Ministry of Finance proposes to exempt import tax for goods worth 1 million or less via e-commerce

Goods via e-commerce platforms are gathered at Dongguan warehouse (China) - Photo: C.TRUNG

The draft decree on customs management of exported and imported goods traded via e-commerce is being consulted, and the Ministry of Finance has made the above proposal.

According to the Ministry of Finance, in recent years, Vietnam's e-commerce has grown strongly, as recently announced by the Ministry of Industry and Trade , the growth rate of Vietnam's e-commerce is 15-20% per year.

In 2024, the size of Vietnam's retail e-commerce market is estimated to exceed 25 billion USD, an increase of about 20% compared to 2023.

Vietnam is currently ranked in the top 10 countries with the fastest e-commerce growth in the world , behind only Indonesia (65 billion USD) and Thailand (26 billion USD).

E-commerce is growing rapidly in both scale and form. However, the challenge for Vietnam today is that organizations and individuals can take advantage of cross-border business to evade taxes, causing budget revenue loss.

On the other hand, businesses do not need to have a headquarters and conduct transactions electronically.

The server may be located overseas, making it difficult to identify taxpayers and determine the basis for tax calculation. In addition, it is difficult for authorities to control cash flow because buyers use cash and cryptocurrency as payment methods.

Proposal to halve the value of goods exempted from import tax via e-commerce platforms

To ensure no budget loss, facilitate production and business activities as well as follow international practices, the Ministry of Finance proposes that imported goods transacted via e-commerce with a customs value per order of 1 million VND or less are exempt from import tax.

Thus, the proposed import tax exemption price is reduced by half compared to the current level, from 2 million VND to 1 million VND/import order via e-commerce.

At the same time, each organization or individual purchasing goods is only entitled to tax exemption for imported goods of no more than 48 million VND/year.

Previously, the Prime Minister issued a decision to abolish value-added tax exemption for imported goods through trade with a value of 1 million VND.

Accordingly, from February 18, imported goods with a value of 1 million VND or less sent via international express delivery service must pay value added tax.

Regarding experience in managing imported goods via e-commerce, in the draft decree submission, the Ministry of Finance said that Thailand collects 7% value-added tax on cheap imported goods from China priced under 1,500 baht (equivalent to 1,100,000 VND).

South Korea is considering amending the E-Commerce Act to require major foreign online platform operators to set up local offices in Korea.

In China, sellers must pay corporate income tax and value-added tax to sell goods on e-commerce platforms. At the same time, China strictly regulates the import of certain goods into the country's market via e-commerce, such as having them on the list of goods that can be imported and sold in China via e-commerce; only allowing goods to be sold to end consumers and not for resale.

Read more Back to Topics

LE THANH

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bo-tai-chinh-de-xuat-mien-thue-nhap-khau-cho-hang-tu-1-trieu-tro-xuong-qua-thuong-mai-dien-tu-20250331093217189.htm