On the morning of November 28, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the draft Law on Corporate Income Tax (amended).
Commenting on the income tax rate for press agencies, delegate Thach Phuoc Binh (Tra Vinh delegation) said that currently, most press agencies operate with non-profit goals, serving propaganda and education tasks instead of business goals.
"Applying a 20% general income tax rate to income outside of main duties such as advertising and event organization puts great pressure on their finances," said the delegate.
In addition, according to delegates, public interest organizations enjoy corporate income tax exemption or reduction policies, but the press has not yet been given similar support mechanisms, despite its important role in society.
Delegate of Tra Vinh delegation pointed out that in the context of fierce competition from digital platforms such as Google and Facebook, press revenue is decreasing, making it difficult for many press agencies to maintain operations.
Unstable income, such as sponsorships and small advertising contracts, is still taxed as a business without special consideration, weakening the financial viability of newspapers.
Along with that, the current tax law does not have specific regulations for press agencies, leading to the application of tax rates like normal businesses without considering the special role of the press in the political and social system.
Some press agencies may enjoy preferential treatment under other regulations such as geographical areas or encouraged sectors, but this is inconsistent and lacks transparency.
From there, the delegate proposed applying a tax rate of 10% or, if possible, lower for taxable income from non-political activities such as advertising and event organization.
Along with that, corporate income tax is exempted for sponsorships and aid to press agencies to facilitate their support in carrying out political and communication tasks.
Propose a clear separation between income from propaganda activities and tax-exempt political tasks and income from business activities that enjoy low tax incentives.
There are special support policies for local press agencies, especially in remote areas, where conditions are difficult, and financial autonomy is low or very low; a simple tax declaration mechanism is developed, with priority given to supporting press agencies in determining taxable income and applying incentives.
Strengthening the application of information technology in tax declaration and settlement, reducing administrative burden for press agencies.
Delegates also proposed indirect support through other measures such as: Establishing a financial support fund from the State budget or socialized sources to partially finance press activities; building a mechanism to collect taxes from digital platforms such as Google and Facebook and using this revenue to support domestic press agencies.
Delegate Pham Van Hoa (Dong Thap Delegation) also said that press operations are facing many difficulties while tax collection from press income is not much.
Explaining this difficulty, delegate Pham Van Hoa said that in addition to competition within press agencies, there is also competition with digital platforms.
This person added that some press agencies are currently not supported by the state, so they are facing many difficulties. "The public service units that have income collect it themselves, but many magazines operate on their own, so their income is not much, so if they collect taxes, it will be more difficult. The press should be classified as small and medium-sized enterprises to receive tax incentives," the delegate suggested.
