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The General Department of Taxation has just dispatched new guidelines to tax departments in cities and provinces on the new special consumption tax for alcohol and beer products.

From January 1, 2010, a special consumption tax rate of 45 percent has been imposed on spirits, wines and beer. This rate will be increased to 50 percent on January 1, 2013.

The special consumption tax applies to all alcohol products, and will be calculated based on the strength of alcohol. All beer products will be subject to one tax rate.

Alcohol products with a proof content of 20 degrees will be subjected to a 45 percent special consumption tax rate, rising to 50 percent from 2013.

For alcohol products with a proof content of under 20 degrees, the new consumption tax rate will be 25 percent. This new rate has been applied from the beginning of 2010.

The new consumption tax rate will be similarly applied to beer products.
“With these new guidelines, the common special consumption tax rate applied to every beer product from 2010 will be 45 percent and it will be increased to 50 percent in 2013,” said a representative from the Vietnam Alcohol Bear and Beverage Association.

In the past, she added, each kind of beer had different special consumption tax rate. For example, the rate for draught beer was 35 percent while bottled beer was taxed at 40 percent.

The representative said that the new tax rate would affect the beer market, especially bottled beer.

“Consumers will drink bottled beer instead of draught beer, because the price of draught beer will be much more expensive,” she said.

Under the new guidance, the new special consumption tax will be calculated based on the price of alcohol and beer products which have not included value added tax.

Over the last decade, alcohol and beer industry of Vietnam have strongly developed despite the world recession. It has played an important part in the national industrial development.

The industry plans to produce 4.7 billion litres of beer and 540 million litres of spirits in 2015. The numbers are estimated to increase to 6.5 million litres of beer and 680 million litres of spirits by 2020.

Source: VNA