Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department: Focusing on inspecting high-risk tax areas

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Business transactions at the Tax Department of Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Thu Hoa

Increased revenue by more than VND4,000 billion

According to the Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department, Le Duy Minh, the inspection and examination have always been a priority for the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department. Through inspection and examination, the taxpayer's sense of complying with the tax law has created spillovers, and at the same time, constantly strengthens the effectiveness and efficiency of tax administration.

Proposing timely supplementation and amendment of inconsistent provisions in the current tax legal documents, avoiding the situation of enterprises taking advantage of legal loopholes to cheat and evade tax, causing loss of revenue to the State budget.

Although restricting inspection to enterprises affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, in 2020, the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department has reviewed, focusing on inspection and pre-inspection for risky enterprises. High tax risks when there is consensus from the business. For businesses affected by the pandemic, specifically: restaurants, hotels, tourism firms and airlines have not yet implemented inspection and examination.

With the above method, in 2020, the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department has inspected and checked 22,074 enterprises, reaching 87% of the plan, with the total tax arrears, fines, and retrospectives of VND4,082 billion, equivalent to 48 4% over the same period, value added tax deduction is VND484 billion.

In addition, through tax inspection and examination, the tax agency has reduced the loss by VND20,722 billion and paid to the state budget VND2,599 billion, equal to 64% of the arrears and fines.

In particular, the inspection is mostly done at the tax office, with 134,194 tax declaration dossiers, reaching 220% over the same period last year. The additional declaration and tax amount isVND56.7 billion, up 262% over the same period.

In-enterprise inspection, 20,956 times, with total tax arrears, fines, and retrospective work in the enterprise isVND2,405 billion; reduction of VAT deduction of VND380 billion; reduced loss of VND15,447 billion. The amount paid to the state budget is VND1,983 billion, accounting for 82% of the tax arrears, fines and retrospective refunds.

Tax inspection with 1,118 turns, the total amount of arrears, retrospective and fine isVND1,677 billion; reducing loss of VND5,275 billion, reducing VAT deduction ofVND104 billion.

Many strong solutions against revenue loss

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department, in 2021, the City Tax Department identified the theme "Continuing to foster and improve the qualifications of tax officials and employees; preserve public service ethics and core values of Transparency - Professionalism - Integrity - Innovation, contributing to the outstanding completion of the State budget collection task”.

To achieve the above target, the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department determined that the fight against revenue loss is one of the important tasks. Many strong solutions have been drastically implemented by this unit from the first months of 2021.

Accordingly, the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Department improves the capacity of inspection, examination and supervision of taxpayers' compliance with tax laws in order to prevent tax fraud, fight losses and ensure fairness in tax obligations, creating a healthy environment in production and business activities.

The in-depth tax inspection and examination work for each major branch and field in accordance with production and business characteristics in the locality will be implemented. Strive for inspection and examination to reach 100% of the 2021 plan in terms of the number of dossiers, the amount of tax arrears and fines. Check 100% of tax records at the tax authority; urging the recovery of tax and fines through inspection and examination to the state budget, at least 80% within the time the handling decision takes effect into the state budget.

Inspection plans are built and implemented in accordance with the risk management process and principles. Focusing on topics and analyzing of high-risk tax records; have large revenue space (oil and gas, gasoline, electricity and real estate); new business lines (online business, sharing economy, multi-level companies and games).

Along with thetasks above, the inspection and examination will focus on businesses with capital transfers, BOT and BT construction enterprises; enterprises with associated transactions that account for a large proportion, FDI enterprises with losses for many years that still invest in expanding production and business, organizations and individuals with suspicious transactions; businesses with tax incentives and exemptions.

For business households, strengthen tax collection management measures, combat tax loss, focusing on areas with high tax risks, areas with large revenue gaps and on business sectors of e-commerce business; individuals with income from capital transfer, real estate, inheritance or stocks.

E-commerce business activities will be closely coordinated with commercial banks, payment intermediaries and operators in tax collection management for this type to grasp transactions, revenue and income from foreign suppliers that there are a basis to request these organizations to declare and pay taxes.