Ministry rejects Uber’s complaints about tax arrears. (Photo: AFP/VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – The Ministryof Finance rejected the Netherlands-based Uber International Holding BV’scomplaints about the decision to collect 67 billion VND, or nearly 3 millionUSD, in tax arrears in a statement sent to the US-ASEAN Business Council.
Following a request by the US-ASEANBusiness Council, the ministry held a meeting with representatives from the counciland Uber on October 18 to discuss the extra tax collection and how the DoubleTaxation Avoidance Agreement between Vietnam and the Netherlands can be appliedin the case.
After inspecting the tax payments ofUber Vietnam, the HCM City Department of Taxation verified that the taxi firmhas generated income in Vietnam from its ride-hailing services on a network of localpartner drivers. It matches drivers of private vehicles to those seeking taxirides, makes decisions on rates and promotional offers and receives payments offares from the passengers.
Uber earned revenues throughtransportation services provided by its partner drivers, counted as permanentestablishments, in Vietnam for a period of 6 to 12 consecutive months.Therefore, it is subject to the foreign contractor taxes in compliance with thecurrent regulations and the Vietnam-Netherlands Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, the ministrysaid in the statement.
Uber entered Vietnam in June 2014. Since then,tax collection for the ride-hailing service application has remainedcontroversial as this was the first service of its kind in the country,triggering worries about the efficiency in collecting taxes as well as theunfairness to other transport firms in the country.
According to Dang Duy Khanh from the GeneralDepartment of Taxation, Uber’s total revenue from 2014 to June 30 this year wasestimated at more than 2.77 trillion VND (122.1 billion USD) and the firm haspaid approximately 76.9 billion VND (3.38 million USD) in taxes.-VNA
VNA
