Vietnam Feature Film Studio owes 5.5 billion in taxes, chairman's departure from the country delayed

Latest status of Vietnam Feature Film Studio - Photo: DAU DUNG

Those are the two latest pieces of information related to the scandal surrounding the equitization story of Vietnam Feature Film Studio.

Recently, the Hanoi Tax Department sent a document to the Immigration Department ( Ministry of Public Security ) and the Hanoi Department of Planning and Investment regarding the temporary suspension of exit for Mr. Nguyen Danh Thang - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vietnam Feature Film Investment and Development Joint Stock Company (Vietnam Feature Film Studio). Mr. Thang is also the legal representative of this unit.

Mr. Thang's exit from the country was temporarily suspended due to tax arrears at Vietnam Feature Film Studio.

The company owes 5,473 billion VND.

Regarding the information about being temporarily suspended from leaving the country due to the film studio owing taxes, Mr. Nguyen Danh Thang, the legal representative of the studio, spoke with Tuoi Tre Online on the morning of April 1, "Because he is on a business trip, he has not received the document to temporarily suspend his departure, but it is true that Vietnam Feature Film Studio owes taxes."

Regarding the specific tax debt, he said, "the company owes 5,473 billion VND in land tax."

According to Mr. Nguyen Danh Thang, in 2017, after acquiring Vietnam Feature Film Studio, strategic shareholder VIVASO paid off the land tax debt previously left by the film studio of about more than 20 billion VND.

"Then there were the controversies related to the film studio's equitization as the public already knows: the inspectors of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism re-inspected the equitization process and decided that we, the investors, had to divest," he said.

According to Mr. Thang, "from the time of waiting for divestment until now, the company cannot do anything, even if it wants to invest and develop the film studio, it cannot."

"Because there are no business activities, the film studio does not have money to pay land tax. This is the land tax that arises after we have paid off old debts," said the company representative.

He added that the unit has submitted documents to the Government and ministries and branches with a number of solutions to resolve the backlog here. However, so far, "we are still waiting" and "there is nothing new".

"Vivaso itself also wants to completely resolve the equitization issue at Vietnam Feature Film Studio. Leaving it too long is too tiring," he said.

By the morning of January 4, Vietnam Feature Film Studio no longer had a signboard - Photo: DAU DUNG

How much equity is left?

Previously, at the beginning of this year, responding to Tuoi Tre Online , the Department of Financial Planning (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism) informed that according to the report of the representative of state capital at the film studio on June 1, 2022, the financial report showed that the accumulated loss up to the end of 2021 was 47,537 billion VND.

Of which, the accumulated loss from June 23, 2017 - the official time of conversion to shares - to the end of 2021 is 24,060 billion VND.

By mid-2022, the remaining equity is 2,462 billion VND.

Sound recording studio editing on the morning of April 1 - Photo: DAU DUNG

Responding to the current equity on the morning of April 1, Mr. Nguyen Danh Thang informed that "the accounting department is making the financial report, it is not finished yet".

Does the company have any plans to pay the tax debt?

Mr. Thang said "he is considering borrowing money from the parent company to pay land tax debt for Vietnam Feature Film Investment and Development Joint Stock Company".

He added that recently, the company has produced a documentary celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu victory.

He is going to Dien Bien to donate the film to the province and "after returning will resolve issues related to tax debt because this also affects him personally".

Earlier this year, responding to Tuoi Tre Online, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said that the ministry had reported on the implementation of the inspection conclusion and the Government's direction on equitization at the film studio as requested by the Government Inspectorate.

The ministry has submitted to the Prime Minister to assign the Government Inspectorate to provide specific instructions on the procedures for recovering shares sold to strategic investors according to current regulations and take measures in case the strategic investors do not cooperate.

The ministry is currently waiting for the conclusion of the inspection of the equitization work at the film studio, including the ministry's recommendations on resolving difficulties and problems in the process of implementing the inspection conclusion.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/hang-phim-truyen-viet-nam-no-thue-5-5-ti-chu-tich-bi-hoan-xuat-canh-20240401112651169.htm