Knowledge base

The Customs authority responded to a metal products manufacturer (pliers, screwdrivers, and other hand tools, 95% exported) regarding the timing of electronic invoice issuance for exports and customs clearance conditions under current regulations. On clearance: goods are cleared after completing customs procedures. If tax has not been fully paid, a credit institution guarantee or tax deferral arrangement is required. Goods subject to specialized inspection are cleared upon receiving an inspection waiver notice or a satisfactory inspection result. The Customs authority reminded the company to refer to specific provisions in the 2014 Customs Law, Decree 08/2015/ND-CP, and Circulars 38/2015/TT-BTC and 39/2018/TT-BTC for proper declaration and import-export tax compliance.

The National Assembly Office has published Consolidated Document No. 90/VBHN-VPQH of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations (Law No. 15/2012/QH13), merging all nine rounds of amendments since 2014, most recently Law No. 88/2025/QH15 (effective July 1, 2025) and upcoming changes taking effect July 1, 2026 under the new Cybersecurity Law and Anti-Drug Law. This is a reference consolidation, not new legislation, but it is the foundational legal basis for every administrative penalty decision a business may face. Key points for SME owners and accountants: fines imposed on organizations are always double the fine imposed on individuals for the same violation. Maximum fine caps are set by sector - for example, accounting, invoices, fees and charges, and national reserves top out at VND 50 million; customs and tax procedures top out at VND 100 million; while tax, independent audit, securities, competition, and personal data protection violations follow their own specialized laws rather than this general cap. The statute of limitations for imposing penalties is generally 1 year, extended to 2 years for violations involving accounting, invoices, fees and charges, securities, and intellectual property, while tax and independent-audit violations follow the limitation periods set in tax administration and independent audit law. The law also sets out five forms of penalty (warning, fine, suspension of licenses/operations, confiscation of exhibits or instrumentalities, and deportation), lists of mitigating and aggravating circumstances, cases where no penalty applies (force majeure, legitimate self-defense, etc.), and prohibited conduct by enforcement officials (harassment, soliciting money, covering up violations). Businesses should keep this consolidated text on hand when dealing with tax, customs, or sector inspectors, since it determines fine levels, limitation periods, and the right to appeal.

A company that applies an end-of-period trade discount based on sales volume asked the Ministry of Finance how to prepare the listing attached to discount invoices, whether the discount value may be shown as a negative figure, and how to word the invoice's description line. The tax authority answered by citing Decree 254/2026/ND-CP and Circular 91/2026/TT-BTC (both dated June 30, 2026, guiding Tax Administration Law No. 108/2025/QH15 on e-invoices). Under the cited rules, when a business applies a volume- or revenue-based trade discount, the discount amount is adjusted on the invoice for the final purchase or a subsequent period, not exceeding the value of goods on that invoice, or an adjustment invoice may be issued together with a listing specifying the invoice numbers to be adjusted, the adjustment amount, and the adjusted tax; the listing is kept at the business and produced when the tax authority requests it. Notably, the rules confirm that a downward adjustment must be recorded as a negative figure and an upward adjustment as a positive figure, matching the actual adjustment - directly answering the company's question about negative figures. The tax authority did not specify the exact wording for the invoice's description line, instead directing the company to compare the cited regulations against its own actual circumstances, or contact Ho Chi Minh City Tax Sub-Department No. 12 (Business Support and Management Team No. 3) for further help. This guidance is useful for any business with a volume-based trade discount policy when issuing e-invoices under the new rules.

The Ministry of Finance (answered via Ca Mau Provincial Tax Department) clarified how household businesses should handle tax declarations after the taxable revenue threshold was raised from VND 500 million to VND 1 billion per year under Decree 68/2026/ND-CP (dated March 5, 2026), as amended by Decree 141/2026/ND-CP (dated April 29, 2026). For household businesses with annual revenue between VND 500 million and under VND 1 billion that already filed a Q1 return under the old rules, they no longer need to file quarterly tax returns from Q2 onward. Instead, they only need to notify the tax authority of their actual revenue for the year by January 31 of the following year. Regarding tax amounts already assessed or paid for Q1 under the old threshold, if a household business filed a return but has not yet paid the tax, it should contact its managing tax office for guidance. If tax was already paid and year-end revenue remains under VND 1 billion, the business may request a refund of the overpaid tax under the Law on Tax Administration. On the question of how local tax authorities will nationally standardize the process of updating tax obligations, the responding authority (Ca Mau Provincial Tax Department) stated this issue lacks specific guidance and it cannot answer on behalf of the relevant authority. For household businesses with revenue under VND 1 billion per year that are not required to use e-invoices and have already notified a suspension of e-invoice use starting Q2/2026, they do not need to continue filing quarterly VAT and personal income tax returns for Q2/2026 onward, provided annual revenue does not exceed the VND 1 billion threshold; they only need to report actual revenue by January 31 of the following year. For household businesses with revenue of VND 1 billion or less that voluntarily register to use e-invoices to serve their business and customer needs, tax declaration is still done annually (reporting actual revenue by January 31 of the following year), not quarterly.

Dong Nai Tax Department No. 10 clarifies: under Decree 70/2025/ND-CP amending Decree 123/2020/ND-CP, the invoice issue date for services is the date the service is completed (regardless of whether payment has been received), or the date the invoice is issued if issued before service completion or before payment. Labour supply services are not among the exceptions listed in Decree 70/2025/ND-CP. Therefore, if the company determines that service completion occurred on the date the review ended and the handover document was signed (8 April 2026), and issues the invoice on the same date, the invoice timing complies with regulations, provided that date is indeed when the service was completed.

The Da Nang Tax Department responded to OBE Vietnam Co., Ltd. on issuing VAT invoices for export sample goods with no payment. Under Decree 320/2025/ND-CP and Circular 20/2026/TT-BTC, export samples without bank payment documents do not meet the conditions for the 0% VAT rate. The tax authority determined that goods exported without charge (no bank payment evidence) fall under the VAT-exempt category per Article 5 of the VAT Law, rather than the 0% taxable category. The company may therefore issue a VAT invoice marked 'Not subject to VAT' for these sample shipments. For case-specific guidance, the enterprise should contact the Da Nang Tax Department directly with actual documentation.

The Ministry of Finance advises that a machinery and industrial equipment trading company may include an 'Energy Surcharge' as a separate line item on its invoice, because this is an additional charge directly linked to the main goods transaction. The VAT rate applicable to the surcharge is the same rate as the main goods. A company not in the energy business may still issue an invoice with 'Energy Surcharge' content, provided the charge is genuine and clearly agreed upon in the contract. It would be inappropriate to label the charge as 'Freight Surcharge' if no actual freight service is provided. The legal basis includes Decree 70/2025/ND-CP and Circular 48/2024/QH15.

The Ministry of Finance clarified for a household business established on 3 March 2026 two key questions: (1) when it may register and use e-invoices; and (2) whether payments made by a corporate buyer to the household business before e-invoices are available can be treated as allowable expenses for Corporate Income Tax (CIT) purposes. Under Articles 8 and 9 of Decree 68/2026/ND-CP: A newly-established household business must register for e-invoices within 30 days of the last day of the tax period in which cumulative VAT-taxable revenue reaches VND 1 billion. The household may only begin using e-invoices after completing registration with the tax authority. For the buyer's deductible expenses: Under Article 13 of Circular 20/2026/TT-BTC, corporate buyers purchasing from household businesses with sub-threshold VAT revenue may use Form 02/TNDN (a purchase declaration list, substituting for an invoice) to support deductible expense treatment, provided non-cash payment evidence exists for transactions of VND 5 million or more.

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department responded to a Group 2 household business (taxed on revenue, fashion retail sector) using MTT e-invoice software. In Q1/2026, staff failed to tick the 'retail sale' flag on the software, meaning daily consolidated invoices for retail transactions were not generated as expected. Based on the cited legal provisions (Article 12.2 of Decree 123/2020/ND-CP and Article 2.5 of Decree 70/2025/ND-CP), e-invoices issued from cash register systems (MTT) on a per-transaction basis are valid invoices. Where invoices were issued per transaction but the retail aggregation flag was not selected, the business must review its invoicing process against tax authority guidelines and reconcile declared revenue to make corrections if discrepancies exist. The business is advised to contact the directly managing tax authority for specific support. The response also states the general principle that Group 2 household businesses are obligated to report invoice usage and pay tax based on actual revenue. A technical omission in the software does not exempt the business from its revenue declaration obligations.

Ho Chi Minh City Tax Sub-department 1 (on behalf of the Ministry of Finance) advises on the invoice and VAT treatment for 7 gift vouchers of VND 1 million each that were fully paid by customers but expired unused. Under Article 4(1) of Decree No. 123/2020/ND-CP (as amended by Decree No. 70/2025/ND-CP), sellers must issue invoices when selling goods or providing services. The tax authority advises the business to assess its specific situation against the invoicing rules to determine whether an invoice must be issued for the value of the expired vouchers. The tax authority did not issue a definitive ruling but instructed the business to self-assess based on the nature of the transaction and applicable invoicing principles.

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department responded to Hang Thang Co., Ltd. on the timing of invoice issuance for wood veneer lamination processing services. Under clause 6, Article 1 of Decree 70/2025/NĐ-CP amending Article 9 of Decree 123/2020/NĐ-CP, the invoice must be issued **at the time the service is completed**, regardless of whether payment has been received. The Tax Department determined that wood veneer lamination processing services do **not fall** within the list of services permitted to defer invoicing until after data reconciliation (provided under point a, clause 4, Article 9 of Decree 70/2025/NĐ-CP, which covers only aviation support, electricity, water, telecommunications, logistics, banking services, etc.). The company therefore cannot apply the post-reconciliation invoicing mechanism and must issue invoices at service completion.