Vietnam Proposes VAT on E-Commerce Imports to Boost Revenue and Ensure Fair Competition

• Vietnam’s National Assembly’s Finance Budget Committee proposed imposing VAT on goods imported via e-commerce platforms like Shopee, Lazada, Tiki, and TikTok.
• Daily circulation of goods on these platforms is estimated at $45-63 million.
• The draft VAT Law includes exemptions for gifts, movable assets, and cross-border goods enjoying import tax exemption.
• Current regulations exempt imports worth less than VND1 million ($39) from import tax and VAT.
• The committee noted that the VAT exemption for low-value imports was due to the trivial tax revenue compared to collection costs.
• The rise in cross-border e-commerce has increased the number of low-value imports.
• Many countries have ended VAT waivers on low-value imports to ensure fair tax collection and competition.
• The committee suggested learning from other countries to remove VAT exemptions and increase budget revenue.
• Other proposals included exempting goods traded by border residents and donations from VAT.
• Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc reported a significant number of goods enjoying VAT waivers or reduced rates under current law.

Source: tuoitrenews.vn

Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.

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