Vietnam tax debts _ VNA:VNS
HANOI: Not all individuals who owe taxes will face travel restrictions, government officials say.
The restrictions will only apply to a small number of people, according to the General Department of Taxation.
According to deputy general-director of the General Department of Taxation Dan Ngoc Minh, the implementation of exit suspensions for individuals and legal entities with tax debts is conducted by the tax authorities through a stringent process in accordance with the law.
He said it is important to note that not all individuals with tax debt will have their overseas travel restricted and this measure only applies to a small number of cases.
The exit suspension specifically targets individuals who serve as legal representatives of businesses and organisations subject to tax enforcement.
Additionally, Vietnamese citizens leaving the country to settle abroad while still owing taxes, Vietnamese residents abroad who have not fulfilled their tax payment obligations before their departure and foreigners who have outstanding tax payment obligations in Vietnam, will experience a postponement of their exit.
According to the law, temporary exit measures are exclusively applicable to individuals who travel abroad and do not return or those who return to Vietnam after an extended period.
This is due to the risk associated with the inability to recover tax debt and the potential for late payment.
It’s important to note that the penalties for tax violations, including late payment and fines, are substantial.
Individuals who travel abroad for purposes such as tourism, medical treatment, visiting relatives, attending seminars, conferences and more can still depart the country normally, even if they have outstanding tax obligations.
Even in cases where tax debt is temporarily postponed, individuals can still leave the country if they provide a guarantee for the payment of taxes, late payment interest, fines and other revenues owed to the government.
If a taxpayer has a guarantee for their tax debt but fails to make timely payment, the guarantor becomes responsible for paying on their behalf.
At the end of the deadline specified in the written approval from the tax administration agency, if the taxpayer has not fully paid their tax debt, the guarantor who fails to fulfil their obligation will be subject to enforcement for the guaranteed amount.
The current implementation of temporary exit suspension for individuals and legal entities with tax debt follows the tax authority’s procedures, which involve careful review, comparison and accurate determination of each individual’s tax obligations. — Viet Nam News/ANN
