Tax industry: Strengthening coordination, contributing to effective tax collection

Despite specific regulations on tax debt thresholds and periods, many businesses and taxpayers still struggle to understand these rules, which can lead to a temporary suspension of exit due to unresolved tax debts.

There are still many violations

A representative from Regional XVI Tax Department stated that regulations regarding the temporary suspension of exit for taxpayers who have not fulfilled their tax payment obligations are clearly outlined in the Law on Tax Administration and the Law on Entry and Exit. To assist taxpayers in understanding and meeting their tax obligations before leaving the country, the tax agency has implemented various information channels for notification, reminders, and alerts.

To recover tax arrears for the State budget, the tax authority will notify taxpayers of any outstanding tax debts through phone calls, emails, notifications via the eTax Mobile electronic tax application, and direct text messages. This ensures that taxpayers are aware of their tax obligations and can address any debts. For regular tax debts that have been previously notified and reminded, if the taxpayer does not make payment within 90 days, the tax authority will take coercive measures, which may include temporarily suspending their ability to exit the country.

It is worth noting that many individuals, upon learning about the tax authorities' efforts to collect tax debts and the possibility of exit suspension, have voluntarily settled their obligations. Additionally, many businesses have proactively allocated resources to meet their tax responsibilities. However, there are still numerous organizations and individuals who are not complying with their tax obligations. According to statistics, the tax authority of Binh Duong province has currently announced a temporary suspension of exit for 61 cases involving tax debts totaling 110 billion VND. This includes seven cases where taxpayers have left their business addresses, accumulating tax debts of 5 billion VND. The tax authority has successfully recovered 1 billion VND in tax debt from three taxpayers whose exit from the country is currently being temporarily suspended.

Shorten the processing time

According to the Tax Department of Region XVI, there have been instances in the past where taxpayers did not receive tax debt notices, even though the tax authority regularly sent them out. This often occurred when taxpayers changed their business address without informing the tax authority, resulting in the notices not reaching their intended recipients. Additionally, some taxpayers failed to address their tax obligations before planning to leave the country, only discovering upon arrival at the airport that their exit had been temporarily suspended. This situation often arose due to incorrect address information, which prevented them from receiving notifications from the tax authority.

In such cases, at the airport, taxpayers can utilize the tax authority's electronic payment service or eTax Mobile to pay their taxes. However, this still requires time for the tax authority to verify documents and issue a notice to cancel the temporary exit suspension before informing the immigration authority to lift the restriction.

Currently, notifications sent to the Immigration Department are still delivered through traditional methods, such as direct delivery, official dispatch, or express delivery. These methods can be time-consuming and costly, which diminishes the effectiveness of inter-departmental coordination and complicates the process of reviewing and addressing tax obligations for organizations and individuals.

To address these challenges, the tax authority and the Immigration Department (under the Ministry of Public Security) recently signed a new coordination regulation to electronically exchange, verify, and process information related to temporary exit suspension measures for organizations and individuals with tax violations. Lieutenant General Pham Dang Khoa, Director of the Immigration Department, reported that collaboration with the tax sector in providing information and data has been effective. The signing of this coordination charter contributes to the successful implementation of Decree No. 49/2025/ND-CP, which regulates the criteria for temporary exit suspensions. It also supports the Government's policy on digital transformation.

Additionally, Mr. Pham Dang Khoa emphasized that ensuring security, safety, and confidentiality of information is paramount in the operation of the electronic system, as this data is invaluable to the nation. Therefore, signing the coordination charter is a crucial step in advancing digital transformation.

On the tax authority's side, Mr. Mai Xuan Thanh, Director of the Tax Department, affirmed that both the tax authority and the Immigration Department are actively implementing the coordination regulations for electronic exchange of information concerning temporary exit suspensions. Key units, such as the Tax Operations Department and the Technology, Digital Transformation, and Automation Department, are collaborating closely with the Immigration Department to ensure a seamless electronic connection, timely incident management, and compliance with information security laws. The Tax Department has also directed its branches to expedite the implementation of these regulations.

 Reported by Thanh Hong, T.Quan - Translated by Ngoc Huynh