Quyết định 885/1998/QD-BTC

DECISION

PROMULGATING REGULATIONS ON ISSUANCE, MANAGEMENT AND USE OF SALES INVOICES

THE MINISTER OF FINANCE

Pursuant to the Law on Value Added Tax and the Law on Corporate Income Tax passed by Legislature IX of the National Assembly on 28 May 1997 and other applicable laws and ordinances in relation to taxation;
Pursuant to the Ordinance on Accounting and Statistics dated 20 May 1988; Pursuant to Decree 15-CP of the Government dated 2 March 1993 on the duties, powers and responsibilities for State administration of ministries and ministerial equivalent bodies;
Pursuant to Decree 178-CP of the Government dated 28 October 1994 stipulating the functions, duties and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;
Pursuant to Decrees 28/1998/ND-CP dated 11 May 1998 making detailed provisions for the implementation of the Law on Value Added Tax and 30/1998/ND-CP dated 13 May 1998 making detailed provisions for the implementation of the Law on Corporate Income Tax of the Government;

DECIDES:

Article 1

To issue with this Decision the Regulations on Issuance, Management and Use of Sales Invoices (hereinafter referred to as Regulations on Management of Sales Invoices).

Article 2

The Regulations on Management of Sales Invoices shall be of full force and effect after fifteen (15) days from the date of their signing and shall replace the Regulations on Management and Use of Sales Invoices issued with Decision 54-TC-TCT of the Minister of Finance dated 20 February 1991. In particular, the following shall apply with respect to a number of existing types of invoices:

1. The types of invoices which have been issued in accordance with Decision 54-TC/TCT dated 20 February 1991 (except for types of invoices bearing serial number 91) and Decision 1141-TC/QD-CDKT dated 1 November 1995 of the Minister of Finance shall remain valid.

2. Added value invoices and sales invoices which are issued in accordance with these Regulations and other provisions for the implementation of the Law on Value Added Tax and the Law on Corporate Income Tax shall be of full force and effect as of 1 January 1999.

Article 3

Ministries, ministerial equivalent bodies, Government bodies, and people ?s committees of provinces and cities under central authority shall direct and inspect the implementation of the Regulations on Management of Sales Invoices within their respective branches and localities.

Article 4

The General Director of the General Department of Taxation shall provide guidelines for the implementation of this Decision and the General Director of the General Department of Management of State Owned Capital and Assets in Enterprises, the Director of the Accounting Department and Head of the Office of the Ministry of Finance shall be responsible for assisting in the implementation of this Decision.

REGULATIONS

ON ISSUANCE, MANAGEMENT AND USE OF SALES INVOICES
 (Issued with Decision 885-1998-QD-BTC of the Minister of Finance dated 16 July 1998)

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1

The Regulations on Issuance, Management and Use of Sales Invoices shall apply to all organizations and individuals in all economic sectors engaged in production and business of goods and services, political organizations, political and social organizations, social organizations, occupational associations, units of the armed forces and other administrative organizations and bodies (hereinafter referred to as organizations and individuals) upon purchase, sale or exchange of goods or services.

Organizations and individuals not being engaged in business shall not be obliged to issue a sales invoice in accordance with these Regulation upon liquidation, disposal or sale of assets or confiscated goods.

Article 2

Sales invoices stipulated in these Regulations shall include added value invoices, sales invoices, invoices concurrently being ex-warehouse orders, service invoices and other types of invoices, ex-warehouse orders concurrently being internal transport orders and other printed-value papers, such as stamps or tickets, (hereinafter referred to as invoices) published by the Ministry of Finance (General Department of Taxation) or self-printed invoices of organizations and individuals printed in accordance with the written approval of the Ministry of Finance (General Department of Taxation).

Article 3

A proper invoice must satisfy all of the following provisions:

- The copy of the invoice issued to the purchaser must be the duplicate copy of the original invoice (namely, the copy of the invoice issued to the customer) in cases where the person selling goods or providing services directly collects payment, including exchanges of products;

- All items and contents of the invoice must be filled in as stipulated and the invoice must be undamaged and not torn or rumpled;

- Data and handwriting, typed writing or printed text on the invoice must be clear, truthful and accurate and must not be erased or amended.

Article 4

Organizations and individuals selling goods or providing services for money or exchanging products shall prepare and issue a proper invoice to each customer. If they fail to prepare or issue invoices, or prepare or issue improper invoices, to customers, their conduct shall be considered as tax evasion and shall be dealt with in accordance with applicable laws.

Article 5

Organizations and individuals purchasing goods or services or exchanging products shall be responsible for requesting sellers to prepare and issue a proper invoice. If a purchaser fails to receive an invoice, or receives an improper invoice, such conduct shall be considered as conspiracy to evade tax and shall be dealt with in accordance with applicable laws.

Article 6

The issuance of sales invoices shall not be compulsory upon purchase or sale of the following goods or services:

- Producers engaged in agricultural production, forestry, husbandry or aquaculture selling products produced by them: Organizations and individuals purchasing agricultural, forestry or aquatic products from the above producers shall prepare a list of purchased goods in accordance with applicable regulations;

- In the case of retailed sale or purchase of goods or provision of services to consumers having a value of less than one hundred thousand (100,000) Vietnamese dong for each payment: Where any purchaser requests an invoice, the seller shall prepare and issue the invoice in accordance with these Regulations. With respect to retailed goods having a value lower than the stipulated limit, notwithstanding that the issuance of an invoice is not required, a list of retailed goods shall be prepared in accordance with applicable regulations.

Article 7

The General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for printing, announcing, publishing and managing the use of invoices throughout the country. Where necessary, the General Department of Taxation may authorize Taxation Departments of provinces and cities under central authority to print and publish a number of special types of invoices.

Chapter II

DETAILED PROVISIONS ON ISSUANCE, MANAGEMENT AND USE OF INVOICES

Article 8

The types of invoices issued by t he Ministry of Finance in accordance with these Regulations shall include the following (see attached forms):

- Added value invoices (abbreviated as AV invoices), including the duplicate type, the triplicate type, and so forth, bearing the code of 01-GTKT;

- Sales invoices, including the duplicate type, the triplicate type, and so forth, bearing the code of 02-GTTT.

Article 9

Sales invoices issued by the Ministry of Finance shall be used for the following:

- Organizations and individuals permitted to calculate value added tax in accordance with the tax credit method shall use added value invoices issued by the General Department of Taxation or their own invoices upon the written approval of the General Department of Taxation in accordance with articles 11, 12 and 13 of these Regulations.

- Organizations and individuals permitted to calculate value added tax in accordance with the method of calculation of tax directly on the basis of added value shall use sales invoices bearing the code of 02-GTTT or applicable invoices issued by the General Department of Taxation or their own invoices in accordance with articles 11, 12 and 13 of these Regulations.

Article 10

Invoices issued by the General Department of Taxation shall be sold for the purpose of recovering costs o f printing, issuance and management. Sale prices of invoices shall be uniformly provided for by the General Department of Taxation throughout the country. The issuance of sales invoices stipulated in this article shall be carried out in accordance with the Regulations on Management of Printed Documents relating to Taxation.

Article 11

Organizations and individuals wishing to use their own invoices must submit to the General Department of Taxation a written proposal accompanied by an invoice form and shall be permitted to print their own invoices upon the written approval of the General Department of Taxation. Organizations and individuals engaged in special branches, such as electricity, water, post, aviation, railway, petroleum, and so forth, shall be permitted to print their own invoices at any printing factory being a legal entity and notify the tax office of such printing factory. Organizations and individuals engaged in other branches wishing to use their own invoices shall only print their own in voices at the printing factory designated by the tax office. Prior to using such invoices, the organizations and individuals must notify in writing the provincial or municipal tax office directly responsible for the management of the invoice form of the quantity of issued invoices and duration of use in order for the tax office to establish books for the purpose of monitoring and management (in Form ST25) and shall, at the same time, send a sample of their own invoice which has been registered with the provincial or municipal tax office for use to the General Department of Taxation.

Article 12

Self-printed invoices must contain all of the following basic items:

Serial number, invoice number, name, address, tax code number of the seller, name, address, tax code number of the purchaser, bank account, place of registration of bank account, name of goods or services, units, quantity, unit price, payment, VAT rate, amount of VAT, total payment, printed under licence no. ...TC-TCT dated ...... of the General De partment of Taxation, and the printing entity. Information, details and logo of the respective entities may be included in invoices. If an organization or individual wishes to use invoices in two languages, Vietnamese words must appear before the foreign words. Any invoice must be made in two or more copies. The first copy shall be kept in the invoice book and the duplicate copy issued to the purchaser.

Article 13

Where organizations and individuals are using their own invoices in accordance with the prior approval of the General Department of Taxation, they shall be subject to the following provisions:

- With respect to taxpayers paying value added tax in accordance with the tax credit method, their invoice forms shall be designed and re -registered in accordance with articles 11 and 12 of these Regulations;

- With respect to taxpayers paying value added tax in accordance with the method of calculation of tax directly on the basis of added value shall continue to use their invoices provided that the applicable tax code number shall be added to the sales invoices.

Article 14

Organizations and individuals using a cash register to print retail invoices issued to customers in shops, department stores or supermarkets shall notify in writing the Taxation Department of the province or city under central authority of the invoice form and password of the cash register. The invoice form printed by the cash register must contain the following basic items: name, tax code, address of the seller, quantity, unit price, total payment. Invoices must be made in two copies, one issued to the purchaser and one kept in the roll as stipulated. Department stores, shops and supermarkets using cash registers on a daily basis shall prepare lists of goods at the beginning and closing of each shift and quantity of goods sold on each day which shall be used as a basis for declaration of tax payment as stipulated.

Article 15

All organizations and individuals shall be prohibited from printing their own invoices, and entities engaged in the printing industry shall be prohibited from receiving orders for printing of invoices, without the written approval of the General Department of Taxation. Any organization or individual breaching this provision shall be dealt with in accordance with applicable laws.

Article 16

All unused or used invoices shall be maintained and kept in accordance with the laws in relation to taxation and the Ordinance on Accounting and Statistics. Invoices shall be kept in a safe place in order to avoid any loss and damage. If any loss of invoices occurs, the organizations and individuals shall be responsible for immediately reporting to the tax office directly responsible for management and the police office for resolution in accordance with applicable regulations. All organizations and individuals using invoices must present unused or retained invoices to the tax office and authorized State bodies, where necessary.

Article 17

Invoices must be used in the order of consecutive ascending numbered books and invoices and shall not be used on a non-consecutive basis. When being prepared, invoices must reflect all contents and items as stipulated and a diagonal line shall be marked across the remaining blank part. Carbon paper shall be used for writing or typing copies with the same contents. In cases of incorrect entry, invoices which are void shall be marked with crossing lines and shall not be removed from the invoice books.

Article 18

Within the first ten (10) days of the following quarter, all organizations and individuals using invoices shall prepare and submit reports on the status of use of invoices in Forms 26-BC-HD and 27-BC-HD to the tax office directly responsible for management.

Article 19

In the case of merger, dissolution or establishment of a new entity, within ten (10) days from the time when the decision on dissolution or merger is issued, organizations and individuals using invoices shall submit a report on the number of registered and used invoices and the number of unused invoices to the tax office directly responsible for management for resolution.

Chapter III

Dealing with Breaches and Rewards

Article 20

Any organization or individual breaching the Regulations on Issuance, Management and Use of Sales Invoices shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of the breach, be subject to administrative penalties or, in the case of serious offences, may be prosecuted for criminal liability in accordance with law.

1. Printing of fake invoices for use or sale to other persons for use shall be subject to administrative penalties and must be subject to prosecution for criminal liability.

2. Preparation of different copies of the same invoice, preparation of an invoice not in accordance with the compulsory contents and items for that type of invoice; purchase or sale of invoices for the purpose of use by other persons shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of the breach, be subject to administrative penalties for taxation offences.

3. With respect to any loss of invoices, the conduct causing the loss shall be subject to the following:

- Administrative penalties for taxation offences in accordance with applicable laws;

- Liability to pay compensation:

- In the case of loss of the duplicate copy (namely, the copy issued to the customer) of an in voice, compensation for an amount being equal to the amount of tax on the invoice having the largest turnover in an invoice book of the same type in the period of one month before the time of loss of the invoice. Penalties shall be imposed irrespective of the nature, size and form of tax calculation or payment applicable to such organization or individual.

- In the case of loss of other copies of an invoice, depending on the nature and seriousness of the breach, administrative penalties for taxation offences.

- Any tax officer who loses invoices as a result of irresponsibility shall be subject to disciplinary action and shall be liable to pay compensation.

The amount of compensation shall be equal to the product of the amount of tax on an invoice of the same type having the average turnover of a key entity located in such locality multiplied by (x) the number of lost invoices.

If any conspiracy between organizations and individuals for the purpose of tax evasion is identified, such organizations and individuals shall be liable to pay compensation as in the case of organizations and individuals losing invoices.

- In the case of any loss of an invoice for which compensation has been paid, if the lost invoice is identified as an invoice that has been used for a larger taxable turnover, compensation equal to the amount of tax on the turnover actually stated in the invoice shall be paid.

- The maximum compensation payable due to any loss of invoice shall not exceed the limit stipulated in clause 3 of article 142 of Chapter IV of the Criminal Code. Serious offences shall be subject to prosecution for criminal liability in accordance with law.

- With respect to losses of invoices due to objective causes in unforeseeable circumstances, such as storms, floods, fires, and so forth, organizations and individuals shall apply to the tax office (accompanied by the certification of the police office and local authority) for consideration of exemption from and reduction of compensation.

Article 21

Persons approving payments or financial statements shall only be permitted to approve payments on the basis of proper sales invoices. If such persons approve payments on the basis of improper invoices, they shall be liable to pay compensation for financial damage caused b y such improper invoices. Heads of entities the staff of which purchase or sell goods and use improper invoices for payments causing financial damage to public funds shall be jointly responsible for such invoices.

Where, upon purchase of goods or services or exchange of products, business organizations and individuals fail to receive an invoice, or receive an invoice not in accordance with applicable regulations, payments shall not be accepted as a basis for tax calculation. Any case of conspiracy with the seller in order to receive an invoice not in accordance with applicable regulations shall, depending on the seriousness of the breach, in addition to penalties for taxation offences, be subject to administrative penalties or prosecution for criminal liability.

Where organizations and individuals do not know whether an invoice issued by a seller is proper or not, they must fully declare the organization or individual preparing and issuing the sales invoice to the competent body for consideration and resolution in accordance with applicable laws.

Article 22

Directors of Taxation Departments of provinces and cities under central authority shall be permitted to suspend use of sales invoices by organizations and individuals within their respective localities breaching the Regulations on Management of Sales Invoices and shall report to the General Department of Taxation. Where necessary, the tax office may co-ordinate with the authority issuing the business licence to suspend or withdraw the business licence and certificate of business registration of organizations and individuals breaching the Regulations on Management of Sales Invoices.

Article 23

Any person who identifies the printing, purchase, sale or use of fake invoices or the illegal use of invoic es shall be rewarded in accordance with applicable laws.