The 2026–2030 phase is not when tax reform begins — most of the big laws were already enacted in the 2024–2026 cycle — but when the new system enters full operation and the remaining fronts open: property tax, carbon pricing, and tax on the digital economy and digital assets. For FDI investors, the value lies not in reading every draft, but in knowing which policy touches their business model directly and which date is an action deadline. This article systematises the 10 policies to track on exactly that logic.
The completion group: enacted laws entering full operation
(1) CIT under Law 67/2025/QH15: guidance continues to be completed, especially strategic-sector incentive criteria and support mechanisms replacing relief under global minimum tax pressure. (2) PIT under Law 109/2025/QH15 applies fully from 1 July 2026 with the 5-bracket scale and guiding decrees on deductions and finalisation — touching HR policy and expatriate pay packages directly. (3) VAT under Law 48/2024/QH15: refunds, invoices and the VND 200 million household business threshold operate stably, with practical adjustments to the non-taxable list. (4) Special consumption tax under Law 66/2025/QH15: the roadmap raising tax on beer, alcohol and tobacco, and the sugary drinks tax from 2027 — consumer sector enterprises must build it into multi-year pricing. (5) Tax administration under Law 108/2025/QH15: electronic transactions by default, data- and risk-based administration — changing how the tax authority selects audit targets.
(6) Transfer pricing and international tax: Decree 255/2026/ND-CP applies from the 2026 tax period, replacing Decree 132/2020, alongside QDMTT operation under Decree 236/2025/ND-CP and rounds of treaty amendment and anti-abuse provisions. This group decides the compliance cost of every multinational group in Vietnam for the whole phase.
The opening group: property, carbon, the digital economy and revenue targets
(7) Property tax on real estate: still at research level within the Tax System Reform Strategy to 2030, with no draft law — but the policy with the largest long-term impact on real estate holding strategy. (8) Environmental protection tax and carbon pricing: revisiting the EPT frame, tied to the carbon market operating officially from 2029 and the EU’s CBAM — high-emission exporters must watch both ends. (9) Digital economy and digital asset tax: completing mechanisms for foreign suppliers and e-commerce platforms (Decree 117/2025/ND-CP opened the way) and crypto-asset tax policy during the pilot under Resolution 05/2025/NQ-CP. (10) Revenue restructuring: the reform strategy targets keeping budget revenue mobilisation at a reasonable level (around 16–17 percent of GDP), raising the domestic revenue share and reducing dependence on crude oil and land revenue — meaning collection pressure gradually shifts onto compliance quality of operating enterprises rather than sudden new tax bases.
Business consultation mechanisms genuinely exist and should genuinely be used: draft tax instruments are posted for public comment, business associations and chambers consolidate sector input, and periodic tax policy dialogues run between the Ministry of Finance, the tax authority and the business community. An FDI enterprise with views on a draft touching its sector should go through the association channel at draft stage — input at this stage has a far higher chance of changing the text than complaints after the law is in force.
Building an internal tax policy alert system
An effective internal alert system for an FDI enterprise has four components: the enterprise’s own watch list (only 10–15 policies touching the business model directly, with an internal owner per item); a fixed quarterly review rhythm tied to the National Assembly’s lawmaking programme and the Government’s issuance plan; pre-set action thresholds per policy (for example: draft posted → comment through the association; law enacted → quantified impact assessment within 30 days; guidance issued → update procedures and systems); and an impact assessment archive per policy so leadership sees the accumulated picture rather than scattered items.
The common mistake is turning policy alerting into news reading: news tells what already happened, while an alert system must say what is about to happen to this specific enterprise and who must do what before which date. For the 10 policies above, most action deadlines sit at the draft and guidance stages — when adjustment costs are lowest.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Which tax laws are in the 2026-2030 amendment roadmap?
Most worth tracking: completion of guidance for CIT Law 67/2025 (strategic incentives, replacement support), full operation of PIT Law 109/2025 from 1 July 2026, practical adjustments to VAT Law 48/2024, the SCT increase roadmap under Law 66/2025 (including sugary drinks from 2027), data-based administration under Tax Administration Law 108/2025, transfer pricing under Decree 255/2026 and QDMTT, plus three opening fronts: property tax (research), carbon pricing/EPT, and digital economy and digital asset tax.
2. What are the budget revenue/GDP target and tax administration modernisation goals?
Under the Tax System Reform Strategy to 2030, the goal is budget mobilisation at a reasonable level of around 16–17 percent of GDP, a higher domestic revenue share, and less dependence on crude oil and land revenue; on administration, comprehensive electronic tax administration based on big data and risk management, lowering compliance costs for compliant taxpayers. The practical consequence is pressure shifting onto compliance quality of operating enterprises.
3. What consultation mechanisms exist for businesses in tax policy making?
Through three official channels: commenting on draft instruments posted publicly on Government and Ministry of Finance portals; through business associations and chambers consolidating sector input; and periodic tax policy dialogue forums with the Ministry of Finance and the tax authority. Input at draft stage carries the most weight in changing the text.
4. How should an enterprise build an internal tax policy alert system?
Four parts: a trimmed watch list by business model (one internal owner per policy); a quarterly review rhythm tied to the legislative programme; pre-set action thresholds per stage (draft → comment; law enacted → impact assessment within 30 days; guidance → process update); and a cumulative impact archive for leadership. Avoid turning the system into a generic news feed.