REFUND OF VALUE-ADDED TAX ON GOODS CARRIED BY FOREIGNERS UPON THEIR EXIT FROM VIETNAM
The Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 92/2019/TT-BTC amendments to Circular No. 72/2014/TT-BTC dated May 30th, 2014 on refund of value-added tax on goods carried by foreigners and overseas Vietnamese upon their exit from Vietnam. It comes into effect on July 1st, 2020. This Circular includes many important changes in provisions of refund of value-added tax on goods carried by foreigners upon their exit from Vietnam. Foreigners shall be entitled to VAT refunds if they obey regulations in Circular No. 92/2019/TT-BTC and Circular No. 72/2014/TT-BTC.
1. Regulated objects
Foreigners and overseas Vietnamese (except for members of the flight crews and members of the ship’s crews) whose passports or exit and entry permits issued by the foreign authorities are valid and used to enter or leave Vietnam, to buy goods in Vietnam and to bring goods out of Vietnam through the tax refund border checkpoints.
2. VAT-refunded goods
Goods will be refunded VAT if they meet all criterions as follows:
- Goods are not included in the List of goods banned from export, the List of goods to be exported according to export license issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade or the List of goods put under specialized administration.
- Goods are taxable objects.
- Goods can be carried on airplanes.
- Goods are not included in VAT-refunded goods with regard to the diplomatic missions, consular offices and the representative agencies of the international organizations in Vietnam.
- Good must be bought at certified retailers of VTA-refunded good, in brand-new and full-package conditions. They must be sold with the VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration issued within the maximum duration of 60 days prior to the date the foreigner leaves Vietnam.
- Goods are bought at a single shop in one day, whose value written on the VAT invoices (including the total payment of all invoices of goods issued by the single shop in one day) is at least VND 2 million.
3. The procedures for the refund of value-added tax
- When foreigners buy goods, they shall present their valid original passports or exit and entry permits issued by foreign authorities to certified retailers of VTA-refunded good. The retailers shall make VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration accordance with the information in the passports or exit and entry permits and the goods that foreigners actually purchase. The foreigners shall check the information that the retailers write on such VAT invoices. If the information is inaccurate, they request retailers to correct it. If the information is correct, they shall sign such VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration.
- At the examination counters of VAT invoices and goods, the foreigners shall present the customs authorities passports or exit and entry permits; VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration; goods.
- After the VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration of foreigners is inspected, they must present the commercial banks at the tax refund counters with the airplane or ship tickets; the original VAT invoice cum tax refund declaration which has been defined, calculated VAT refunds and stamped by customs authorities.
4. VAT refund fees, amount and currency
- Any commercial bank can receive a VAT refund fee accounting for 15% of the total amount of VAT of the VAT-refunded goods that foreigners take them when they leave Vietnam through the tax refund border checkpoints.
- Any foreigner is entitled to an amount of VAT refunds that accounting for 85% of the total amount of VAT of the VAT-refunded goods that foreigners take them when they leave Vietnam through the tax refund border checkpoints.
- VAT refund currency is VND. If foreigners want to exchange the tax refunds in VND for convertible foreign currency, they can buy foreign currency at the commercial banks.
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