Finance Ministry proposes new tax on pickups

The Ministry of Finance has proposed that the Government apply a special consumption tax on pickups to be set at 60 percent of the tax on cars with nine seats or less with similar engine displacement, a move that would sharply increase their costs.
Finance Ministry proposes new tax on pickups ảnh 1The Ministry of Finance has proposed the Government apply a special consumption tax on pickups to be set at 60 percent of the tax on cars with nine seats or less with similar engine displacement (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) - TheMinistry of Finance has proposed that the Government apply a specialconsumption tax on pickups to be set at 60 percent of the tax on cars with nineseats or less with similar engine displacement, a move that would sharplyincrease their costs.

Speaking at a press conference in Hanoi on August 15, Pham DinhThi, head of the finance ministry’s Tax Policy Department, said pickups mainlyhave engine displacement of between 2,000 and 3,000cc, so if the tax on the carwith nine seats and less is currently 55 percent of the car value, the tax onthe pickups should be 33 percent.

The proposal was made after the Prime Minister required theministry to study and check the tax on pickups in the region. The ministryfound that regional countries usually levy special consumption tax on pickupslower than that of autos with nine seats or less.

According to the Law on Special Consumption Tax regulations, aspecial consumption tax of 15 percent is levied on pickup trucks with enginedisplacement of 2,500cc or less, 20 percent for those with over 2,500cc-3,000ccand 25 percent for those with over 3,000cc.

In recent years, the number of pickups has sharply increased in Vietnam,the majority imported. In 2012, 3,291 units were sold, of which 3,252 wereimported and 39 units were locally-assembled. In 2016, sales soared to 28,233units, of which 27,265 units were imported and 968 units werelocally-assembled.

Thi said the five-seat pickups had for many years enjoyed specialconsumption tax lower than that of vehicles with the same number of seats(lower than SUV models, with engine displacement from over 2,500cc to 3,000cc,taxed 55 percent). Therefore, the number of consumers moving to buy pickupsinstead of SUVs has been seen increasing rapidly.

On April 14, the Government Office announced that Deputy PrimeMinister Trinh Dinh Dung had assigned the finance ministry to study andreevaluate the current special consumption tax and registration fees forpickups, which then would be proposed and reported to the Government and theNational Assembly to supplement and revise law if needed.

On April 28, the Ministry of Industry and Trade sent a document tothe Prime Minister on its evaluation on auto production and assembling in Vietnamand measures to develop the auto industry, in which it proposed the Governmentimpose a special consumption tax on five-seats pickups with haul of less1,500kg at the level of vehicles with nine seats or less.

If the finance ministry’s proposal is approved by the Governmentand the National Assembly, the average special consumption tax on pickups willincrease by 50 to 100 percent.-VNA
VNA

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