Knowledge base

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department answered a citizen's query on whether a monthly war-veteran (thuong binh) allowance counts as income when assessing whether a parent qualifies as a tax dependent for the Personal Income Tax (PIT) family deduction. Under Article 2 of the PIT Law and implementing guidance, war-veteran allowances are PIT-exempt income and are not counted when evaluating dependent eligibility. Under Article 9, clause 1, point d.2 of Circular 111/2013/TT-BTC (as amended), persons outside the working-age bracket (men 60+ or women 55+) qualify as dependents if they have no income, or if their average monthly income from all sources does not exceed VND 1,000,000. Because the war-veteran allowance is not taxable income, the Tax Department advises that a mother who is a Grade 3/4 war veteran aged over 70 and receives only this allowance — with no other income — meets the conditions to be registered as a tax dependent. The taxpayer should register the dependent formally with supporting documents (veteran certificate, proof of age).

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department answered a company's query on how to determine taxable income for PIT purposes when the employer pays flight tickets and housing costs for Vietnamese employees reassigned to work in other provinces or cities within Vietnam. The tax authority's guidance: employer-paid flight tickets settled directly with agents on actual invoices for domestic reassignment assignments are not counted as the employee's taxable income, as they are actual business-travel costs rather than income. Employer-paid housing (where the employee pays and is reimbursed on actual invoices) is included in taxable income, but the amount included is capped at 15% of total taxable income (excluding the housing, utilities and related costs themselves). Applied to the example: salary income VND 65 million + housing VND 10 million (flight tickets VND 16.5 million are excluded). Whether the VND 10 million housing amount exceeds 15% of total taxable income must be calculated to determine the portion included in the taxable base.

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department advised that an individual acting as an insurance sales agent receiving commission income does not need to register a household business, as this activity is treated as an individual in business under an agency contract. Under Decree 68/2026/ND-CP, if annual revenue (commissions) does not exceed VND 500 million, no VAT or personal income tax (PIT) is owed. If the threshold is exceeded, the individual must declare and pay tax starting from the quarter in which revenue exceeds VND 500 million. The VND 500 million threshold applies to total commission income received during the year. If the actual amount exceeds the threshold after initially being projected below it, tax filing starts from the quarter of exceedance only.

The tax authority advised that a household business purchasing cardboard scrap from individual collectors without invoices may use a procurement list (bang ke) as supporting documentation for deductible business expenses when computing tax, under Decree 68/2026/ND-CP and Circular 78/2021/TT-BTC. The procurement list must include seller information (name, address, national ID number), goods description (type, quantity, weight), unit price, total amount, purchase date, and payment vouchers. For transactions of VND 5 million or more, non-cash payment is mandatory. Other business expenses with proper invoices — electricity, water, telephone, transport, asset rental — are also deductible for personal income tax purposes.

The tax authority clarifies the personal income tax (PIT) treatment when two co-owners of a land parcel (Ms. Hao and Ms. Thao) jointly gift the land to three recipients: Ms. Hao's biological child (Mr. Trai), Ms. Thao's biological child (Mr. Hieu), and a nephew/niece (Hoang Dinh Ai Huu). The PIT exemption for gifts between parents and biological children applies only to the specific donor-recipient pair with that direct relationship. The tax authority determines: Mr. Trai is exempt on the portion received from Ms. Hao (his biological mother) but must pay PIT on the portion from Ms. Thao. Likewise, Mr. Hieu is exempt on the portion from Ms. Thao (his biological mother) but owes PIT on the portion from Ms. Hao. The nephew/niece has no parent-child relationship with either donor and must pay PIT on the full amount received. This analysis reflects the principle that the exemption applies to the individual donor-recipient relationship, not to the overall multi-party transaction.

Tay Ninh Tax Department responds to a question about personal income tax calculation for a teacher's income from providing tutoring at school - specifically 30 sessions per year at 700,000 VND each, totaling 35,000,000 VND per year, paid by parents. According to the tax authority's guidance, tutoring income at school constitutes employment income (Article 2 of Circular 111/2013/TT-BTC). Taxable income is determined after deducting allowable deductions (personal deductions, mandatory insurance, etc.). The 35,000,000 VND per year is not the full taxable amount but rather gross income before deductions. Since this is employment income, the progressive tax schedule applies. The teacher must combine all employment income (including tutoring) for the year and calculate tax under the progressive schedule after applying eligible deductions.

Dien Bien Tax Department responds to a civil servant working in a particularly difficult border area regarding PIT exemptions for special allowances and long-service allowances. Per guidance in Point b, Clause 2, Article 2 of Circular 111/2013/TT-BTC and Clause 1, Article 11 of Circular 92/2015/TT-BTC: area allowances (phu cap khu vuc) and attraction allowances (phu cap thu hut) paid in accordance with regulations of competent State authorities are excluded from PIT taxable income. Note: The tax authority's official conclusion addresses only phu cap khu vuc and phu cap thu hut - it does not directly confirm the exemption of phu cap dac biet (special border allowance) or phu cap lau nam (long-service allowance) that the taxpayer asked about. The excess of any allowance above the level set by competent State authorities must be included in taxable income.

The Ministry of Finance provides guidance (through the Dak Lak Tax Department) on the PIT obligation for a land transfer that took place in 1989, with the buyer only applying for the first-time Land Use Rights Certificate in 2026. According to the Ministry of Finance's guidance: because the land transfer occurred in 1989 (before the PIT Law existed and before 1 January 2009, when the PIT Law took effect with respect to income from real estate transfers), this transaction does not give rise to a PIT obligation on the part of the transferor (Mr. Luong Dinh Thap). The buyer, when applying for the first-time certificate in 2026, is not required to pay PIT on behalf of the 1989 seller for this transaction.