers of services falling under high-risk tax cases as specified in Point b of this Clause shall use electronic invoices with tax authority codes, regardless of the value of each sale of goods or provision of services.

b) High-risk tax businesses are those with net assets below 15 billion VND and have one of the following signs:

b.1) Lack of lawful ownership or usage rights over the following facilities: factories; production workshops; warehouses; transportation vehicles; shops, and other facilities.

b.2) Businesses operating in the field of extracting earth, stone, sand, gravel.

b.3) Businesses engaging in suspicious transactions with banks as defined by laws on anti-money laundering.

b.4) Businesses having sales revenue from selling goods or providing services to other businesses where the owners of these businesses have familial relationships such as parent-child, husband-wife, siblings, or cross-shareholding relationships accounting for more than 50% of total business revenue reported on the Corporate Income Tax Settlement Declaration for the settlement year.

b.5) Businesses failing to declare taxes as required: Not submitting tax declaration forms or submitting them late by more than 90 days after the deadline or since the start of business operations according to the business registration certificate; suspending business operations beyond the notified temporary suspension period with the tax authority and confirmed by the tax authority as having conducted business but failed to declare taxes; ceasing business operations at the registered address without notifying the tax authority or the tax authority being unable to verify the residence of the legal representative or business owner.

b.6) Businesses changing their business addresses twice or more within 12 months without declaring as required or failing to declare and pay taxes at the new registered location as required.

b.7) Businesses purchasing invoices from the tax authority (implementing the Decision on "high-risk businesses switching to using invoices issued by the tax authority") and notified by the tax authority to switch to using electronic invoices with tax authority codes.

b.8) Within one year from the evaluation date:

- Businesses subject to administrative penalty decisions by the tax authority for illegal invoice-related actions, including illegal use of invoices leading to tax evasion, false declarations, delayed tax payments, and penalties of 20 million VND or more;

- Businesses subject to administrative penalty decisions by the tax authority for invoice-related actions twice a year with a total fine of 8 million VND or more;

- Businesses subject to administrative penalty decisions by the tax authority for invoice-related actions three times a year.

c) The General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for establishing risk criteria to submit to the competent authority for issuance or issuance within its authority; developing business procedures and information technology application systems to be uniformly applied nationwide for evaluating and identifying cases with signs of risk in the issuance and use of invoices.

d) Direct tax management agencies (Tax Departments, Tax Branches) shall be responsible for notifying enterprises and economic organizations classified as high-risk taxpayers (notifications made according to Form No. 07 attached as an appendix to Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) to switch to using electronic invoices with tax authority codes.

đ) Enterprises and economic organizations that use electronic invoices in high-risk tax situations shall implement the use of electronic invoices with tax authority codes for a continuous period of 12 months. After the 12-month period, if enterprises and economic organizations classified as high-risk are determined by the tax authority through review to no longer pose risks, meet the conditions for using electronic invoices without codes, and request to use electronic invoices without codes, they shall register to use electronic invoices without tax authority codes in accordance with Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

4. Guidelines for issuing and declaring tax liabilities when the tax authority issues electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis.

a) Types of invoices issued on a case-by-case basis

a.1) Issuing electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis are sales invoices in the following circumstances:

- Households and individuals engaged in business activities as stipulated in Clause 6, Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP;

- Organizations not engaged in business but have transactions involving the sale of goods or provision of services;

- Enterprises after dissolution, bankruptcy, or termination of their tax registration code, which need to issue invoices for asset liquidation to buyers;

- Enterprises, economic organizations, households, and individuals subject to VAT under the direct payment method in the following circumstances:

+ Ceasing business operations but not yet completing the procedures to terminate their tax registration code, requiring invoices for asset liquidation to be given to buyers;

+ Temporarily suspending business operations, needing invoices to be provided to customers to fulfill contracts signed before the tax authority announced the suspension of business operations;

+ Being compelled by the tax authority to stop using electronic invoices.

a.2) Issuing electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis are VAT invoices in the following circumstances:

- Enterprises, economic organizations, and other entities subject to VAT under the deduction method in the following circumstances:

+ Ceasing business operations but not yet completing the procedures to terminate their tax registration code, requiring invoices for asset liquidation to be given to buyers;

+ Temporarily suspending business operations, needing invoices to be provided to customers to fulfill contracts signed before the tax authority announced the suspension of business operations;

+ Being compelled by the tax authority to stop using electronic invoices;

- State organizations not subject to VAT under the deduction method selling auctioned assets, where the winning bid price includes VAT clearly stated in the auction documents approved by the competent authority, may issue VAT invoices to be given to buyers.

b) Enterprises, economic organizations, other entities, households, and individuals eligible for electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis shall submit a request for issuance of such invoices according to Form No. 06 attached as an appendix to Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP to the tax authority and access the tax authority's electronic invoice system to create electronic invoices.

After enterprises, organizations, and individuals have fully declared and paid taxes in accordance with the laws on VAT, personal income tax, corporate income tax, and other types of taxes and fees (if applicable), the tax authority will affix its code on the electronic invoices created by enterprises, organizations, and individuals.

Enterprises, organizations, and individuals bear full responsibility for the accuracy of the information on electronic invoices issued on a case-by-case basis by the tax authority.

c) Determining the tax authority issuing electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis.

c.1) For organizations and enterprises: The tax authority managing the area where the organization or enterprise has registered its tax code, where the organization is headquartered, or where it is recorded in the establishment decision, or where the sale of goods or service provision occurs.

c.2) For households and individual businesses:

- For households and individual businesses with fixed business locations: Households and individual businesses submit applications for electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis to the Tax Branch managing the location where the household or individual business conducts its business activities.

- For households and individual businesses without fixed business locations: Households and individual businesses submit applications for electronic invoices with tax authority codes on a case-by-case basis to the Tax Branch where the individual resides or where the household or individual business is registered for business.

5. Application of electronic invoices and electronic export warehouse delivery notes for specific cases as required by management is guided as follows:

a) In the case of receiving consigned imported goods, if the business entity receiving the consignment import has already paid VAT at the import stage, it shall use electronic invoices when returning goods to the consignor. If VAT has not been paid at the import stage, when exporting consigned imported goods, the receiving entity shall issue an electronic export warehouse delivery note in accordance with regulations as proof of circulation of goods in the market.

b) In the case of consigned export of goods:

- When delivering goods to the receiving entity, the entity with consigned export goods shall use an electronic export warehouse delivery note.

- Upon confirmation of actual export by customs authorities based on comparison and confirmation documents from the receiving entity regarding the quantity and value of exported goods, the entity with consigned export goods shall issue a VAT electronic invoice for tax declaration and refund or an electronic sales invoice. The receiving entity shall use a VAT electronic invoice or an electronic sales invoice to provide to foreign customers.

c) Business entities exporting goods or services (including processing enterprises for export goods) when exporting goods or services shall use electronic value-added tax invoices or electronic sales invoices.

When exporting goods for transportation to border gates or places for export procedures, business entities shall use electronic warehouse exit and transport slips in accordance with regulations as proof of circulation of goods on the market. After completing export procedures for goods, business entities shall issue value-added tax invoices or sales invoices for exported goods.

d) Business organizations declaring and paying VAT under the deduction method when transferring goods to dependent accounting units such as branches or stores in other localities (provinces, centrally-administered cities) for sale or transferring goods between branches or affiliated units; selling goods to agents at fixed prices and receiving commissions based on the business organization's operational methods and accounting practices may choose one of the following two ways to use invoices and documents:

- Using electronic value-added tax invoices as the basis for payment and declaration of VAT at each unit and each stage independently from one another;

- Using electronic warehouse exit and transport slips for goods transferred to agents.

In cases where dependent units of agricultural, forestry, and fishery businesses have registered and implemented declarations for payment of VAT under the deduction method, purchasing agricultural, forestry, and fishery products for transfer or sale back to the main office of the business entity, when transferring or selling, the dependent unit shall use electronic warehouse exit and transport slips and not use electronic value-added tax invoices.

đ) Organizations and individuals selling mobile goods shall use electronic warehouse exit and transport slips in accordance with regulations, and upon sale, shall issue electronic invoices in accordance with regulations.

e) In cases where capital contributions are made using assets of business organizations or individuals in Vietnam to establish a business enterprise, there is no need to issue invoices but instead use certificates of capital contribution, asset receipt and delivery certificates, and asset valuation certificates accompanied by a dossier on the origin of assets.

g) In cases of asset transfers between member units of dependent accounting within an organization; assets transferred during division, separation, merger, consolidation, or conversion of business forms, the organization with the transferred assets must have an asset transfer order, accompanied by a dossier on the origin of assets, and there is no need to issue invoices.

h) In cases of asset transfers between independent accounting units or between member units with full legal person status within the same organization, the organization with the transferred assets must issue electronic invoices as if selling goods.

Article 7. Provision of Electronic Invoices

1. The provision of electronic invoices with tax authority codes without charge shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 13 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. For cases stipulated in point d and đ, Clause 1, Article 13 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP, the General Department of Taxation shall report to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and decision.

Chapter II

MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES

Section 1. MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES WITH TAX AUTHORITY CODES

Article 8. Registration for Using Electronic Invoices with Tax Authority Codes

1. The registration for using electronic invoices with tax authority codes shall be carried out in accordance with Article 14 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. The electronic portal of the General Department of Tax sends notifications in accordance with Article 14 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP to enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, households, and individual businesses at the email addresses registered with the tax authority.

3. The cancellation of unused paper invoices (if any) and the cessation of using issued invoices shall be implemented in accordance with Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010, and Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government on invoices for goods sales and service provision, and guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance.

Article 9. Ceasing to Use Electronic Invoices with Tax Authority Codes

1. The tax authority will cease issuing invoice codes in the following cases:

a) Cases stipulated in points a, b, c, and d of Clause 1, Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP;

b) Cases stipulated in point d of Clause 1, Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP as follows:

- Cases where there is an act of using electronic invoices with tax authority codes to sell smuggled goods, prohibited goods, counterfeit goods, or goods infringing intellectual property rights, which have been discovered and reported to the tax authority by competent authorities;

- Cases where there is an act of creating electronic invoices with tax authority codes for the purpose of fictitious sales of goods or services to defraud money from organizations or individuals, which have been discovered and reported to the tax authority by competent authorities;

- Cases where the business registration authority or competent state agencies require enterprises to temporarily suspend operations in certain industries or professions due to the discovery that the enterprise does not meet the required conditions for operation as prescribed by law. Based on the results of inspections and audits, if the tax authority determines that the enterprise was established for the purpose of illegally purchasing or using electronic invoices, or improperly using electronic invoices, the enterprise will be subject to administrative penalties according to regulations, and the tax authority will issue a decision to notify the cessation of using electronic invoices with tax authority codes.

2. The continued use of electronic invoices with tax authority codes by enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, households, and individual businesses mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article shall be implemented in accordance with Clause 2, Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

3. In cases where enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, households, and individual businesses need to temporarily suspend operations and require electronic invoices to deliver to buyers to fulfill contracts signed before the tax authority issues a notice to suspend operations, they shall use electronic invoices on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the guidance provided in Clause 4, Article 6 of this Circular.

Article 10. Issuing, Coding, and Sending Electronic Invoices with Tax Authority Codes

The issuance, coding, and sending of electronic invoices with tax authority codes shall be carried out in accordance with Article 16 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

Article 11. Handling Errors in Electronic Invoices with Tax Authority Codes After Coding

1. In cases where the seller discovers errors in electronic invoices with tax authority codes that have not yet been sent to the buyer, the seller shall report to the tax authority using Model Form No. 04 attached to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP regarding the cancellation of the erroneous electronic invoices already coded and the issuance of new electronic invoices, signing and sending them to the tax authority for new invoice codes to replace the previously issued invoices to be sent to the buyer. The tax authority will cancel the erroneous electronic invoices already coded and stored in its system.

2. In cases where errors are found in electronic invoices with tax authority codes that have already been sent to the buyer, the following actions shall be taken:

a) If the error concerns the name or address of the buyer but not the taxpayer identification number, and no other errors exist, the seller shall inform the buyer about the error and report to the tax authority using Model Form No. 04 attached to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP without needing to reissue the invoice;

b) If the error involves the taxpayer identification number, the amount recorded on the invoice, the tax rate, tax amount, or incorrect specifications or quality of goods listed on the invoice, both the seller and the buyer shall prepare a written agreement detailing the error, and the seller shall report to the tax authority using Model Form No. 04 attached to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP regarding the cancellation of the erroneous electronic invoices and the issuance of new electronic invoices to replace the previously issued erroneous invoices. Upon receiving the notification, the tax authority will cancel the erroneous electronic invoices already coded and stored in its system. The new electronic invoices replacing the previously issued erroneous invoices must include the phrase "Replaces invoice code, model number, invoice number..., date...". The seller shall sign and send the new electronic invoices to the tax authority for new invoice codes.

3. In cases where the tax authority discovers errors in electronic invoices that have already been coded, the tax authority shall notify the seller using Model Form No. 05 attached to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP for the seller to check the errors. Within two days from the date of receipt of the tax authority's notification, the seller shall report to the tax authority using Model Form No. 04 attached to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP regarding the cancellation of the erroneous electronic invoices already coded and the issuance of new electronic invoices, signing and sending them to the tax authority for new invoice codes to replace the previously issued invoices to be sent to the buyer in accordance with Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article. If the seller fails to report to the tax authority, the tax authority will continue to notify the seller about the errors in the previously issued invoices for the seller to make corrections or cancel the invoices.

4. The tax authority shall notify the seller about the receipt and the result of processing according to Form No. 04 annexed to Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP. An electronic invoice that has been canceled does not have value for use but is still stored for reference purposes.

Article 12. Handling Incidents

1. In case the system issuing codes of the tax authority encounters incidents, the General Department of Taxation shall implement technical solutions to switch to the backup system and is responsible for announcing on the General Department of Taxation's online portal about the incidents mentioned above.

2. In case the incident is due to the technical infrastructure system error of the organization providing electronic invoice services, the organization providing electronic invoice services shall be responsible for informing the seller and coordinating with the General Department of Taxation to receive timely support. The organization providing electronic invoice services must quickly resolve the incident and take measures to assist the seller in creating electronic invoices to send to the tax authority for code issuance in the shortest time possible.

3. In case the seller of goods or service provider uses electronic invoices with tax authority codes but encounters incidents leading to inability to use such electronic invoices, they shall report to the tax authority for assistance in handling the incident. During the incident resolution period, if the seller of goods or service provider requests to use electronic invoices with tax authority codes, they shall go to the tax authority to use such electronic invoices.

Section 2. MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES WITHOUT TAX AUTHORITY CODES

Article 13. Registration for Using Electronic Invoices Without Tax Authority Codes

1. The registration for using electronic invoices without tax authority codes shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. The online portal of the General Department of Taxation shall send notifications in accordance with the provisions of Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP to enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, households, and individual businesses through email addresses registered with the tax authority.

3. The cancellation of unused paper invoices (if any) and the cessation of using issued invoices shall be implemented in accordance with Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010, and Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government on invoices for goods sales and service provision, and guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance.

4. Enterprises and economic organizations falling under the category of transitioning to apply for electronic invoices with tax authority codes shall register for using electronic invoices with tax authority codes in accordance with the provisions of Article 14 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

- Office of the President of the StateArticle 14. Creating and Sending Electronic Invoices Without Tax Authority Codes to the Buyer

The creation and sending of electronic invoices without tax authority codes to the buyer shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 21 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

Article 15. Ceasing to Use Electronic Invoices Without Tax Authority Codes

1. Sellers of goods or service providers who are enterprises or economic organizations falling under the cases specified in Clause 1 of Article 9 of this Circular shall not create electronic invoices without tax authority codes to give to buyers.

2. The continued use of electronic invoices without tax authority codes shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2 of Article 22 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

Article 16. Transfer of Electronic Invoice Data to the Tax Authority

1. Sellers of goods or service providers using electronic invoices without tax authority codes shall be responsible for transferring the data of created electronic invoices to the tax authority via the online portal of the General Department of Taxation (directly or through the organization providing electronic invoice services).

2. Methods and Time Points for Transferring Electronic Invoice Data

a) Method of transferring electronic invoice data according to the Summary Table of Electronic Invoice Data (annexed as Appendix 2 to this Circular) together with the deadline for submitting VAT declaration forms applicable to the following cases:

- Providing services in the fields of postal telecommunications, insurance, finance banking, air transport.

- Selling electricity and clean water if there is customer information such as customer code or taxpayer identification number.

- Selling goods or providing services to individual consumers where the invoice does not necessarily need to include the buyer's name and address as guided in Clause 3 of Article 3 of this Circular.

- For the case of selling fuel to individual consumers who are not engaged in business, the seller shall compile all daily sales invoices to individual consumers who are not engaged in business for each item and reflect them on the summary table of electronic invoice data.

The seller shall compile the Summary Table of Electronic Invoice Data for goods and services generated in the month/quarter (from the first day of the month/quarter to the last day of the month/quarter) according to Appendix 2 annexed to this Circular to submit to the tax authority along with the time of submitting the VAT declaration form as prescribed by the Law on Tax Administration and guiding documents.

In case a large number of invoices are generated, the seller shall compile multiple summary tables of electronic invoice data, indicating the serial number of the summary table within the period of compiling data on each table.

After the deadline for transferring electronic invoice data to the tax authority, the seller shall submit supplementary summary tables of electronic invoice data in case of missing data transferred to the tax authority.

In case the summary table of electronic invoice data submitted to the tax authority contains errors, the seller shall submit corrected information for the declared information on the summary table.

b) Method of transferring full invoice content applies to cases not covered by point a of this clause.

After completing all contents on the invoice, the seller shall send the invoice to the buyer and simultaneously send it to the tax authority.

3. The seller shall transfer electronic invoice data to the tax authority in the data format prescribed in Article 5 of this Circular and as directed by the General Department of Taxation, either directly (for cases meeting the requirements for standard data connection) or through the organization providing electronic invoice services.

a) Direct submission method

- The General Department of Taxation shall select enterprises using a large volume of invoices, having information technology systems meeting the requirements for standard data formats and those stipulated in Clause 4 of Article 5 of this Circular, and having the need to transfer electronic invoice data directly to the tax authority to inform about technical connection for data transfer.

- In case enterprises or business organizations have a parent company - subsidiary model, establish a centralized invoice data management system at the parent company, and request the parent company to transfer all electronic invoice data including those of subsidiaries to the tax authority through the General Department of Tax's e-Government Portal, they shall attach a list of subsidiaries to the General Department of Tax for technical connection.

b) Method of sending through an organization providing electronic invoice services

Enterprises and other economic organizations not falling under the situation mentioned in point a of this clause shall enter into a contract with an organization providing electronic invoice services to have such organization provide the service of transferring electronic invoice data to the tax authority. Based on the signed contract, the enterprise or economic organization shall be responsible for transferring electronic invoice data to the organization providing electronic invoice services so that it can send them further to the tax authority.

4. In case the General Department of Tax's e-Government Portal encounters technical errors and fails to receive electronic invoices without codes, the General Department of Tax shall be responsible for announcing this on its e-Government Portal. During this time, the organizations and enterprises mentioned in point a of Clause 3 of Article 3 of this Decree and the organizations providing electronic invoice services shall temporarily refrain from transferring electronic invoices without codes to the tax authority.

Within two working days from the date the General Department of Tax announces that its e-Government Portal has resumed normal operation, the organizations and enterprises mentioned in point a of Clause 3 of Article 3 of this Decree and the organizations providing electronic invoice services shall transfer electronic invoice data to the tax authority. The submission of electronic invoice data after the announcement of technical errors in the General Department of Tax's e-Government Portal shall not be considered as a delay in submitting electronic invoice data.

5. The seller shall bear legal responsibility for the legality and accuracy of the electronic invoices issued and sent to the tax authority and the organization providing electronic invoice services.

Article 17. Handling of electronic invoices without tax authority codes that have been issued

1. In case an electronic invoice without a tax authority code that has been sent to the buyer is found to contain errors, it shall be handled as follows:

a) In case there are errors in the name or address of the buyer but not in the taxpayer identification number, and no other errors exist, the seller shall notify the buyer about the error in the invoice and shall not need to issue a new invoice. If the electronic invoice data has already been submitted to the tax authority, the seller shall notify the tax authority according to Form No. (04 Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP).

b) In case there are errors in the taxpayer identification number, the amount recorded on the invoice, the tax rate, tax amount, or the specifications and quality of goods, the seller and the buyer shall prepare a written agreement clearly stating the errors, and the seller shall issue a new electronic invoice to replace the erroneous electronic invoice. The new electronic invoice replacing the erroneous electronic invoice must include the phrase "Replaces invoice type number, invoice number..., date... month... year". The seller shall sign and electronically sign the new electronic invoice replacing the erroneous electronic invoice, then send it to the buyer. If the erroneous electronic invoice data has already been submitted to the tax authority, the seller shall notify the tax authority according to Form No. 04 (Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP) and submit the new electronic invoice data according to the method and time specified in Article 16 of this Circular.

2. In case the tax authority discovers errors in an issued electronic invoice after receiving the electronic invoice data, the tax authority shall notify the seller according to Form No. 05 (Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP) for the seller to check the errors. Within two days from the date of receipt of the tax authority's notification, the seller shall notify the tax authority according to Form No. 04 (Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP) regarding the cancellation of the invoice (if applicable). If the seller notifies the cancellation of the issued electronic invoice, the seller shall issue a new electronic invoice to send to the buyer and resubmit the invoice data to the tax authority. If the seller does not notify the tax authority, the tax authority shall continue to notify the seller about the errors in the issued invoice for the seller to make corrections or cancel the invoice.

3. The tax authority shall notify the seller about the receipt and handling results according to Form No. 04 (Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP). An electronic invoice that has been canceled shall not be usable but shall still be stored for reference purposes.

Chapter III

CONSTRUCTION, MANAGEMENT AND USE OF INVOICE DATABASE

Article 18. Principles for construction, collection, management, exploitation and use of information and data on electronic invoices

1. The electronic invoice information system must be constructed and managed uniformly from central to local levels; comply with standards and technical regulations on information technology.

2. The electronic invoice database must ensure timely service for tax administration and other state management tasks; meet the requirements of socio-economic development; ensure security, confidentiality, and national security.

3. Information and data on electronic invoices must be collected, updated, maintained, exploited and used regularly; ensuring accuracy, truthfulness, and objectivity.

4. The construction, management, exploitation, use, and updating of the electronic invoice database must ensure accuracy, scientificity, objectivity, and timeliness.

5. The electronic invoice database shall be built and connected, shared on an electronic environment to facilitate management, exploitation, provision, and use of information and data effectively.

6. The exploitation and use of information and data on electronic invoices must ensure compliance with their intended purpose and follow legal regulations.

7. The electronic invoice database shall be connected and exploited based on cooperation and information exchange regulations with the information systems and databases of relevant ministries, sectors, localities, between central and provincial levels, and between provincial and district levels (if conditions are met).

Article19. Construction of technical infrastructure for information technology, software systems to serve management, operation, and exploitation of electronic invoice information systems

1. The technical infrastructure for electronic invoices includes a set of computing devices (servers, workstations), communication networks, network connection devices, network security and safety equipment (or software), databases, storage devices, peripheral devices, auxiliary devices, and internal networks.

2. The software system for managing, operating, and exploiting electronic invoice information systems includes: operating systems, database management systems, and application software.

Article 20. Construction, collection, processing, and management of electronic invoice information systems

1. Construction of electronic invoice information systems

a) An electronic invoice database is a collection of electronic invoice data organized for access, exploitation, management, and updating through electronic means.

b) The electronic invoice database is established by the General Department of Taxation in accordance with the framework architecture of Vietnam's e-Government and includes the following components: registration of information usage, notification of invoice cancellation, information on electronic invoices that sellers are responsible for sending to tax authorities; information related to value-added tax declarations concerning electronic invoices.

2. Collection and updating of electronic invoice information

Electronic invoice information is collected based on information that sellers are responsible for sending to tax authorities, information from other relevant agencies related to electronic invoices, and information obtained from tax administration activities.

3. Processing of electronic invoice information

The General Department of Taxation is responsible for processing information and data before integrating and storing them in the national database to ensure rationality and consistency. The content of information and data processing includes:

a) Checking and evaluating compliance with regulations and procedures in collecting information and data;

b) Checking and evaluating the legal basis and reliability of information and data;

c) Aggregating, organizing, and classifying information and data in accordance with prescribed content;

d) For information and data updated from specialized databases, the managing agency of such specialized databases is responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the information and data.

4. Management of electronic invoice information systems

The General Department of Taxation is responsible for managing electronic invoice information systems according to the following regulations:

a) Establishing, managing, operating, and exploiting electronic invoice information systems and providing electronic invoice public services if necessary;

b) Integrating investigation results and data, information related to electronic invoices provided by relevant ministries, sectors, and agencies;

c) Guiding, inspecting, and supervising the management and exploitation of electronic invoice information systems at local tax offices;

d) Establishing and promulgating regulations on access permissions to the electronic invoice information system; managing connections, sharing, and provision of data with databases of central and local ministries, sectors, and agencies;

đ) Taking the lead and coordinating with relevant units to develop software within the electronic invoice information system.

Article 21. Responsibilities for Sharing and Connecting Information and Data

1. Responsibilities for sharing and connecting electronic invoice information and data shall be implemented in accordance with Article 26 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. The provision of electronic invoice data and electronic transaction data through accounts shall be carried out in standard data formats in accordance with the guidelines stipulated in Article 5 of this Circular.

Article 22. Searching, Providing, and Using Electronic Invoice Information

Searching, providing, and using electronic invoice information shall be implemented in accordance with Articles 27, 28, and 29 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

Chapter IV

ORGANIZATION OF PROVIDING ELECTRONIC INVOICE SERVICES

Article 23. Conditions for organizations providing electronic invoice services

1. Organizations providing electronic invoice services must meet the following conditions:

a) Regarding the subject: Having experience in developing information technology solutions and electronic data exchange solutions between organizations, specifically:

- Having at least five years of experience in the information technology sector.

- Implementing information technology systems or applications for at least ten organizations.

- Implementing electronic data exchange systems between branches of enterprises or between organizations.

b) Financially: Committing to provide a guarantee of over 5 billion Vietnamese dong from a legally operating credit institution in Vietnam to address risks and compensate for potential losses during service provision.

c) Personnel:

- Having at least twenty technical staff with bachelor’s degrees in information technology, including personnel with practical experience in network management and database management.

- Having technical staff who regularly monitor and check 24 hours a day, seven days a week to maintain the stable operation of the electronic data exchange system and support users of electronic invoice services.

d) Technically:

- Having a system of equipment, techniques, and procedures for backing up data at the main data center in accordance with Clause d, Article 32 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

- Having backup equipment and techniques placed at a remote backup center at least 20 kilometers away from the main data center, ready to operate when the main system encounters issues.

- Connecting to exchange electronic invoice data with tax authorities must meet the requirements:

+ Connecting to tax authorities through dedicated channels or MPLS VPN Layer 3 channels, including one primary transmission channel and two backup transmission channels. Each channel has a minimum bandwidth of 10 Mbps.

+ Using Web Services or Message Queue (MQ) with encryption as the connection method.

+ Using the SOAP protocol to package and transmit data.

2. The guidance in Clause 1 of this Article applies to organizations providing data transmission and receipt services, organizations providing electronic invoice services with tax authority codes, and organizations providing electronic invoice services without tax authority codes.

Article 24. Selection of organizations providing electronic invoice services

The General Department of Taxation will base its actions on Article 23 of this Circular to sign contracts for the provision of electronic invoice services with information technology organizations meeting all conditions, in accordance with the procedures stipulated in Article 25 of this Circular.

Article 25. Procedure for signing contracts to provide electronic invoice services

The signing of contracts to provide electronic invoice services between the General Department of Taxation and organizations providing electronic invoice services shall be carried out in accordance with Clause 3, Article 32 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP of the Government.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 26. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from November 14, 2019.

a) Circular No. 32/2011/TT-BTC dated March 14, 2011 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the creation, issuance, and use of electronic invoices for goods and services;

b) Circular No. 191/2010/TT-BTC dated December 1, 2010 guiding the management and use of transport invoices;

c) Circular No. 39/2014/TT-BTC dated March 31, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance (amended and supplemented by Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014, and Circular No. 26/2015/TT-BTC dated February 27, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance);

d) Decision No. 1209/QĐ-BTC dated June 23, 2015 of the Minister of Finance on the pilot use of electronic invoices with tax authority verification codes, Decision No. 526/QĐ-BTC dated April 16, 2018 of the Minister of Finance on expanding the scope of the pilot use of electronic invoices with tax authority verification codes.

đ) Decision No. 2660/QĐ-BTC dated December 14, 2016 of the Minister of Finance on extending the implementation of Decision No. 1209/QĐ-BTC dated June 23, 2015;

e) Circular No. 37/2017/TT-BTC dated April 27, 2017 of the Ministry of Finance amending and supplementing Circular No. 39/2014/TT-BTC dated March 31, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance (amended and supplemented by Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014, and Circular No. 26/2015/TT-BTC dated February 27, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance).

Article 27. Transitional Provisions

1. The transitional provisions shall be implemented in accordance with Clause 1, Clause 2, Clause 3, and Clause 4 of Article 36 of Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP.

2. From November 1, 2018 to October 31, 2020, to prepare material conditions and technical infrastructure for information technology for registration, use, search, and data transfer for electronic invoicing as stipulated in Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP, while the tax authorities have not yet notified businesses, economic organizations, other organizations, households, and individual traders to switch to using electronic invoices as prescribed in Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP and this Circular, these entities may still apply invoices as prescribed in Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014, and the guiding documents for implementing Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP and Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP.

3. From the time businesses, organizations, individuals, households, and individual traders start using electronic invoices as prescribed in this Circular, if they discover errors in invoices issued according to Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government and the guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance, the seller and buyer must establish a written agreement detailing the errors, the seller must notify the tax authority according to Model No. 04 Appendix issued under Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP, and issue new electronic invoices (electronic invoices with tax authority codes or without tax authority codes) to replace the erroneous invoices. The new electronic invoices replacing the erroneous ones must include the phrase "Replacing Invoice Model number... code... number... date... month... year." The seller must sign digitally on the new electronic invoices replacing the erroneous ones (according to Decree No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014, and the guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance), then send them to the tax authority to obtain codes for the new electronic invoices (in cases where electronic invoices with tax authority codes are used).

4. For public service organizations (public educational institutions, public healthcare facilities) that have been using Receipt Forms, they may continue to use the Receipt Forms they have been using. If the tax authority notifies them to switch to using electronic invoices with tax authority codes, and the public service organizations (public educational institutions, public healthcare facilities) have not met the conditions for information technology infrastructure, they may continue to use Combined Receipt-Invoices according to the provisions of Decrees No. 51/2010/NĐ-CP dated May 14, 2010 and No. 04/2014/NĐ-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government regarding invoices for goods and services, and submit invoice data to the tax authority according to Model No. 03 Appendix issued under Decree No. 119/2018/NĐ-CP together with the value-added tax declaration form. If they meet the conditions for information technology infrastructure, public service organizations (public educational institutions, public healthcare facilities) should register to use electronic invoices with tax authority codes or without tax authority codes as prescribed in Article 8 and Article 13 of this Circular.

5. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, organizations and individuals are requested to promptly report to the Ministry of Finance for research and resolution./.