A reader with email huongdangx@xx sent an email to the Lao Dong Newspaper Legal Counseling Office to ask: My company has just been established and doing multi-industry business. What types of goods and services are subject to excise tax, and who must pay the excise tax?

Lawyer Nguyen Thi Trang from YouMe Law Firm replied:

Article 2, Consolidated Document No. 02/VBHN-VPQH on the Law on Excise Tax provides the taxable objects of excise tax as follows:

1. Goods:

a) Cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco preparations used for smoking, inhaling, chewing, sniffing or keeping in mouth;

b) Liquor;

c) Beer;

d) Under-24 seat cars, including cars for both passenger and cargo transportation with two or more rows of seats and fixed partitions between passenger hold and cargo hold;

dd) Two- and three-wheeled motorcycles of a cylinder capacity of over 125 cm3;

e) Aircraft and yachts;

g) Gasoline;

h) Air-conditioners of 90,000 BTU or less;

i) Playing cards;

k) Votive gilt papers and votive objects.

2. Services:

a) Dance halls:

b) Massage parlors and karaoke bars;

c) Casinos; prize-winning video games, including jackpot and slot games and games on similar machines;

d) Betting;

dd) Golf business, including the sale of membership cards and golf playing tickets;

e) Lottery business.

Article 4, Consolidated Document No. 02/VBHN-VPQH on the Law on Excise Tax provides excise taxpayers as follows: excise taxpayers, include producers and importers of goods and providers of services are subject to excise tax.

Exporters that purchase excise tax-liable goods from producers for export and do not export but sell them domestically shall pay excise tax.

If your company’s business objects are goods and services subject to excise tax, you must pay excise tax according to regulations.