Press release

21 Nov 2023 Hanoi, VN

Tax Symposium 2023: “Anticipating the future for change”

Hanoi, 9 November 2023, EY Consulting Vietnam Joint Stock Company (EY Consulting VN) cooperated with the Vietnam Chief Financial Officer Club (CFO Vietnam) to organize the Tax Symposium 2023 themed “Anticipating the future for change”.

Press contact
Nguyet Thu Vu

EY Vietnam, Brand, Marketing and Communications, Director

Passionate about connecting people with trusted sources of knowledge that contributes to and enables their business a sustainable growth.

Hanoi, 9 November 2023, EY Consulting Vietnam Joint Stock Company (EY Consulting VN) cooperated with the Vietnam Chief Financial Officer Club (CFO Vietnam) to organize the Tax Symposium 2023 themed “Anticipating the future for change”. This is an annual event to help businesses grasp the latest trends and developments in the domestic and international tax policy environment, along with an in-depth analysis of opportunities and potential impacts of these policies on businesses.

Economic digitalization, underpinned by globalization, has been rapidly advancing on a global scale, fostering innovative and diverse business models where digital technology plays a pivotal role and has a profound impact. This movement is clearly shown in the investment expansion and shifting efforts of multinational corporations on global scale, as well as the increasing popularity of new types of economic transactions such as e-commerce and digital platform-based businesses.

In response to these emerging movements, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Finance Ministers of various countries have urged all countries to devise action plans and new tax policies. This approach necessitates close coordination among countries to avoid tax revenue loss. Specifically, many countries are formulating policies in response to the OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) 2.0 such as the Global Minimum Tax (Pillar 2); or Rules on cross-border service activities, including those involving digital platform-based business activities (Pillar 1).

According to Vietnam Ministry of Information and Communications, the ratio of digital economy to Vietnam's GDP in 2022 was estimated at 14%[1] .Vietnam ranks as the fifth most open economy in Asia out of 37 nations evaluated by Fitch Solutions in its Vietnam Trade & Investment Risk Report[2] . Given these attributes, Vietnam cannot remain detached from global trends and is forced to craft new policies, including tax policies, in an appropriate and effective manner.

As international tax policies evolve and progress, there is a pressing need to adapt domestic tax policies to align with the new circumstances. In addition to considering amendment proposals to policies regarding tax, customs, and transfer pricing (TP) to manage cross-border transactions, domestic tax laws such as the Law on Value Added Tax, Law on Special Consumption Tax, Law on Corporate Income Tax, Law on Personal Income Tax all have amendments proposed and submitted to the National Assembly for comments and approval in the 8th and 9th sessions of the 15th-tenure National Assembly.

These changes in tax policy are aimed at refining the legal framework, adapting to the current circumstances, and helping Vietnam tax sector in approaching international tax regulations. For instance, the Law on Corporate Income Tax is anticipated to have the supplemented content on the Global Minimum Tax, which is currently being proposed in the form of a Pilot Resolution. Another example is that policies on Value Added Tax, invoices and records also need to be changed to accommodate electronic transactions, in the context of enhanced capability of business responsiveness and the tax authorities’ management. Besides, the proposals on customs-related policy are aimed at replacing on-the-spot export and import transactions with standard procedures that accurately reflect their true nature. This shift is intended to ensure compliance with international practices, mitigate the risks of policy exploitation, and prevent tax revenue loss.

EY Consulting VN professionals presented updates on several crucial aspects

With changes in the domestic and international tax landscape, businesses encounter numerous difficulties and challenges. Newly issued policies typically bring additional compliance requirements and potentially lead to increase in tax expenses. Take for example the Global Minimum Tax (Pillar 2). This is a very complex regulation designed to match the complexity of investment and business activities of multinational corporations. To ensure compliance, businesses must understand what these rules are and must have close coordination with their ultimate parent company to provide sufficient information for effective tax rates calculation and accurate determination of additional tax responsibilities.

According to Huong Vu, General Director, EY Consulting VN: “Chief Financial Officers (CFO) hold a crucial role in devising and executing tax strategies to ensure that business plans and transactions are carried out with the most optimal tax efficiency. They need to be proactive in staying informed and be continually updated on changes in international and domestic tax and customs policies to have thorough considerations before establishing and implementing transaction models.”

Nguyen Ngoc Bach, President of CFO Vietnam shared his viewpoints

"The recent developments in the global economy, especially tax policies, are exerting multifaceted impacts on our local economy. This requires policymakers and businesses to urgently keep up with these changes. CFOs also cannot remain passive; they must proactively equip themselves by updating their knowledge and embracing leading practices in the world to promptly offer optimal solutions for their businesses. CFOs should make sure their finance department a competitive advantage for their businesses", emphasized by Nguyen Ngoc Bach, President of CFO Vietnam.

Panel discussion with Tax and Legal experts from EY Consulting VN

At the Tax Symposium 2023, EY Consulting VN professionals presented updates on several crucial aspects: the international and Vietnamese tax landscape, invoice, carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), BEPS 2.0, customs and international trade, on-the-spot export and import and many other pressing concerns for businesses. Notably, the event also provided businesses the opportunities to have direct dialogue with tax policymakers in Vietnam and EY Consulting VN professionals on the latest movements in tax policies.

-end-

Notes to editors

About EY

EY exists to build a better working world, helping to create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets.

Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate.

Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today.

EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

This news release has been issued by EY Consulting Vietnam Joint Stock Company, a member of the global EY organization.

ey.com/en_vn