Chapter XI ENFORCEMENT OF TAX ADMINISTRATIVE DECISIONS

1. Taxpayers fail to pay tax or fines for tax law violations after ninety days from the expiration of the stipulated time limit for payment of taxes or fines for tax law violations.

2. Taxpayers fail to pay tax or fines for tax law violations after the expiration of the extended time limit for tax payment.

3. Taxpayers that have unpaid tax or fines commit acts of dispersing their assets or fleeing away.

1. Measures of enforcing tax administrative decisions include:

a/ Deduction of money amounts from accounts of entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions at the State Treasury, commercial banks or other credit institutions; request for freezing of accounts;

b/ Deduction of part of salaries or incomes;

c/ Distraint of assets, auction of distrained assets according to legal provisions in order to fully collect tax and fine amounts;

d/ Confiscation of money or other assets of entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions being held by other organizations or individuals;

e/ Stoppage of customs procedures for imported goods;

f/ Revocation of tax identification numbers; suspension of use of invoices;

g/ Revocation of business registration certificates, establishment and operation licenses or practice licenses.

2. Measures of enforcing tax administrative decisions specified in Clause 1 of this Article cease to be effective as soon as tax and fine amounts are fully paid into the state budget.

Heads of tax administration agencies, the director of the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department, the director of the Post-Customs Clearance Inspection Department are competent to decide on enforcement of tax administrative decisions for the cases specified at Points a, b, c, d, e and f, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law.

The revocation of business registration certificates, establishment and operation licenses or practice licenses specified at Point g, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law must comply with legal provisions.

Article 95.- Decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions

1. Enforcement of tax administrative decisions shall be carried out only when decisions thereon are issued by competent persons defined in Article 94 of this Law.

2. A decision on enforcement of a tax administrative decision contains the following: date of issuance; grounds for issuance; full name, position and unit of the decision issuer; full name, place of residence and working office of the entity subject to  enforcement of the tax administrative decision; reason(s) for the enforcement; measure of enforcing the tax administrative decision; date and place of enforcement; the agency assuming the prime responsibility for executing the decision on enforcement of the tax administrative decision; the coordinating agency(ies); signature of the decision issuer; seal of the issuing agency.

3. Decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions shall be sent to entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions and concerned organizations and individuals at least five working days before the enforcement is carried out; enforcement decisions shall be sent to immediate superior tax administration agencies. In case of application of the enforcement measures specified at Point c, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law, the decisions shall be sent to presidents of People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships where the enforcement is carried out before they are executed. 

1. Issuers of decisions on enforcement of tax administration decisions are responsible for organizing the execution of their decisions.

2. People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships where entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions reside or are located shall direct responsible agencies to coordinate with tax administration agencies in enforcing tax administration decisions.

3. People’s Police shall ensure order and safety and support tax administration agencies in the course of enforcing tax administrative decisions upon request of issuers of enforcement decisions.

1. The measure of deducting money from accounts shall be applied to entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions that have deposits at the State Treasury, commercial banks and other credit institutions.

2. Upon receipt of decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions, the State Treasury, commercial banks or other credit institutions shall deduct money amounts stated in enforcement decisions from accounts of entities subject to enforcement and transfer those amounts to the state budget’s accounts at the State Treasury, and at the same time notify such in writing to the issuers of enforcement decisions and the entities subject to enforcement.

3. A decision on enforcement of a tax administrative decision by deducting money from the accounts of the entity subject to enforcement is valid for thirty days after it is issued. If the State Treasury, commercial banks or other credit institutions cannot fully deduct tax amounts as stated in the enforcement decisions upon the expiration of the decisions’ validity duration, they shall notify such in writing to the issuers of those decisions.

4. During the validity duration of decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions, if there remains a balance on accounts of entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions but the State Treasury, commercial banks or other credit institutions fail to deduct money from such accounts for payment into the state budget under enforcement decisions, they will be sanctioned for administrative violations under  the provisions of Chapter XII of this Law.

Article 98.- Enforcement by the measure of deducting part of salaries or incomes

1. The measure of deducting part of salaries or incomes shall be applied to taxpayers subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions who are working on state payrolls or under contracts of a term of six months or more or enjoying pensions or working capacity loss allowances.

2. The rate of deduction from salary, pension or working capacity loss allowance  applicable to an individual must be between 10% and 30% of total monthly salary or allowance of that individual. For other incomes, the rate of deduction shall be based on the actually earned incomes but must not exceed 50% of total income amount.

3. Employing agencies or organizations that currently manage salaries or incomes of persons subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions shall:

a/ Deduct part of salaries or incomes of persons subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions and transfer the deducted amounts into the state budget’s accounts at the State Treasury according to the contents of the decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions from the latest payment of salaries or incomes until deducting the full tax or fine amounts stated in the enforcement decisions, and at the same time notify such to the issuers of the enforcement decision and the enforcees;

b/ In case labor contracts of enforcees expire when tax or fine amounts have not been fully deducted under enforcement decisions, employing agencies or organizations shall notify such to the issuers of enforcement decisions within five working days after the termination of those labor contracts.

c/ If employing agencies or organizations that currently manage salaries or incomes of persons subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions intentionally shirk executing the decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions shall be sanctioned for administrative violations under the provisions of Chapter XII of this Law.

Article 99.- Enforcement by the measure of distraining assets or auctioning  distrained assets

1. Tax administration agencies that cannot apply the measures of enforcing the tax administrative decisions specified at Points a and b, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law or collect the full tax or fine amounts though having applied these measures may apply the measure of distraining assets or auctioning distrained assets to collect the tax arrear or fine amounts into the state budget.

The measure of distraining assets may not apply to taxpayers who are undergoing medical treatment.

2. The values of distrained assets of enforcees must be equal to tax amounts stated in enforcement decisions and expenses for conducting enforcement.

3. The following assets may not be distrained:

a/ Medicines, foods and foodstuffs to meet the essential needs of entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions and their families;

b/ Working tools;

c/ Dwelling houses and essential personal articles of entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions and their family members;

d/ Worshiping objects; relics of deceased persons, orders, medals, certificates of merit;

e/ Assets in service of defense and security.

4. If entities subject to enforcement of tax administrative decisions fail to pay fully tax arrear or fine amounts within thirty days after the distraint of assets, tax administration agencies may auction the distrained assets so as to fully collect tax arrear or fine amounts.

5. The Government shall specify the order and procedures for enforcing tax administrative decisions by the measure of distraining assets and auctioning distrained assets.

1. Confiscation of money or other assets of an enforcee being held by another organization or individual (hereinafter referred to as third party) shall be applied when the following conditions are fully satisfied:

a/ The tax administration agency cannot apply the enforcement measures specified at Points a, b and c, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law or cannot collect fully tax arrear or fine amounts though having applied these measures;

b/ The tax administration agency has grounds to determine that a third party owes a debt or holds money or other assets of the enforcee.

2. Principles of confiscation of money or other assets of enforcees from a third party are as follows:

a/ The third party that owes a due debt to the enforcee or holds money or other assets of the enforcee shall pay tax arrear or fine amounts for the enforcee;

b/ If money or other assets of the enforcee held by a third party are objects of security transactions or involved in a case of bankruptcy, the confiscation of such money or other assets shall be effected according to legal provisions.

c/ The money amount paid by the third party into the state budget for the enforcee is considered the money paid to the enforcee.

3. Responsibilities of the third party that owes a debt to or holds money or other assets of the enforcee are:

a/ To supply to the tax administration agency information on the debt to or money amount or other assets of the enforcee he/she/it currently owes or holds, clearly stating the money amount, time limit for debt payment, type, quantity and state of assets;

b/ Not to return, upon receipt of a written request of the tax administration agency, money or other assets to the enforcee until paying money into the state budget or transferring assets to the tax administration agency for carrying out procedures for auction;

c/ To send to the tax administration agency a written explanation of the failure to satisfy the latter’s written request within five working days after the receipt of that request;

d/ An organization or individual that owes a debt or holds money or other assets of the entity subject to enforcement of a tax administrative decision and fails to pay the tax amount subject to enforcement within fifteen days after receipt of a request of the tax administration agency shall be regarded as owing tax to the State and subject to the enforcement measures specified in Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law.

Article 101.- Enforcement by the measure of stopping customs procedures for imported goods

1. Enforcement by the measure of stopping customs procedures for imported goods shall be made when the customs offices cannot apply the measures specified at Points a, c and d, Clause 1, Article 93 of this Law or cannot fully collect tax arrear or fine amounts though having applied these measures.

2. Heads of customs offices of localities where taxpayers that have overdue tax debts reside or are located shall notify the measure of stopping customs procedures for imported goods at least five working days before the measure is applied.

Article 102.- Enforcement by the measure of revoking tax identification numbers; suspending the use of invoices; revoking business registration certificates, establishment and operation licenses or practice licenses

1. The enforcement measure specified in this Article shall be applied when the tax administration agency, though having applied the measures specified at Points a, b, c, d and e, Clause 1 of this Law, cannot fully collect tax arrear or fine amounts.

2. Heads of tax administration agencies have the following responsibilities:

a/ To notify this enforcement measure to the enforcee three working days before revoking tax identification numbers or suspending the use of invoices;

b/ To request in writing competent state management agencies to revoke business registration certificates, establishment and operation licenses or practice licenses.

3. When applying the enforcement measure specified in this Article, competent state management agencies shall publicly notify it on the mass media.

1. Violating tax procedures.

2. Delaying tax payment.

3. Making wrong declarations to reduce payable tax amounts or increase refundable tax amounts.

4. Committing tax evasion or tax frauds.

Article 104.- Principles and procedures for handling tax law violations

1. All detected acts of tax law violation shall be handled in a prompt, fair and thorough manner. All consequences caused by acts of tax law violation must be remedied in strict accordance with law.

2. Organizations and individuals shall be administratively sanctioned for tax violations only when they commit acts of violation of tax law.

3. The handling of tax law violations shall be carried out by competent persons.

4. An act of tax law violation shall be sanctioned only once.

When many persons jointly commit an act of tax law violation, each shall be sanctioned.

When a person commits many acts of tax law violation, he/she shall be sanctioned for each act.

5. The handling of tax law violations shall be based on the nature and severity of violations and involved extenuating and aggravating circumstances in order to decide on appropriate sanctions.

6. The order and procedures for sanctioning tax law violations shall be stipulated by the Government.

7. Tax law violations that are severe enough for penal liability examination shall be handled according to the penal law and criminal procedure law.

1. Acts of violation of tax procedures include:

a/ Filing tax registration dossiers after the expiration of the time limit for filing tax registration dossiers;

b/ Filing tax declaration dossiers within ninety days after the expiration of the time limit for filing tax declaration dossiers specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 5, Article 32 of this Law or upon the expiration of the extended time limit for filing tax declaration dossiers specified in Article 33 of this Law;

c/ Filing tax declaration dossiers within the period from the date of expiration of the time limit for submitting customs declarations to the date of disposal of unclaimed goods according to the provisions of the Customs Law, for the case specified at Point a, Clause 4, Article 32 of this Law;

d/ Failing to fully declare the contents of tax dossiers, unless taxpayers make additional declarations within a set time limit;

e/ Violating regulations on supply of information related to the determination of tax liability;

f/ Violating regulations on observance of tax examination or inspection decisions, decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions.

2. No sanction shall be imposed for violations of tax procedures where taxpayers enjoy the extension of the time limit for filing tax declaration dossiers or tax payment.

3. The Government shall issue specific regulations on the sanctioning level for each act of violating tax procedures.

1. A taxpayer who pays tax later than the set time limit or extended time limit for tax payment, the time limit stated in a notice or handling decision of the tax administration agency shall fully pay the tax amount and a fine equal to 0.05% of the tax amount for each day of late payment.

2. A taxpayer who makes a declaration, thus reducing the payable tax amount, or fails to declare tax but later voluntarily remedies his/her act by fully paying the payable tax amount before the competent agency detects his/her violation shall be fined for late tax payment according to this Article but shall not be sanctioned for violation of tax procedures, underpayment or evasion.

For exported or imported goods, a taxpayer who detects errors that alters the payable tax amount and then voluntarily pays the deficit tax amount into the state budget within sixty days after the registration of the customs declaration and before a tax examination or inspection is conducted by the customs office shall be fined for late tax payment according to this Article but shall not be sanctioned for violation of tax procedures, underpayment or evasion.       

3. Taxpayers shall determine by themselves the late tax payment fines based on the tax amount, the number of days of late payment and the fine rate specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

If taxpayers cannot determine or incorrectly determine by themselves the late tax payment fine amounts, the tax administration agencies shall determine and notify such fine amounts to taxpayers.

4. If taxpayers fail to pay the tax and late payment fine within thirty days after the expiration of the tax payment time limit, the tax administration agencies shall notify those taxpayers of the tax and fine due.

Article 107.- Sanctioning of acts of making incorrect declarations to reduce payable tax amounts or increase refundable tax amounts          

Taxpayers that have fully and truthfully reflected the economic operations giving rise to their tax liability in the accounting books, invoices and vouchers but made wrong declarations, thereby reducing payable tax amounts or increasing refundable tax amounts, or made incorrect declarations other than those specified in Clauses 6 and 7, Article 108 of this Law, thereby reducing payable tax amounts or increasing refundable tax amounts, shall fully pay the inadequately declared tax amount or return the excessively refunded tax amount and be imposed a fine equal to 10% of the inadequately declared or excessively refunded tax amount and a fine for late payment of the inadequately declared or excessively refunded tax amount.

A taxpayer that commits one of the following acts of tax evasion or tax fraud shall fully pay the tax amount according to regulations and be imposed a fine of between one and three times the evaded tax amount:

1. Failing to file the tax registration dossier; failing to file the tax declaration dossier; filing the tax declaration dossier more than ninety days after the expiration of the time limit for filing tax declaration dossiers specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 5, Article 32 of this Law or after expiration of the extended time limit for filing tax declaration dossiers specified in Article 33 of this Law;

2. Failing to record in accounting books revenues related to the determination of the payable tax amount;

3. Failing to issue invoices upon selling goods or services, or writing on sale invoices values lower than the actually paid values of goods or services sold;

4. Using unlawful invoices or invoices for accounting costs of goods or input materials in operations that give rise to tax liability, thereby reducing the payable tax amount or increasing the creditable or refundable tax amount;

5. Using other unlawful vouchers or documents to incorrectly determine the payable or refundable tax amount;

6. Failing to make additional declarations to the tax declaration dossier when previous declarations are inconsistent with the actual exported or imported goods within sixty days after the customs declaration is registered;

7. Intentionally failing to make declarations or making incorrect declarations of the duties on exported or imported goods;

8. Colluding with goods consignors to evade duties on imported goods;

9. Using duty-free goods for improper purposes without declaring duty.

Article 109.- Competence to sanction tax law violations

1. For acts of violation specified in Clause 1, Article 103 of this Law, the sanctioning competence is as defined in this Law and the law on handling of administrative violation.

2. For the acts specified in Clauses 2, 3 and 4, Article 103 of this Law, heads of tax administration agencies, the Director of the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department and the Director of the Post-Customs Clearance Inspection Department under the General Department of Customs are competent to issue decisions on sanctioning them.

Article 110.- Statute of limitations for sanctioning tax law violations                              

1. For an act of violation of tax procedures, the statute of limitations for sanctioning is two years from the date that act is committed.

2. For an act of tax evasion or tax fraud which is not severe enough for penal liability examination, or an act of late tax payment or inadequate declaration of tax liability, the statute of limitations is five years from the date that act is committed.

3. Upon the expiration of the statute of limitations for sanctioning tax law violations, taxpayers will not be sanctioned but shall fully pay the underpaid, evaded or defrauded tax amounts into the state budget.

1. Persons sanctioned for tax law violations may request exemption from sanctioning in case they suffer from natural disasters, fires, accidents or other force majeure circumstances.

2. Exemption from sanctioning of tax law violations shall not be given to entities that have complied with decisions on sanctioning of tax law violations, issued by tax administration agencies or competent state authorities.

Article 112.- Handling of tax law violations committed by tax administration agencies

1. Tax administration agencies that violate the provisions of this Law, thus causing damage to taxpayers, shall pay damages to those taxpayers according to law.

2. In case tax administration agencies are at fault in making incorrect tax assessment or refund, they shall pay damages to taxpayers according to the provisions of this Law and other relevant legal provisions.

Article 113.- Handling of tax law violations committed by tax administration officers

1. Tax administration officers who cause troubles or difficulties to taxpayers, thus affecting the lawful rights and benefits of taxpayers, shall, depending on the nature and severity of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability. If causing damage to taxpayers, they shall pay compensations according to law.

2. Tax administration officers who act irresponsibly or in contravention of the provisions of tax law shall, depending on the nature and severity of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability. If causing damage to taxpayers, they shall pay compensations according to law.

3. Tax administration officers who abuse their positions or powers to act in collusion with or cover up violating taxpayers or organizations providing services of carrying out tax procedures shall, on the nature and severity of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability according to law.

4. Tax administration officers who abuse their positions or powers to illegally use or misappropriate the collected tax amounts or fine amounts for tax law violations shall, depending on the nature and severity of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability and pay to the State compensations for all illegally used or misappropriated tax or fine amounts according to law.

Article 114.- Handling of violations committed by commercial banks, other credit institutions or tax payment guarantors

1. Commercial banks or other credit institutions that fail to perform the responsibility to deduct and transfer from taxpayers’ accounts to the state budget’s accounts tax amounts or fine amounts for tax law violations payable by taxpayers upon request of tax administration agencies shall be handled on a case-by-case basis as follows:

a/ Commercial banks or other credit institutions shall not be sanctioned if taxpayers’ deposit accounts no longer have a balance at that time or the balance of taxpayers’ accounts have been wholly deducted or transferred to the state budget’s accounts but those deducted and transferred amounts are not enough to pay tax amounts or fine amounts for tax law violations payable by taxpayers;

b/ Commercial banks or other credit institutions shall be handled for their violations when taxpayers’ accounts have a balance enough or more than enough to pay tax amounts or fine amounts for tax law violations payable by taxpayers at that time but they fail to deduct money amounts payable by taxpayers from such accounts. In this case, commercial banks or credit institutions shall pay fines equal to the money amounts they fail to deduct and transfer to the state budget’s accounts.

2. Guarantors for the tax liability fulfillment shall pay tax amounts or fine amounts for the guaranteed taxpayers when those taxpayers fail to pay tax amounts into the state budget’s accounts or violate tax law.

Article 115.- Handling of tax law violations committed by concerned organizations and individuals

1. Concerned organizations and individuals that commit acts of colluding with or covering up taxpayers that evade tax, commit tax frauds or fail to comply with decisions on enforcement of tax administrative decisions shall, depending on the nature and severity of their violations, be administratively handled or examined for penal liability according to law.

2. Concerned organizations and individuals that fail to perform their responsibilities specified in this Law shall, depending on the nature and severity of their violations, be administratively handled or examined for penal liability according to law.