Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc has just signed Decision No. 01/2025/QD-TTg (Decision 01) dated January 3, 2025, abolishing Decision No. 78/2010/QD-TTg (Decision 78) dated November 30, 2010 on the value of imported goods sent via express delivery services that are exempt from tax. Decision 01 takes effect from February 18, 2025.

Decision 78 issued in 2010 stipulates that imported goods sent via express delivery service with a value of 1 million VND or less are exempt from import tax and value added tax.

Imported goods sent via express delivery service with a value of over 1 million VND must pay import tax and value added tax according to the provisions of law.

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Imported goods under 1 million VND via express delivery will not be exempt from tax. Illustration photo: Thach Thao

When Decision 78 was issued, the customs declaration system was purely manual, so the tax exemption policy in this decision contributed to reducing administrative procedures and helping to speed up customs clearance time, reducing the number of goods subject to tax declaration.

However, this policy is no longer suitable because e-commerce in the world as well as in Vietnam has been growing very rapidly over the years. Every day, about 4-5 million small-value orders are shipped from China to Vietnam via e-commerce platforms.

Regarding customs procedures, the automated customs management system at ports, warehouses and yards (VASSCM) continues to be effectively deployed, contributing to simplifying procedures for removing goods from warehouses, yards and ports, reducing contact between customs agencies and businesses, reducing travel time for people, and overcoming congestion at port gates, warehouses and yards.

Thanks to the increased application of information technology and the application of modern customs management methods, up to now, over 99% of customs procedures have been carried out electronically through the automatic customs clearance system (VNACCS/VCIS).

The development and improvement of the above-mentioned electronic customs declaration system has helped to clear goods quickly and facilitate the management of daily declarations of goods in large quantities without interrupting commercial activities. Customs declarants also do not need to go to customs offices to declare online, thereby reducing the number of declarants because the procedures are carried out through agents and shipping companies, so the management and collection of taxes on imported goods sent via express delivery services are carried out more centrally and quickly than before.

In addition, some opinions say that for the same type of goods, domestically produced goods still have to pay value added tax (VAT), so the exemption of VAT for imported goods via express delivery services with small value has invisibly created a price difference leading to unfair competition with domestically produced goods of the same type (due to VAT), thereby affecting the production and consumption of domestic goods...

To ensure consistency of tax policy and international practices for imported goods sent via express delivery services with small value, to properly implement the Party and State's policies and orientations on covering all revenue sources, expanding the revenue base, while ensuring adequate tax collection, ensuring fairness with domestic production, and encouraging consumption of domestically produced goods, the Prime Minister issued Decision 01 to completely abolish Decision 78.

Individual business households with revenue of less than VND200 million are exempt from VAT . On the afternoon of November 26, with the majority of delegates present voting in favor, the National Assembly passed the Law on Value Added Tax. Individual business households with annual revenue of VND200 million or less will not be subject to VAT.