Dual advantage of non-cash collection of Customs taxes and fees

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Saigon Coop is one of the companies that have updated theirsoftware and applications to accept payments without using cash. Photo: N.H

Pay taxes anytime, anywhere

In 2018, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 136/2018/TT-BTC regulating the management of cash revenues and expenditures through the State Treasury system. Accordingly, the non-cash payment of import and export taxes, late payment, fines and customs fees at commercial banks will be transferred to the Customs account at the State Treasury (except individuals and business households).

Currently, 39 commercial banks across the country havesigned a regulation with the General Department of Customs to implement e-tax payment and 23 commercial banks will implement e-tax payment and customs clearance 24/7.

This is a form of paying taxes and other payable amounts through commercial banks that coordinate with the General Department of Customs through the Customs e-payment gateway. Accordingly, taxpayers can make a tax payment directly on the Customs e-payment gateway “Anytime, Anywhere”.

Taxpayers can look at tax debts onthe e-customs portal (www.customs.gov.vn) and submit to the General Department of Customs to notify commercial banks to remit money for tax payment. The General Department of Customs will notify the enterprise’s payment request to the commercial bank, the commercial bank will send the result to the General Department of Customs.

Appreciating the efficiency of the non-cash tax collection of the Customs and Tax authorities in recent years, Deputy Prime Minister VuongDinh Hue said that payment of public services has recently achieved positive results. In particular, 50 banks agreed to coordinate e-tax collection with tax and customs authorities in 63 provinces, cities and all districts across the country, facilitating taxpayers.

The business community is alsointerested in the scheme “anytime-anywhere”, because it has brought many benefits.

Firstly, maximizing the convenience of taxpayers to pay taxes at anytime, anywhere, by any means, minimizing cash payment; ensuring payment information promptly and accurately; saving time and ensuring customs clearance of goods immediately after paying taxes, thereby shortening the time to complete customs procedures for import and export goods.

Secondly, the enterprises are implementing customs clearance immediately after paying taxes, avoiding wrongly enforcing enterprises after paying taxes or enterprises have paid tax but the customs agencies havenot receivedinformation.

Third, electronic tax collection also increases the satisfaction level of the business community and international investors. Meanwhile, simplifying tax payment procedures, saving time and costs for businesses, andproviding more payment channels.

In particular, before the e-tax payment 24/7, enterprises had topay taxes in cash through banks cooperating with the Treasury and Customs, but the money transfer is often interrupted on holidays and weekends.

Thanks to the electronic tax payment 24/7, enterprises no longer depend on the working time and location of collecting agencies such asbanks, State Treasury, and Customs agencies. Instead, businesses can proactively remit money at any place online, at anytime, avoiding errors in making payment papers to the state budget, synchronizing with the data of the customs office, ensuring customs clearance immediately after confirming the tax payment from banks.

Towards e-Government

Electronic tax collection allows customs authorities to save human resources, ensuring safety in the management and simplification of tax collection and the payment process.

According to Dinh Ngoc Thang, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department, the goal of e-tax payment 24/7 is towards e-Government, transactions without using cash,especially transactions with foreign elements.On the basis of modern technology, commercial banks in coordination with Customs are focusing on developing electronic transaction channels, services and new payment methods to help customers use e-banking more and more easily and conveniently, meeting the diverse needs of customers.

In addition to automating the technology system and modernizing the products and services, the Customs sector also requires commercial banks to implement measures to prevent virus attacks, protectingcustomers’ information, limiting and monitoring risks in the transaction process.

However, there are still some problems. Accordingly, the system has not fully automatedtax payment. Therefore, in the future, the declarations have digital signatures andtax codes, the system will automatically transfer to banks to cut the amount of tax payable, instead of using resources to make an order to pay taxes.

At present, about 9% of enterprises transfer manuallythrough the Treasury because they do not know aboute-tax payment. In the near future, to promote the scheme, the Customs sector will coordinate with banks and related parties to strengthen the dissemination of information, so that the remaining enterprises will participate in e-tax payment. Particularly, about 1% of individuals who import and export non-commercial goods will be able to carry out e-tax payment procedures at Customs agents.

In the past, in order to solve customs procedures, enterprises had to manually transfer manually moneyinto customs accounts or through banks, then submit the paper payment to the customs authorities and wait. But with e-payment, after the money is transferred to the Treasury, the goods will be automatically cleared after confirming the payment order. The e-payment gateway allows businesses to print paper payment when there is a notice of payment from the bank and will complete the check and put the registration function of the order maker and the order approver on the e-payment gateway.