Knowledge base

Fresh sawn timber and kiln-dried sawn timber from planted forests that have undergone only normal pre-processing (sawing, splitting, drying) are VAT-exempt when sold by self-producers or traded between credit-method enterprises/cooperatives. A 5% rate applies when a credit-method enterprise or cooperative sells to household businesses or other non-enterprise buyers; direct-method taxpayers pay 1% of revenue. The 10% rate applies only when the timber has been processed into a different product.

Consolidated Document No. 89/VBHN-VPQH merges State Budget Law No. 89/2025/QH15 (effective from the 2026 budget year) with amendments introduced by National Reserve Law No. 145/2025/QH15 (effective 1 July 2026). It is the framework law governing the entire cycle of preparing, executing, auditing, finalizing, disclosing and overseeing the state budget at both central and local levels (provincial and commune). For businesses and accountants, the most relevant part is Article 36, which sets the revenue-sharing ratios between the central and local budgets: value-added tax (VAT) is split 70% central / 30% local; corporate income tax (CIT, excluding oil and gas and the global minimum top-up tax) and personal income tax fall into the percentage-shared revenue category; import-export duties and the supplementary CIT under Vietnam's global minimum tax (Pillar Two) rules go 100% to the central budget. The Law also sets budget-balance principles, local government borrowing limits, budget reserve levels (2%-5% of spending), and lists 12 categories of prohibited conduct in budget management. Overall, this is a foundational public-finance management law rather than a direct source of business filing or payment obligations - specific tax duties remain governed by the Tax Administration Law, VAT Law, CIT Law and similar statutes. Still, the revenue-allocation rules and public investment priorities are useful context for assessing fiscal policy direction and public investment opportunities relevant to business.

Vietnam's Law on Teachers No. 73/2025/QH15, passed by the National Assembly on June 16, 2025 and effective from January 1, 2026, was recently consolidated in Document No. 87/VBHN-VPQH (dated March 27, 2026) to incorporate amendments from the Vocational Education Law No. 124/2025/QH15. It is the first comprehensive legal framework governing the professional activities, rights, and obligations of teaching staff across all education levels, from preschool through university, and it applies to both public and non-public education institutions. The law sets out professional titles and standards, recruitment and reassignment procedures, salary policy (teachers' pay is set at the highest tier of the public administrative salary scale, plus a preferential occupational allowance), and retirement rules (preschool teachers may retire up to 5 years early without any reduction in pension percentage; teachers holding professor, associate-professor, or doctoral titles may continue working 5 to 10 years past the standard retirement age). It also covers training and continuing development, international cooperation, professional honors, and disciplinary procedures. For owners of non-public education institutions (private schools, foreign-language centers, private vocational training providers), this law is an important legal reference for recruiting staff, drafting and terminating employment contracts, handling discipline and teaching suspensions, and paying benefits to teaching staff, since it directly references Vietnam's labor law for non-public sector teachers. For SME owners and accountants outside the education sector, the law has no direct bearing on tax, e-invoicing, or financial reporting obligations.

The Law on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control (Law No. 33/2013/QH13) has been reissued as Consolidated Document No. 85/VBHN-VPQH, folding in every amendment made since 2013, most recently Law No. 146/2025/QH15, effective January 1, 2026. The law sets out the responsibilities of state agencies, organizations, households, and individuals, including foreign organizations and individuals operating in Vietnam, for disaster prevention, response, and recovery. The provision most relevant to businesses is the mandatory contribution to the provincial-level Disaster Prevention Fund: every domestic and foreign economic organization operating in a locality must contribute, alongside Vietnamese citizens aged 18 up to retirement age. Contribution levels and exemption or deferral rules are set by government decree. The law also allows corporate income tax exemptions or reductions for contributions made to disaster prevention, and encourages insurers to offer disaster-risk insurance products. It also bans hoarding or price-gouging on goods and supplies by exploiting a disaster. This consolidation mainly updates the name of the managing ministry, from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, effective January 1, 2026, plus some budget-reserve wording; it does not create significant new obligations for businesses. Accountants and business owners who make annual contributions to the Disaster Prevention Fund should update the ministry name on their records and filings.

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department guides a livestock feed manufacturer on its obligations to declare and pay PIT on behalf of individual/household businesses receiving monthly trade discounts tied to sales volumes. The flat-rate household tax regime was abolished from 2026. From the January 2026 tax period, the company can no longer use form 01/CNKD under Circular 40/2021/TT-BTC. Instead, the company must declare and pay tax on behalf of the individual under the provisions of Article 4 of Circular 10/2024/TT-BTC dated 10 February 2024 (effective 1 July 2025).

Decree 366/2025/ND-CP regulates the management and investment of state capital in enterprises, effective from January 01, 2026. This document replaces previous regulations to strengthen state capital management efficiency, enhance transparency in investment processes, and elevate the accountability of state ownership representative agencies. This decree primarily governs state-owned enterprises, including 100% state-owned enterprises, joint-stock companies, and limited liability companies with state capital contribution. For private SMEs, the decree has indirect impact when they engage in transactions, partnerships, or competition with state-owned enterprises. New regulations on governance, information disclosure, and investment efficiency assessment may affect the overall business environment. SME owners should note this decree to better understand the operation and management methods of partners, customers, or competitors that are state-owned enterprises. This helps them make appropriate business decisions, especially in sectors with state participation such as infrastructure, energy, and telecommunications.

The Ministry of Finance clarifies the VAT classification of roasted and seasoned pine nuts and cashews under the revised VAT regime effective 1 January 2026. Under Decree No. 181/2025/ND-CP, 'minimal processing' is narrowly defined to include only: cleaning, drying, husking, milling, polishing, salting, vacuum sealing, cold storage, and similar standard preservation methods. Roasting and seasoning are not included in this list. Where classification is unclear, businesses should consult the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. Products that exceed minimal processing are subject to 10% VAT rather than the 0% exemption or 5% rate applicable to minimally processed agricultural goods.

The Ministry of Finance clarifies the VAT treatment of plant seeds sold by a deduction-method taxpayer to farmers from 1 January 2026. Under Article 5(2) of VAT Law No. 48/2024/QH15, plant propagation materials as defined by plant cultivation law are not subject to VAT. Therefore, if the seeds in question are classified as plant propagation materials under cultivation law, they fall outside the scope of VAT entirely - no VAT applies. Businesses must consult plant cultivation legislation to determine whether their specific seeds qualify as propagation materials, as that classification is the decisive criterion for VAT treatment.

From 1 January 2026, carbonated beverages under Vietnamese national standards (TCVN) with sugar content above 5g/100ml became subject to special consumption tax (SCT) under Article 2.1(l) of SCT Law 66/2025/QH15. Direct consequence: businesses producing or trading these beverages lose entitlement to corporate income tax (CIT) incentives - including those applicable in extremely disadvantaged areas - for income derived from such beverages. Basis: Article 23.9(c) of Decree 320/2025/ND-CP (15 December 2025) states that the preferential CIT rates of 15% and 17%, plus other CIT incentives, do not apply to income from producing or trading goods and services subject to SCT. The only exceptions are projects manufacturing/assembling cars, aircraft, helicopters, gliders, yachts, and oil refining.

This is the officially consolidated text (Consolidated Document No. 31/VBHN-VPQH) of Vietnam's Law on Insurance Business No. 08/2022/QH15 (effective January 1, 2023), incorporating amendments from Law No. 139/2025/QH15 (effective January 1, 2026, with several clauses effective July 1, 2026). The law is the framework governing insurance and reinsurance business, insurance brokerage, and foreign insurance branches operating in Vietnam, as well as the rights and obligations of policyholders. The 2025 amendment updates 'cybersecurity' requirements for insurers' IT systems, narrows the scope of compulsory construction insurance, and sets out four categories of compulsory insurance: motor vehicle civil liability, fire and explosion, construction-activity insurance, and other lines mandated by separate laws. For SMEs, the law is mainly relevant through compulsory insurance obligations (construction, fire and explosion, motor vehicles) and policyholder-protection rules that apply in coverage disputes: a 21-day free-look period, ambiguous clauses interpreted in the buyer's favor, and a default 15-day claim-payment deadline.

The Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department answered a query from an individual who earns salary income from company 52HZ Technology and Communication Co., Ltd. and expects rental income from a residential property in District 12, Ho Chi Minh City. The person asked: (1) the effective date of the VND 500 million annual exemption threshold; and (2) the PIT calculation method when multiple income sources exist. The tax authority's guidance: the VND 500 million/year revenue threshold exempting individual businesses from PIT and VAT is effective from the 2026 tax year, per the amended PIT Law passed by the National Assembly and detailed in Circular 109/2025/QH15 dated 10 December 2025. Where two income sources exist (salary and property rental): they are treated as separate income categories and taxed **independently**, not combined — salary is taxed under the progressive rate schedule; rental income is taxed at a flat percentage of revenue (presumptive method) or on actual profit.

The Hai Phong City Tax Department determined that roasted and seasoned pine nuts and pistachio nuts do not qualify as products that have undergone only "minimal processing" under Decree 181/2025/ND-CP and Decree 359/2025/ND-CP. Therefore, a trading company selling these products to other enterprises is not entitled to the VAT exemption from declaration and payment that applies to minimally-processed agricultural products sold between enterprises. Minimal processing is defined as operations such as cleaning, sun-drying, drying, husking, milling, cutting, polishing, salting, and cold storage. Roasting and seasoning constitute processing beyond minimal preparation and transform the agricultural product into a different product. When a trading company using the tax credit method sells roasted/seasoned nuts to individual business households or other non-enterprise entities, it must apply a 5% VAT rate.