Agricultural, forestry and fishery enterprises propose to remove obstacles regarding VAT

(Dan Tri) - Some associations believe that the concepts of taxable subjects in the law are still unclear, making it difficult for businesses to determine appropriate tax rates and affecting production lines.

Sharing at the workshop "Removing obstacles in value-added tax (VAT) policies for the agriculture, forestry and fishery sectors", associations said that many regulations in the Value-Added Tax Law No. 48, which took effect from July 1, are still inadequate and not suitable to the characteristics of agricultural, forestry and fishery production and business activities.

The main bottlenecks lie in determining taxable subjects, tax rates and tax refund procedures. Specifically, Mr. Nguyen Hoai Nam, General Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), said that even though the products are farmed or caught without further processing, seafood enterprises must apply two different tax rates.

"This overlap causes businesses to temporarily pay taxes and wait for refunds, while tax refund procedures are still complicated, causing great pressure on cash flow," Mr. Nam shared.

In addition, businesses purchasing raw materials through warehouses must pay 5% VAT, but this tax is not disbursed by banks when providing working capital. This increases production costs, reduces business efficiency and affects the competitiveness of Vietnamese seafood in the international market.

Mr. Nguyen Tan Hien, Vice President of the Vietnam Pepper and Spice Association, said that applying a 5% VAT tax on agricultural products, including pepper and local spices, is inappropriate and could greatly affect the completion of socio -economic development goals.

"Up to now, the issue of tax refunds has encountered numerous difficulties due to complicated and time-consuming procedures and processes. It has taken a whole year for businesses to get their tax money back to rotate business capital and prepare export orders," Mr. Hien stated the current situation.

Khanh Hoa fishermen catch tuna (Photo: Viet Hao).

Some associations also said that the concepts of taxable subjects in the law are still unclear. This makes it difficult for many businesses to determine the appropriate tax rate, causing errors in declaration and affecting the production line.

Sharing about the industry's obstacles, Mr. Ngo Sy Hoai, Vice President and General Secretary of the Vietnam Timber and Forest Products Association (VIFOREST), reflected that the lack of specific guidance on the definition of "normal semi-processed wood" caused confusion in tax declaration and refund. This led to a situation where thousands of billions of VND were stagnant, affecting the working capital, production progress and export of enterprises.

Sharing the same view, Mr. Thai Nhu Hiep, Vice President of the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association (VICOFA), said that it is necessary to clarify the concept of "normal preliminary processing" to avoid the inappropriate 5% VAT tax on unprocessed products such as green coffee beans.

"Collecting taxes and then making refunds will create a lot of tax agency staff to serve the tax refund. At the same time, it will also create many tax refund procedure costs for businesses due to the long and complicated time and procedures for tax refunds," Mr. Hiep added.

According to him, green coffee beans should be included in the group of goods not subject to VAT, not having to declare or pay tax at all stages of trade, to avoid fraud, ensure fairness for businesses and promote exports, contributing to the Government 's growth target.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Dau Anh Tuan, Deputy Secretary General and Head of the Legal Department of the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), emphasized that the new VAT policy is expected to bring positive reforms, but if the problems are not guided specifically soon, they will become a major barrier for businesses.

“The difficulties that businesses reflect are not only technical and legal issues but also directly related to cash flow, competitiveness and sustainable development of Vietnam's agricultural sector,” Mr. Dau Anh Tuan emphasized.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/doanh-nghiep-nong-lam-thuy-san-kien-nghi-thao-go-vuong-mac-ve-thue-vat-20251009141833120.htm