Tien Giang Tax Department: Rising to the Challenge with Increased Effort

In the face of significant economic challenges in 2023, the Tien Giang tax sector demonstrated effort to meet its budget collection targets. The sector implemented a range of solutions to support the local business community, said Mr. Nguyen Nang Hoan, Director of the Tien Giang Tax Department.

Mr. Nguyen Nang Hoan, Director of the Tien Giang Tax Department, delivers a speech to the Taxpayer Conference. Photo credit: Ap Bac Newspaper

Can you elaborate on the strategies and efforts that the Tien Giang tax sector has implemented to achieve its objectives and plans for the year 2023?

In the fiscal year of 2023, the economic landscape and business community of Tien Giang encountered a multitude of challenges, exerting substantial pressure on budget collection. The province’s budget revenue was projected to experience a downturn of VND958 billion compared to the previous year. This included VND488 billion from business support policies implemented by the National Assembly and the Government, and VND470 billion from the special consumption tax levied on Heineken Vietnam Brewery - Tien Giang.

Amid these circumstances, the Tien Giang Tax Department took proactive measures to introduce tax policies to taxpayers promptly and comprehensively. The department embarked on an innovation drive to enhance organizational capacity and performance, flexibly conducted inspections, and promoted the application of information technology to professional operations. It also ensured full disclosure of information, expedited the settlement of administrative procedures, refunded taxes in a complete, timely, and lawful manner, and devised a pragmatic tax collection strategy to bolster business capacity, competitiveness, and asset accumulation for companies.

Thanks to these concerted efforts, coupled with the timely guidance and direction of authorities at all levels, seamless coordination of agencies, and particularly the consensus and support of taxpayers, the department succeeded in collecting VND8,133 billion of budget revenue in the first 10 months of 2023. This achievement represents 82.26% of the target set by the Provincial People’s Council, marking a decrease of 6.72% year on year. The agency anticipates collecting VND9,888 billion for the year as planned, indicating a year-on-year decrease of 5.82%. While these results may not fully meet the expectations of tax officers, they nonetheless underscore the resilience and dedication of each tax officer and the entire tax sector throughout 2023.

Officers of the Tien Giang Tax Department work with taxpayers. Photo credit: Ap Bac Newspaper

In the context of the “great transformation” journey of the tax sector in 2023, how has the Tien Giang Tax Department accelerated administrative reforms, enhanced competitiveness, and expedited digitalization? What notable achievements can be highlighted?

As of November 5, 2023, the department has successfully implemented the electronic invoice system, with all businesses and business households having adopted it. A significant majority, over 98% of taxpayers, declared and paid their taxes electronically, and all tax refund applications were processed electronically. This resulted in the resolution of 201 tax refund records, amounting to VND1,047.38 billion, from January 1 to the end of November 2023.

The department has also extensively deployed the eTax application on mobile device platforms for both corporate and individual taxpayers. Consequently, 34,189 taxpayers had registered for electronic tax transaction accounts by November 5, 2023.

In a coordinated effort, the department integrated the old 9-digit personal identity information with the new citizen identification on the National Public Service Portal and the tax database. This integration was aimed at authenticating taxpayer information to facilitate the settlement of tax administrative procedures.

Specifically, in line with the project “Developing population data, identification, and electronic authentication applications for national digital transformation in the 2022-2025 period, with a vision to 2030”, the department assisted 7,012 households and individuals in filing first-time tax registrations and submitting registrations for tax information changes from 2022 to November 5, 2023. The reception of applications and the handover of settlement results were conducted electronically, with a total of 7,734 tax registration documents processed in the year leading up to October 2023.

A meeting on solutions to complete year-end budget collection tasks. Photo credit: Ap Bac Newspaper

How has the Tien Giang tax industry supported and collaborated with businesses?

Annually, the Tien Giang Tax Department organizes meetings and dialogues focused on the enforcement of tax laws and policies, with the aim of understanding and alleviating tax-related difficulties. These events serve as platforms for the department to disseminate new tax policies, introduce supportive applications, and provide cautionary information to taxpayers to prevent fraudulent acts perpetrated by individuals impersonating tax officials via social networks. Furthermore, the department and its subordinate agencies are regular attendees at government-business meetings hosted by the Provincial People’s Committee, departments, and localities.

Specifically, in alignment with the Socioeconomic Recovery and Development Program as per Plan 112/KH-UBND dated April 5, 2022, and Decision 2230/QD-UBND dated September 28, 2023, of the Provincial People’s Committee, the Tien Giang Tax Department has consistently and effectively implemented support solutions pertaining to taxes, fees, charges, and land rents. This initiative has been instrumental in assisting companies and individuals in overcoming difficulties, thereby enabling them to maintain and expand their business operations.

Thank you very much!

Source: Vietnam Business Forum