The 2025–2026 period is the largest overhaul of Vietnam’s tax system in over a decade: nearly every tax an FDI enterprise touches daily has a new law. The question is no longer “is there new policy” but how far the company has reviewed its impact — incentives currently enjoyed, withholding mechanisms and compliance files may all have had their legal basis changed right beneath the accounting function.
The map of key changes affecting FDI
For CIT, the Law on Corporate Income Tax 67/2025/QH15 applies the standard 20% rate and adds 15% and 17% rates for small-revenue enterprises under statutory thresholds — for mid-sized FDI, the item to review is the incentive structure: the new law rewrites incentives by sector and location, and its transitional clause decides how far old-law incentives continue. For tax administration, the Law on Tax Administration 108/2025/QH15, effective from 1 July 2026, changes the framework of declaration, refund and inspection procedures. For VAT, the Law on Value Added Tax 48/2024/QH15, effective from 1 January 2026, together with Decree 181/2025/ND-CP, adjusts the non-taxable list, the 5% rate category and the refund mechanism.
Two specialist changes strike directly at group structures: Decree 255/2026/ND-CP on related-party transactions replaces the old framework, applying from the 2026 CIT period (earlier periods remain under the old framework); and the global minimum tax QDMTT under Resolution 107/2023/QH15 and Decree 236/2025/ND-CP — a Vietnamese constituent entity of a group with consolidated revenue from EUR 750 million must compute top-up tax where its Vietnamese effective rate falls below 15%, even while enjoying incentives. At the transaction layer: contractor tax operates under Circular 20/2026/TT-BTC after the CIT part of Circular 103/2014/TT-BTC was repealed; investment capital accounts move from the DICA mechanism to ICA under Circular 38/2026/TT-NHNN; and PIT runs under Law 109/2025/QH15 with the five-band progressive schedule and new deduction levels from the 2026 tax period.
Compliance actions and the meaning of transition
The action checklist for FDI in the transition period has five items: one, review every incentive enjoyed against the transitional clause of the Law on Corporate Income Tax 67/2025/QH15 — incentives valid under the old law continue for their remaining term under the transition mechanism, but evidence that eligibility conditions remain satisfied must be on file; two, determine the QDMTT position if part of a large group and prepare country-level effective rate data; three, update contractor withholding procedures and forms under Circular 20/2026/TT-BTC, and payroll procedures for the new PIT deductions; four, review capital account registration under the new ICA mechanism before the next capital transactions; five, build an internal effective-date calendar per instrument instead of a single common milestone.
On transition, the principle to remember is that there is no single transitional clause for the whole reform: each law and decree carries its own transitional provision, and the enterprise’s rights and obligations are handled under the transitional clause of the very instrument governing that area. Applying the wrong effective milestone — using the new related-party framework for an earlier tax period, or continuing to cite a repealed contractor framework — is among the most frequently detected error groups in post-reform inspections.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there new tax policies affecting FDI?
Yes — a dense wave of change: the Law on Corporate Income Tax 67/2025/QH15 (20% rate, rewritten incentives, 15%/17% rates for small-revenue enterprises), the Law on Tax Administration 108/2025/QH15 effective 1 July 2026, the Law on Value Added Tax 48/2024/QH15 effective 1 January 2026, Decree 255/2026/ND-CP on related-party transactions, Circular 20/2026/TT-BTC on contractor tax, and the global minimum tax QDMTT under Resolution 107/2023/QH15 and Decree 236/2025/ND-CP.
What must the enterprise do to comply with the new policies?
Review incentives enjoyed under the new laws’ transitional clauses; determine the global minimum tax position if part of a group with consolidated revenue from EUR 750 million; update contractor withholding procedures, forms and payroll for the new PIT deductions; review capital accounts under the ICA mechanism; and build a per-instrument effective-date calendar in the internal compliance file.
Is there a transition period?
Yes, but per instrument: each law and decree in the reform carries its own transitional clause — for example, incentives enjoyed under the old law continue for their remaining term under the transitional clause of the Law on Corporate Income Tax 67/2025/QH15, and the new related-party framework applies from the 2026 CIT period while earlier periods remain under the old framework. There is no common transition milestone; the enterprise must read the transitional clause of the exact instrument governing its issue.
Which channels are reliable for tax policy updates?
Rely on primary sources: instruments published in the Official Gazette and the national legal database, the Government’s electronic portal, and the General Department of Taxation and Ministry of Finance pages for application guidance. Press and blog summaries serve only to spot issues; every compliance decision must be checked against the instrument’s own text and its effectiveness and transitional clauses.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council