Speaking at the opening of the conference, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Khanh Nam, Head of the School of Economics, Law and Government – UEH, raised the issue: Digital transformation is an inevitable trend of the times, bringing both opportunities and challenges for businesses and the economy. This trend is changing the way goods and services are consumed and supplied, especially activities on digital platforms, making tax management more complex. ¹ Therefore, the tax management model urgently needs to adapt to new business forms to limit the risk of tax loss while minimizing difficulties for taxpayers in complying with tax regulations.

“I believe that discussions on the topic of taxation in digital transformation are very timely, meeting the demands of practice as well as the gaps in theory and professional issues. I hope this will be a forum for scholars, experts, and businesses to engage in in-depth discussions, providing a more comprehensive view of tax management and compliance; at the same time, the seminar will offer suggestions and policy orientations for effective tax governance and practice in the context of strong digital transformation in Vietnam,” Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Khanh Nam further stated.

During the presentation on the topic “Tax Management for E-commerce – Opportunities and Challenges,” Dr. Tran Trung Kien, Director of the Tax Training Program at the School of Economics, Law and Government – UEH, observed: Faced with the rapid development of the digital economy, businesses need to change their strategies, production processes, and business models to adapt and thrive. In particular, e-commerce (e-commerce) has distinct advantages such as: a broad customer reach, not limited by geography; allowing consumers to shop anytime and anywhere with an internet connection; the e-commerce business model is also very diverse, a complex system involving many participants to ensure the online buying and selling process; the ability to easily customize operations and business forms; especially, e-commerce generates a large amount of data (big data) on consumer behavior and business operations.

Dr. Tran Trung Kien also cited analyses from foreign experts showing that these new business models contain digital elements that can disrupt or make it difficult to determine the tax base in the traditional way. Consequently, tax authorities find it very difficult to monitor and collect information. Businesses in the e-commerce sector may find it easier to evade taxes compared to traditional business forms due to digital technology’s ability to secure business information, posing a challenge for tax authorities in managing and fully recovering taxes from e-commerce activities.

Analyzing from a research perspective on e-commerce tax management, an expert from Cuu Long University stated: The national tax sector currently manages over 139 owners of e-commerce platforms, with an estimated traffic of 3.5 million visits per day; including 41 out of 357 major e-commerce marketplaces selling goods, 98 e-commerce platforms providing services, and 3 partner companies of foreign suppliers. The accumulated contractor tax revenue from 2018 to 2023 reached VND 6,656 billion. Some foreign suppliers have declared and paid taxes on behalf of others with significant revenue, such as: Facebook paying VND 2,076 billion; Google paying VND 2,040 billion; Microsoft paying VND 699 billion… And after nearly one year of implementing the electronic portal for foreign suppliers, by the end of 2023, 94 suppliers, including 26 “big players” such as Microsoft, Facebook, Netflix, Samsung, TikTok, eBay… had registered for tax, declared tax, and paid a total tax amount of VND 14,500 billion. For e-commerce of domestic businesses and individuals, in 2023 alone, the managed revenue was VND 3.5 million billion (approximately USD 146.28 billion), and the tax paid to the state budget was VND 97,000 billion. Currently, tax authorities are approaching platforms with e-commerce activities to apply appropriate tax management measures, including 8 groups of platforms: e-commerce marketplaces, e-commerce websites/applications, social networks, transportation, delivery, agents, subscriptions, advertising, and app stores.

According to the speaker from Cuu Long University, fully managing revenue sources, correctly identifying taxpayers, controlling all e-commerce transactions, and monitoring cash flows in online business are constant new challenges for tax authorities, as well as the mechanism and coordination between industries and sectors, requiring closer and more synchronized collaboration to create a shared database. Firstly, regarding the legal framework, it is necessary to soon amend the regulations to not exempt import tax on import transactions with a value of less than VND 1 million per day; amend the provisions on the tax base in accordance with digital economic conditions; amend regulations on VAT taxable subjects; and stipulate the withholding responsibility of e-commerce platforms in cases where the e-commerce platform is a payment service provider or directly involved in the goods delivery stage. Regarding tax management, it is necessary to promote the application of high technology to control technology; develop real-time tax calculation technology as transactions occur; soon build and operate a high-tech tax evasion prevention center and a responsible focal agency; develop an automatic system for detecting suspicious transactions; develop procedures for inspecting/examining e-commerce activities and, if necessary, establish specialized departments/teams to manage e-commerce tax in provinces/cities.

In her presentation on the topic: “The Process of Implementing Tax Regulations in the Context of Digital Transformation,” Ms. Nguyen Thi Cuc, Chairwoman of VTCA and former Deputy Director-General of the General Department of Taxation, presented various contents related to tax regulations in the context of digital transformation; the implementation of e-invoices – advantages and difficulties; notes when determining deductible expenses for corporate income tax calculation and in personal income tax finalization declarations from salaries and wages… Also within the framework of the seminar “Tax Updates in the Context of Digital Transformation,” the Q&A session attracted much attention from the audience on issues such as: registration procedures, tax obligations when having e-commerce business contracts, tax calculation methods for companies with e-commerce business contracts; tax declaration for e-commerce households; personal income tax collection for KOLs/KOCs; whether fees paid to e-commerce platforms are deductible for tax calculation… The speakers and tax experts directly provided satisfactory answers to these questions, helping seminar participants and finance and tax students gain more useful knowledge about tax policies, e-invoices, e-commerce taxation, and digital transformation.

At this seminar, Ms. Pham Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau, Head of External Relations for the Education and Training Sector of ACCA Vietnam, provided additional information about taxation in the ACCA training program and career opportunities related to the tax profession. Following the morning session, an afternoon seminar on “Tax and Orientation for Students in the Context of Digital Transformation” took place. This conference was for students and other interested individuals seeking to learn about taxation and career opportunities, as well as career orientation in the tax field, especially in the context of rapid digital transformation, e-commerce development, and increasingly deep international integration as it is today.