VietNamNet Bridge - The General Department of Taxation (GDT) has said that the time needed by businesses to follow tax procedures has been reduced by 420 hours. However, the business community doubts the figure.

GDT has stated that businesses now only have to spend 117 hours on tax payment procedures instead of 567 hours. 

This is an achievement ‘far beyond expectations’ as the government’s Resolution No 19 required taxation bodies to cut the number of hours for tax payment to below 121.5 hours in 2015.

A local newspaper cited a report by a consulting institution as saying that the time for tax payment has been cut by only 110 hours.

In reply, GDT has released a document confirming that the number of hours for tax procedures has been cut by 420 hours, affirming that the figure has been released after thorough calculation based on standards set by international institutions.

GDT said that many laws, decrees and circulars have been amended recently with an aim to simplify administrative procedures, which has helped cut the number of hours businesses have to spend on tax payment. By December 31, 2014, the time for tax payment had been cut by 370 hours.

The Circular No 119 dated August 25, 2014 on amending provisions in seven circulars has been cited as the most important document that lays down the foundation for cutting tax procedures. With the changes made by the circular, the time could be cut by 201.5 hours.

The promulgation of the Law No 71/2014/QH13 on November 26, 2014, which amended articles of five other tax laws, helped reduce the number of hours for tax payments by another 80 hours.

Meanwhile, the ministries’ actions of checking and amending some legal documents this year have also helped cut 50 hours more. The issuance of the circular related to the value added tax (VAT), invoices, tax management and natural resource taxes allowed another 10 hours to be cut.

GDT said the promotion of use of information technology has also helped reduce the time by another 10 hours.

GDT said the cut has been verified by PricewaterhouseCoopers and IFC (International Finance Corporation) based on the World Bank’s international standards.

The report of businesses’ satisfaction on administration procedures in 2014 released by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), WB-IFC and some other institutions in August showed that GDT’s statement was reasonable.

A survey of 2,500 businesses which registered their business in 63 provinces and cities found that 70 percent of businesses were satisfied with tax procedure reform.

Tien Phong