Proposal to collect 1-1.5%/transaction, regardless of profit or loss
In Resolution 278 dated September 13 on law-making in September, the Government gave opinions on the draft Law on Personal Income Tax (amended). Accordingly, the Government requires clear regulation on income from taxable gold trading activities, in order to improve market transparency and limit speculation. The Ministry of Finance is assigned to coordinate with the State Bank to agree on this content in the draft.
Talking to Lao Dong, Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Tu - former Editor-in-Chief of Tax Magazine, lecturer at Hanoi University of Business and Technology - emphasized: "Gold is of course subject to tax, there is no type of business that does not require tax. Current laws - from personal income tax, corporate income tax to value added tax - all stipulate: all business activities and sales of goods with revenue must pay tax. There is something in previous decrees and guiding circulars that has not clearly stated the case of individuals trading in gold".
According to Mr. Tu, forcing people to self-declare profits and losses is very complicated, because some people have been surfing for a few days, some have held for a few months, even a few years to sell. Therefore, the reasonable way is to calculate tax based on revenue, that is, each time they are sold, they pay a certain percentage.
"Initially, a level of 1 - 1.5%/transaction can be applied. For example, selling a quantity of gold for 128 million VND, if the tax rate is 1.5%, the tax must be paid about 1.9 million VND, regardless of profit or loss. Like real estate, every time I sell it, I will have to pay taxes," said Mr. Tu.
According to the analysis, this calculation method forces gold buyers to consider carefully before trading. If I bought it for 131 million VND, the next day I needed money to sell it immediately, it was only 128 million VND, and I lost 3 million. Additional tax of 1.5% (nearly 2 million), total loss of about 5 million VND. At that time, short-term speculative engines will decrease, the market will be less stressed about supply and demand, and prices will also be stable, said Dr. Tu.
It is necessary to stipulate the application threshold and specific cases
In addition to the tax rate, experts say that it is necessary to regulate the applicable threshold to avoid incurring unnecessary management costs. "You should not collect for too small transactions. In my opinion, it should be applied from a yellow plant (one tael) or more. If anyone sells half a tree or a few, they can only do it, not collect any, said Mr. Tu.
However, he also noted the need for flexibility in some specific cases. These are individuals who sell gold accumulated 20 - 30 years ago to buy a house, treat illness, or sell gold due to inheritance. "This is not a business or speculative activity, so tax should not be calculated. The policy must clearly distinguish between business transactions and speculation with cases of traditional storage, inheritance or consumption. Only then can we both ensure fairness and receive social consensus, Mr. Tu emphasized.
According to Mr. Tu, the most feasible solution is to deduct at the source. People selling gold can hardly declare voluntarily, so gold businesses have to deduct immediately upon purchase. "For example, people sell a quantity of gold for 128 million VND, businesses deduct 1.5% (about 1.9 million VND) to pay to the State, then return the rest to the seller".
He said that gold enterprises currently have licenses to trade and use electronic invoices and cash registers connected to tax authorities, so technical management is completely feasible.
Dr. Tu emphasized: This regulation needs to be implemented immediately, we should not wait until 2026 when the new amended Law takes effect. The current policies and laws have been well-founded for a long time, the upcoming inclusion in the law is to provide more specific regulations".
