Our long-standing GBA board member Dr. Oliver Massmann, Partner at Duane Morris Vietnam LCC, is sharing the most relevant legal updates with you.
- New investment draft resolutions draw near
- Ministry proposes extending environmental tax cut for fuel products in 2024
- Government approves National Data Center development scheme
- Conference disseminates new regulations on entry, exit
- National programme on labour productivity improvement approved
Find more details as below:
1. New investment draft resolutions draw near
Some highlines are as below:
- The draft resolutions on simplified investment procedures and incentives are coming ever closer to approval, blazing a trail for high-tech investment attraction.
- According to the draft, the resolution will take effect for five years from January 1, 2024. During the pilot, the Law on Investment (LoI), Law on the State Budget, and other relevant laws will be amended to replace earlier provisions. At the same time, Vietnam wants to apply the global minimum tax (GMT) from 2024 and to facilitate enterprises to pay additional tax in Vietnam.
- The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has consulted the Ministry of Justice on a government resolution on pilot policies to support investment in high-tech industries. The MPI said that changes in supplementing investment incentives and encouraging new investments in high-tech industries amid the GMT are a must to ensure the competitiveness and attractiveness of Vietnam.
- The draft resolution mentions four forms of investment incentives: training and development of human resources; financial support to create fixed assets and social infrastructure; support for manufacturing high-tech products; and supporting research and development.
- The first priority is enterprises that operate projects with investment capital of over VND12 trillion ($506.3 million), or enterprises with a turnover of more than $843.8 million a year in high-tech manufacturing fields.
2. Ministry proposes extending environmental tax cut for fuel products in 2024
Some highlines are as below:
- The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has proposed extending the environmental tax reduction on fuel products until the end of 2024.
- According to the ministry, it has started a process to collect opinions and feedback on the extension, which is to be submitted to the National Assembly for final approval. The tax cut, if passed by the NA, will take effect on January 1, 2024.
- The proposal is a continuation of an already-in-effect tax cut, which imposes a tax rate of VND 2,000 per liter for gasoline, VND 600 for kerosene, and VND 1,000 for diesel, fuel oil, lubricant and aeroplane fuel.
- When the extension expires at the end of 2024, the tax rate will go back to the previous level at VND 4,000 per liter for gasoline, 1,000 VND for kerosene, VND 2,000 for diesel, fuel oil and lubricant, and VND 3,000 for aeroplane fuel.
- The ministry said the tax cut proposal is subject to change, depending on the global oil prices. The MoF has been and will continue collaborating with other governmental ministries and agencies to monitor domestic fuel prices.
- The tax cut has been praised by economists and the business community as one of the more practical and most efficient support policies by the Government for economic recovery post-COVID-19.
3. Government approves National Data Center development scheme
Some highlines are as below:
- The National Data Center must become an important part of the country’s digital infrastructure serving economic development and social management in conformity with Vietnamese characteristics.
- This is one of the targets set forth under Government Resolution 175/2023/NQ-CP dated October 30, approving the scheme on development of the National Data Center.
- To be built, managed, exploited and run by the Government, the National Data Center will integrate, synchronize, store, share, analyze, exploit, and coordinate data of state agencies in line with legal regulations to create a data warehouse on people and another gathering data from national databases.
- Once put into use, the National Data Center is expected to be a prerequisite for boosting the capitalization of national databases to serve socio-economic development and help Vietnam further integrate into the global digital economy.
- At the same time, Vietnam will be one of the top 50 countries in the E-government Development Index rankings, the top 30 in the ICT Development Index, and the top 30 in the Global Cybersecurity Index.
4. Conference disseminates new regulations on entry, exit
Some highlines are as below:
- The Ministry of Public Security’s Immigration Department held a conference in Hanoi on November 7 to disseminate the Law on amendments and supplements to several articles of the Law on Entry and Exit of Vietnamese Citizens and the Law on Entry, Exit, Transit, and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam among foreign diplomatic missions and international organizations.
- Delegates were introduced about new administrative procedures related to Vietnamese citizens, the issuance of entry permits, visas, and temporary residence permits for foreigners who are required to go through the procedures at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and new regulations in Vietnamese law regarding the entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam as stipulated in Law 23/2023/QH15.
- The Law on amendments and supplements to several articles of the Law on Entry and Exit of Vietnamese Citizens and the Law on Entry, Exit, Transit, and Residence of Foreigners in Vietnam was approved by the Vietnamese National Assembly on August 15, 2023.
5. National programme on labour productivity improvement approved
Some highlines are as below:
- The Prime Minister on November 8 issued a decision approving the national programme on labour productivity improvement by 2030.
- The programme sets a target of raising the average labour productivity growth by 6.5%, with that of the processing and manufacturing industry being 6.5-7%, agro-forestry-fishery 7-7.5%, and service sector 7-7.5%.
- Meanwhile, the labour productivity growth rate of key economic regions and five centrally-run cities is higher than the national average in the 2022-2030 period.
- The programme also highlights inititiaves to boost labour productivity, including the establishment of a national productivity committee and the organisation of policy dialogue on the issue, regular discussion with the business community, investors and labours to handle barriers to labour productivity improvement.
- Additionally, the country will integrate measures to enhance labour productivity into programmes, mechanisms and policies to build digital Government, digital economy and digital society, while promoting digital transformation in every sector, field and business.