Entities subject to Vietnam Accounting Standards
All enterprises which are listed below are subject to the Vietnam Accounting Standards.
These include:
- Enterprises of all economic entities, including 100 percent foreign-owned enterprises, branches, and representative offices of foreign enterprises operating in Vietnam under Vietnamese law;
- Individuals' business households and cooperation groups;
- Accountants and other accounting professionals; and,
- Non-business enterprises and organizations (including with and without funding from the state budget).
Framework for Vietnam Accounting Standards
Vietnam’s accounting framework is primarily governed by the Accounting Law issued in 2015, which establishes the legal foundation for all accounting activities in the country. Under this law, economic transactions must be recognized based on their economic substance rather than merely their legal form, and must be recorded in compliance with the Accounting Law, its implementing regulations, and the Vietnamese Accounting Standards (VAS).
To further modernize corporate accounting practices, a new implementing regulation, Circular No. 99/2025/TT (Circular 99), has been introduced. Effective from 1 January 2026 and applicable to fiscal year 2026 onward, Circular 99 sets out core accounting principles and detailed guidance applicable across multiple industries, strengthening consistency and transparency in financial reporting.
Several provisions of the Accounting Law have also been revised under legislation effective from 1 January 2025, reflecting Vietnam’s ongoing efforts to align domestic accounting practices with international norms. Under the revised framework, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) is designated as the competent authority responsible for developing accounting standards and professional ethical requirements for the accounting profession, drawing on international standards while ensuring suitability for Vietnam’s regulatory and business environment.
From a documentation perspective, Vietnamese remains the mandatory language for accounting records. Financial statements prepared in foreign languages must be translated into Vietnamese, whereas other accounting documents generally do not require translation unless requested by a competent state authority.
The amended framework also supports digital transformation in accounting. Electronic accounting documents bearing electronic signatures or other legally recognized electronic verification methods are now formally accepted, provided they comply with the requirements of the Law on Electronic Transactions. This development facilitates greater efficiency, traceability, and digitization in corporate accounting and financial management processes across Vietnam.
Accounting period timeline
An accounting period in Vietnam is generally determined according to the calendar year, i.e., January 1 to December 31. However, a 12-month period beginning the first day of each quarter, e.g., April 1 to March 31 of the following year; July 1 to June 30 of the following year; or October 1 to September 30 of the following year, can also be adopted after registering with the Tax Department.
For taxes declared quarterly:
- The last day of the first month of the succeeding quarter (30th or 31st).
For taxes declared annually:
- The last day of the third month following the end of the calendar year or fiscal year for annual tax finalization. For annual tax declaration dossiers, the deadline is the last day of the first month following the end of the calendar or fiscal year.
- The last day of the fourth month following the end of the calendar year for annual personal income tax statements prepared by income earners;
Chart of accounts
Enterprises may adjust account names, account codes, account structures, and the information recorded in accounts to better reflect their business operations and management needs. Any such adjustments must:
- Ensure transactions are properly classified based on their economic substance;
- Avoid duplication or overlap;
- Remain consistent with applicable accounting principles; and
- Not change or distort the figures or disclosures presented in the financial statements.
All modifications must be formally documented in the enterprise’s Internal Governance Accounting Policy (IGAP).
Financial statement
The going concern assumption is a core accounting principle under which a business is presumed to continue operating for the foreseeable future—generally at least the next 12 months—without plans to liquidate or materially scale back its activities. When financial statements are prepared on a going-concern basis, they must include:
- A Statement of Financial Position;
- A Profit and Loss (P&L) Statement;
- A Statement of Cash Flows; and
- Notes to the Financial Statements.
Financial statements and accounting books must be signed by both the legal representative and the chief accountant.
Annual reports
Enterprises under foreign ownership should have their annual financial statements audited by an independent auditing firm. Statutory audits in Vietnam are performed in accordance with the Vietnam Standards on Auditing. Every organization is required to have a Chief Accountant, as annual financial statements should be approved by the chief accountant and the legal representative.
The state-owned authorities, public service organizations, and privately listed companies shall implement and adopt internal audit (IA) practices.
Audited financial statements and tax finalization filing must be made within 90 days from the end of each financial year. The Company needs to ensure that its financial statements have been audited and submitted to the authorities for that year. In addition, the Company is required to have fulfilled all taxes and other financial obligations to the Government.
For ROs, the deadline for submitting an annual operational report by representative offices of foreign entities with activities or business in Vietnam is January 30. The annual reports must include: :
- A list of employees working at the representative office on the date of the report, as well as any changes in personnel during the reporting year;
- A list of activities actually conducted by the representative office in promoting the activities or business of foreign entities; and,
- Personal Income Tax finalization for the RO.
Document retention and source templates
After annual accounts are finalized, companies are required to retain records generated from their bookkeeping and accounting activities. The length of the retention period depends on the type and importance of the documents and generally falls into three categories: five years, ten years, or indefinite retention.
- Five-year retention applies to documents used in the day-to-day management and operation of the enterprise.
- Ten-year retention applies to accounting records, accounting books, financial statements, and reports prepared by independent audit firms for the company.
- Indefinite retention applies only to documents considered significant to the national economy, national defense, or state security of Vietnam.
Enterprises are permitted to develop or customize their own accounting source document templates, provided that such templates comply with the requirements of the Accounting Law. Where a template is newly created or revised, the enterprise must issue an Internal Governance Accounting Policy (IGAP), or a similar internal policy document, outlining the rationale for the change and confirming that the revised template remains legally compliant.
While filing for annual reports, the enterprise should:
- Sign with the independent auditing company no later than 30 days before the end of the fiscal year;
- Provide accurate and adequate information to the auditors;
- Rotate the auditors signing the audit report every five years if they are a credit institution; and,
- Rotate the auditors signing the audit report every three years if they are a non-credit institution.
Language and currency
The accounting records should be maintained in the Vietnamese language, although this can be combined with another commonly used foreign language, such as English.
Additionally, the Vietnamese Dong should be used as the accounting currency; however, entities that receive and pay with foreign currency can select that said foreign currency in their accounting records and financial statements. For statutory reporting, the foreign currency must be converted to the Vietnamese Dong equivalent.
Penalties for non-compliance
Companies are advised to double-check their accounting system to spot possible VAS non-compliance issues.
Under the government’s New Penal Code, businesses that do not adhere to the compliance laws can now be held criminally responsible. If the tax authorities find discrepancies in the financial reports, after an audit, a 20 percent tax will be imposed on the amount that is under-declared. There is also a 0.03 percent daily interest rate for the late payment of tax.
In addition, tax authorities can penalize companies for VAS non-compliance through the disallowance of input VAT credits and withdrawal of CIT incentives.
What is a Chief Accountant, and what do they do?
The chief accountant is the head of a unit’s accounting apparatus and oversees the execution of accounting works therein. Organizations are required to have a Chief Accountant certified by the Ministry of Finance or organizations can use the Chief Accountant service from an accounting service firm.
In an accounting service firm, the Chief Accountant must have a qualified Certificate of Public Auditor or an Accountant Practicing Certificate and be registered as a practicing accountant in such firms.
The Chief Accountant is responsible for:
- Compliance with regulations of law on accounting and finance of accounting units;
- Organize the operation of the accounting apparatus in accordance with the Law;
- Making financial statements in accordance with accounting regimes and accounting standards;
- Sign off on all accounting documents, tax declarations, tax returns, financial statements, and audited statements of the company as required by the laws;
- Performing other tasks as agreed to by the board of directors (Reporting, financial control, financial analysis, budgeting, and planning, etc.)
- Providing a business connection between the tax office and the company.
Adopting IFRS by 2025
The Vietnamese government will adopt the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) by 2025, replacing VAS. The transition aims to enhance the comparability and transparency of corporate financial statements. The move is in line with international best practices and will improve the effectiveness of corporate government.
The government aims to make the transition to the IFRS by 2025 through a draft IFRS roadmap published in 2019. The roadmap divides the IFRS implementation into two phases:
Phase I: Voluntary application period from 2022 to 2025
Entities with demand and sufficient resources would apply to IFRS in preparation of consolidated financial statements, such as parent entities which are state-owned enterprises, listed companies, large public entities, and 100 percent foreign-invested companies that are pre-approved by the MoF.
Phase II: Compulsory application (after 2025)
After the voluntary period, enterprises are either subject to IFRS (compulsory consolidated financial statements and/or compulsory/voluntary separate financial statements) or compulsory adoption of VFRS from 2025.
