Short answer. Company set-up is the beginning of a foreign-owned entity's compliance obligations in Vietnam, not the end. The recurring annual cycle includes a mandatory independent statutory audit for foreign-invested enterprises, due before annual tax finalisation; annual corporate income tax finalisation, generally due within 90 days of financial year-end; ongoing monthly or quarterly VAT and personal income tax withholding filings throughout the year; and, where applicable, business licence renewals for conditional sectors such as retail. Missing any of these is not merely an administrative inconvenience — late or incorrect filings carry statutory penalties and, in the case of a lapsed licence, can interrupt the ability to operate. Treating this as a single annual event rather than a distributed set of monthly, quarterly, and annual obligations is the most common planning mistake among newly established foreign-owned companies.
The annual cycle: audit and tax finalisation
Foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam are subject to a mandatory independent statutory audit of their annual financial statements, which must generally be completed and available before annual corporate income tax finalisation is filed. Annual CIT finalisation itself is generally due within 90 days of the company's financial year-end (commonly 31 March for entities on a calendar financial year), and requires the finalised, audited figures to be accurate at the point of filing — leaving the statutory audit until close to the finalisation deadline is one of the more common, and avoidable, sources of year-end compliance stress for foreign-owned companies.
The distributed obligations: monthly and quarterly filings
Beyond the annual cycle, a foreign-owned company carries recurring monthly or quarterly obligations throughout the year — value-added tax filings, personal income tax withholding and reporting for employees, and, where applicable, provisional CIT payments made on account ahead of the annual finalisation. These distributed filings are where many newly established companies underestimate the actual administrative burden of staying compliant in Vietnam: the annual audit and tax finalisation are the highest-profile deadlines, but the monthly and quarterly cadence is where consistent, ongoing compliance discipline actually matters most.
Licence renewals and sector-specific obligations
Where a company holds a conditional business licence — most commonly the Business Licence required for retail and direct-to-consumer sales activity — renewal and ongoing compliance with the licence's specific conditions is a separate, sector-specific obligation layered on top of the standard tax and audit calendar. A lapsed licence in a conditional sector is not merely a paperwork gap; it can interrupt the specific licensed activity, with direct commercial consequences, making licence-renewal tracking a distinct line item in the compliance calendar rather than something assumed to renew automatically.
Is a statutory audit mandatory for every foreign-invested company in Vietnam?
Yes, foreign-invested enterprises are generally required to have their annual financial statements independently audited, which should be completed in good time ahead of annual tax finalisation rather than left until the deadline itself.
When is annual corporate income tax finalisation due?
Generally within 90 days of the company's financial year-end, commonly 31 March for entities using a calendar financial year — though the exact date depends on the entity's specific financial year-end.
What happens if a company misses a monthly or quarterly VAT filing?
Late or missed filings carry statutory penalties under Vietnam's tax administration regulations; the specific penalty depends on the nature and duration of the delay and should be addressed promptly rather than accumulated.
Does every company need to renew a business licence annually?
No — only companies operating in conditional sectors requiring a specific licence, such as retail and direct-to-consumer sales, carry a distinct licence-renewal obligation on top of the standard tax and audit calendar.
Can the annual audit and tax finalisation be handled by the same firm?
Often yes in practice, though the audit itself must be conducted by an independent, licensed auditing firm — the tax finalisation filing can be prepared by the same or a different advisory firm, provided the underlying audited figures are properly reflected.
How does JMT Private & Partners help with ongoing compliance?
JMT tracks and manages the full annual compliance calendar — audit coordination, tax finalisation, monthly/quarterly filings, and licence renewals — for clients as part of its post-establishment ongoing service and maintenance line.
