Reforms of tax system in Vietnam in response to International integration commitments until 2020

Abstract

Vietnam’s taxation system has undergone fundamental reforms since the 1990s. Tax reform program of the 2000–2010 period was conducted successfully, putting in place a tax system appropriate to the market economy and necessary legal conditions for accession to the World Trade Organization and international integration. After over 20 years of tax reform, taxation capacity has been improved; raising tax revenue is comparable to economic and structural potentials of tax system. The Vietnamese Prime Minister ratified a tax system reform strategy for 2010–2020 with ambitious target of tax revenue at 23–24% of GDP. The present study finds that raising tax revenue size is of no benefit to economic growth. Therefore, by 2020, Vietnam will have overcome several challenges in the process of tax reform such as broadening the tax base, simplifying the tax administration according to international standards, and harmonizing tax system grounds between ASEAN members.