The Government has just issued Decree No. 49/2025/ND-CP (Decree 49) regulating the threshold for temporary suspension of exit from the country. This Decree takes effect from February 28, 2025.

Decree 49 provides for the application of tax debt thresholds and debt periods in cases of temporary exit suspension; on notification of the application of temporary exit suspension measures and cancellation of temporary exit suspension.

Accordingly, business individuals and business household owners who are subject to compulsory enforcement of administrative decisions on tax management and have tax debts of VND 50 million or more and the tax debts are overdue for payment by more than 120 days will have their exit from the country temporarily suspended.

Individuals who are legal representatives of enterprises, cooperatives, and cooperative unions that are subject to compulsory enforcement of administrative decisions on tax management with tax arrears of VND 500 million or more and the tax arrears have been overdue for payment for more than 120 days are also subject to temporary suspension of exit.

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Individuals with tax debts of 50 million VND or more are temporarily suspended from leaving the country. Photo: Anh Nguyen.

In addition, business individuals, business household owners, individuals who are legal representatives of enterprises, cooperatives, and cooperative unions that are no longer operating at the registered address and have tax arrears that are past the prescribed payment deadline and have not fulfilled their tax payment obligations within 30 days from the date the tax authority notifies them of the temporary suspension of exit from the country.

In addition, Vietnamese people leaving the country to settle abroad, Vietnamese people settling abroad, and foreigners who have tax debts that are past the deadline for payment according to regulations and have not yet fulfilled their tax payment obligations before leaving Vietnam are also subject to temporary suspension of exit.

In addition, the Government also stipulates that when a taxpayer is subject to compulsory enforcement of an administrative decision on tax management, the tax authority directly managing the taxpayer shall immediately notify the individual that it will apply the measure of temporary suspension of exit by electronic means via the taxpayer's electronic tax transaction account.

In case the notice cannot be sent electronically, the tax authority shall notify on the tax authority's website.

After 30 days from the date of sending the notice to the taxpayer about the application of temporary exit suspension measures, if the taxpayer has not fulfilled his tax payment obligations, the tax authority directly managing the taxpayer shall issue a document on temporary exit suspension to the immigration authority to implement the temporary exit suspension.

In case the taxpayer has fulfilled his/her tax payment obligation, the tax authority shall immediately issue a notice of cancellation of the temporary suspension of exit to the immigration authority. The immigration authority shall cancel the temporary suspension of exit within 24 hours from the time of receipt of the notice from the tax authority.

Notice of temporary suspension of exit and cancellation of temporary suspension of exit is sent to immigration authorities by transmitting digital data between the information technology application system of the tax authority and the immigration authority.

In case it cannot be done electronically, the tax authority shall send a notice of temporary suspension of exit or cancellation of temporary suspension of exit to the immigration authority in writing.

Proposal to raise the tax debt level for individuals who are temporarily suspended from leaving the country to 50 million VND. In response to opinions from the media and relevant agencies, the Ministry of Finance has raised the proposed level for individuals and business owners who owe overdue taxes for 120 days with a level of 50 million VND or more to be temporarily suspended from leaving the country.