A common model should not be applied to everyone
From June 1, 2025, businesses with revenue of VND1 billion/year in a number of industries such as food, retail, services, etc. are required to use electronic invoices from cash registers, according to the provisions of Decree 70 and Circular 32 of the Ministry of Finance.
However, immediately after the policy took effect, many small households began to avoid it by stopping receiving transfers, using only cash or asking not to record the transaction content. The main reason is the fear of being collected and increasing taxes, while not clearly understanding the process and implementation methods. Incorrect updates and misunderstandings of policies have caused many households to react negatively, even temporarily suspend operations and close to avoid inspection.
Regarding this situation, Ms. Le Yen - CEO of Hanoi Tax Consulting Company Limited (Hanoitax) said that the defensive and avoidant mentality is an inevitable consequence when the policy is implemented drastically but lacks appropriate communication and support mechanisms in the initial stage. "For small businesses, having to both research and suffer pressure to punish is too much. Without a clear message and an appropriate approach, it is understandable to lose faith in the transparency of policies, she said.
According to Ms. Le Yen, one of the major disadvantages of implementing electronic invoices today is the lack of specific guidance for each industry. Each business sector has its own characteristics in terms of goods, services, sales processes and payment methods. Therefore, a common dummy should not be applied to everyone.
For example, the spa and beauty salon groups will be interested in invoices for service cards and pre-orders; while the pharmacies and functional foods groups need guidance on invoice tracing and inventory control. If we continue to guide together, no one will see us in it, no one will know where to start," she said.
Ms. Yen also gave an example of the implementation of Hanoitax vertical workshops, where she directly participated, showing that when grouped specifically and communicated in simple language, close to the way of thinking and doing business households, the rate of self-conscious transformation increased significantly.
Need a soft, but steady roadmap
Faced with inadequacies in the implementation of electronic invoices, the CEO of Hanoi Tax Consulting Company Limited recommended: It is necessary to promote the intermediary role of tax agents, especially in the early stages when businesses are still unfamiliar with technology processes. Tax agents are not only consulting units but should be assigned the responsibility of accompanying comprehensively: From supporting software installation, handling errors, to preparing periodic reports and supporting inspections when needed.
"We cannot require a trader who is used to recording by memory to immediately know how to use software, a printer and connect data. Guidance needs to be 'hand-to-hand with the work', but currently the tax staff is not enough, it needs the participation of professional agents, she said. The model of each tax agent in charge of a business cluster is also proposed for pilot implementation.
According to Ms. Le Yen, switching to technology revenue monitoring is an inevitable step to make the business environment transparent and ensure fairness in tax payment. However, to make businesses not feel "asked" or "pented", the implementation roadmap needs to be flexible, classified according to the level of readiness, and accompanied by a reasonable transition time.
"In the first phase, if business households have goodwill to comply, they should be supported and guided instead of being punished immediately. That is a way to build trust and motivate them to follow policies rather than fight, the expert emphasized.
She also noted that, to want businesses to change their thinking, it is not possible to force them with regulations. It is necessary to have a policy that is "soft" in communication, "soft" in approach, but must be steadfast in the goal of building a transparent, fair and modern tax system.
