Petroleum Association: People have the responsibility to pay more environmental tax

To compensate for the revenue loss from reduced import taxes, leaders of the Petroleum Association support early increases in domestic taxes, including special consumption and environmental protection.

At the workshop "Vietnam's petroleum market and institutional issues" held on May 16, Mr. Phan The Rue - Chairman of the Vietnam Petroleum Association (Vinpa) expressed his agreement with the proposal to soon adjust domestic tax on petroleum products in an increasing direction, including:At least, special consumption tax and environmental protection tax should account for over 50% of the price structure to ensure state budget revenue. This move also aims to compensate for the reduction of import tax to 0% according to the integration commitment in the coming time.

"Obviously, this is the responsibility of citizens to the country. If import tax is reduced but domestic tax is increased, the retail price of gasoline will not change, the price will remain the same. Because retail price depends on many types of taxes. Increasing this, decreasing that will not change," said Mr. Rue. This recommendation has been mentioned many times by the Association, but the increase needs to have a specific roadmap.

Also at the forum, Mr. Truong Dinh Tuyen - former Minister of Trade said that in the current situation, if we want to compensate for the revenue when import tax is 0%, "the path of increasing domestic tax will have to be considered in the short term". However, in the long term and fundamentally, he said that the policy needs to aim at reducing taxes to reduce costs and burdens for businesses. When creating more profits, businesses will contribute more to the budget.

To compensate for the 0% import tax in the near future, experts say that in the immediate future, it is possible to calculate an increase in domestic taxes, including environmental protection tax on gasoline.

Contributing opinions from the perspective of financial experts, Mr.Nguyen Tien Thoa - former Director of the Price Management Department (Ministry of Finance) disagrees with the idea of ​​collecting taxes right from the beginning of the product. According to him, if the input (round 1) is "blocked" with high tax policies, the market and people will immediately react.

"Input should be "eaten" less, to let production (round 2) develop. Only then will revenue from consumption (round 3) be sustainable. The financial idea of ​​"nurturing revenue sources" is right here," Mr. Thoa commented.The former Director of the Price Management Department said that tax adjustments need to be specifically calculated to ensure balanced revenue for the economy.

In addition to increasing fees and taxes to compensate for the revenue shortfall, Vinpa's leaders also believe that the petroleum market actually needs a transformation, not the current half-hearted management.

Looking at the reality of the Vietnamese retail market, Mr. Phan The Rue said that this is a big lesson. Because although there are many products that have not yet reached the opening deadline, foreign-invested enterprises (FDI) have linked up with domestic enterprises to open the market. Up to now, many FDI enterprises have owned retail establishments, brought imported goods to the market, and competed directly with domestic goods.

In that context, the pressure to protect the domestic market, especially the two Nghi Son and Dung Quat oil refineries as well as the distribution system, is increasing. According to Mr. Rue, to protect domestic production, there must be technical barriers or barriers that are not prohibited by the WTO.

Currently, foreign investors have invested in the production and distribution of petroleum in the market. The Vietnam National Petroleum Group has sold 8.9% of its shares to foreign enterprises, and the Nghi Son oil refinery joint venture has a capital of up to 75%. In addition, key enterprises are equitizing, which is also a condition for enterprises to invest shares to participate in the legal market.

Mr. Truong Dinh Tuyen - former Minister of Trade suggested that the policy on the gasoline market in the future must change in the direction of allowing businesses to set their own prices. This will ensure competition and not leave "prices in the hands of state management".

According to VNE