Vietnam Fuel Business Inspection Finds Seven Cases of Suspected Criminal Violations
Vietnam’s Government Inspectorate inspected 260 fuel businesses from July 10 to October 5, 2026, and identified seven cases involving suspected criminal violations. It recommended that Ministry of Public Security investigators receive the case files and initiate proceedings under the law. One company allegedly used invoices from shell companies to account for fuel transactions worth tens of trillions of Vietnamese dong.
Inspection findings released by Vietnam’s Government Inspectorate show that, from July 10 to October 5, 2026, inspectors examined 260 fuel businesses, including 23 principal traders and 237 distributors. They identified seven cases involving suspected criminal violations and recommended that Ministry of Public Security investigators receive the case files and initiate proceedings under the law. The inspection also found problems involving business requirements, mandatory reserves, stockpiling, environmental tax declarations and management of the price stabilization fund.
The inspection concluded that fuel trading among principal traders and among distributors was a common cause of several violations. Of the 260 businesses inspected, 253 engaged in such transactions, involving nearly 7,760 deals, about 34 billion liters of fuel and approximately 573.777 trillion Vietnamese dong. Some businesses were accused of using these transactions to trade invoices, evade taxes or trade fuel of unclear origin.
In one case, Công ty TNHH kinh doanh thương mại xăng dầu Thanh Bình allegedly used invoices from 12 shell companies. From January 2024 to June 2026, it used 4,692 input VAT invoices to record purchases of about 2.6 billion liters of fuel worth approximately 42.6 trillion Vietnamese dong, accounting for about 2.8 billion liters of invoiced sales. Inspectors found that none of the 12 companies was qualified to trade fuel or operated at its registered address; related funds passed through multiple accounts. The inspection concluded that the case showed signs of unlawful use of invoices, trading fuel of unclear origin and violations of accounting regulations.
Another case involves Công ty TNHH Đầu tư P.A.S and its four subsidiaries. From July to October 2024, they used 4,187 input invoices from eight shell companies to record purchases of about 150 million liters of fuel worth approximately 3.3 trillion Vietnamese dong. The inspectorate also referred materials concerning four other companies suspected of unlawful use of invoices or violations of accounting regulations to investigators, and requested an investigation into suspected tax evasion by Công ty TNHH MTV Xuất nhập khẩu Hoa Kỳ.
Source: VietVance
