Vietnam’s Finance Minister Acknowledges VAT Refund Delays

Vietnam’s Finance Minister Ngô Văn Tuấn acknowledged during a National Assembly question-and-answer session on November 12 that the processing of value-added tax (VAT) refunds had yet to meet requirements. With businesses facing difficulties obtaining financing, refund delays have added to the financial pressure on their operations. VAT refunds currently total about VND 79 trillion, equivalent to 99% of the 2026 refund budget and up more than 40% year on year.

Finance Minister Ngô Văn Tuấn answers questions at the National Assembly on the morning of November 12.（VietVance）

In the first 10 months of 2026, refund claims worth more than VND 10 trillion were also denied because businesses submitted incomplete documents or invoices still needed to be checked. Tax authorities sort claims according to businesses’ compliance and risk levels: about 80% are refunded before inspection, while the remaining 20% require inspection before a refund. Of the former group, about 88% were processed within seven days; the average processing time for the latter has fallen from about 50 days to 40 days.

Illegal invoice trading was another subject of questioning in the National Assembly. Ngô Văn Tuấn said tax authorities had referred nearly 600 business case files involving suspected tax evasion, tax fraud and invoice trading for investigation. The Finance Ministry plans to expand its use of digital technology, work with relevant agencies to verify the identities of people registering businesses, and focus on checking the actual operations of companies and industries deemed high risk.

All refund claims are now received and processed electronically. The Finance Ministry said it would continue refining its business risk classification system and use information technology to make checks more efficient and shorten processing times.

Source: VietVance