Chinese e-commerce giant Temu receives tax code, still unlicensed

Temu, the e-commerce platform under China’s PDD Holding, has been given tax identification number 9000001289 for its tax duty in Vietnam, says the General Department of Taxation (GDT) under the Ministry of Finance.

The tax code is the tax authority’s management over the firm’s taxable income, if any, the GDT clarified. Temu’s tax code was registered by its owner Elementary Innovation Pte. Ltd.

E-commerce activities must be licensed and managed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. If Temu is licensed by the trade ministry, it will start filing taxable income from the fourth quarter of 2024 and pay taxes for the quarter by the end of January next year, the GDT clarified.

The tax code given to Temu is part of the GDT’s facilitation of lawful business activities in Vietnam for cross-border companies, the department highlighted.

Late last month, Temu submitted a document to the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy under the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade to register its Vietnam operations. No follow-up information has been disclosed since.

At a press meeting, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan said he was amazed at the dirt-cheap prices of products on Temu. Tan said his ministry will study the issue thoroughly to take proper action. It will closely control trade fraud and counterfeit and fake goods. “If they are found dumping, they will be subjected to anti-dumping regulations.”

According to the latest report by e-commerce data provider Metric.vn, e-commerce transactions in Vietnam jumped 37.66% year-on-year to $9.5 billion in the first nine months of this year, or over $1 billion per month. The figure for Q3 alone is VND84.75 trillion ($3.34 billion), rising 18.15% from Q2.

TikTok Shop and Shopee saw positive growth in Q3 versus Q2 and Q3/2023.

Products of less than VND200,000 ($7.86), classified as “cheap”, accounted for more than 50% of transaction value, increasing the segment’s market share by 9% quarter-on-quarter.