Guidance on tourism activities under the new normal from March 15

Below is Infographic describing Guidance No. 829/PA-BVHTTDL released by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on tourism activities under new normal from March 15.

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Fresh grapefruit

Fresh grapefruit is special food of Dong Nai Province, Viet Nam. Grapefruit is very delicious, sweet and fragrant. Furthermore, Grapefruit has many good ingredients for health.

Information supplier: Mr. Tien - ++ 84918386520

Benefits of Fresh Grapefruit

Weight loss

Some people claim that grapefruit is a miracle weight-loss fruit. Studies have shown that grapefruit demonstrates improvements in blood pressure and lipid level.

Reduces Bad Cholesterol

The bad cholesterol is lowered by 15% with regular grapefruit consumption. Yellow grapefruit was found to be more beneficial than red. Benefits are seen after only a month when at-risk patients added it to their diet.

Cancer

Grapefruit is a rich source of antioxidants, such as vitamin C. These can help combat the formation of free radicals known to cause cancer. Lycopene intake has been linked with a decreased risk of prostate cancer in several studies.

Digestion

Grapefruit, because of its water and fiber content, helps to prevent constipation and promote regularity for a healthy digestive tract.

How is the Fresh grapefruit grown?

Grapefruit is grown with organic methods without pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Therefore, it’s extremely good and safe for consumers.

Storage instruction

Keep in dry cool place.

Using instruction

Peeling off grapefruit skins to get the flesh inside.

Which dishes are made from the fresh grapefruit?

You can eat fresh grapefruit directly, or make salad.

Grapefruit juice

It is rich in Vitamin C and ranges from sweet-tart to very sour. Variations include white grapefruit, pink grapefruit and ruby red grapefruit juice.

Grapefruit salad

Information about the farm.

An Foods is located in Dong Nai Province, Viet Nam. They have natural and organic certification. They guarantee high quality of products.

Hoa Loc Mango

Hoa Loc Mango are tropical fruits, plump and oval in shape. They have an inedible skin that ranges in color from yellow to green through to red-green, depending on the variety, inside is a soft, edible yellow flesh and a hard inedible stone.

Information of supplier: Mr. Tien Tel: ++84 918386520

Benefits of Hoa Loc mango

Prevents Cancer

Research has shown antioxidant compounds in mango fruit help protect against cancer. These compounds include quercetin, isoquercitrin, astragalin, fisetin, gallic acid as well as the abundant enzymes.

Lowers Cholesterol

The high levels of fiber, pectin and vitamin C help to lower serum cholesterol levels, specifically Low-Density Lipoprotein (the bad stuff).

Clears the Skin

Can be used both internally and externally for the skin. Mangoes help clear clogged pores and eliminate pimples.

Improves Eye Health

One cup of sliced mangoes supplies 25 percent of the needed daily value of vitamin A, which promotes good eyesight and prevents night blindness and dry eyes.

Alkalizes the Whole Body

Tartaric acid, malic acid, and a trace of citric acid found in the fruit help to maintain the alkali reserve of the body.

Using and Storage of mangoes

Mangoes shouldn’t be put in the fridge until they are ripe, so simply place unripe fruits at room temperature for a few days or you can place them in a paper bag to speed up the process. As soon as they are ripe, store in the fridge for up to five days. In order to tell if it is ripe, just gently squeeze it – it should feel soft and you may be able to smell sweet scent from the stem-end of the fruit.

Production area: Dong Thap province, Viet Nam.

Quality standard: GlobalGap.

Which are dishes made from Hoa Loc mango?

You can peel mango and eat directly or do some other things such as mango smoothies, mango ice cream,...

Mango smoothies

How to Set Up a Representative Office in Vietnam

• A Representative Office (RO) is one of the most popular and common market entry options for foreign investors in Vietnam.
• An RO offers a low-cost entry option for businesses that want to get a feel of the Vietnamese market before making a commitment to a bigger investment in the country.
• Vietnam Briefing gives an overview of what is needed to set up an RO, including compliance, reporting, and tax requirements.

A Representative Office (RO) offers a low-cost entry for companies seeking to gain a better understanding of the Vietnamese market. As such, this option is among the most common for first-time entrants to the Vietnamese market and often precedes a larger presence within the country.

What are ROs permitted to do?

ROs are permitted to engage in the following activities:

1. Conducting market research;
2. Acting as a liaison office for its parent company;
3. Promoting the activities of its head office through meetings, and other activities, that leads to business at later stages.

Representative offices are dependent on their parent company and are not allowed to generate their own profits or enter directly into contracts. They are also not allowed to issue invoices.

What do you need to get a license?

Pre-licensing checklist for setting up a RO

1. File an application for setting up a RO with company chop or seal;
2. Appointment letter of Chief of RO with identification documents and company seal;
3. Power of attorney in favor of consultant to submit the application dossier;
4. Certificate of Incorporation for the Company and/or Business Registration Certificate of the Company;
5. Audited financial report of the company for the latest fiscal year;
6. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of leasing office or leasing contract;
7. Documents providing legal rights of landlord regarding the right of leasing office.

For steps 1 to 6, the foreign entity would require one notarized and consularzed copy of each document and a translated copy in Vietnamese by a Vietnamese competent authority.

A signed leasing contract is also required before registering a RO in Vietnam.

What do you need to do after you get the license?

Post-licensing checklist for setup a RO:

8. Make a seal for the RO;
   • License on the establishment of RO
   • Passport of Chief of RO if foreigner or passport/ID card if Chief is Vietnamese
9. Register a Tax code for RO;
   • Declaration to register a tax code
   • Power of attorney
   • Certificate of seal registration
   • Certificate of RO in Vietnam
10. Open a bank account of RO;
    • License on the establishment of RO
    • Certificate of seal registration
    • Certificate of tax code registration
    • Letter of authorization appointing the authorized signatories of the bank accounts
11. Announcement of the establishment of RO of Company.

For steps 8 to 10, notarized and translated documents will be required to complete the process.

How long does it take to set up an RO?

ROs can be set up in between six to eight weeks. We recommend hiring a professional service to deal with the myriad of laws and procedures.

Given the absence of in-country revenue and associated licensing requirements, the setup process for this option does not entail as many bureaucratic procedures as others.

An RO license is valid for five years but can be extended for another five years.

What comes next?

Hiring, tax, and reporting.

There is no cap on the number of local and expatriate employees that a representative office can hire as long as their employment is properly documented.

All expatriate hires including the chief representative are required to have a work permit. ROs can hire staff directly or use the assistance of recruiting agencies.

An RO is not subject to Vietnamese corporate income tax (CIT). However, it is responsible for declaring its employees’ personal income tax (PIT).

In order to determine payable tax, ROs have to undertake a tax audit that checks all revenues and expenses during the tax term to establish grounds for declaring and paying tax.

The RO also has to send reports of its activities of the previous year to the Department of Industry and Trade before January 30 of each year. These reports are also known as the Annual Report.

The Annual Report must be in accordance with Circular No. 11/2016/TT-BCT. Among other details, the annual report must include the list of employees working for the RO and any change within the reporting year. In addition, the report must also include what the RO has done during the year such as its promotion activities and marketing events.

Businesses that fail to submit the annual report on time, risk fines of up to VND 40 million (US$1,700). It can also result in difficulties if the RO wants to renew its license or change and upgrade its operations to a permanent establishment.

Tax risks if RO viewed as Permanent Establishment

As discussed earlier, an RO is only permitted to do market research activities and act as a liaison office for its parent company. It cannot engage in commercial activities or support the parent company with its commercial activities in Vietnam.

A Permanent Establishment (PE) is defined as per local laws as well as the double tax avoidance (DTA) agreement between Vietnam and other countries. Generally, the PE definition under a DTA takes precedence over domestic regulations.

If a foreign business wants to convert the RO into a PE but has been carrying out activities as per local laws, it could activate a licensing risk. Therefore, foreign businesses should ensure that their RO performs activities as per the DTA guidelines. In addition, if the RO performs activities that are outside its scope, it may be subject to additional tax in Vietnam.

To avoid any licensing or tax risks in case the RO is treated as a PE, businesses are advised to refrain from getting their ROs involved in buying and selling activities between two parties or any other activities generating revenue.

Foreign investors looking to establish a presence in Vietnam should use the services of registered local advisors who can ensure their set up process is accurate while complying with the relevant DTAs and local regulations.

vietnam-briefing.com