1. What is tax refund?
Definition of Tax Refunds:
A tax refund for re-exported imported goods is the process where the tax authority refunds the import tax that the enterprise has paid when those goods have to be re-exported.
The role of tax refund:
- Enhancing cash flow: Tax refunds help enterprises recover the paid taxes, thereby improving cash flow and financial capacity.
- Reducing financial costs: When receiving a tax refund, enterprises can alleviate financial burdens, especially during economic difficulties.
- Encouraging investment: The refunded tax amount can be used to pay off debts, purchase new equipment, or expand production activities.
- Increasing transparency and legal compliance: The tax refund process requires enterprises to comply with tax and accounting regulations, thereby enhancing transparency and accountability in financial management.
2. Cases of imported goods that need to be re-exported
Imported goods that have paid import tax but need to be re-exported are eligible for an import tax refund and are not subject to export tax, including:
- Imported goods that need to be re-exported abroad, including returning goods to the original owner, exporting imported goods abroad, or exporting to a non-tariff zone for use within the non-tariff zone.
- Imported goods sent by foreign organizations or individuals to organizations or individuals in Vietnam through postal services and international express delivery services that have paid taxes but cannot be delivered to the recipient and need to be re-exported.
- Imported goods that have paid taxes and are then sold to foreign carriers on international routes through Vietnamese ports and Vietnamese carriers on international routes as regulated.
- Imported goods that have paid import taxes but are still in storage at the port and under customs supervision and need to be re-exported abroad.
(According to Article 34 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP)
3. Tax refund dossier for re-exported imported goods
To receive a tax refund, enterprises need to prepare a dossier including:
- An official letter requesting a refund of export tax or import tax for exported or imported goods sent through the electronic data processing system of the customs authority (original).
- A value-added tax invoice or sales invoice as prescribed by the law on invoices or commercial invoices (copy).
- Payment documents for exported or imported goods (if any) (copy).
- Export or import contracts and invoices according to the export or import contract for the case of buying and selling goods; entrusted export or import contracts if it is an entrusted export or import form (if any) (copy).
- A written agreement to return goods to the foreign party in case of returning goods to the original foreign owner (copy).
- A notification from the postal enterprise or international express delivery service about the inability to deliver to the recipient for the case of importation through postal services (copy).
(According to Article 34 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP).
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4. Detailed Procedures for Tax Refund for Re-exported Imported goods
(According to the guidance in Article 12 of Circular 06/2021/TT-BTC)
Learn more Detailed Procedures for Tax Refund for Re-imported Exported goods.
Step 1: Submit and receive the dossier
- Enterprises prepare the tax refund dossier as guided in section 3 and send it to the customs authority where the export or import declaration is registered.
- The customs authority receives the tax refund dossier and responds to the tax refund dossier through the system. In the case of paper dossiers, the customs authority stamps the receipt and confirms it in the receipt book.
- The customs authority classifies the tax refund dossier into two cases:
- Dossiers subject to pre-refund inspection.
- Dossiers subject to post-refund inspection.
- Within 3 days from the date of receiving the tax refund dossier, the customs authority notifies the enterprise of the need to supplement the dossier, accept the tax refund dossier, classify the tax refund dossier, and the time limit for processing the dossier.
Step 2: Check the conditions for a tax refund
In the case of pre-refund inspection:
- Within 3 days from the date of sending the notification of acceptance of the tax refund dossier, the customs authority issues a “Decision to inspect at the taxpayer’s office.”
- Within 5 days from the date of signing the above Decision, the customs authority conducts an inspection at the enterprise’s office and makes a record of the announcement of the inspection decision.
- The customs authority then checks all documents and dossiers related to the tax refund dossier.
- At the end of the inspection, the customs authority must determine the amount of tax to be refunded for each type of tax, the amount of tax not eligible for a refund, and the reasons for ineligibility.
In the case of post-refund inspection:
- The customs authority checks the information in the tax refund dossier against the information in the system to determine the conditions for a tax refund and the amount of tax to be refunded.
- If the dossier is incomplete, the customs authority notifies the enterprise to supplement the necessary information.
Step 3: Issue a tax refund decision
In the case of pre-refund inspection:
- The customs authority drafts an inspection conclusion and sends it to the enterprise.
- Within 3 days from the date of receiving the draft inspection conclusion, the enterprise responds about agreeing or disagreeing with the draft inspection conclusion (if any).
- Within 3 days from the date the enterprise responds, the customs authority issues the inspection conclusion.
- Issue a tax refund decision.
In the case of post-refund inspection:
- If the conditions for a tax refund are not met, the customs authority notifies the taxpayer of the reasons for not refunding the tax through the system.
- If the conditions for a tax refund are met, the customs authority issues a tax refund decision.
5. Legal basis
The content of this article is based on the following legal bases:
- Decree 134/2016/ND-CP: on cases eligible for export and import tax refunds and guidance on preparing tax refund dossiers.
- The 2019 Law on Tax Administration on tax refund procedures.
- Circular 06/2021/TT-BTC guiding tax refund procedures.
- Official Letter No. 4610/TCHQ-TNXK guiding the tax refund for re-exported imported goods.
6. Conclusion
Tax refund plays an important role in improving cash flow and reducing financial costs for enterprises, while also encouraging investment activities and production expansion. However, complying with tax refund procedures can be challenging due to the detailed dossier preparation requirements and strict inspection processes by customs authorities. Therefore, this process requires enterprises to thoroughly understand legal regulations and correctly follow the steps to ensure their tax refund rights