Tax Authority cites four reasons for violations involving dual accounting records

The Ministry of Finance held a quarterly press briefing for Q1 2026 on the afternoon of April 9, 2026, where the Tax Department reported it has received data from nearly 13,000 businesses using accounting software supplied by 42 organizations. The move is aimed at strengthening oversight of financial activities and deterring the practice of maintaining dual accounting records to evade taxes or commit fraud in financial reporting.

Tax Department warns against parallel bookkeeping

Responding to questions about enterprises maintaining parallel bookkeeping systems to track actual production and business activities and to provide information to competent authorities, Mr. Le Long, Deputy Director of the Tax Department, said such conduct is a serious legal violation. He characterized it as behavior intended to evade taxes or fraud in the preparation and issuance of financial statements.

The Tax Department also cited several large cases recently uncovered by authorities, including the case involving Hoang Long Company and Bao Tin Minh Chau Co., Ltd. In these cases, the use of two software systems to manage and declare taxes was reported to have caused substantial losses to the state budget.

According to the Tax Department, dual accounting practices can have long-term effects beyond lost state revenue, including impacts on the economy and the business environment. It noted concerns that such behavior can be sophisticated, easily concealed, and difficult to detect without in-depth inspection or investigative work.

Four factors behind dual accounting practices

Mr. Le Long said the situation is driven by four main factors:

• Limited awareness of legal compliance and business ethics among some enterprises.
• A strong motive to maximize profits and reduce tax obligations.
• Some enterprises downplaying criminal risk or willing to make trade-offs.
• The belief that the behavior is easy to conceal and hard to detect.

Data collection from software providers

Based on its assessment, the Tax Department issued a directive to electronic invoicing solution providers to compile a list of customers using the accounting software and send it to the Tax Department by March 31, with a reporting deadline of April 8.

As of April 7, the Tax Department said it had received customer lists from 42 organizations, detailing nearly 13,000 customers using the respective accounting software. The department said it will continue coordinating with providers nationwide.

It also stated it will use the collected data to issue warnings and recommendations to organizations and enterprises using multiple accounting systems from April 2026 onward to support tax administration.

Five groups of countermeasures

To deter dual accounting practices, the Tax Department said five groups of countermeasures are being implemented:

1. Strengthen cash-flow controls and reduce cash usage, enhance data connectivity between tax authorities and banks, and monitor high-value transactions.
2. Apply Big Data and AI to analyze risks and detect indicators of dual accounting from abnormal revenue movements and unusually low margins, shifting from manual checks to data-driven monitoring.
3. Strengthen risk management of electronic invoicing and accounting software, continue real-time data connections for high-risk sectors, and require software and accounting solution providers to supply customer lists for verification.
4. Enhance investigative and prosecutorial cooperation to identify signs of organization and individuals involved in tax fraud, and forward cases to the police when indicators of crime exist.
5. Intensify public communications and warn of legal risks of tax violations, with rewards for consumers reporting entities that sell goods without issuing invoices.

Case details: Bao Tin Minh Chau

Earlier on April 6, the Hanoi Police Investigation Department issued a decision to prosecute four defendants in the Bao Tin Minh Chau case for violations of accounting regulations causing serious consequences.

Investigations determined Bao Tin Minh Chau’s actual revenue from 2020 to 2023 to be about VND 13.7 trillion, but with about VND 9.7 trillion in discrepancies relative to the company’s tax reports. The department estimated the resulting loss to the state budget at around VND 150 billion.