A foreign expert’s allowance package usually holds three big items: housing, a car or car service, and international school fees for the children. All three are benefits attached to employment income for personal income tax purposes — the question is not “taxable or not” but “taxable on what value, subject to what cap, and supported by which documents at finalisation”.
Housing: taxable with a 15% cap
Rent paid by the company or a housing allowance paid to the expert both enter taxable income, but the amount counted is capped at no more than 15% of total taxable income (excluding the housing itself) under current personal income tax guidance — companies should reconcile this against the guidance implementing the Law on Personal Income Tax 109/2025/QH15 and Decree 253/2026/ND-CP at each finalisation. In practice, for an expert in expensive housing, part of the rent sits outside taxable income thanks to this cap, but only with a proper lease and valid payment documents in the right party’s name.
School fees and cars: no cap, taxed on actual value
International school fees for the expert’s children, whether the company pays the school directly or reimburses the employee, are the expert’s taxable income at the amount actually paid, with no housing-style cap. A company car provided for the expert’s private use likewise creates taxable income based on the benefit value; a collective shuttle on fixed routes for work purposes is not a personal benefit. The line is drawn by actual use and how the company records it: the same car, shared on a work schedule versus kept for family weekends, produces two different tax outcomes.
Documents and structuring the package
Three principles keep the package clean at finalisation: first, every item carries a contract and bank payment documents (lease, school invoices); second, the employment contract or assignment annex states which items are personal income and which are work tools; third, avoid undocumented “cash lump sums”, which are taxed in full and leave the company unable to prove a deductible cost. Where the company grosses up the expert, the tax computation must detail each benefit, because tax on benefits in kind is itself inside the gross-up equation.
Frequently asked questions
Is a housing allowance for experts subject to PIT?
Yes. Company-paid rent or a housing allowance is taxable income, but the portion counted is capped at 15% of total taxable income excluding the housing itself, under current personal income tax guidance — to be reconciled with the guidance under Law 109/2025/QH15 at finalisation.
Is there a tax-free cap for international school fees?
No housing-style cap applies: school fees the company pays for an expert’s children count in full into the expert’s taxable income at the amount actually paid, whether paid directly to the school or reimbursed to the employee.
What documents does a housing allowance need?
A valid lease, bank payment records or the landlord’s receipts as regulated, and a housing clause in the employment contract or assignment annex. Without documents, the tax authority may deny the 15% cap and tax the whole amount.
Is a company car for an expert taxable?
A shuttle serving work on fixed routes or work schedules is not a personal benefit; a car assigned for the expert’s private use, including outside working hours, creates taxable income based on the actual benefit value.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council