Công văn 4132/TCT-QLN

To: Tax Offices of provinces and centrally run cities

The General Department of Taxation has recently received some Provincial Tax Offices’ requests for guidance on the extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts under the Ministry of Finance’s Circular No. 77/2008/TT-BTC of September 15, 2008. Regarding this issue, the General Department of Taxation gives the following opinions:

Since the time of promulgation of the Circular is behind the time of extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts guided in the Circular, the General Department of Taxation guides Provincial Tax Offices in handling tax debts in some cases as follows:

1. Eligible for extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts are operating enterprises which owe tax debts due to financial difficulties and business losses as defined at Point 1, Section I of the Ministry of Finance’s Circular No. 77/2008/TT-BTC of September 15, 2008.

2. Scrutinizing and guiding enterprises eligible for extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts to compile dossiers as required. For enterprises that have sent to tax authorities incomplete or invalid dossiers, they shall be guided in re-compiling such dossiers according to regulations.

3. Examining, considering and permitting the extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts:

- On the basis of dossiers of enterprises, tax authorities directly managing these enterprises shall examine and consider the dossier of each enterprise to determine whether it is eligible or ineligible for extension of the deadline for payment of tax debts. For an eligible enterprise, the head of the tax authority directly managing the enterprise shall issue a document approving its request for extension of the deadline for payment of tax debts (made according to form No. 03/NOPT issued together with the Ministry of Finance’s Circular No. 60/2007/TT-BTC of June 14, 2007). For an ineligible enterprise, the head of the tax authority directly managing the enterprise shall issue a written reply on its ineligibility to the enterprise for information (made according to form No. 04/NOPT issued together with the Ministry of Finance’s Circular No. 60/2007/TT-BTC of June 14, 2007).

- During the extended time, no fine for late payment shall be imposed for the tax amount permitted to be paid later. If such fine has been calculated, the notice of extension of the deadline for payment of tax debts must clearly indicate that no such fine shall be collected during the extended time. If the tax authority has calculated such a fine, it shall issue a decision adjusting the fine amount. If an eligible enterprise has paid such a fine before it receives a document approving its request for extension of the deadline for payment of tax debts, the paid fine shall be refunded or cleared against the fine payable in the subsequent period.

4. Extended duration and tax amount permitted for late payment:

- For the cases specified at Points a and b, Clause 1, Section I of the above Circular, the tax amount permitted for late payment is the whole debt owed as of July 1, 2007, and the extended duration does not exceed one year, counting from July 1, 2007 (to July 1, 2008).

- For the case specified at Point c, Clause 1, Section I of the above Circular, the tax amount permitted for late payment will correspond to the turnover not yet paid from the state budget and the period the enterprise did not receive such payment, and the extended duration does not exceed one year, counting from July 1, 2007 (to July 1, 2008).

- For the case specified at Point d, Clause 1, Section I of the above Circular, the tax amount permitted for late payment will correspond to the land area of the eligible project which cannot be implemented on time and the land use duration extended by the management competent authority to allocate or lease such land.

5. Organization of implementation:

- Provincial Tax Offices shall permit the extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts under the provisions of the above Circular so as to deal in a prompt and thorough manner in 2008 with all tax debts arising before July 1, 2007.

- Extension of deadlines for payment of tax debts is a measure aiming to help enterprises solve their difficulties. Therefore, Provincial Tax Offices are requested to widely inform it among enterprises for information and implementation.

Any problems arising in the course of implementation should be reported to the General Department of Taxation for study and settlement./.