International
tourists will enjoy value-added tax (VAT) refunds when they purchase goods in
Vietnam under a draft currently being considered by the Ministry of Finance.
Under the pilot plan approved by Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in July, foreign tourists who buy goods at certain
airports, tourism areas and shops in big cities will receive a 10 percent
refund on the tax they paid.
Goods purchased by foreigners are considered
export commodities so every purchase valued at more than VND2 million per
receipt which is issued within 30 days of their exit from Vietnam will benefit
from the tax refund.
"The VAT refund aims to promote tourism,
increase foreign currency in the country and encourage on-the-spot
exports," said head of the ministry's Import-Export Tax Department Lo Thi
Nhu.
The ministry has issued clear criteria to
eligible businesses in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and traditional trade villages,
Nhu said.
Vietnam has 161 border-gates including six
international airports. Under the pilot phase of the plan, Noi Bai and Tan Son
Nhat International airports will be selected for inclusion in the project from
April 2012 to June 2016 as they have the country's highest numbers of
passengers. Security barriers at the airports will help ensure supervision of
goods transported under the mechanism.
"The pilot project will help authorities
evaluate the mechanism's effectiveness," she said.
Under the programme, foreign tourists will not
receive a full tax refund because they will have to pay tax agency fees,
meaning they will not receive more than 10 percent of the total tax paid.
Surveys from the Vietnam Administration of
Tourism showed that foreign visitors stayed in Vietnam for an average of nine
days per visitor and they spend about $72.5 a day.
Tourism experienced the highest growth when
compared to other services in recent years after transport, finance, insurance
and telecommunications.
The country expects to welcome 5.5 million
international tourists this year. In the first eight months of the year, the
number reached nearly 4 million, 18 percent higher than in the same period last
year.
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