Nghe An Customs maintains revenues

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Officers of Cua Lo Seaport Customs Branch at work. Photo: Le Thanh

The total import and export turnover increases but the revenue does not rise

According to Nghe An Customs Department, in the first seven months of the year, the total revenue in the area reached over VND612 billion, meeting 49% compared with the revenue target of VND1,250 billion. These results show that the department has faced difficulties and challenges in revenue collection in the last months of the year.

These difficulties and challenges have been affected by the tight monetary policy in many countries, leading to a decrease in consumption demand in major markets such as the US, China, EU, South Korea… In addition, the high increase in energy prices and the Russia- Ukraine war have had a significant impact on the petroleum import and export activities of enterprises which accounted for 32% of the budget revenue of Nghe An Customs Department. The revenue from diesel accounted for 11.3% of total revenue in the first seven months of 2023 and only reached 15.7% compared to the same period in 2022.

Local enterprises are mainly engaged in export processing and manufacturing, and export processing enterprises. Although the turnover increased, the tax revenue dropped due to the application of the tax exemption policy for these enterprises.

Notably, companies with high revenue at Nghe An Customs Department such as Hoa Sen Group Joint Stock Company, Vuong Steel Co., Ltd., Kim Quoc Steel Co., Ltd., BSE Vietnam Co., Ltd did not export their products, so the quantity of imported raw materials in the first seven months of the year surged compared with the same period in 2022, significantly affecting the state budget revenue.

The logistics service in Nghe An has not been developed as in some provinces in the region, so many enterprises have selected to carry out customs procedures at other border gates to reduce time and cost. Recently, although the infrastructure of border gates, seaports, and airports has been upgraded, it is still limited, so the cargo has not been cleared across Nghe An Customs Department, they still have to go through some sea ports such as Hai Phong, Nghi Son (Thanh Hoa), Vung Ang (Ha Tinh)...

According to a representative of Nghe An Customs Department, another challenge is the tariff reduction roadmap that Vietnam has committed to the Free Trade Agreement (FTAs). At the end of 2022, the Government issued 17 preferential import-export tariffs to implement 17 FTAs in the period of 2022 - 2027. In 2023, many imported goods with high tax rates will be reduced and deeply dropped in the following years. The number of export processing enterprises that are subject to tax exemption carrying out customs procedures at Nghe An Customs Department tends to increase. Therefore, the total import-export turnover rose, but the state revenue has not yet grown.

The total trade in goods in the first seven months of the year reached US$ 1,766.1 million, meeting 102.7% year-on-year. The export turnover recorded US$1,051.7 million, meeting 102.9% and the import turnover reached US$ 714.4 million, meeting 102.5% year-on-year.

Taxable import-export turnover of some goods reached US$270 million, meeting 54% compared with the same period in 2022. The taxable export turnover recorded US$ 49 million USD, meeting 38%, and the taxable import turnover reached US$ 220.9 million, meeting 60% compared to the same period in 2022.

Deputy Director of Nghe An Customs Department Nguyen Thanh Trung said that the revenue from VAT of imported steel accounted for 61.58% of the total revenue in the whole department. In the first seven months of the year, due to difficult business production and few orders from partners, importers import steel for export production fell compared with the year ago, affecting the revenue, and only reaching 56.54% year-on-year. In addition, revenue from wood chips dropped by 70.89%, spare parts, and components decreased by 32.43%, steel dropped by 53.63%. The revenue from plastic beads and electronic components also saw a plunge.

Following the revenue scenario

According to forecasts, the economy will continue to face many difficulties because the price of imported diesel oil is higher than the domestic price, so enterprises will consider the import. Through working with enterprises, it is known that from now until the end of the year, enterprises have not had any next import plan. Meanwhile, the world situation still sees many complicated developments such as war, and economic recession..., affecting the import-export activities of enterprises. Steel importers that have large revenue still suffer from difficulties, so the import of steel as raw materials for production may not surge, which is one of many adverse factors affecting the revenue.

Responding to the difficulties and challenges, Deputy Director Nguyen Thanh Trung said that the department continues to strengthen administrative reform, focusing on customs procedures; implement facilitation to customs process; improve the quality of supporting businesses by reducing procedures, time, and costs. The department develops and makes working plans, works with enterprises with high revenue and local customs departments and cities to support and increase revenues, and strives to complete the revenue target in 2023. It also monitors and grasps the import-export plans of major enterprises; analyzes and evaluates factors affecting the state revenue to promptly remove difficulties and obstacles, facilitate import-export activities and accompany enterprises.

Nghe An Customs also actively advises and proposes Nghe An Provincial People's Committee to implement solutions to raise state revenue, especially solutions to stabilize revenue sources and attract new revenues; coordinate with departments, agencies, sectors, and local authorities to review investment projects to guide and support investors in importing machinery, equipment and materials for the project. The local department implements effectively the online public service system, the project of electronic tax payment and customs clearance 24/7, Electronic tax payment program via authorized banks.

The department takes drastic measures to prevent revenue loss through price, quantity, HS code, the origin of goods at the customs clearance process; focuses on reviewing and classifying collectible debts, uncollectable debts, actual status, and reasons for failing to collect tax debts to coordinate with agencies as Tax, Bank, the Department of Planning and Investment, the police in taking measures to enforce the implementation of administrative decisions; develops the debt recovery plan in 2023, proposes effective solutions to prevent new debts from arising; closely reviews data on GTT02 and MHS systems to promptly detect undervalue declaration of goods or false declaration of goods codes, signs of commercial fraud to handle and collect tax debts.