Unlocking Data: How Vietnam’s Tax Authorities Tackle Online Commerce and Evolving Tax Landscapes with 121 Million Bank Accounts and Beyond

The General Department of Taxation revealed during a press conference on April 25 that it holds data on over 121 million personal accounts and 9 million organizational accounts at 96 commercial banks. This data was collected in response to a request from the Prime Minister to improve data sharing between ministries and branches in order to prevent tax loss.

According to the State Bank of Vietnam, by the end of 2023, there were nearly 183 million individual payment accounts in the country. Therefore, the tax industry’s data collection includes information on almost two-thirds of all personal payment accounts held at banks at the close of the previous year.

Bank account data is provided to tax authorities in accordance with Decree 126/2020 and the Law on Tax Administration 2019. This includes information on account transactions, balances, and other relevant data given by banks at the request of the tax authority head to facilitate tax obligation payments and checks. Tax authorities are responsible for securely handling and storing payer’s account information, using it to identify individuals or organizations engaged in online business who have failed to declare and pay taxes.

Apart from bank account data, the tax industry also has information related to 929 e-commerce websites and 130 organizations operating in telecommunications, advertising, and broadcasting sectors. The agency faces significant challenges in managing and collecting taxes amidst rapid growth of e-commerce. To improve tax management within this domain, several strategies have been implemented by the agency.

In 2023, e-commerce channels generated revenue of approximately 3.5 trillion VND (about USD $146 billion), with taxes paid totaling about 97 trillion VND (about USD $4 billion). The ongoing efforts of the tax authority aim to enhance tax compliance and prevent revenue losses in an evolving landscape of online business.