Hanoi officials hold dialogue with enterprises on tax information

At a conference for dialogue with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Hanoi, business representatives raised concerns about tax-related issues, including personal income tax finalization, difficulties accessing the electronic tax declaration system, and tax debts that remain outstanding even after payments.

During the opening remarks, Hanoi Vice Chairman Nguyen Xuan Luu said the event is intended not only to share information on the situation and policy directions, but also to serve as a forum for the city to listen directly to the business community. He added that the goal is to promptly identify difficulties and bottlenecks that need to be removed in a substantive and effective way.

According to Hanoi leadership, the dialogue also supports centrally driven policies to develop the private sector and other economic components, including Resolution 68-NQ/TW on private sector development and Resolution 79-NQ/TW on improving the efficiency of the state economy.

Key issues raised by SMEs

At the conference, SMEs focused on several practical tax administration problems, particularly around personal income tax finalization, access problems with the electronic tax declaration system, and cases involving tax debts after payments.

Responses from the Hanoi Tax Department

In response to business queries, Vu Manh Cuong, head of the Hanoi Tax Department, said the Ministry of Finance and the General Department of Taxation have implemented a 35% reduction in tax administrative procedures.

He also stated that Hanoi’s tax sector has deployed an AI system to support SMEs. According to Mr Cuong, tax staff are on duty and respond to questions 24/7 to provide timely assistance with tax procedures and “hand-hold” enterprises through the process.

Personal income tax finalization deadlines and non-acceptance

A representative of My Phuc Co., Ltd. asked about the deadline for personal income tax finalization. Mr Cuong explained that if a tax filing is not accepted, the tax authority will issue a non-acceptance notice stating the reasons.

He said the taxpayer should amend the filing and resubmit. The due date for filing, Mr Cuong noted, is the date of the initial electronic receipt of the filing.

He added that if the tax authority issues a non-acceptance notice and the taxpayer does not resubmit, or resubmits but is still not accepted, the case is deemed as not filed.

Electronic tax declaration receipt timing

Mr Cuong said the tax portal has been improved. He stated that the notice of receipt of electronic tax declarations is issued within 15 minutes after the filing is received.

Enterprises, he said, should monitor the time stamps to confirm that submissions were successfully sent and avoid late submission.

Invoice requirements in specific cases

On invoice display requirements, Mr Cuong said that for buyers who do not have a tax code, an invoice does not need to display it.

For invoices issued in supermarkets or shopping centers, where the buyer is an individual not conducting business, he said the invoice does not necessarily need to show the buyer’s name, address, tax code, or the buyer’s digital signature. If the buyer requests, the business must record these details.

Regarding electronic invoicing for businesses selling to end consumers using electronic invoices initiated from cash registers, Mr Cuong said the advantage is that all buyer information does not need to be filled in unless requested.

System instability and what taxpayers should do

On reports of instability in the tax declaration system, Mr Cuong said the main reason is heavy traffic during peak times, especially during tax finalization, which can lead to outages. He also noted that maintenance errors, interruptions during peak periods, or limitations from users may contribute to failures.

When such errors occur, he said taxpayers should check their business conditions. If the issue is not resolved, taxpayers can contact the tax authority’s online support for timely assistance.

He further advised taxpayers to keep screenshots as evidence to explain late submission due to system outages or other objective reasons, helping them avoid penalties.