Stevedoring at Cat Lai port, Ho Chi Minh City (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City brought in more than 140.3 trillionVND (6.06 billion USD) in budget collections during the January - April period,a 15.76 percent increase year-on-year and fulfilling 30.45 percent of theannual target.
According to Nguyen Thi Hong Ha, director of the municipal Department ofFinance, the figure comprised close to 101.49 trillion VND in domestic collectionand 38.8 trillion VND in taxes from import-export activities, up 14.47 percent and19.39 percent, respectively.
The department attributed the growth amid COVID-19 to the prompt local implementationof Government policies such as exemptions, reductions, and extensions on taxpayments, debt restructuring, and loan interest rate exemptions and reductions.Such policies helped taxpayers address the difficulties they were facing overthe closing months of 2020 and recover their production and business, whichenabled a recovery this year.
Rising consumption demand also contributed to the higher figure, it added.
Echoing this view, Le Duy Minh, head of the municipal tax department, saidthe recovery in budget collections was the result of prompt local assistance tobusinesses and taxpayers.
In the first three months of this year, collections of special consumptiontax rose 18.9 percent year-on-year, with beer and wine posting volume and valueincreases thanks to rising demand during the Lunar New Year holiday inmid-February. Sales of motor vehicles of less than 24 seats manufactured and assembledin Vietnam also rose due to the positive impact of a policy last year on reducingregistration fees by 50 percent until December 31.
Land use fees unexpectedly soared 86.79 percent under the impact of DecreeNo 79/2019 concerning land use levy collections, which put limits on who owessuch a levy.
Despite the recent growth seen in e-commerce, related collections are facingchallenges from tax avoidance.
At a recent conference, Nguyen Thanh Phong, Chairman of the HCM City People’sCommittee, acknowledged that the e-commerce industry is developing too quicklyand that State management has yet to keep up with its pace of development, and thisis the main cause of related tax losses./.
VNA
