"Vietnam is probably the only country in the world that imposes a special consumption tax on air conditioners."
Many National Assembly deputies believe that imposing special consumption tax on air conditioners is unreasonable because this is an essential consumer product for people - Photo: THANH HIEP
Many National Assembly deputies believe that the special consumption tax on sugary soft drinks needs to have a roadmap suitable to the tolerance of businesses, and at the same time, agricultural products and natural fruits containing sugar should not be subject to tax.
On November 27, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the revised Law on Special Consumption Tax (SCT), in which many delegates were most concerned about sugary soft drinks according to Vietnamese standards with sugar content over 5g/100ml being subject to SCT, increasing tax on alcohol and beer and imposing SCT on air conditioners, gasoline, etc.
There needs to be a suitable roadmap for tax imposition and tax increase.
Citing data showing that the consumption of sugary drinks has decreased despite the lack of need for tax and the lack of an assessment of the correlation between sugary drink consumption among obese people and the quantity of sugary drinks, delegate Nguyen Thi Le Thuy (Ben Tre) suggested that a thorough and comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of adding this item to the list of items subject to special consumption tax is needed.
Meanwhile, according to Ms. Thuy, this tax will affect hundreds of coconut processing enterprises that are exhausted after COVID-19, along with more than 200,000 coconut farmers in Ben Tre province and many other localities, causing budget losses for localities that grow coconut.
Supporting the addition of this product to the special consumption tax in order to contribute to limiting overweight, obesity and non-communicable diseases, delegate Cam Thi Man said that the Government needs to explain more clearly the goal of achieving this policy: is it actually to protect people's health or just to increase budget revenue?
Also supporting the imposition of special consumption tax on cigarettes, alcohol and beer - products harmful to health - but delegate Hoang Van Cuong (Hanoi) said that the taxation should be in the direction that alcoholic beverages with high alcohol concentration will be subject to higher taxes, while beverages with low alcohol concentration will be subject to lower taxes.
"Tax rates on low-alcohol drinks being equivalent to those on high-alcohol drinks is unreasonable," said Mr. Cuong.
Delegate Huynh Thi Phuc (Ba Ria - Vung Tau) said that increasing taxes on alcohol and beer will greatly affect factories and workers.
Therefore, Ms. Phuc suggested that it is necessary to assess the impact before deciding on the time of application. At the same time, build a reasonable tax rate adjustment roadmap to be able to regulate consumption but also not negatively affect businesses and workers' jobs.
Imposing special consumption tax on air conditioners and gasoline is unreasonable.
In addition to imposing special consumption tax on luxury goods to regulate consumption, delegate Trinh Xuan An (Dong Nai) said that the bill under construction with tax rates and taxable subjects has not changed much compared to the old bill when many subjects have been applied for a long time and are no longer suitable.
For example, air conditioners are no longer a luxury but have become essential consumer goods for people, necessary in life.
Affirming that the use of air conditioners is to better serve people's health, especially the elderly and children, delegate Truong Trong Nghia (HCMC) said that "air conditioners are not at fault" and opposed the imposition of special consumption tax on this item, instead, there should be instructions for people on how to use it.
Delegate Pham Van Hoa (Dong Thap) also said that imposing special consumption tax on this item is inappropriate, people limiting its use is no different than returning to the "stone age", while increasing the tax does not bring much revenue to the budget.
Delegate Ha Sy Dong (Quang Tri) said that air conditioners have been subject to special consumption tax since 1998 at a rate of 20% and were reduced to 10% in 2008.
From a luxury item, air conditioning has now become an essential need in work and life. "Vietnam is probably the only country in the world that imposes special consumption tax on air conditioners," said Mr. Dong.
According to Mr. Dong, no country imposes both special consumption tax and environmental protection tax on gasoline.
Therefore, it is inappropriate for a popular consumer good to be subject to two taxes at the same time that restrict consumption while it is not a luxury good.
"It is necessary to study the removal of special consumption tax on gasoline. If necessary, adjust environmental protection tax to match the objectives of this tax," Mr. Dong suggested.
According to delegates, special consumption tax on gasoline should be removed because this item is already subject to environmental protection tax - Photo: TTD
Proposal to launch Ninh Thuan nuclear power project
On the afternoon of November 27, authorized by the Prime Minister, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Hoa Binh reported to the National Assembly, requesting permission to continue investing in the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project, while affirming that restarting the project will help diversify electricity supply sources, ensuring energy security at competitive costs.
Accordingly, using previously researched nuclear power plant construction sites in Ninh Thuan to develop and build nuclear power in the future is very convenient, saving time and costs for research, survey, and site selection.
The factory will also use modern technology, ensuring the highest level of safety, minimizing risks to people and the environment and ensuring investment efficiency.
To ensure investment efficiency, the Government affirmed that after the project launch policy is approved, it will assign agencies to update development orientations in energy and electricity sector strategies.
The Government will also consider adjusting Plan 8 and reviewing the scale of medium, small and micro-sized factories; associated with training and developing human resources, increasing the ability to localize nuclear technology, and participating in the supply chain...
Reviewing this content, Mr. Le Quang Huy - Chairman of the Committee for Science, Technology and Environment - agreed that continuing the investment policy for the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project is urgent, ensuring the goal of providing a power source with a large and stable capacity, a green and sustainable energy source.
To restart this project, the appraisal agency proposed that the Government study and prepare documents to adjust the investment policy decision of the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project in accordance with reality...
Explaining the opinions, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Ho Duc Phoc said that imposing special consumption tax on sugary soft drinks is in line with international practice.
However, products such as coconut, milk, dairy products, beneficial liquid products, pure fruit juice, cocoa... will not be subject to special consumption tax.
The Deputy Prime Minister also said that he will absorb the opinions of delegates and review and make appropriate amendments to the tax rates on air conditioner products in different tax schedules.
For example, air conditioners using renewable energy from the Sun and wind power will not be taxed. For air conditioners in general, due to the large amount of electricity consumed and the impact of climate change, special consumption tax will be applied.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ap-thue-tieu-thu-dac-biet-may-dieu-hoa-dau-phai-hang-xa-xi-20241127231026563.htm
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