With practical benefits for taxpayers, banks and customs authorities, the coordination programme that facilitates budget revenue collection via banks is considered a breakthrough in tax administration reform. However, not many commercial banks and exporting-importing businesses use this method. Vietnam Business Forum interviewed Mr Le Manh Hung, Deputy Director of Export-Import Tax Department under the General Department of Vietnam Customs, on this issue. Le Hien reports.Reportedly, 19 out of 68 commercial banks and foreign bank branches have signed into the coordination programme on State budget collection via banks with the General Department of Vietnam Customs, and 56 percent of export and import taxes have been paid via 17 commercial banks. What do you think about these figures?
Obviously, these figures are disappointing given the benefits of this programme. This is because exporters and importers do not have full understanding of benefits in paying taxes via commercial banks in cooperation with customs authorities, as well as benefits in paying taxes via commercial banks which are not coordinated by customs authorities.
Besides, not many banks have taken part in this coordination programme. Thus far, only 19 banks meet the infrastructure and technological conditions for engaging in the programme. Currently, the General Department of Vietnam Customs has also received a number of registration applications from banks for this service.
Would you mind elaborating on benefits when taxpayers settle taxes at banks in coordination with the General Department of Vietnam Customs, as well as limitations and risks that may occur from tax payment via banks uncoordinated with the General Department?
Settling taxes via banks that have signed tax collection coordination agreements with General Department of Vietnam Customs have simple and convenient procedural processes.
Taxpayers only need to make a copy of tax payment statement and fill in minimum information. In case the statement is valid, banks debit taxpayers’ accounts and transfer the money debited to the account of State Treasury and transfer data (online) via customs electronic payment portal. Upon receipt of data (online) from the bank at the service, the system of customs authorities will debit account and clear goods for businesses. (It takes 10 minutes to complete this payment. It will take one working day if businesses settle taxes via banks uncoordinated with the customs authorities).
Businesses can pay money at various locations at any time they want and use various modern payment services like internet, ATM and letters of guarantee.
Tax payment by businesses will be quickly, frequently, continuously and accurately updated by customs offices. With quick accounting, the immediate liability liquidation will help minimise the pending tax liability of taxpayers, thus helping taxpayers to have their goods cleared quickly. This will help reduce the time and costs for customs procedures for taxpayers.
Businesses only need to use a copy of tax payment statement for many declaration forms. Besides, they only need to fill in accurate information like tax code, declaration paper serial number, date of declaration, name of customs agency at the service, name of the State Treasury at the service, content of payment items (name of tax lines) and amount of money (other information is filled by banks at the service). If the information declared is accurate, the system will accept payment information and withhold the money from taxpayers’ accounts at credit institutions at the service.
Circular 126 has helped reduce manual work for document reference, speed up information processing, account tax debt, update information on taxes, fees and tax guarantees of businesses throughout the country, consider grace period for tax relief, relieve compulsive measures, and complete customs clearance quickly and accurately.
These are benefits when taxpayers settle taxes via banks signing tax collection coordination with customs authorities. However, mistaken information on declarations has resulted in slowed clearance time and tax coercion.
To qualify for coordination with the General Department of Vietnam Customs in tax collection, banks must meet conditions stipulated in Circular 126/2014/TT-BTC. So, to encourage banks to take part in tax collection coordination, what will the General Department of Vietnam Customs do to better support banks to take part in the coordination programme?
To provide maximum support for joint stock commercial banks engaged in tax collection coordination, the Ministry of Finance allows commercial joint stock banks without an account at the State Treasury to base on evaluation criteria in Circular 126 to consider meeting technology and profession conditions when they propose connection for information exchange. The General Department of Vietnam Customs shall check, select and provide information for commercial joint stock banks to get connected with State budget collection information exchange.
In addition, the General Department of Vietnam Customs issued regulations and structures of data messages exchanged with customs electronic payment gateway in line with Decision 2994/QD-TQHQ dated October 3, 2014 and Decision 3147/QD-TQHQ dated October 24, 2014 for banks to study deployment of suitable information technology systems.
In the coming time, to expand the scope of cooperation with commercial banks eligible for connecting with the customs system, the Export Import Tax Department is completing some bank documents to submit to the General Department to sign the cooperation agreement on State budget collection while reassessing and directing banks with completed application forms to push cooperation signing.
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