THE
MINISTRY OF FINANCE
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SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness
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No:
31/2001/TT-BTC
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Hanoi, May 21, 2001
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CIRCULAR
GUIDING THE
APPLICATION OF TAX PREFERENCES PROVIDED FOR IN THE PRIME MINISTER�S DECISION
No. 128/2000/QD-TTg OF NOVEMBER 20, 2000 ON A NUMBER OF POLICIES AND MEASURES
TO PROMOTE THE INVESTMENT IN AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOFTWARE INDUSTRY
Pursuant to the tax laws;
Pursuant to the Prime Ministers Decision No.128/2000/QD-TTg of November 20,
2000 on a number of policies and measures to promote the investment in and
development of software industry;
The Finance Minister hereby guides the implementation thereof as follows:
A. OBJECTS OF APPLICATION
Organizations and individuals of all economic sectors
at home, overseas Vietnamese and foreign organizations and individuals that
invest in the production of software products and the provision of software
services in Vietnam (hereinafter collectively called software enterprises for
short) shall be eligible for tax preferences under the guidance in this
Circular.
In cases where a software enterprise
concurrently conducts other goods-producing or service-providing activities, it
may only enjoy tax preferences provided for in this Circular for activities of
producing software products and providing software services.
B. TAX PREFERENCES FOR SOFTWARE ENTERPRISES
I. REGARDING ENTERPRISE INCOME TAX
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a/ The tax rate of 25 %.
b/ The tax rate of 20%, for enterprises
investing in geographical areas with difficult socio-economic conditions.
c/ The tax rate of 15%, for enterprises
investing in geographical areas with particularly difficult socio-economic
conditions:
Geographical areas with difficult socio-economic
conditions and those with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions are
specified in Lists B and C of the Appendix to the Governments Decree
No.51/1999/ND-CP of July 8, 1999 detailing the implementation of the Law on
Domestic Investment Promotion (amended).
2. Foreign-invested software enterprises
operating under the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam shall enjoy the
enterprise income tax rate of 10%.
3. Enterprise income tax exemption:
- Software enterprises shall be exempt from
enterprise income tax for the proportion of income generated from activities of
producing software products and providing software services for the first four
years counting from the time the taxable income is generated. For software
enterprises which are in operation and have already earned incomes from
activities of producing software products and providing software services, the duration
of enterprise income tax exemption for such incomes shall be four years in a
row as from January 1, 2001.
- Software enterprises shall not have to pay
enterprise income surtax for incomes from activities of producing software
products and providing software services.
Software enterprises being concurrently engaged
in activities of producing and trading in other goods and/or providing other
services, such as: manufacture and/or assembly of computers, electronic
equipment, sale of machinery and equipment, etc., shall have to separately
account their turnover, cost and income from those of activities of producing
software products and providing software services in order to determine the
enterprise income tax amounts entitled to the preferential tax rates as well as
the income tax amounts to be exempted or reduced. In cases where an enterprise
fails to account incomes generated from activities of producing software
products and providing software services separately from other business
incomes, the income amount from activities of producing software products and
providing software services shall be determined according to the ratio of
turnover from activities of producing software products and providing software
services to its total turnover.
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Overseas Vietnamese who invest in the software
industry in the country under the foreign investment law and foreign investors
in the software industry shall enjoy the tax rate of 3% on transfer of profits
abroad for incomes from activities of producing software products and providing
software services.
III. REGARDING VALUE ADDED TAX
Value added tax applicable to software products
and software services shall be imposed under the guidance in the Finance
Ministrys Circular No.122/2000/TT-BTC of December 29, 2000 guiding the
implementation of the Governments Decree No.79/2000/ND-CP of December 29, 2000
detailing the implementation of the Value Added Tax Law.
It shall be applied concretely as follows:
- Software products and software services
supplied by the software enterprises to consumers in Vietnam shall not be
subject to value added tax. Such enterprises shall not have to calculate and
pay value added tax for these products and services, but they shall not be
entitled to the deduction or reimbursement of the input value added tax on
goods and/or services used in the production of VAT-free software products
and/or the provision of VAT-free software services.
- For export software products and software
services, the value added tax rate of 0% shall apply.
In cases where a software enterprise produces
software products and provides software services both for domestic consumption
and for export, it may only enjoy the deduction or reimbursement of the input
value added tax on goods and services used in the production of software
products and services for export.
Enterprises shall have to separately account the
value added tax on goods and services used in the production of software
products and services for export in order to determine the input value added
tax amount to be deducted or reimbursed according to regulations. For the input
value added tax on goods and services used in the production of both software
products and services for export and those for domestic consumption, which are
free from value added tax, the to be-deducted or-reimbursed input value added
tax amount shall be calculated according to the ratio of the turnover from
export software products and software services to the total turnover.
IV. REGARDING INCOME TAX ON HIGH-INCOME EARNERS
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Basing themselves on the above prescription,
enterprises shall make by themselves lists of professional laborers being
Vietnamese and personally engaged in software production and service
activities, who shall pay income tax on high-income earners at the minimum
taxable income level and progressive tax rates prescribed for foreigners, and
register them with the tax authorities directly managing the enterprises.
Besides the above-said subjects, laborers at enterprises, who perform other
professional jobs, such as: production of and/or trading in other goods and
services, sale of computer components, managerial work, administrative work,
guard, car driving, etc., and earn high incomes, shall till make the
declaration for high-income tax payment according to the partially progressive
tax rate table prescribed for Vietnamese citizens and other individuals
permanently residing in Vietnam, who earn high incomes.
Enterprises directors shall have to take
responsibility for the accuracy and truthfulness of the lists regarding the
number of persons liable to income tax on high-income earners according to the
tax rate table prescribed for foreigners and those subject to the tax rate
table prescribed for Vietnamese.
V. REGARDING EXPORT TAX AND IMPORT TAX
1. Raw materials and materials, which cannot be
turned out at home yet and are imported in direct service of the production of
software products, shall be exempt from import tax and value added tax at the
import stage.
In order to be exempt from import tax on raw
materials and materials in service of production of software products, which
cannot be turned out at home yet, software enterprises shall, besides import
declaration dossiers as prescribed, have to supply the customs authorities with
the following:
- Plans on production of software products,
clearly determining the quantity and categories of raw materials and materials
which cannot be turned out at home yet and need to be imported for production
of software products. Enterprises directors shall sign and take personal
responsibility for the lists of these import raw materials and materials.
The customs authorities shall base themselves on
the list of raw materials and materials in service of the production of
software products, which can be turned out at home, promulgated by the Ministry
of Science, Technology and Environment, to determine which types of import raw
materials and materials shall be exempt from import tax. In cases where the
Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment has not yet promulgated the
general list, but gives specific certification on the enterprises declarations
of import raw materials and materials, which cannot be turned out at home, the
customs authorities shall base themselves on such certification to effect the
import tax exemption.
Import raw materials and materials, which cannot
be turned out at home yet and are used for the production of software products
and exempt from import tax, shall also be exempt from value added tax at the
import stage.
2. Export software products shall be exempt from
export tax.
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Vietnamese software enterprises shall be
entitled to land use levy, land rent and/or land and house tax exemption or
reduction according to the provisions of the Governments Decree
No.51/1999/ND-CP of July 8, 1999.
Software enterprises governed by the Law on
Foreign Investment in Vietnam shall enjoy preferences according to the current
regulations on land rent.
C. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION
1. Software enterprises shall base themselves on
tax exemption or reduction preferences they are enjoying to declare the arising
tax amount, that to be exempted or reduced, and that to be paid; make tax
payment and annual settlement with the tax authorities according to the
prescribed regime.
Software enterprises, which are eligible for the
preferential policies under Decision No.128/2000/QD-TTg and, at the same time,
enjoy the preferences under the Law on Domestic Investment Promotion, the Law
on Enterprise Income Tax, the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam, etc., shall
be entitled to only one of such preferential policies, chosen by themselves.
2. Tax authorities shall base themselves on the
tax exemption or reduction regime enjoyed by enterprises to guide such
enterprises in calculating, declaring and paying taxes. Annually, basing
themselves on enterprises tax settlements, the tax collection-managing bodies
shall inspect and concretely determine tax amounts to be exempted or reduced,
and those to be paid by enterprises, then notify such to the concerned units
for implementation.
3. Organizations and individuals that commit
acts of making false declarations in order to enjoy tax preferences provided
for in this Circular shall have to refund the tax amounts they have
illegitimately enjoyed, and depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations,
be sanctioned for administrative violations in the field of taxation or
examined for penal liability according to the provisions of law.
4. This Circular takes effect 15 days after its
signing. The previously promulgated regulations on tax and budgetary remittance
preferences for software enterprises, which are contrary to the Governments
regulations and this Circulars guidance, are no longer effective. Tax amounts
and other revenues, which had been declared and remitted by enterprises into
the State budget according to the current regulations before the effective date
of this Circular, and at the levels different from the preferential levels
provided for in this Circular, shall not be retrospectively collected or
reimbursed. Particularly, enterprise income tax, income tax on high-income
earners, land use levy and land rent shall be re-calculated as from January 1,
2001 according to the provisions of this Circular.
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FOR THE MINISTER OF FINANCE
VICE MINISTER
Tran Van Ta