Circular No. 68/2019/TT-BTC dated September 30, 2019 of the Ministry of Finance on guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Government's Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP providing regulations on electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services dated September 12, 2018

CIRCULAR

Guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Government s Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CPdated September 12, 2018 on providing regulations on electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services
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Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated June 19, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Tax Administration dated November 29, 2006 and the Laws amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Tax Administration;

Pursuant to the Law on Value-Added Tax dated June 3, 2008 and the Laws amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Value-Added Tax;

Pursuant to the Law on Accounting dated November 20, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Electronic Transactions dated November 29, 2005;

Pursuant to the Law on Information Technology dated June 29, 2006;

Pursuant to the Government s Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP dated September 12, 2018 providing regulations on electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services;

Pursuant to the Government s Decree No. 87/2017/ND-CP dated July 26, 2017 defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the request of the Director General of the General Department of Taxation,

The Minister of Finance promulgates a Circular guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Government s Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP providing regulations on electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services dated September 12, 2018 with contents as follows:

Chapter I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulations

This Circular guides a number of contents on electronic invoices according to the Government s Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP providing regulations on electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services dated September 12, 2018 (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP), including: contents of electronic invoices, time of making electronic invoices, format of electronic invoices, application of electronic invoices, providing electronic invoice services, managing and using electronic invoices, building and managing electronic invoice databases and organizations providing electronic invoice services.

Article 2. Subjects of application

1. Organizations, enterprises, households and individuals that sell goods and provide services, including:

a) Enterprises established and operating under the provisions of the Law on Enterprises, the Law on Credit Institutions, the Law on Insurance Business, the Law on Securities, the Law on Petroleum and other legal documents in the following forms: Joint stock company; limited liability company; partnership; private enterprise;

b) Public service providers that sell goods or provide services;

c) Organizations established and operating under the Law on Cooperatives;

d) Other organizations;

d) Business households and individuals.

2. Organizations and individuals that buy goods and services.

3. Organizations providing electronic invoice services, including: Organizations providing electronic invoice solutions; organizations providing services of receipt, transmission, storage of electronic invoice data and other services related to electronic invoices.

4. Tax administration agencies at all levels and organizations and individuals involved in the management, registration and use of invoices.

Article 3. Contents of electronic invoice

1. Contents of an electronic invoice:

a) Name of invoice, identification code of invoice, serial number of invoice and number of invoice.

a.1) Name of the invoice is the name of each type of invoice specified in Article 5 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP shown on each invoice, such as: VAT INVOICE, SALES INVOICE, ELECTRONIC DELIVERY NOTE CUM BILL OF LADING, STAMP, PROMISSORY NOTE, CARD...

a.2) Identification code of invoice

Identification code of invoice is a natural number (1, 2, 3, 4) indicating the invoice type as follows:

- Number 1: VAT invoice.

- Number 2: Sales invoice.

- Number 3: Electronic delivery note cum bill of lading.

- Number 4: Other types of invoices, including electronic stamps, electronic tickets, electronic cards, electronic receipts or other electronic vouchers with contents of electronic invoices as specified in this Article.

a.3) Serial number of invoice

Serial number of invoice consists of 6 characters (both numbers and letters), used to identify the year of making the invoice, the type of the invoice and whether this type of invoice has a tax identification number or not. These six (06) characters are specified as follows:

- The first character is one (01) letter (C or K) indicating the type of the invoice with or without a tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies. Specifically, C represents the electronic invoice with a tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies; K represents the electronic invoice without a tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies.

- The next two characters are the 2 Arabic numerals representing the year of electronic invoicing, which is determined by the last 2 digits of the number of the calendar year. For example: The year of electronic invoicing is 2019, thus the two characters are 19; The year of electronic invoicing is in 2021, thus the two characters are 21.

- A subsequent character is one (01) letter (T or D or L or M) representing the type of the electronic invoice:

+ T: Invoices registered to tax agencies and used by enterprises, organizations, households or individuals.

+ D: Specific electronic invoices without certain criteria registered and used by enterprises and organizations.

+ L: Electronic invoices issued by tax agencies.

+ M: Electronic invoices generated from cash registers

- The last two characters are the letters determined by the seller based on management needs; in case of no management need, these are YY.

- Identification code and serial number of invoice are shown on the upper right of the invoice (or in a recognizable position).

- Examples for identification code and serial number of invoice:

+ "1C21TAA" - an electronic VAT invoice with a tax identification number issued by the tax agency in 2021 and registered by the enterprise, organization, business household or individual to the tax agency.

+ "2C21TBB" - an electronic sales invoice with a tax identification number issued in 2021 and registered by the enterprise, organization, business household or individual to the tax agency.

+ "1C22LBB" - an electronic VAT invoice with a tax identification number issued by the tax agency in 2022 in particular time.

+ "1K22TYY" – an electronic VAT invoice without a tax identification number issued by the tax agency in 2022 and registered by the enterprise, organization, business household or individual to the tax agency.

+ "1K22DAA" - an electronic VAT invoice without a tax identification number issued by the tax agency in 2022 and registered by the enterprise or organization without certain criteria.

+ "3K22TAB" – a delivery note cum bill of lading with a tax identification number issued in 2022 and registered by the enterprise to the tax agency as an electronic voucher containing the contents of an electronic invoice.

a.4) Invoice number

- Invoice number is the ordinal number shown on an invoice when the seller makes the invoice. The invoice number contains a maximum of 8 Arabic numerals, starting from 1 on January 1 or when the invoice is put into use and ending at 99 999 999 on December 31. Invoices are made in a continuous order from small numbers to large numbers with the same identification code and serial number of invoice.

- In case the invoice number is not made according to the above-mentioned principle, the electronic invoicing system shall ensure the principle of chronological increase in order that the invoice number contains a maximum of 8 digits and is made and used only once.

b) Name, address and tax identification number of the seller

The invoice shall show the name, address and tax identification number of the seller in accordance with the name, address and tax identification number stated in the enterprise registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, business household registration certificate, tax registration certificate, tax identification number notice and investment registration certificate.

c) Name, address and tax identification number of the buyer (if the buyer has a tax identification number)

c.1) If the buyer is a business establishment that has a tax identification number, the buyer s name, address and tax identification number shown on the invoice shall be stated in the enterprise registration certificate, branch operation registration certificate, business household registration certificate, tax registration certificate, tax identification number notice or investment registration certificate.

c.2) If the buyer does not have a tax identification number, the invoice shall not show the buyer’s tax identification number. In case of selling goods or providing specific services to individual consumers specified in Clause 3 of this Article, the invoice shall not show the buyer’s name and address. In case of selling goods or providing services to foreign customers to Vietnam, the address of the buyer shall be replaced by the number of the passport or immigration documents and the nationality of the foreign customer.

d) Name, unit, quantity and unit price of goods and services; amount of money without value added tax, value added tax rate, total amount of value added tax on each tax rate, total amount of value added tax and total payment with value added tax.

d.1) Name, unit, quantity, unit price of goods and services

- Names of goods and services: The names of goods and services shall be written in Vietnamese. In case of selling goods of various categories, the goods names shall include details of each category (for example: Samsung phones, Nokia phones...). In case goods are subject to registration of use right or ownership right, the invoice shall show the specific codes and numbers of the goods according to law provision (for example: vehicle identification number and engine number of cars or motorbikes; address, type, length, width, number of floors of houses). For specific types of goods and services such as electricity, water, telecommunications services, television services, information technology services and insurance sold in a certain period, the invoice shall show the period of the goods and services.

In case additional foreign words are needed, foreign words shall be placed in parentheses () or immediately below the Vietnamese lines and have a smaller font size than Vietnamese words. In case goods and services are transacted with provisions on codes of goods and services, the names and codes of goods and services shall be written on the invoice.

- Unit: The seller shall base on the nature and characteristics of the goods to determine the unit of the goods shown on the invoice in line with units of measurement (for example: ton, oats, kg, g, mg… or slice, can, box, bag, package, tube, m3, m2, m,...). For services, the unit is determined as times of service provision and the contents of services.

- Quantity of goods or services: The seller shall record the quantity in Arabic numerals in terms of the above units.

- Unit price of goods or services: The seller shall record the unit price of goods and services in terms of the above units.

d.2) Value-added tax rate: The value-added tax rate shown on invoices is the value-added tax rate corresponding to each type of goods or service according to the provisions of law on value-added tax.

d.3) The amount of money without value added tax, value added tax rate, total amount of value added tax on each tax rate, total amount of value added tax and total payment with value added tax shall be displayed in VND and in Arabic numerals, except for cases in which goods are traded in foreign currencies and the revenue shall not be converted to VND, the currencies shall be kept as the same;

The total amount of payment on the invoice shall be expressed in VND, in Arabic numerals and in Vietnamese language, except for the cases in which goods are traded in foreign currencies and the revenue shall not be converted to VND, the total amount of payment shall be expressed in original currencies and in the corresponding foreign languages.

In case the business establishments apply trade discount for customers or sales promotion in accordance with law provisions, the trade discounts and promotions shall be clearly shown on electronic invoices. The determination of the prices subject to value-added tax (the amount without VAT) in case of applying trade discounts to customers or sales promotion shall comply with the law provisions on value-added tax.

d) Digital and electronic signatures of sellers and buyers

- In case the seller is an enterprise or organization, the seller s digital signature on the invoice is the digital signature of the enterprise or organization; In case the seller is an individual, the seller s digital signature on the invoice is the digital signature of this individual or his/her authorized person.

- In case the buyer is a business establishment and the buyer and seller agree upon the buyer s satisfaction of the technical conditions for making digital and electronic signatures on an electronic invoice made by the seller, the buyer shall make digital and electronic signatures on the invoice.

- In case the electronic invoices do not need digital signatures or electronic signatures of the seller and the buyer, it shall comply with Clause 3 of this Article.

 e) 

The time of making electronic invoices is determined by the time the seller makes digital and electronic signatures and displayed in the format of day/month year (for example: 30/4/2019) in accordance with provisions of Article 4 of this Circular.

g)  Tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies for electronic invoices with tax identification numbers as specified in Clause 5 Article 3 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

h) Fees and charges for the state budget; trade discounts and promotions (if any) under the provisions at Point d.3 of this Clause and other relevant contents (if any).

2. The words, numbers and currency shown on electronic invoices

a) The words displayed on the invoice shall be Vietnamese. In case additional foreign words are needed, foreign words shall be put in parentheses () or immediately below Vietnamese lines and have a font size smaller than Vietnamese ones. In case the words on the invoice is in Vietnamese without diacritical marks, the unmarked words shall not lead to misunderstanding of the contents of the invoice.

b) The numbers displayed on the invoice shall be the Arabic numerals: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. If the sellers use a dot (.) as separator for groups of thousands, they shall use a comma (,) as decimal separator and vice versa on accounting documents.

c) The currency in the invoice is VND with the national currency sign as "đ".

- In case of economic and financial operations arising in foreign currencies according to the provisions of law provisions on foreign exchange, the unit price, the total amount, the total amount of value added tax on each tax rate, total amount of value added tax and total payment shall be displayed in the original currency. The seller shall also show exchange rate between the original currency with VND on the invoice according to the exchange rates specified in the Law on Tax Administration and its guiding documents.

-  Currency Code according to international standards (for example: 13,800.25 USD - Thirteen thousand eight hundred US dollars and twenty-five cents, 5,000 EUR - Five thousand euros).

- In case goods are sold in foreign currencies in accordance with law provisions on foreign exchange and tax is paid in foreign currencies, the total amount of payment shown in the invoice shall displayed in the original currency instead of VND.

3. The cases in which invoices shall not necessarily contain all the contents

a) The electronic invoice shall not necessarily display the electronic signature of the buyer (including the case of electronic invoicing for selling goods or providing services to customers in foreign countries). In case the buyer is a business establishment and the buyer and seller agree upon the buyer s satisfaction of the technical conditions for making digital and electronic signatures on an electronic invoice made by the seller, the electronic invoice shall have digital or electronic signatures of the seller and the buyer under agreement between the two parties.

b) Electronic sales invoices at supermarkets or shopping malls whose buyers are non-business individuals shall not necessarily contain the names, addresses and tax identification numbers of the buyers.

c) Electronic invoices of petrol and oil sold to non-business individuals shall not necessarily display invoice name, identification code of invoice, serial number of invoice and number of invoice; name, address, tax identification number of the buyer, electronic signature of the buyer; digital signature or electronic signature of the seller, value added tax rate. The seller shall ensure the electronic invoices to be stored sufficiently for the sale of petrol and oil to customers, who are non-business individuals according to regulations, and to be accessed at the request of competent agencies.

d) Electronic invoices that are stamps, tickets or cards shall not necessarily display electronic signatures or digital signatures of the sellers (except for stamps, tickets and cards which are electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies), criteria of buyers (name, address, tax identification number), tax amount, value added tax rate. Electronic stamps, tickets and cards with printed denominations shall not necessarily display the unit, quantity and unit price.

e) Electronic vouchers of air transport services generated via websites and e-commerce systems in accordance with international practices for non-business individual buyers, which are determined as electronic invoices, shall not necessarily display identification codes of invoice, serial numbers of invoice and numbers of invoice, value added tax rates, tax identification numbers, buyer addresses, digital signatures and electronic signatures of the sellers.

In case a business organization or a non-business organization buys air transport services, electronic vouchers of air transport services generated via websites and e-commerce systems in accordance with international practices for non-business individual buyers and determined as electronic invoices shall not be determined as electronic invoices. Enterprises or agents providing air transport services shall make electronic invoices with all the specified details for organizations and individuals using air transport services.

f) Invoices of construction and installation services or residential building for sale with contract payment schedules shall not necessarily display the unit, quantity and unit price.

g) Electronic delivery notes cum bills of lading shall not display names of shippers, means of transport, addresses of source warehouses and addresses of destination warehouses receipts instead of the criteria of buyers, tax amount, tax rate and total payment.

h) Invoices of Interline booking between airlines in accordance with the regulations of the International Air Transport Association shall not necessarily display the following criteria: serial numbers of invoice, identification numbers of invoice, addresses, tax identification numbers of the buyers, electronic signatures of the buyers, unit, quantity and unit price.

4. Other contents on electronic invoices

a) Apart from other contents as guided in Clause 1 and Clause 3 of this Article, enterprises, organizations, households and individuals shall create additional information, including their logos, identification symbols, trademarks or brands,... Depending on the characteristics and nature of transactions and management requirements, the invoice shall show information about the sales contract, shipping orders, customer code and other information.

b) Delivery notes cum bills of lading shall show information of the transfer order, the consignees, the stock keepers, the addresses of source warehouses and the destination warehouses shall include:

- Name of the stock keeper and Transfer order.

- Address of the source warehouse, Name of the shipper and Mean of transport.

- Name of the consignee

- Address of the destination warehouse.

5. Some types of invoices attached to Appendix 1 issued together with this Circular shall be for reference only.

6. For VAT invoices cum tax refund declarations shall comply with the guidance of the Ministry of Finance in Circular No. 72/2014/TT-BTC dated May 30, 2014 regulating VAT refund for goods purchased by foreigners and Vietnamese residents overseas departing Vietnam.

Article 4. Time of making electronic invoices

1. The time of making electronic invoices for selling goods, providing services, delivering goods in multiple times or handing over services by single items or in each stage of completion shall be determined according to the provisions of Clauses 1, 2 and 3, Article 7 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. The time of making electronic invoices for other cases shall be guided as follows:

a) The time of making electronic invoices for electricity, water, telecommunications services, television services, information technology services  provided in particular periods of time is within seven (7) days from the date the electricity or water consumption recorded on the meters or the end of the conventional periods of providing television and information technology services. The conventional period shall be used as a basis for calculating the quantity of goods and services under the agreement between the telecommunications, television or information technology service provider and the buyer.

b) The time of making electronic invoices for construction and installation is the time of acceptance or handover of works, work items, construction and installation volumes, regardless of the payment is made or not.

c) For organizations dealing in real estate, infrastructure construction or residential building for sale or transfer:

c.1) In case the ownership or use rights have not been transferred yet: If the payment is made according to the project implementation schedule or the payment schedule specified in the contract, the time of making electronic invoice is the date of payment or the date as agreed in the contractual payment agreement.

c.2) In case the ownership or use rights have been transferred: The time of making electronic invoices shall comply with Clause 1 of this Article.

d) The time of making electronic invoices for cases of purchasing air transport services via websites and e-commerce systems shall comply with international practices with a maximum of five (5) days from the date the air transport service vouchers generated on the websites and e-commerce systems.

3. For activities of prospecting and exploring crude oil, condensate and natural gas, associated petroleum gas and coal gas, the time of making invoices for selling crude oil, condensate, natural gas and processed petroleum shall comply with provisions of Clauses 1 and 3, Article 7 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, regardless of the payment is made or not.

Article 5. Format of electronic invoices

1. Electronic invoice format is a technical standard that defines the data type and data length of information fields for receipt, storage and display of electronic invoices. Extensible Markup Language (XML) shall be used for electronic invoice formatting.

2. The electronic invoice format consists of two components: the component containing professional data of electronic invoice and the component containing data of digital signature. Electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall include additional components containing data related to the tax identification numbers.

3. The General Department of Taxation shall formulate and publicize the components containing professional data of electronic invoice, the components containing data of digital signature as well as provide tools to display the contents of electronic invoices according to the provisions of this Circular.

4. Organizations and enterprises selling goods or providing services, on directly transmitting data to tax agencies, shall meet the following requirements:

a) Being connected with General Department of Taxation via leased communication channel or MPLS VPN Layer 3, including 1 main communication channel and 1 alternative communication channel. Each channel shall have a minimum bandwidth of 5 Mbps.

b) Using encrypted Web Service or Message Queue (MQ) as connection method.

c) Using SOAP protocol to encapsulate and transmit data.

5. The contents of electronic invoices shall be displayed fully and accurately to avoid misunderstandings and the buyers can read them via electronic devices.

Article 6. Application of electronic invoices for selling goods or providing services

1. Cases of using electronic invoices with or without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall comply with Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 of Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

In case of using electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies according to Clause 2, Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, the fields of electricity, petroleum, post and telecommunication, air, road, rail, sea and waterway transportation, clean water supplying, credit and financing, insurance, medical, e-commerce business, supermarket business and trade shall be determined as level 4 economic fields according to the List of national economic system issued together with the Prime Minister s Decision No. 27/2018/QD-TTg dated June 7, 2018, in which e-commerce business shall be identified by retail codes for online purchases via the Internet, supermarket business shall be identified by retail codes for purchases from supermarkets or convenience stores, and commercial business shall be identified by the wholesale and retail codes of each category of goods.

2. Cases of using electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies generated from cash registers connected to electronic data transmission to tax agencies:

a) Enterprises and organizations mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article, who register to use electronic invoices connected to cash registers.

b) Business households and individuals specified in Clause 5, Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

3. The application of electronic invoices to cases with high tax-related risks shall be conducted as follows:

a) Sellers of goods or services with high tax-related risks as specified in Point b of this Clause shall use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies, regardless of the difference in value of goods or services in each time of transaction.

b) Enterprises with high tax-related risk are those with an equity of less than VND 15 billion and one of the following signs:

b.1) Having no right to own or lawfully use the following facilities: factory; workshop; warehouse; means of transportation; stores and other facilities.

b.2) Doing business in exploiting soil, stone, sand and gravel.

b.3) Having suspicious banking transactions according to law provisions on prevention of money laundering.

b.4) Earning revenue from the sale of goods or services to other enterprises whose owners are their parents, spouses or siblings; or have cross-ownership of over 50% of total business revenue on the corporate income tax declarations in the accounting year.

b.5) ​​Failing to declare tax as specified: Failing to submit tax declaration or submitting tax declaration after 90 days from the deadline for submitting tax declaration or from the commencement date of business operation specified in business registration certificates; suspending business in a longer time than the time of temporary business suspension notified to tax agencies and being discovered by the tax agencies as still conducting production and business without tax declaration; stopping business activities at the registered address without declaration to tax agencies or being  unidentified by the tax agencies of permanent or temporary residence of the legal representatives or business owners.

b.6) Using the electronic invoices with change of business address at least 2 times within 12 months without specified declaration and tax payment at the new registered place according to law provisions.

b.7) Buying invoices from the tax agencies (implementing the Decision “on the use of invoices issued by tax agencies of high-risk enterprises") and being requested by the tax agencies to use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued the tax agencies.

b.8) Within 01 year from the time of assessment:

- Having decisions issued by tax agencies on sanctioning administrative violations related to the use of illegal invoices and illegal use of invoices leading to tax evasion, tax fraud, delayed tax payment and understatement of tax obligations and being imposed with a fine of VND 20 million or more;

- Being sanctioned twice a year by tax agencies on administrative violations related to invoices with a total fine of at least VND 8 million;

- Being sanctioned 3 times a year by tax agencies on administrative violations related to invoices.

c) The General Department of Taxation shall formulate and promulgate risk criteria or submit them to competent authorities for promulgation according to their competence; building business processes and information technology application systems uniformly applied throughout the country to assess and identify cases with signs of risk in the issuance and use of invoices.

d) The direct tax administration agencies (Department of Taxation, Sub-department of taxation) shall be responsible for notifying enterprises and economic organizations of high tax-related risks (Form No. 07 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) to use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies.

e) Enterprises and economic organizations of high tax-related risks shall use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies in 12 consecutive months of operation. After a period of 12 months, if such enterprises and economic organizations are determined to be risk-free by tax agencies, meet the conditions of using electronic invoices without tax identification numbers and want to use electronic invoices without with tax identification numbers, they shall register to the tax agencies in accordance with provisions of Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

4. Guidelines for the issuance and declaration of tax obligations in case tax agencies issue electronic invoices with tax identification numbers for each arising time.

a) Type of invoice issued by each arising time

a.1) Electronic invoices with the tax identification numbers of the tax agencies issued by each arising time are sales invoices in the following cases:

- Business households and individuals specified in Clause 6, Article 12 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP;

- Non-business organizations with goods and service provision transactions;

- Dissolved or bankrupted enterprises with invalidated tax identification numbers and arising liquidation of assets which require invoices to be delivered to the buyers;

- Enterprises, economic organizations, business households and individuals that directly pay value added tax in the following cases:

+ Stopping business activities but not yet completing procedures for invalidation of tax identification numbers with arising liquidation of assets which require invoices to be delivered to buyers;

+ Suspending business operation but requiring invoices for customers to perform the contracts signed before the suspension date of business notified by the tax agencies;

+ Being compelled not to use electronic invoices by notices of tax agencies.

a.2) Electronic invoices with the tax identification numbers of the tax agencies issued by each arising time are VAT invoices in the following cases:

- Enterprises, economic organizations and other organizations that are liable to pay value-added tax by deduction in the following cases:

+ Stopping business activities but not yet completing procedures for invalidation of tax identification numbers with arising liquidation of assets which require invoices to be delivered to buyers;

+ Suspending business operation but requiring invoices for customers to perform the contracts signed before the suspension date of business notified by the tax agencies;

+ Being compelled not to use electronic invoices by notices of tax agencies.

- For state organizations and agencies with property auction that are not liable to pay value-added tax by deduction, in case the winning price is the selling price with value-added tax clearly stated in auction documents approved by competent authorities, VAT invoices shall be issued to buyers.

b) Enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals that are granted electronic invoices with tax identification numbers of tax agencies by each arising time  shall send applications for issuance of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers of tax agencies (Form No. 06 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) to the tax agencies and access the electronic invoicing system of the tax agencies to make electronic invoices.

After the enterprises, organizations or individuals have fully declared and paid value added tax, personal income tax, corporate income tax and other taxes and fees (if any) in accordance with law provisions, the tax agencies shall issue tax identification numbers on the electronic invoices made by enterprises, organizations or individuals.

Enterprises, organizations or individuals shall be solely responsible for the accuracy of the information on electronic invoices with tax identification numbers of tax agencies by each arising time.

c) Determining the tax agency that issues the electronic invoice with the tax identification number by each arising time.

c.1) For organizations and enterprises: The tax agency that manages the area where the organization or enterprise registers its tax identification number or the place where the organization’s headquartered locates or the place stated in the establishment decision or the place where  goods sale and service provision arise.

c.2) For business households and individuals:

- For business households and individuals that have fixed business locations: Business households and individuals shall submit an application for electronic invoice with the tax identification number of the tax agency by each arising time at the Sub-department of taxation in the places where business households and individuals conduct business activities.

- For business households and individuals that do not have a fixed business location: Business households and individuals shall submit an application for electronic invoice with the tax identification number of the tax agency by each arising time at the Sub-department of Taxation in the place where the individuals reside or the place where households and individuals register their business.

5. The application of electronic invoices and electronic delivery note cum bill of lading in some specific cases according to management requirements shall be conducted as follows:

a) In case of entrusted import of goods, if the business establishment entrusted to import goods has paid value added tax at the import stage, the electronic invoice shall be used for delivering goods to the entrusted importer. If the value added tax is not paid at the import stage, when delivering the entrusted import goods, the business establishment entrusted to import goods shall make an electronic delivery note cum bill of lading as the voucher for goods circulation on the market.

b) In case of entrusted export of goods:

- When delivering goods to the entrusted establishment, the establishment which has goods for entrusted export shall use electronic delivery note cum bill of lading.

- When the goods have been actually exported and certified by the customs authority, based on the certificates of quantity and value of actually exported goods of the business establishments entrusted for export, the entrusted exporter shall make electronic VAT invoices for VAT payment or refund declaration or electronic sales invoices. Establishments entrusted for export shall issue electronic VAT invoices or electronic sales invoices to foreign customers.

c) Business establishments having exported goods and services (including establishments processing export goods) when exporting goods or services shall use electronic VAT invoices or electronic sales invoices.

When conducting goods issue and transport to the border gates or to the place where export procedures are carried out, the establishments shall use the electronic delivery note cum bill of lading as specified as a voucher for goods circulation on the market. After completing the procedures for exporting goods, the establishments shall make VAT invoices or sales invoices for the exported goods.

d) Business organizations that declare and pay value-added tax by the deduction of goods transfer to dependent accounting establishments such as branches and stores in other localities (provinces and municipalities) to sell or transfer between branches and dependent units or  transfer to other business establishment acting as sale agents selling goods at fixed prices to enjoy commissions, based on the method of business organization and accounting, the business establishments shall choose one of two ways to use invoices and documents as follows:

- Using electronic VAT invoices as grounds for payment and declaration of VAT at each independent unit and stage;

- Using electronic delivery notes cum bills of lading for goods transferred to agents.

In case dependent units of agricultural, forestry and fishery business establishments have registered and made value-added tax declaration and payment by deduction, while purchasing agricultural, forestry and fishery goods with the aim of transferring or selling to the headquarters of the business establishments, such dependent units shall use electronic delivery notes cum bills of lading instead of electronic VAT invoices for the transfer or sale of goods.

e) Organizations and individuals shall use the electronic delivery notes cum bills of lading as specified for delivering semi-mobile goods and electronic invoices as specified for selling goods.

f) Organizations or individuals doing business in Vietnam contributing assets as capital to establish enterprises shall not make invoices and use vouchers of capital contribution certificates, asset delivery and receipt notes, property valuation reports enclosed with records on asset origins.

g) In case of transfer of assets among dependent cost-accounting member units or transfer of assets on separation, amalgamation, merger or transformation of the enterprises, the organizations having the transferred assets shall have property transfer orders enclosed with records on asset origins without making invoices.

h) In case of transfer of assets among independent accounting units or among member units with sufficient legal status, the organizations having transferred assets shall make electronic invoices as for selling goods.

Article 7. Provision of electronic invoice services

1. Fee-free provision of electronic invoice services with tax identification numbers of the tax agencies shall comply with Article 13 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. For the cases specified at Points d and d, Clause 1, Article 13 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, the General Department of Taxation shall report to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and decision.

Chapter II
MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES

Section 1
MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES WITH TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS ISSUED BY TAX AGENCIES

Article 8. Registration for use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies

1. The registration for use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall comply with Article 14 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. The web portal of the General Department of Taxation shall send notices in accordance with Article 14 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP to enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals via email addresses registered with the tax agencies.

3. The cancellation of unused paper invoices (if any) and termination of using invoices which have been already announced to be issued shall comply with the provisions of Decree No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010 and Decree No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government providing regulations on invoices for selling goodsand providing services and the guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance.

Article 9.Termination of using electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies

1. Tax agencies shall stop granting electronic invoices in the following cases:

a) The cases specified at Points a, b, c, d, Clause 1, Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP;

b) The cases specified at Point dd, Clause 1, Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP as follows:

- Acts of using electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies to sell smuggled goods, prohibited goods, counterfeit goods, and goods infringing intellectual property rights, which are detected and notified by competent agencies tax agencies;

- Acts of making electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies for the purpose of fake selling goods or fake providing services to appropriate money of organizations and individuals, which are detected and notified by functional agencies to the tax agencies;

- The cases in which business registration agencies or competent state agencies requests enterprises to suspend their conditional business lines when the enterprises do not meet business conditions as specified in the laws. Based on the inspection and examination results, if tax agencies determine that enterprises are set up for the purpose of trading, using illegal electronic invoices or illegally using electronic invoices, the administrative violations of such enterprises shall be sanctioned according to regulations and the tax agencies shall issue decisions for such enterprises to stop using electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies.

2. The continued use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies for enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article shall comply with the provisions of Clause 2 Article 15 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

3. In case enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals suspend their business activities but need electronic invoices to be delivered to buyers for the performance of contracts signed before the tax agencies issue notices of business suspension, they shall use electronic invoices for each arising time according to the instructions in Clause 4, Article 6 of this Circular.

Article 10. The making and issuance of tax identification numbers and the sending of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies

The making and issuance of codes and sending of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall comply with Article 16 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Article 11. Handling of erroneous electronic invoices after issuing tax identification numbers

1. In case the sellers detect mistakes on the electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies and has not sent them to the buyers, the sellers shall make a notice attached with their digital signatures or electronical signatures to the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) for canceling electronic invoices with erroneous tax identification numbers and making new replacement electronic invoices for the buyers. The tax agencies shall cancel the erroneously issued electronic invoices saved on the tax agencies systems.

2. In case erroneous electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies have been sent to buyers, they shall be handled as follows:

a) In case the name and address of the buyer are erroneous but the tax identification number and other contents are genuine, the seller shall notify the buyer of the erroneousness and make a notice to tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) without making electronic invoices;

b) In case the tax identification number, the amount of money, the amount of tax and the tax rate displayed on the invoice are erroneous or the goods on the invoice are not in accordance with the specifications and quality, the seller and the buyer shall make a written agreement specifying the erroneousness and the seller shall make a notice to the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) for canceling electronic invoices and making new replacement electronic invoices for the erroneous invoices. After receiving the notice, the tax agencies shall cancel the erroneously issued electronic invoices stored on the tax agencies’ systems. A new electronic invoice that replaces the erroneously issued electronic invoice shall contain the lines "This invoice replaces the invoice with … (invoice identification code), … (invoice serial number), ... (invoice number) issued on …(date)". The sellers shall attach their digital or electronic signatures on the new electronic invoices and send them to the tax agencies for issuance of new tax identification numbers.

3. In case the tax agency detects that an electronic invoice has been erroneously issued, the tax agency shall notify the seller (Form No. 05 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) to check the errors. Within 02 days from the date of receiving the tax agency s notice, the seller shall make a notice attached with their digital signatures or electronic signatures to the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) for canceling electronic invoices with erroneous tax identification numbers and making new replacement electronic invoices for the buyers according to Clause 1 or Clause 2 of this Article. If the seller fails to notify the tax agency, the tax agency shall continue to notify the seller of the errors on the issued invoice so that the seller can make adjustments or cancel the invoice.

4. Tax agencies shall notify the sellers on the receipt and results of handling of errors (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP). Canceled electronic invoices shall not be valid for use but they shall be stored for reference.

Article 12. Handling of incidents

1. In case the tax identification number granting systems of the tax agencies encounter problems, the General Department of Taxation shall apply technical solutions and use backup systems instead. The General Department of Taxation shall notify about the problems on its web portal.

2. In case there are problems with the technical infrastructure system of the organizations providing electronic invoice services, such organizations shall notify the sellers and ask the General Department of Taxation for timely assistance. The organizations providing electronic invoice services shall solve the problem as quickly as possible and take measures to support the sellers to make electronic invoices to send the tax identification number granting agencies in the shortest time.

3. In case individuals selling goods or providing services using electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies encounter problems, leading to the inability to use such invoices, they shall ask the tax agencies for troubleshooting assistance. During the handling of incidents, goods sellers or service providers who need to use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall directly use electronic invoices at the tax agencies.

Section 2
MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICES WITHOUT TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS ISSUED BY TAX AGENCIES

Article 13. Registration for use of electronic invoices without tax identification numbers

1. The registration for use of electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall comply with Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. The web portal of General Department of Taxation shall send notices as specified in Article 20 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP to enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals via email addresses registered with the tax agencies.

3. The cancellation of unused paper invoices (if any) and termination of using invoices which have been already announced to be issued shall comply with the provisions of Decree No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010 and Decree No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government providing regulations on invoices for selling goodsand providing services and the guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance.

4. Enterprises and economic organizations falling into the cases of applying electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall register to use electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies according to the provisions of Article 14 of the Decree. No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Article 14. Making and sending of electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies to buyers

The making and sending of electronic invoices without tax identification numbers of the tax agencies to the buyers shall comply with Article 21 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Article 15. Termination of using electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies

1.  The goods sellers or service providers which are enterprises or economic organizations falling into the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 9 of this Circular shall not make electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies to deliver to buyers.

2. The continued use of electronic invoices without tax identification numbers of the tax agencies shall comply with Clause 2, Article 22 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Article 16. Transmission of electronic invoice data to tax agencies

1. Persons who sell goods or provide services using electronic invoices without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies shall transfer the data of the electronic invoices made by them to tax agencies via the web portal of General Department of Taxation (delivered directly or via an electronic invoice service provider).

2. Methods and time for transferring electronic invoice data

a) Transferring electronic invoice data as in the Summary of electronic invoice data (in Appendix 2 issued together with this Circular) at the same time of submitting VAT declaration records in the following cases:

- Providing services in the fields of post and telecommunications, insurance, banking and finance, air transport.

- Selling goods of electricity and clean water with information on customer codes or tax identification numbers of consumers.

- Selling goods or providing services to individual consumers with invoices unnecessarily displayed the name and address of the buyers according to Clause 3, Article 3 of this Circular.

- Particularly, in case of selling petrol and oil to non-business individuals, the seller shall sum up daily and display the data of all sales invoices to non-business consumers for each category of goods on the summary of electronic invoice data.

Sellers shall make summaries of electronic invoice data of goods and services arising in the month/quarter (from the first day of the month/quarter to the last day of the month/quarter) as in Appendix 2 issued together with this Circular and send them to the tax agencies at the same time of submitting VAT declarations according to provisions of the Law on Tax Administration and its guiding documents.

In case of arising a large number of invoices, the sellers shall make various data summaries, on each summary showing the ordinal numbers of the summaries in the period of data summary.

After the deadline for transferring invoice data to the tax agencies, the sellers shall send summaries of additional electronic invoice data in case of insufficient invoice data to the tax agencies.

In case erroneous summaries of invoice data are sent to the tax agencies, the sellers shall send the adjustments for the declared information.

b) Transferring full contents of invoice shall apply to other cases of selling goods or providing services which are not specified at Point a of this Clause.

The sellers, after filling all the contents on the invoices, shall send the invoices to the buyers and the tax agencies at the same time.

3. The sellers shall transfer the electronic invoice data to the tax agencies with data format as specified in Article 5 of this Circular and instructions of the General Department of Taxation directly (in case of meeting the data connection standards) or via an electronic invoice service provider.

a) Direct transfer

- The General Department of Taxation shall select among enterprises using large quantities of invoices and having information technology systems meeting the requirements on standardized data format and the provisions of Clause 4, Article 5 of this Circular and wishing to directly transfer electronic invoice data to the tax agencies and notify the chosen ones about the qualification for technical connections of invoice data transfer.

- In case of parent-subsidiary enterprises or business organizations with centralized management systems of invoice data at the parent companies and wishing to transfer all electronic invoice data at the parent companies, including data of subsidiaries, to the tax agencies via the web portal of the General Department of Taxation, they shall send the lists of subsidiaries to the General Department of Taxation together with the request for making technical connections.

b) Transfer via an electronic invoice service provider

Enterprises and other economic organizations not falling into the case mentioned at Point a of this Clause shall sign service contracts with electronic invoice service providers for the transfer of electronic invoice data to the tax agencies. Based on the signed contracts, enterprises and economic organizations shall transfer their electronic invoice data to electronic invoice service providers and then the service providers shall transfer such data to the tax agencies.

4. In case the General Department of Taxation s web portal fails to receive electronic invoice data without identification codes, the General Department of Taxation shall notify the issue on the web portal. In this situation, the organizations and enterprises mentioned at Point a, Clause 3 of this Article and the electronic invoice service providers temporarily shall not transferred the invoice data without identification codes to the tax agencies.

Within 2 working days after the General Department of Taxation issues a notice that the web portal of the General Department of Taxation resumes its operation, the organizations or enterprises mentioned at Point a, Clause 3 of this Article and the electronic invoice service providers shall continue to transfer invoice data to the tax agencies. The unpunctual transfer of electronic invoice data after the web portal of General Department of Taxation encounters technical errors shall not be consider as delayed transfer.

5. The sellers shall take legal accountability for the legality and accuracy of the electronic invoices transferred to the tax agency and the electronic invoice service providers.

Article 17. Handling of erroneous electronic invoices without codes issued by tax agencies

1. In case erroneous electronic invoices without codes issued by tax agencies has been sent to the purchaser with errors detected, they shall be handled as follows:

a) In case the name and address of the buyers are erroneous, but the tax identification number and other contents are genuine, the sellers shall notify the buyers of the erroneous and such invoices shall not be replaced. In case electronic invoice data has been sent to the tax agencies, the sellers shall notify the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP).

b) In case the tax identification number, the amount of money, the amount of tax and the tax rate displayed on the invoice are erroneous or the goods on the invoice are not in accordance with the specifications and quality, the sellers shall make new replacement electronic invoices for the erroneous invoices. A new electronic invoice that replaces the erroneously issued electronic invoice shall contain the lines "This invoice replaces the invoice with … (invoice identification code) … (invoice serial number) ... (invoice number) issued on … (date)". The sellers shall attach their digital or electronic signatures on the new electronic invoices and send them to the buyers. In case the erroneous electronic invoice data has been sent to the tax agencies, the sellers shall notify the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) and submit new electronic invoice data with the method and in the time as specified in Article 16 of this Circular.

2. In case the tax agency, after receiving the electronic invoice date, detects errors on the issued electronic invoice, the tax agency shall notify the seller (Form No. 05 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) to check the errors. Within 02 days from the date of receiving the tax agency s notice, the seller shall make a notice to the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) for canceling erroneous electronic invoices (if any). If the sellers cancelled the issued electronic invoices, they shall make new electronic invoices and send the new electronic invoice data to the tax agencies. If the seller fails to notify the tax agency, the tax agency shall continue to notify the seller of the errors on the issued invoice so that the seller can make adjustments or cancel the invoice.

3. Tax agencies shall notify the sellers on the receipt and results of handling of errors (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP). Canceled electronic invoices shall not be valid for use but they shall be stored for reference.

Chapter III
BUILDING, MANAGEMENT AND USE OF ELECTRONIC INVOICE DATABASE

Article 18. Principles of elaboration, collection, management, exploitation and use of electronic invoice information and data

1. The electronic invoice information system shall be built and uniformly managed from the central to local levels; comply with information technology standards and regulations.

2. The database of electronic invoices shall ensure timely service for tax administration and other state governance; meeting socio-economic development requirements; ensuring safety, confidentiality and national security.

3. Information and data on electronic invoices shall be collected, updated, maintained, exploited and used regularly; ensuring accuracy, honesty and objectivity.

4. The elaboration, management, exploitation, use and update of invoice database shall use scientific methods to ensure accuracy, objectivity and timeliness.

5. The electronic invoice database shall be elaborated, connected and shared in an electronic environment for convenient and efficient management, exploitation, provision and use of information and data.

6. The electronic invoice information and data shall be exploited and used for the right purposes and shall comply with law provisions.

7. The database of electronic invoices shall be connected and exploited according to the regulations on coordination and information exchange with the information systems and databases of the concerned ministries, branches and localities, between central and provincial levels, between provincial and district levels (if conditions are met).

Article 19. Building of information technology technical infrastructure and software systems serving the management, operation and exploitation of the electronic invoice information system

1. Electronic invoice information technology technical infrastructure is a combination of computing equipment (servers, workstations), transmission systems, network-connected devices, network security and database safety devices (or software), storage devices, peripherals and auxiliary equipment, intranets.

2. Software system for managing, operating and exploiting the electronic invoice information system shall include operating systems, database management systems and software applications.

Article 20. Building, collecting, processing and managing the invoice information systems

1. Building electronic invoice information systems

a) Electronic invoice database is a collection of electronic invoice data organized, accessed, exploited, managed and updated via electronic devices.

b) The electronic invoice database shall be built by the General Department of Taxation in accordance with the Vietnam e-government framework, including the following contents: registration for use of information, notice of invoice cancellation, information about electronic invoices which sellers are responsible for sending to the tax agencies; information on VAT declaration related to electronic invoices.

2. Collecting and updating information on electronic invoices

Information about invoices is collected from the information that sellers are responsible for sending to the tax agencies, information from other agencies related to electronic invoices, information obtained from tax administration activities of tax agencies.

3. Processing information on electronic invoices

The General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for processing information and data before integrating and storing them into national databases to ensure the rationality and consistency. Processing information and data means:

a) Examining and evaluating the compliance with regulations and procedures in collecting information and data;

b) Checking and assessing the legal basis and the reliability of information and data;

c) Summarizing, organizing and classifying information and data in accordance with the specified contents;

d) For information and data updated from the specialized database, the specialized database management agencies shall be responsible for the accuracy of the information and data.

4. Managing the electronic invoice information system

The General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for managing the electronic invoice information system as follows:

a) Establishing, managing, operating and exploiting the electronic invoice information system and providing necessary public services on electronic invoices;

b) Integrating survey results into data and information related to electronic invoices provided by relevant ministries and agencies;

c) Instructing, inspecting and supervising the management and operation of electronic invoice information system at local tax agencies;

d) Elaborating and promulgating regulations on decentralization of access to electronic invoice information system; managing the connection, sharing and provision of data with databases of ministries, branches, central and local agencies;

d) Assuming the prime responsibility and cooperating with relevant units to develop software for the electronic invoice information system.

Article 21. Responsibilities for sharing and connecting information and data

1. Responsibilities for sharing and connecting information and data of electronic invoices shall comply with Article 26 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. The provision of electronic invoice data and the provision of electronic data on payment transactions via accounts shall meet the standardized data format according to the principles guided in Article 5 of this Circular.

Article 22. Lookup, supplying and using electronic invoice information

The lookup, provision and use of electronic invoice information shall comply with Articles 27, 28 and 29 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Chapter IV
ELECTRONIC INVOICE SERVICE PROVIDERS

Article 23. Conditions of electronic invoice service providers

1. Organizations providing electronic invoice services shall meet the following conditions:

a) In terms of capability: Experienced in developing information technology solutions and electronic data exchange solutions between organizations, in which:

- Having at least 05 years of experience in the field of information technology.

- Having implemented information technology systems and applications for at least 10 organizations.

- Having implemented the electronic data exchange system between branches of the enterprise or between organizations.

b) In terms of finance: Having a fund of over VND 5 billion guaranteed by credit institutions lawfully operating in Vietnam to deal with possible risks and compensations arising in the time of providing services.

c) In terms of personnel:

- Having at least 20 university-level technical employees specialized in information technology, including employees with practical experience in network administration and database administration.

- Having technical employees who regularly monitor and check 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to maintain the stable operation of the electronic data exchange system and support users of electronic invoice services.

d) In terms of technology:

- Having a system of equipment, techniques, and data backup process at the main data center as specified in Item d, Clause 1, Article 32 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

- Having a backup system of equipment and techniques located in the backup center away from the main data center at least 20km, which can be ready when the main system crashed.

- Connecting and exchanging electronic invoice data with tax agencies shall meet the following requirements:

+ Connecting with the tax agencies through a private leased communication channel or MPLS VPN Layer 3, including 1 main channel and 2 backup channels. Each channel shall have a minimum bandwidth of 10 Mbps.

+ Using encrypted Web Service or Message Queue (MQ) as connection method.

+ Using SOAP protocol to pack and transmit data

2. The guidance in Clause 1 of this Article shall apply to organizations providing electronic invoice data transmission and receipt services, service providers for electronic invoices with and without tax identification numbers of tax agencies.

Article 24. Selection of electronic invoice service providers

The General Department of Taxation shall, based on the provisions of Article 23 of this Circular, sign contracts on providing electronic invoice services in the procedures specified in Article 25 of this Circular to organizations operating in the field of information technology meeting the conditions.

Article 25. Procedures for signing electronic invoice service contracts

The signing of electronic invoice service contracts between the General Department of Taxation and the organizations providing electronic invoice services shall comply with Clause 3, Article 32 of the Government’s Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

Chapter V
PROVISIONS OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 26. Effect

1. This Circular takes effect on November 14, 2019.

2. From the effective date of this Circular to October 31, 2020, the following documents of the Ministry of Finance are still effective:

a) Circular No. 32/2011/TT-BTC dated 14 March 2011 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the creation, issuance and use of electronic invoices for selling goods and providing services;

b) Circular No. 191/2010/TT-BTC dated December 1, 2010 guiding the management and use of transport invoices;

c) Circular No. 39/2014/TT-BTC dated 31 March 2014 of the Ministry of Finance (amended and supplemented by Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014 and Circular No. 26/2015/TT-BTC dated February 27, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance);

d) Decision No. 1209/QD-BTC dated June 23, 2015 of the Minister of Finance on the pilot use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies, Decision No. 526/QD-BTC dated April 16, 2018 of the Minister of Finance on expanding the scope of pilot use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies.

e) Decision No. 2660/QD-BTC dated December 14, 2016 of the Minister of Finance on extending the term for implementing Decision No. 1209/QD-BTC dated June 23, 2015;

f) Circular No. 37/2017/TT-BTC dated April 27, 2017 of the Ministry of Finance amending and supplementing Circular No. 39/2014/TT-BTC dated March 31, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance (amended and supplemented by Circular No. 119/2014/TT-BTC dated August 25, 2014 and Circular No. 26/2015/TT-BTC dated February 27, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance).

3. From November 1, 2020, enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals shall register for using electronic invoice under the guidance in this Circular.

4. From November 1, 2020, the Circulars and Decisions of the Ministry of Finance mentioned, in Clause 2 of this Article will be invalid.

Article 27. Transitional provisions

1. Handling of transitional cases shall comply with Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4, Article 36 of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP.

2. From November 1, 2018 to October 31, 2020, to prepare information technology facilities and infrastructure for the purposes of registration, use, lookup and transfer of electronic invoice data in accordance with the provisions of Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP, if tax agencies have not notified enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals on the use of electronic invoices in accordance with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP and the guidance in this Circular, enterprises, economic organizations, other organizations, business households and individuals shall still use invoices according to the provisions of Decree No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 and their guiding documents.

3. Since the enterprises, organizations, individuals, business households and individuals use electronic invoices in accordance with the provisions of this Circular, upon detecting errors on the invoices made in accordance with the provisions of Decree No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government and guiding documents of the Ministry of Finance, the sellers and buyers shall make written agreements specifying the errors and the sellers shall notify the tax agencies (Form No. 04 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) and make new replacement electronic invoices (with or without tax identification numbers of the tax agencies) for the erroneous invoices. A new electronic invoice that replaces the erroneously issued electronic invoice shall contain the lines "This invoice replaces the invoice with … (invoice identification code) … (invoice serial number) ... (invoice number) issued on … (date)". The sellers shall attach their digital or electronic signatures on the new electronic invoices for the erroneous invoices (according to the provisions of Decree No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010, Decree No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 and their guiding documents) and send them to the buyers, and then notify the tax agencies for issuance of new tax identification numbers for the new invoices.

4. For public service providers (public educational institutions and public health facilities) that have been using cash receipts shall continue to use cash receipts. In case the tax agencies issue notices on the use of electronic invoices with tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies but the public service providers (public educational institutions and public health facilities) have not met the conditions for information technology infrastructure, they shall continue to use invoices cum cash receipts as specified in the Decrees: No. 51/2010/ND-CP dated May 14, 2010 and No. 04/2014/ND-CP dated January 17, 2014 of the Government providing regulations on invoices for selling goods and providing services and the invoice data shall be transferred to the tax agencies (Form No. 03 attached in the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 119/2018/ND-CP) at the same time of submitting VAT declarations. In case they have met the conditions for information technology infrastructure, the public service providers (public educational institutions and public health facilities) shall register to use electronic invoices with or without tax identification numbers issued by tax agencies as specified in Articles 8 and 13 of this Circular.

5. In the course of implementation, if any problem arises, organizations and individuals shall promptly report them to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and decision.