Government
Taxation
Cambodia to revamp porous tax code
The Cambodian government will scrap its poorly regulated and grossly inefficient estimated-tax regime, which covers mostly small enterprises, and bring all businesses in the Kingdom into the fold of its more-stringent “real” tax regime, leaked documents show. In an unpublished addendum to the 2016 national budget ...
Vietnam mulls new import tariff on alloy steel after fraud warning
Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance is considering changing a tax regulation following concerns that the rule has been abused by Chinese exporters to ship a large amount of steel to Vietnam without paying duties. Currently imported steel with at least 0.3 percent of chrome content will be exempt ...
Bangkok motorists face new oil, gas charge
Bangkok-based petrol stations will be hit with a new local tax collected from their oil and gas sales at five satang a litre, starting on 15 October, as City Hall steps up efforts to pull in revenue for city development. It is the first time such a tax has ...
Thai 20% corporate tax rate made permanent
The cabinet has made the temporary 20% corporate income tax rate permanent to instil confidence in investors and maintain Thailand’s competitiveness, according to Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak. Keep reading ...
Hanoi lists 89 new tax defaulters in 'name and shame' strategy
With its recent name-and-shame policy proving to be successful, Hanoi’s tax office has released the names of another 89 businesses whose back taxes have amounted to nearly VND311.7 billion (US$13.78 million). Keep reading ...
Vietnam road fee suspended starting in 2016
The Government has agreed on suspending the collection of the controversial road maintenance fees from motorbike users starting in 2016 after public criticism said the fee was unfair. The decision was reached in a monthly regular cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung that ...
Vietnam's trade ministry now wants 150 percent tax on luxury cars
Only one month after the Ministry of Finance proposed increasing luxury taxes on cars with large engines to up to 75 percent, trade officials now say the maximum tax rate should be raised to 150 percent to restrict the use of expensive, fuel-hungry vehicles. Keep reading ...
Vietnam finance ministry wants variable interest rate on back taxes: report
The Ministry of Finance has requested the government to stop imposing a fixed interest rate on unpaid taxes from January 1, news website Saigon Times Online reported on 17 September. Keep reading ...
Laos OKs economic zone for smaller Japanese companies
The Laotian government has given the green light to a special economic zone in the southern city of Pakse, a 625-hectare site dedicated to small and midsize Japanese companies. Businesses operating there will have corporate taxes waived for 10 years starting in the first profitable year, among ...
Almost $20b in dirty money left Myanmar in five decades: Researchers
Almost US$20 billion in dirty money linked to corruption, crime and tax evasion has left Myanmar in the past five decades, slashing government revenue and driving a thriving underground economy, a money-laundering watchdog said on 9 September. Fraudulent invoicing of trade deals and physical smuggling of drugs, ...