1. Who is considered a dependent for personal relief?
Based on the provisions at Point d, Clause 1, Article 9 of Circular 111/2013/TT-BTC (as amended by Clause 6, Article 25 of Circular 92/2015/TT-BTC), the taxpayer’s dependents include the following individuals:
Children: Including biological children, legally adopted children, illegitimate children, and stepchildren (children of the wife or husband). Specifically:
- Children under 18 years of age (calculated by full months).
- Children aged 18 or older who are disabled and unable to work.
- Children aged 18 or older who are studying at universities, colleges, professional secondary schools, or vocational schools in Vietnam or abroad, or are in general education (including the period from June to September of the 12th grade while waiting for university entrance exam results), provided they have no income or have an average monthly income in the year from all sources not exceeding 1,000,000 VND.
The taxpayer’s spouse: Must meet the following conditions simultaneously:
- Is disabled and unable to work.
- Has no income or has an average monthly income in the year from all sources not exceeding 1,000,000 VND.
- For individuals outside the working age, they must have no income or have an average monthly income in the year from all sources not exceeding 1,000,000 VND.
The taxpayer’s biological parents; parents-in-law (wife’s parents or husband’s parents); stepparents (stepfather, stepmother); legally adoptive parents: Must meet the same conditions as the spouse:
- Are disabled and unable to work.
- Have no income or have an average monthly income in the year from all sources not exceeding 1,000,000 VND.
- For individuals outside the working age, they must have no income or have an average monthly income in the year from all sources not exceeding 1,000,000 VND.
Other individuals without support: Whom the taxpayer is directly supporting and who meet the specified conditions, including:
- The taxpayer’s biological siblings (brothers, sisters).
- Grandparents (paternal and maternal); aunts and uncles (biological).
- Nieces and nephews (children of biological siblings).
- Other individuals whom the taxpayer must directly support as prescribed by law.
Article 9. Deductions
Deductions referred to in this Article are amounts subtracted from taxable income before determining the taxable income from wages, salaries, or business activities. Specifically:
1. Family circumstance-based deduction
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d) Dependents include:
d.1) Children: biological, adopted, illegitimate, or stepchildren of either spouse, specifically:
d.1.1) Children under 18 years old (by full month).
Example 10: Mr. H’s child, born on July 25, 2014, is considered a dependent from July 2014 onward.
d.1.2) Children aged 18 or older who are disabled and incapable of working.
d.1.3) Children aged 18 or older who are studying in Vietnam or abroad at a university, college, secondary professional school, or vocational school, or still attending high school (including the period between June and September after completing grade 12 while awaiting university results), without income or with an average monthly income not exceeding VND 1,000,000 from all sources.
d.2) Spouse of the taxpayer who meets the conditions under Point đ, Clause 1 of this Article.
d.3) Biological parents; parents-in-law (or stepparents); legally adoptive parents who meet the conditions under Point đ, Clause 1 of this Article.
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2. Are dependents eligible for a Tax Identification Number (TIN)?
According to Clause 3, Article 30 of the 2019 Law on Tax Administration, an individual’s dependents are issued a tax code. This tax code is used for the purpose of personal relief when calculating personal income tax. It is noteworthy that the tax code issued to the dependent will also become their personal tax code when the dependent incurs tax obligations to the state budget in the future.
Article 30 – Registration and Issuance of Tax Identification Numbers
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3. Regulations on issuance of tax identification numbers:
a) Enterprises, economic organizations, and other entities are issued a single TIN to be used throughout their entire operation, from tax registration until deactivation. Taxpayers with branches, representative offices, or dependent units that directly fulfill tax obligations are issued dependent TINs. If registration is conducted through a one-stop mechanism along with business registration, the business registration number also serves as the tax code.
b) Each individual is issued one unique TIN to be used throughout their lifetime. Dependents of taxpayers are also issued TINs for the purpose of family circumstance-based deductions for PIT. The TIN assigned to a dependent will later serve as that individual’s TIN when they become liable for tax obligations to the state budget.
c) Enterprises, organizations, and individuals responsible for withholding or paying taxes on behalf of others are issued a substitute TIN to declare and remit taxes on behalf of the taxpayer.
d) A TIN once issued shall not be reassigned to another taxpayer.
đ) The TIN of an enterprise, economic organization, or other entity remains unchanged in cases of conversion, transfer, inheritance, or restructuring.
e) The TIN issued to a household, household business, or individual business is the same as the TIN of the household representative or the individual conducting the business.
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