School of Public Finance, UEH College of Economics, Law and Government hosted intensive tax consulting activities for small and medium-sized enterprises based in Ho Chi Minh City.

On June 11, 2023, School of Public Finance, UEH College of Economics, Law and Government (CELG) held an intensive tax consultation session for several small and medium-sized enterprises in HCMC. The program was one of the efforts to concretize UEH's strategy towards serving society for a sustainable development community.

In early June 2023, UEH was officially recognized as one of the top 9 universities in Vietnam, honored to be in the top 301-400 universities in the world, contributing to 17 sustainable development goals of the United Nations according to THE Rankings 2023. This result strongly demonstrates UEH's commitment to the University's Multidisciplinary and Sustainable University Strategy, taking the knowledge base to solve important social challenges and create impact actively through academic activities. In particular, regarding the 17th goal related to partnership, UEH entered the Top 201-300.

In that spirit of dedication and serving, the School of Public Finance, UEH College of Economics, Law and Government organized an intensive tax consultation session for small and medium-sized enterprises in Ho Chi Minh City. The consultation session is a collaboration between lecturers from the Department of Taxation, Tax Consultant Association and Ho Chi Minh City Tax Agents - a partner who signed a cooperation agreement with CELG - School of Public Finance, specialists from the Tax Department Ho Chi Minh City, and experts of international auditing firms in Ho Chi Minh City - alumni of the School of Public Finance.

Overview of the program

Specifically, on the side of UEH College of Economics, Law and Government, School of Public Finance, there was the presence of Assoc.Prof.Dr. Diep Gia Luat - Dean of the School; Dr. Nguyen Kim Quyen - Vice Dean of the School; MSc. Dang Thi Bach Van - Head of the General Department and School of Public Finance lecturer.

On the side consultants, the program was attended by Dr. Le Quang Cuong - Head of Tax Department, Program Director (CEO) of Tax in Business - Head of the Advisory Board; Dr. Tran Trung Kien - General Director of Tax Administration; Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Tinh - Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City Tax Consultants and Agents Association; Mr. Nguyen Vu Hoang - Senior Manager - Ernst & Young Vietnam Co., Ltd; Mr. Ha Ngoc Thien - Specialist of Tax Inspection Department - Tax Department of Ho Chi Minh City; Ms. Nguyen Ngoc Thao Vy - Corporate Income Tax Specialist - PricewaterhouseCoopers Vietnam Co., Ltd; Mr. Tran Minh Huy - Transfer pricing specialist - PricewaterhouseCoopers Vietnam Co., Ltd. On the business side, the program attracted about 50 businesses to attend.

Assoc.Prof.Dr. Diep Gia Luat - Dean of the School of Public Finance, delivered the opening speech at the consultation session

MSc. Dang Thi Bach Van - Head of General Department of UEH College of Economics, Law and Government in the role of coordinator of the intensive consultation session

Advisory board at the program

The first highlight of the program was the report by Dr. Le Quang Cuong, helping business representatives understand the role of tax planning in bringing value to businesses and recommending that businesses improve their tax law knowledge to design strategies. Effective planning helps companies develop sustainably instead of making unnecessary non-compliance errors or evading taxes. Notably, the income structure that can attract good workers and does not affect the goal of maximizing corporate value is a complex problem; not all accounting departments of companies can develop and execute effective planning strategies. Dr. Le Quang Cuong suggested a reference planning strategy for non-wage income so that personal income tax benefits can be exploited. For example, companies instead of just paying employees, the income structure will be more tax-friendly if workers receive income parts such as lunch allowance, clothing allowance, electricity allowance, telephone, health insurance, voluntary retirement insurance, awarding money, wedding allowance, business trip expenses, training expenses, house rent in accordance with the respective employees and relevant legal regulations.

Dr. Le Quang Cuong - Head of Tax Department, Director of Taxation in Business reported on Tax Planning

For the content of intensive direct tax consulting, the Organizing Committee received more than 50 companies registered to participate in the consultation session with diverse fields of activity, so the arising situation related to different tax aspects. About 90% of the Company has a situational question to discuss with the on-site Advisory Board, and 10% participate in the experience-learning sessions, expanding the understanding of tax and practical situations of their companies. Regarding professional content, intensive tax topics were discussed enthusiastically around: (i) compliance with Personal Income Tax on salaries and wages; (ii) deploying electronic invoices integrated with sales software; (iii) how to handle deductible expenses according to the characteristics of enterprises when complying with corporate income tax; (iv) tax and invoice information for exported services; (v) advise on situations arising when the recommendations of the independent audit and tax requirements of the tax authorities are different and the enterprise does not understand the approach to handle, etc.

In-person consultations at the program

The representatives of the participating companies highly appreciated the consultation session; Ms. Tran Thi Thu Cuc, a representative of Din Sen Vietnam Co., Ltd. said: “We would like to express our sincere thanks. The program’s organizers gave us the opportunity to receive the necessary support to be able to solve practical problems at the unit. In addition, we also broaden our understanding from the experience of your Companies, especially recognizing the importance of optimal tax planning strategies.”

The well-concluded program marked the companionship of the School of Public Finance with UEH's mission to serve the community and build a society for sustainable development. Thanks to the program, the School’s partner network is better developed.

More photos about the propram: