A tax expert has suggested that international tourists and overseas Vietnamese get a value-added tax refund at purchase to encourage them to increase their spending while traveling.
This is one of the solutions proposed by Ms. Nguyen Thi Cuc, President of the Vietnam Tax Advisory Association, during the Vietnam Tourism Forum: New orientation, new actions on April 1.
Ms. Cuc questioned that international tourists’ current spending per capita on Vietnam is not high. Therefore, it is necessary to encourage them to buy goods. The solution to this problem is to facilitate VAT refunds for guests.
Currently, Vietnam is implementing tax refunds at airports and ports before customers leave the country. Visitors will shop at designated stores that sell tax refund goods, and then the store will issue an invoice cum tax refund declaration.
Visitors must bring this invoice to the airport, the port of call, return it to customs for inspection, stamp it, and then bring it to the payment department to get a tax refund.
I think this policy is quite inconvenient for visitors because many people are in a hurry. In some cases, because of fear of not being able to fly on time, they did not get the tax refund, affecting the spending of guests in Vietnam.
Ms. Cuc suggested that tourists should be VAT refunds right where they shop for goods like many other countries are applying, including Japan.
After purchasing, visitors bring the invoice to the tax refund counter at shopping centers, supermarkets, and shops for procedures.
After checking the purchased goods and immigration documents, the tax refund department can directly pay by cash or credit card on the spot and stamp the confirmation for customs to check when the guest exits.
As an independent expert, Ms. Cuc said that the tourism industry has its characteristics, so it must have its tax policies.
During the seminar, she also proposed to adjust the land rent for tourism businesses, such as clearly distinguishing the actual land used and the land used only for landscaping and ecotourism.
This is a significant burden on businesses such as amusement parks and ecotourism in Vietnam. Also, in the forum, experts and businesses continued to propose solutions to make tourism open and promote a quick recovery. When Vietnam reopens to tourism
Among them are proposals to expand the list of visa-exempt countries, encourage visitors to apply for Vietnam e-visas, and increase the visa-free period up to 30 days for visitors.