Circular No. 20/2026/TT-BTC – Corporate Income Tax

ELABORATION OF SOME ARTICLES OF THE LAW ON CORPORATE INCOME TAX AND THE GOVERNMENT’S DECREE NO. 320/2025/ND-CP DATED DECEMBER 15, 2025 ON ELABORATION AND MEASURES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LAW ON CORPORATE INCOME TAX

Pursuant to the Law on Corporate Income Tax No. 67/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to Government’s Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP dated December 15, 2025 on elaboration and measures for implementation of the Law on Corporate Income Tax;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 29/2025/ND-CP dated February 24, 2025 on functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the request of Director of Department for Management and Supervision of Tax, Fees and Charges Policies;

The Minister of Finance promulgates the Circular on elaboration of some Articles of the Law on Corporate Income Tax and the Government’s Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP dated December 15, 2025 on elaboration and measures for implementation of the Law on Corporate Income Tax.

Article 1. Scope

This Circular provides for:

1. Documentation for the expenses recorded as deductible expenses prescribed in Points b and c of Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax.

2. Application for tax incentives prescribed in Articles 4, 13, 14, and 15 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax.

3. Time for determining revenue as the basis for calculating corporate income tax (hereinafter referred to as “assessable revenue”) in cases prescribed in Point c Clause 2 Article 8 and Clause 3 Article 12 of the Government’s Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP dated December 15, 2025 on elaboration and measures for implementation of the Law on Corporate Income Tax (hereinafter referred to as ” Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP”)

4. Documentation for declaration and payment of corporate income tax (“CIT”) by Vietnamese enterprises on income from their investment projects in foreign countries prescribed in Clause 2 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

5. CIT payable by foreign enterprises doing business in Vietnam prescribed in Article 2, Clause 4 Article 3, and Clause 3 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

6. Registration of capital investment in expansion investment projects of enterprises prescribed in Article 20 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

7. Tax obligations in cases where fixed assets originated from the Fund for scientific and technological research purposes are used by the enterprise for business operations before they are fully depreciated, and templates of reports on contribution to and use of enterprises’ science and technology development funds prescribed in Clause 4 Article 22 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

Article 2. Regulated entities

This Circular applies to the organizations and individuals within the scope specified in Article 1 of this Circular.

Article 3. Documentation for expenses recorded as deductible expenses prescribed in Points b and c of Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax

Expenses recorded as deductible expenses prescribed in Points b and c of Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax must be supported by adequate invoices and documentary evidence as per regulations, as well as the documents specified below:

1. Documentation for expenses on national defense and security education, training, activities of the self-defense forces, and other national defense and security tasks prescribed in Point b1 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The decision issued by competent persons at the enterprise on performance of duties pertaining to security and defense education, training, activities of militia forces, and other defense and security duties;

b) The written confirmation issued by competent authorities prescribed by relevant laws of the enterprise’s performance of duties pertaining to security and defense education, training, activities of militia forces, and other defense and security duties.

2. Documentation for expenditures on activities of party organizations and political-social organizations within the enterprise prescribed in Point b2 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The decision on establishment or operation regulations of the enterprise’s internal Communist Party organizations and social-political organizations;

b) The written request for support of the enterprise’s internal Communist Party organizations and social-political organizations, or the approved plan for use of funding for operation of the enterprise’s internal Communist Party organizations and social-political organizations (if any).

3. Documentation for expenditures on vocational education or training for employees prescribed in Point b3 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) Employment contracts, collective bargaining agreement or financial regulations of the enterprise which stipulate expenditures on vocational education or training for employees (even if the employment contracts, collective bargaining agreement or financial regulations of the enterprise allow the employees to pay for vocational education or training by cashless payment and then be reimbursed by the enterprise by cashless payment);

b) The decision issued by the enterprise’s competent person on approval for the list of employees participating in vocational education or training;

c) Copies of employees’ enrollment applications;

d) Qualifications or certificates confirming the employees’ completion of the course. If such qualifications or certificates are not available, there shall be written confirmation issued by the vocational education or training institutions or the list of employees enrolled in the vocational education or training course.

4. Documentation for expenditures on the enterprise’s actual expenditures on HIV/AIDS prevention and control in the workplace prescribed in Point b4 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax shall be the enterprise’s internal regulations that stipulate the enterprise’s expenditures on HIV/AIDS prevention and control.

5. Documentation for donations to education, healthcare, culture, natural disaster management and recovery, epidemic prevention and control, construction of houses for the poor and eligible beneficiaries; donations prescribed by the Government and the Prime Minister to extremely disadvantaged areas; donations to scientific research, technological development, innovation, digital transformation prescribed in Point b5 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax (for the purposes of this document, the term “donation” shall be used to refer to both voluntary contributions and sponsorships, regardless of whether such support is provided for marketing, promotional or purely charitable purposes).

a) Documentation for donations to education, healthcare, culture in cash or in kind includes: The confirmation of donations bearing the signatures of the representative of the donating enterprise and the representative of the beneficiary (or representative of the organization licensed to raise donations). The confirmation of donations to patients shall bear the confirmation of the raising organization and the signature of the patient or the patient’s family member;

b) Documentation for donations to disaster management and recovery, epidemic prevention and control in cash or in kind includes: The confirmation of donations bearing the signatures of the representative of the donating enterprise and the representative of the beneficiary, which can be individuals or legally established and operating organizations. The confirmation of donations to individuals shall bear the confirmation of the raising organization and the signatures of the individual beneficiaries;

c) Documentation for donations to construction of houses for the poor and eligible beneficiaries in cash or in kind includes: The confirmation of donations bearing the signatures of the representative of the donating enterprise and the representative of the beneficiary (or representative of the organization licensed to raise donations); the confirmation of eligibility of the beneficiaries issued by a competent authority;

d) Documentation for donations in cash or in kind as prescribed by the Government or the Prime Minister for extremely disadvantaged areas includes: The confirmation of donation bearing the signatures of the representative of the donating enterprise and the representative of the beneficiary (or representative of the organization licensed to raise donations);

dd) Documentation for donations in cash or in kind to scientific research, technological development, innovation and digital transformation shall comply with regulations of law on science, technology, innovation and digital transformation, and regulations of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP;

e) The confirmation of donation mentioned in this Clause, prepared according to form No. 01/TNDN enclosed herewith.

6. Documentation for expenditures on scientific research, technological development, innovation and digital transformation prescribed in this Point b6 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax shall be comply with regulations of law on science, technology, innovation and digital transformation, and regulations of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

7. Documentation for uninsured damage caused by natural disasters, epidemics and other force majeure events prescribed in Point b7 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The record on the value of damaged assets and goods prepared by the enterprise, which must specify the value of damaged assets and goods, responsibilities of organizations and individuals for such damage, categories, quantities, unit prices, values of recoverable assets and goods (if any);

b) List of receipt, dispatch and balance of damaged goods prepared and signed by the enterprise’s legal representative, who shall be legally responsible for the content thereof;

c) Indemnity claims accepted by the insurers (if any);

d) Documents stipulating responsibility compensation of organizations and individuals (if any).

8. Documentation for actual expenses for individuals seconded to participate in the management, operation and control of credit institutions put under special control and commercial banks undergo mandatory transfer in accordance with the Law on Credit Institutions prescribed in Point b8 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The decision on secondment issued by a competent authority;

b) The written approval or acceptance of secondment issued by the credit institution to which the individual is seconded;

c) Contracts or agreements (if any) between relevant parties.

9. Documentation for certain operating expenses of the enterprise that do not correspond with the revenue generated during the period prescribed in Point b9 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax:

a) For costs participation in bidding incurred by an unsuccessful bidder, the documentation includes: Bidding documents from the investor or procuring entity; the bid envelop submitted to the investor or procuring entity; contractor selection results issued by the investor or procuring entity (if any); other documents as prescribed by bidding laws (if any);

b) For costs of market survey, research serving production of new products or services, investments in projects for development of new products or services that are eventually unsuccessful or discontinued, the documentation includes: Research reports on market development or new product/service development as prescribed in Point 12 Clause 2 Article 9 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP;

c) For land rent, costs of management and maintenance of infrastructure paid to infrastructure-operating enterprises in economic zones, hi-tech zones, hi-tech agriculture zones, concentrated digital technology zones, industrial zones, industrial complexes, land rents paid to the State for lease of land from the State, provided such land and infrastructure are the enterprise’s production or business location if they have not been used for the enterprise’s business operations, the documentation includes: The decision on investment policy, investment policy approval decision, investment registration certificate, or equivalent legal documents as prescribed by investment laws (if any); the written agreement or contract for land or infrastructure lease, which clearly specifies the amount payable by the enterprise for land lease, management and maintenance of infrastructure;

d) For depreciation or gradual expense allocation of assets for lease during vacant periods, the documentation includes: Documents proving the enterprise’s legal ownership or right to use the assets; management and accounting records for the assets as prescribed;

dd) For costs of establishment of the enterprise or the enterprise’s branches, dependent units, or business locations; costs of resumption of business operations after a suspension period (except investments in construction of fixed assets); costs of premises restoration under contracts before enterprise dissolution or closure of the enterprise’s  branch, dependent unit, or business location, the documentation includes: The Certificate of Enterprise Registration, Certificate of Branch/Representative Office Registration, Certificate of Business Location Registration, confirmation of notification of suspension/early resumption of the enterprise/branch/business location; notification of the enterprise’s dissolution or closure of the branch/representative office/business location.

In case of costs of restoration of the business premises under the contract before  the enterprise’s dissolution or closure of the branch/representative office/business location, the enterprise shall also provide the record on premises handover before business suspension and the record on premises handover after early resumption of business operation, or the premises handover before and after the enterprise’s dissolution or closure of the enterprise’s branch/representative office/business location;

e) For costs of pre-launch product/service introduction or marketing, the documentation includes: The report on the investment policy for production of products or services as prescribed in Point 16 Clause 2 Article 9 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP;

g) For costs of destruction of goods in inventory that are damaged due to natural bio-chemical processes, old-fashioned, technologically obsolete, outdated, expired goods, unusable goods, goods no longer qualified for sale on the market under relevant laws; costs of destruction of raw materials, supplies and components that are no longer needed, the documentation includes: The decision issued by a competent person of the enterprise on destruction of the goods, materials, supplies, components; an inventory valuation record prepared by the enterprise, clearly stating the causes, categories, quantities, values, and plan for disposal of these the goods, materials, supplies, components, signed and certified by the legal representative of the enterprise; the decision to establish a Disposal Council; and the disposal decision issued by this Disposal Council;

h) For costs of destruction of damaged assets that are no longer needed, the documentation includes: The decision by a competent person of the enterprise on destruction of the assets; an inventory valuation record prepared by the enterprise, clearly stating the causes, categories, quantities, values, and disposal plan, signed and certified by the legal representative of the enterprise; the decision to establish a Disposal Council; and the disposal decision issued by this Disposal Council;

i) For costs of destruction of scrap and refuse produced during processing or production, the documentation includes: the confirmation of destruction of scrap and refuse prepared by the enterprise, signed and certified by the enterprise’s legal representative.

10. Documentation for financial support construction of public works that concurrently serve the enterprise’s business operations prescribed in Point b10 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The written approval for the policy or public work construction project signed and certified by the enterprise’s legal representative;

b) The decision on investment or the contract between the enterprise and a competent authority.

11. Documentation for expenses related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions aimed at carbon neutrality and net zero, reducing environmental pollution as well as the production and business of the enterprise prescribed in Point b11 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The decision issued by a competent person of the enterprise on reduction of greenhouse gas emissions;

b) Dossiers on the project or scheme related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

12. Documentation for mandatory contributions to funds established under decisions of the Prime Minister and regulations of the Government prescribed in Point b12 Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax includes:

a) The decision issued by the Prime Minister and regulations of the Government on establishment of the funds;

b) The written confirmation of the enterprise’s contributions to the funds (if any).

13. Documentation for some expenses prescribed in Point c Clause 1 Article 9 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax:

a) For purchase of agriculture, forestry, aquaculture products directly sold by the farmers/foresters/fishermen; purchase of handicraft products made of dried jute, sedge, leaves, rattan, bamboo, straw, coconut shells, or aquaculture by-products directly sold by their makers; purchase of scrap directly from waste collector; purchase of household effects directly from households and individuals (other than the aforementioned items) with a revenue below the VAT-imposition threshold, documentation includes: Proof of payment to the sellers as prescribed by regulations of law on accounting and invoicing (cashless payment is required if the daily value of purchases of each household or individual is 05 million VND or higher); the list of goods/services purchased prepared according to form No. 02/TNDN enclosed herewith and signed by the enterprise’s legal representative or authorized representative;

b) In cases where the enterprise authorizes/assigns an employee to purchase goods/services serving its business operations, the value of the purchase equals or exceeds 05 million VND, with payment made by the employee using a cashless payment service, documentation includes: invoices and proofs of payment as prescribed by regulations of law on accounting and invoicing; the enterprise’s financial regulations, internal regulations, or decision on authorizing or permitting its employees to pay for purchases of goods and services serving the enterprise’s business operations; proofs of cashless payment obtained by the employee upon purchase of goods/services with the enterprise’s authorization; proofs of cashless payment when the enterprise reimburses the employee for such purchase;

c) If the value of an individual purchase equals or exceeds 05 million VND but payment has not been made by the enterprise when expenses are recorded, the enterprise may record such expense as deductible if there are contracts for sale of the goods/services, records on delivery of the goods/services, and proofs of cashless payment by the enterprise;

d) In cases where the enterprise leases an asset from an individual, documentation for determination of deductible expense shall be the lease contract and proof of rent payment.

d) If the lease contract stipulates that the rent is exclusive of taxes (value-added tax, personal income tax) and the enterprise (the lessee) has to pay tax on behalf of the individual (the lessor) as prescribed by tax administration laws, the enterprise may record the taxes paid on behalf of the individual as deductible expense if there are proofs of tax payment. 

14. Documentation for the expenses recorded as deductible expenses specified in Article can be original copies, authenticated copies, copies bearing the enterprise’s seal, or electronic copies.

15. Enterprises have the responsibility to fully retain and provide documentation for the expenses specified in this Article to serve inspection, audit, and other circumstances as prescribed by law. The retention and provision of documentation related to defense and security tasks mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article shall comply with regulations of law on protection of State secrets.

Article 4. Application for tax incentives prescribed in Articles 4, 13, 14, and 15 of the Law on Corporate Income Tax

1. Procedures and application for grant of tax exemption, tax exemption, preferential tax rates and duration thereof shall comply with tax administration laws.

2. Enterprises shall determine their eligibility for tax exemption, tax exemption, preferential tax rates, duration of tax exemption or tax exemption, the value of losses deducted from taxable income for declaring and settling tax.

3. In cases where an inspection reveals that the enterprise is not eligible for tax exemption, tax exemption, preferential tax rates or the duration of tax exemption or tax exemption is incorrect, competent authorities shall collect tax arrears and late payment interest, and impose tax-related penalties as prescribed by law.

Article 5. Time for determining assessable revenue in cases prescribed in Point c Clause 2 Article 8 and Clause 3 Article 12 of the Government’s Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP

1. The time for determination of assessable revenue of enterprises established under Vietnamese law in some cases shall be determined as follows:

a) For exports, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the date of ownership transfer under the export contract. If the date of ownership transfer cannot be determined, the time for determination assessable revenue shall be determined according to the basis for determination of exports as prescribed by customs laws;

b) For air transport, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the time of completion of the transport service for the buyer;

c) For construction and installation (including shipbuilding), the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the time of acceptance of the construction work, item, installation, regardless of whether payment has been collected or not;

d) For electricity and water supply, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the date of confirmation of meter reading written on the electricity and water supply invoices.

2. The time for determination of assessable revenue of foreign enterprises in some cases:

a) For capital transfer, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the effective date of the initial capital transfer contract;

b) For transfer of securities and certificates of deposit, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be the time of transfer;

c) For transfer of derivative securities in the form of futures contracts, the time for determination of assessable revenue shall be either the time when the investor’s buy or sell order for the futures contract is matched on the trading system of the Stock Exchange, or the maturity dates of the futures contract.

Article 6. Documentation for declaration and payment of CIT by Vietnamese enterprises on income from their investment projects in foreign countries prescribed in Clause 2 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP

Documentation for declaration and payment of CIT by Vietnamese enterprises on income from their investment projects in foreign countries shall comply with regulations of Circular No. 80/2021/TT-BTC dated September 29, 2021 of the Minister of Finance elaborating some Articles of the Law on Tax Administration, the Government’s Decree No. 126/2020/ND-CP dated October 19, 2020 of elaborating some Articles of the Law on Tax Administration, and their amendments (if any).

Article 7. CIT payable by foreign enterprises doing business in Vietnam prescribed in Article 2, Clause 4 Article 3, and Clause 3 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP

1. The regulations of this Article applies to foreign enterprises prescribed in Points b2, b3 and b4 Clause 1 Article 2 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP (with the exceptions specified in Clause 2 of this Article) in the following cases:

a) Foreign enterprises with or without permanent establishments in Vietnam, including those engaged in e-commerce and digital platform-based businesses, doing business in Vietnam or earning income in Vietnam under contracts, agreements or commitments between foreign contractors and Vietnamese organizations or individual, or between foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors to perform part of the main contracts;

b) Foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors providing services, services attached to goods, supplying and distributing goods (including those authorizing or hiring Vietnamese organizations or individuals to perform part of the distribution services or other services related to the sale of goods in Vietnam) in the form of in-country export/import or under Incoterms, except processing and exporting goods back to foreign hirers; providing goods and/or services in Vietnam in the form of e-commerce or digital platform-based business.

In case of supply and distribution of goods in Vietnam, regulations of this Point shall be applicable when the foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor is still the owner of the goods being delivered to the Vietnamese organization or individual, or bears the costs of distribution, advertising, marketing, responsibility for quality of the goods and/or services delivered to the Vietnamese organization or individual, or imposes prices for the goods and/or services;

c) Foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors providing goods at delivery points within Vietnam’s territory (with the exceptions specified in Clause 2 of this Article) or providing goods attacked to certain services in Vietnam such as advertising, marketing services, trade promotion, after-sales services, installation, test run, warranty, maintenance, replacement and other services associated with the provision of goods  (including the cases where such services are provided free of charge), regardless of whether the provision of such services is included in the value of the goods supply contract or not;

d) Foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors that, through Vietnamese organizations or individuals, negotiate and conclude contracts in the names of foreign enterprises;

d) Foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors exercising the rights to export, import, distribute goods in Vietnam, purchase goods for export, sell goods to Vietnamese traders under commerce laws and foreign trade management laws.

2. The regulations of this Article do not apply in the following cases:

a)The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor supplies goods for a Vietnamese organization or individual without services performed in Vietnam in the form of delivery at the foreign border checkpoint, where the seller bears all the responsibility, costs and risks related to the export and delivery of goods at the foreign border checkpoint; the buyer bears all the responsibility, costs and risks related to the receipt and transport of goods from the foreign border checkpoint to Vietnam (even if the goods are delivered at the foreign border checkpoint under the terms that warranty is the seller’s responsibility and obligations);

b)The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor supplies goods for a Vietnamese organization or individual without services performed in Vietnam in the form of delivery at the Vietnamese border checkpoint, where the seller bears all the responsibility, costs and risks related to the goods until they arrive at the Vietnamese border checkpoint; the buyer bears all the responsibility, costs and risks related to the receipt and transport of goods from the Vietnamese border checkpoint (even if the goods are delivered at the foreign border checkpoint under the terms that warranty is the seller’s responsibility and obligations);

c) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides repair services (with or without covering supplies and spare parts) for vehicles, machinery and equipment (including submarine cables and transmission devices) of a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

d) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides advertising or marketing services (except online advertising and marketing) for a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

dd) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides investment and trade promotion services (except online investment and trade promotion) for a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

e) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides brokerage services (except online brokerage) for outbound goods sale or service provision for a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

g) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides training services (except online training) for a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

h) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor receives a share of international telecommunications service charges between Vietnam and foreign countries, or leases foreign transmission lines and satellite frequencies in accordance with the Law on Telecommunications and its amendments (if any), international telecommunications treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

i) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor receives a share of international postal service charges between Vietnam and foreign countries, or leases foreign transmission lines and satellite frequencies in accordance with the Law on Post and its amendments (if any), international post treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory, where such services are performed outside of Vietnam;

k) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor uses a bonded warehouses or inland clearance depot (ICD) as an auxiliary warehouse for international transport, transit, merchanting trade, goods storage or for processing by other enterprises;

l) The foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor provides services other than those mentioned in Points c, d, dd, e, g, h and I of this Clause for a Vietnamese organization or individual, where such services are performed overseas and are not consumed in Vietnam;

m) The foreign enterprise transfer capital in the form of ownership restructuring transactions between companies of the same corporate group without changing the Ultimate Parent Entities of the parties which directly or indirectly own enterprises in Vietnam after restructuring and such transfer does not generate income, including the cases of full division, partial division, consolidation, acquisition of companies, shares swap, capital contribution by shares, distribution of profits or dividends in the form of shares within the corporate group, and transfer of direct or indirect ownership of enterprises in Vietnam.

It will be considered that income is not generated by the capital transfer in the form of ownership restructuring transactions between companies of the same corporate group without changing the Ultimate Parent Entities of the parties which directly or indirectly own enterprises in Vietnam after restructuring when all of the following conditions are satisfied: (i) the ultimate beneficiary remains unchanged; (ii) the recorded transfer value is not higher than the book value or the initial value of contributed capital; (iii) the transaction does not create a difference in value, which is determined according to the restructuring dossier approved by the competent authority and does not exceed the value recorded at the time of capital transfer; (iv) the transferee inherits all the value of capital, obligations and interests related to the transferor’s investment.

n) The foreign enterprise sells raw materials, supplies, components at a bonded warehouse or free trade zone, which are then imported into Vietnam to serve production or processing of exports under contracts, the foreign enterprise designates a export processing enterprise to deliver materials, supplies, components to another export processing enterprise to serve production or processing of exports under contracts as prescribed in Point b Clause 3 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

3. Determination of CIT payable:

CIT payable by foreign contractors and foreign sub-contractors shall be calculated by multiplying the assessable revenue by a CIT rate (%). To be specific:

Where: assessable revenue is the entire revenue received by the foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor inclusive of taxes payable. Assessable revenue includes the costs paid by the Vietnamese party on behalf of the foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor (if any).

4. Calculation of assessable revenue in some specific cases:

a) If the main contract or sub-contract stipulates that the revenue received by the foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor does not include CIT payable, assessable revenue shall be calculated using the following formula:

b) If the main contract or appendix thereof stipulates that the foreign contractor assigns part of the work or item to a sub-contractor, assessable revenue of the foreign contractor shall not include the value of work or item executed by the sub-contractor under the sub-contract between the foreign contractor and the sub-contractor. The aforementioned sub-contractor shall be determined according to the list of sub-contractors under the main contract between the foreign contractor with the Vietnamese party, or appendices thereof, concluded before the sub-contractor executes the assigned part of the work or item.

In cases where the foreign contractor signs contracts with suppliers in Vietnam to purchase raw materials, machinery and equipment to execute the main contract, and purchase goods and services for internal consumption or for purposes irrelevant to the works an items to be executed by the foreign contractor under the main contract, the value of such goods and services shall not be deductible when calculating assessable revenue of the foreign contractor;

c) In cases where the foreign contractor signs a contract with a foreign sub-contractor, the Vietnamese party shall declare and pay CIT on behalf of the foreign contractor and the foreign sub-contractor at the CIT rate applicable to the business lines performed by the foreign contractor and the foreign sub-contractor under the main contract and sub-contract. The foreign sub-contractor is not required to declare and pay CIT on the works executed by the foreign sub-contractor under the sub-contract with the foreign contractor which has been declared and paid by the Vietnamese on their behalf;

d) In case of lease of machinery, equipment or vehicles, assessable revenue shall be the entirety of the rent. If the revenue from lease of machinery, equipment or vehicles covers the costs directly paid by the lessor such as vehicle insurance, maintenance, registration and inspection, operator’s remuneration, transport of machinery or equipment from a foreign country to Vietnam, these costs may be excluded from assessable revenue if they are supported by documentary evidence;

dd) For transport services of foreign airlines, assessable revenue shall be the revenue from selling air tickets, airway bills and other revenues (except amounts collected on behalf of the State or other organizations as prescribed by law) generated in Vietnam from transport of passengers, cargoes and other objects on their own flights or code-share flights;

e) For transport services of foreign shipping lines, assessable revenue shall be the total freight charges collected from the transport of passengers, cargoes and other surcharges to which the shipping lines are entitled from the port of loading of Vietnam to the final port of discharge (including freight charges for consignments that have to be transshipped through intermediate ports) and/or freight charges for transport of cargoes between the ports of Vietnam.

The freight charges used as the basis for calculation of CIT are exclusive of the freight charges on which CIT has been charged at the Vietnamese port and is payable by the foreign ship-owner, and freight charges paid to the Vietnamese shipping line for transport of the goods from the Vietnamese port to an intermediate port;

g) For international forwarding and logistics services from Vietnam to foreign countries (regardless of whether the consignor or the consignee pays for the services), assessable revenue shall be the total revenue received by the foreign contractor, excluding international transport charges payable to the carrier (airline or shipping line);

h) For international delivery services from Vietnam to foreign countries (regardless of whether the sender or the recipient pays for the services), assessable revenue shall be the total revenue received by the foreign contractor;

i) For outward reinsurance, assessable revenue shall be the reinsurance premiums, ceding commissions and other revenues from ceding reinsurance received by the foreign contractor. For inward reinsurance, assessable revenue shall be the reinsurance premiums and other revenues from providing reinsurance according to the confirmed statement of account received by the foreign contractor;

k) For transfer of securities or certificates of deposit, assessable revenue shall be the total revenue from sale of securities or certificates of deposit. For transfer of derivative securities that are futures contracts, assessable revenue shall be the price for transfer of individual futures contracts, which equals (=) the settlement price for a futures contract at the time of assessable revenue calculation multiplied by (x) contract multiplier, multiplied by (x) number of futures contracts, multiplied by (x) initial margin, divided by (:) 2 (the initial margin shall be specified by Vietnam Securities Depositories and Clearing Corporation);

l) For loan interest, assessable revenue shall be the total amount received by the lender from the loan in any form, whether or not the loan is secured by collateral, and whether or not the lender receives dividends from the borrower; income from deposit interest (excluding deposit interest of foreign individuals and deposit interest on deposit accounts maintained for operations in Vietnam by diplomatic missions, representative offices of international organizations and non-governmental organizations in Vietnam), including any bonuses paid together with deposit interest; late payment interest under contracts; bond interest, bond discounts (excluding tax-exempt bonds), treasury bills; interest on certificates of deposit. Loan interest also includes fees payable by the Vietnamese party under the contract.

5. CIT rates (%):

a) CIT rates applied to foreign enterprises doing business in Vietnam shall comply with Clause 3 Article 12 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP;

b) In cases where the main contract or sub-contract covers various business activities, the CIT rate shall be determined according to the assessable revenue from each business activity performed by the foreign contractor or foreign sub-contractor under the contract or sub-contract. If the revenue from each business activity cannot be separated, the highest CIT rate of the business activities shall be applied to the total value of the contract.

For construction inclusive of building materials or machinery and equipment: If the main contract separates the value of each business activity, the corresponding CIT rate shall be applied to each part of the work under the contract. If the main contract does not separate the value of each business activity, the CIT rate of 2% shall be applied to the total value of the contract. In cases where the foreign contractor hires a sub-contractor to execute all the works or items inclusive of building materials or machinery and equipment and performs the remaining services under the main contract, the CIT rate of 5% (for services) shall apply;

c) In cases where the contract for provision of machinery and equipment covers services performed in Vietnam, and the value of machinery and equipment can be separated from the value of services, the corresponding CIT rate shall be applied separately to each part of the contract value. If the value of machinery and equipment can be separated from the value of services, the CIT rate of 2% shall apply.

Article 8. Registration of capital investment in expansion investment projects of enterprises prescribed in Article 20 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP

1. Within the year in which the expansion investment project is executed, the enterprise shall send its supervisory tax authority a written notification of the registered capital investment in the expansion investment project together with the CIT settlement return.

2. If the enterprise’s registered capital investment is changed during the execution of the expansion investment project, the enterprise shall send another notification to the tax authority.

Article 9. Tax obligations in cases where fixed assets originated from the enterprise’s science and technology development fund are used by the enterprise for business operations before they are fully depreciated, and templates of reports on contribution to and use of enterprises’ science and technology development funds prescribed in Clause 4 Article 22 of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP

1. In cases where fixed assets originated from the enterprise’s science and technology development fund are used by the enterprise for business operations before they are fully depreciated, the remaining value of such fixed assets shall be recorded as other income, may be depreciated and recorded as deductible expense when calculating taxable income.

2. Enterprises shall prepare reports on contributions to and use of their science and technology development funds according to Form No. 03-6/TNDN in Appendix II of Circular No. 80/2021/TT-BTC dated September 29, 2021 of the Minister of Finance elaborating some Articles of the Law on Tax Administration, the Government’s Decree No. 126/2020/ND-CP dated October 19, 2020 of elaborating some Articles of the Law on Tax Administration, and their amendments (if any).

Article 10. Entry into force

1. This Circular enters into force from March 12, 2026 and shall apply from the tax period of 2025.

2. For deductible expenses that were incurred before the effective date of this Circular and for which conditions and documentation have been stipulated by Circular No. 96/2015/TT-BTC, regulations of Circular No. 96/2015/TT-BTC shall apply to the tax period of 2025.

For deductible expenses prescribed in Article 3 of this Circular that are not specified in Circular No. 96/2015/TT-BTC, the documentation applicable to the tax period of 2025 shall be invoices and proofs of payment as prescribed by law (for depreciation of assets for lease during vacant periods, there shall be documents proving the enterprise’s lawful ownership and right to use of such assets).

3. Regulations on proofs of cashless payment and capital transfer in this Circular shall apply from the effective date of Decree No. 320/2025/ND-CP.

4. In case of main contracts and sub-contracts applying the mixed methods prescribed in Circular No. 103/2014/TT-BTC were signed before the effective date of this Circular, CIT shall be determined in accordance with the legislative documents that were effective when such contracts were concluded.

5. In cases where the legislative documents referred to in this Circular are amended or replaced, provisions of the amending or replacing documents shall apply.

6. This Circular replaces:

a) Circular No. 78/2014/TT-BTC dated June 18, 2014 of the Minister of Finance elaborating the Government’s Decree No. 218/2013/ND-CP dated December 26, 2013 elaborating the Law on Corporate Income Tax;

b) Circular No. 96/2015/TT-BTC dated June 22, 2015 providing guidelines for CIT in the Government’s Decree No. 12/2015/ND-CP dated February 12, 2015 elaborating the Law on Amendments to some Tax Laws and Tax Decrees, and amendments to Circular No. 78/2014/TT-BTC dated June 18, 2014, Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014, and Circular No. 151/2014/TT-BTC dated October 10, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance.

7. This Circular annuls regulations related to CIT policies in:

a) Articles 1, 2, 7, 10, 13 (except Point b.11 Clause 1 Article 13) and 16 of Circular No. 103/2014/TT-BTC dated August 06, 2014 of the Minister of Finance providing guidelines for tax obligations of foreign organizations and individuals doing business in Vietnam or earning income in Vietnam;

b) Article 6 of Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014 of the Minister of Finance on amendments to some Articles of Circular No. 156/2013/TT-BTC dated November 06, 2013, Circular No. 111/2013/TT-BTC dated August 15, 2013, Circular No. 219/2013/TT-BTC dated December 31, 2013, Circular No. 08/2013/TT-BTC dated January 10, 2013, Circular No. 85/2011/TT-BTC dated June 17, 2011, Circular No. 39/2014/TT-BTC dated March 31, 2014 and Circular No. 78/2014/TT-BTC dated June 18, 2014 for simplification of tax-related administrative procedures;

c) Chapter I of Circular No. 151/2014/TT-BTC dated October 10, 2014 of the Minister of Finance providing guidelines for implementation of the Government’s Decree No. 91/2014/ND-CP dated October 01, 2014 on amendments to some Articles of Tax Decrees;

d) Article 5 of Circular No. 130/2016/TT-BTC dated August 12, 2016 of the Minister of Finance providing guidelines for the Government’s Decree No. 100/2016/ND-CP dated July 01, 2016 elaborating the Law on Amendments to the Law on Value-added Tax, the Law on Excise Duty, the Law on Tax Administration and some Articles of Tax Circulars;

dd) Article 3 of Circular No. 25/2018/TT-BTC dated March 16, 2018 of the Minister of Finance providing guidelines for the Government’s Decree No. 146/2017/ND-CP dated December 15, 2017 and amending some Articles of Circular No. 78/2014/TT-BTC dated June 18, 2014 of the Minister of Finance, Circular No. 111/2013/TT-BTC dated August 15, 2013 of the Minister of Finance;

e) Article 2, Clause 5 Article 3, Article 4, Clause 3 Article 5 of Circular No. 67/2022/TT-BTC dated November 07, 2022 of the Minister of Finance on tax obligations upon contribution to and use of enterprises’ science and technology development funds;

g) Article 4 of Circular No. 83/2016/TT-BTC dated June 17, 2016 of the Minister of Finance providing guidelines for investment incentives under the Law on Investment and the Government’s Decree No. 118/2015/ND-CP dated November 12, 2015 elaborating some Articles of the Law on Investment;

h) Article 4 of Circular No. 128/2011/TT-BTC dated September 12, 2011 providing guidelines for VAT and CIT applicable to public health facilities./.

PP MINISTER
DEPUTY MINISTER




Cao Anh Tuan