Livestream Sales Must Issue Electronic Invoices

The Prime Minister has requested the Ministry of Finance to promptly submit to the Government an amendment to the regulations on the application of electronic invoices for e-commerce and livestream transactions.

This directive was made by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at a conference on data connection and sharing for the development of e-commerce and improving tax management efficiency, held on June 10.

The Prime Minister assessed that tax management, especially tax collection related to livestream services and e-commerce, still has many leakages. Therefore, he assigned the Ministry of Finance to quickly complete the dossier to submit to the Government for amendment of Decree 123/2020, which regulates the application of electronic invoices for these transactions.

Localities must allocate resources to implement electronic invoices for consumers. For business establishments that fail to issue electronic invoices, he requested strict handling of violations.

Previously, the Prime Minister also tasked the Ministry of Finance with increasing inspection and supervision of livestream sales activities. In cases where organizations or individuals sell goods or receive advertising and sales commissions showing signs of legal violations, he requested the dossiers be transferred to the relevant authorities for handling.

In reality, livestream selling brings in large revenues for both sellers and those hired to livestream. At a National Assembly questioning session on the afternoon of June 4, a delegate mentioned that recently, social networks have been buzzing with livestream selling sessions on various platforms, with daily revenues reaching hundreds of billions of VND.

According to the General Department of Taxation, some individuals earning tens of billions of VND from livestream sales have voluntarily registered, declared, and paid taxes. Among them, some individuals have paid billions of VND in taxes to the state budget.

Along with livestream selling, e-commerce has been rapidly developing in recent years. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, e-commerce revenue is expected to reach USD 30.5 billion by 2025. Vietnam is the fastest-growing e-commerce market in Southeast Asia.

At the conference, the Government leaders assessed that the current mechanisms and policies for e-commerce have been slow to adapt, not keeping up with reality or aligning with international practices. Management agencies also have not yet developed long-term strategic plans.

He requested the Ministry of Industry and Trade to study and revise relevant laws and guiding documents, especially the Law on Consumer Protection and the E-commerce Development Strategy. This aims to manage and sustainably develop both domestic and cross-border e-commerce platforms, protect consumer rights, and prevent counterfeit, unclear-origin, and poor-quality goods.

In 2023, tax revenue managed through the e-commerce channel reached VND 3.5 quadrillion (about USD 146 billion), with collected taxes totaling VND 97 trillion, an increase of 14% compared to the previous year. The tax sector also reviewed over 31,000 entities, handled violations in more than 22,000 cases, and collected nearly VND 3 trillion in additional taxes in this field.

According to the tax authority, it is currently managing nearly 123,800 taxpayers operating in the e-commerce sector. Among them are more than 88,100 individuals and 35,100 enterprises selling goods through e-commerce platforms. Additionally, there are more than 360 platform-owning enterprises, 24 large businesses advertising in the online environment, and 96 foreign service providers without a physical presence in Vietnam.

According to Phuong Dung / VNExpress
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