A notable new point in the draft decree is that the drafting agency added regulations related to payment when buying and selling gold.

According to the draft, gold transactions worth VND20 million or more must be conducted through the payment accounts of customers and gold trading enterprises, at commercial banks or foreign bank branches.

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There are many different opinions on the proposal to buy and sell gold from 20 million VND by bank transfer. Photo: Thach Thao

According to the State Bank, the addition of this regulation aims to ensure the requirement of customer information authentication but does not create additional obligations for customers because authentication has been performed when customers open and use payment accounts at banks. This regulation also aims to increase publicity and transparency in gold buying and selling transactions.

It can be seen that the current price of SJC gold bars is nearly 12 million VND/tael, if you buy 2 taels or more, the transaction will have to be transferred.

In addition to agreement, some opinions still expressed concerns about this regulation. Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha (60 years old, living in a suburban district) said she was very surprised when hearing the information. "Old people like me in the countryside do not have bank accounts, nor do they know how to transfer money. And when buying gold, few people dare to ask others to buy it for them, because they cannot be trusted," Ms. Ha shared.

Ms. Ha’s story reflects the common concerns of many older people, especially in rural areas. In fact, many people still do not have bank accounts or are not familiar with electronic money transfer services. The requirement to transfer money when buying gold can cause difficulties for this group of people.

Sharing his opinion with VietNamNet reporter , Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Huu Huan, Senior Lecturer at Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics , commented that the draft Decree 24 stipulates that buying and selling gold worth 20 million VND or more must be transferred by bank transfer, which is reasonable.

According to Mr. Huan, all gold transactions must be transferred to control the problem of smuggled gold and to make buying and selling prices transparent as a basis for gold taxation.

He asked: "Real estate and stocks are all taxed, gold is also a profitable investment channel, why is it not taxed?"

Lawyer Nguyen Thanh Ha, Chairman of SBLaw Law Firm, also said that buying and trading gold has many potential risks of tax evasion and money laundering. Therefore, if the regulation requires that every gold purchase over 20 million VND must be transferred via bank, it will prevent money laundering and tax evasion.

“The Law on Tax Administration stipulates that transactions over VND20 million must be transferred. Therefore, the regulations set forth in the draft amendment to Decree 24 are also consistent with the provisions of the Law on Tax Administration,” said Mr. Ha.

Meanwhile, Lawyer Truong Thanh Duc, Director of ANVI Law Firm, Arbitrator of the Vietnam International Arbitration Center, said that it is necessary to clarify the basis for the regulation that buying and selling gold worth 20 million VND or more must be transferred.

Mr. Truong Thanh Duc commented: Issues regarding non-cash payments need to be regulated in the law on payments to be effective. If they are only regulated in the law on taxes, real estate or credit, it is very fragmented and unreasonable.

In addition, many opinions also proposed to clearly define the scope of the policy: whether the mandatory transfer requirement only applies to gold bars or is extended to gold rings and jewelry; and at the same time, it is necessary to specifically determine whether it includes western gold or not.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/mua-ban-vang-tu-20-trieu-dong-phai-chuyen-khoan-co-hop-ly-2412288.html