Domestic tourism requires a deposit of 100 million VND.

In the near future, domestic travel service businesses may have to deposit 100 million VND instead of not having to deposit as at present. In the case of doing business in all three areas including domestic, inbound and outbound, the deposit amount will be up to 850 million VND instead of 500 million VND.

This provision is included in the draft Decree detailing a number of articles of the 2017 Law on Tourism, which is being consulted by the General Department of Tourism before being submitted to the Government.

Accordingly, the deposit for domestic travel business is 100 million VND, travel service business for international visitors to Vietnam (inbound) is 250 million VND and travel service business for tourists going abroad (outbound) is 500 million VND.

Enterprises deposit money in the commercial banking system. This amount must be maintained throughout the operation period and receive interest according to the agreement between the enterprise and the bank.

Similar to current regulations, the deposit will be used in cases of accidents with tourists or emergencies that the business is unable to arrange funds to promptly resolve or when the business does not perform or does not fully perform its obligations in the travel service business.

A tour guide is guiding tourists on a tourist boat in Can Tho.

Currently, businesses are making deposits according to the provisions of Decree No. 180/20/ND-CP, with a level of 250 million VND for inbound business; if only doing outbound or doing both outbound and inbound, the general deposit level is 500 million VND. According to the General Department of Tourism, by the end of last year, the whole country had 1,600 international travel businesses, that is, companies that have to make deposits.

Talking to reporters, there are two opinions about the new deposit level. Some opinions say that the new regulation, with its increased deposit requirements, will cause difficulties for businesses, especially small-scale companies.

"A few hundred million VND may not be much compared to a large company, but it will be a problem for a small company. If you want to do business in all three areas, you have to pay up to 850 million VND, which will prevent small companies from diversifying their markets," said Mr. Tran Xuan Hung, Director of Viking Travel Company.

Currently, the company is depositing 500 million VND for outbound and inbound business. The interest rate for this amount is 6%/year. The issue that this business is concerned about is not only that the deposit amount may have to increase by 250 million VND if the new regulation is implemented, but also that this amount is almost dead money because the management agency has not used it to resolve any issues that bring benefits to consumers.

Another opinion is that although the new deposit level is higher than the current one, it is still a necessary condition to help screen businesses. Tourism is a conditional business, related to human safety and life, so sanctions are needed to select qualified companies. In many other countries, the conditions for travel business are even stricter, especially for the outbound sector, the number of licenses granted is very limited.

"The purpose of the deposit has been clearly defined. The problem is how it is managed and used. If the company does not have enough money to pay, how will it be resolved when risks occur?" said a business.

According to Saigon Economics