MoF weighs new tax rules for real estate and gold

October 04, 2025 | 13:00

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The Ministry of Finance has announced it is reviewing tax policies for real estate and gold to improve clarity, transparency, and compliance while maintaining market stability.

MoF weighs new tax rules for real estate and gold

Luu Duc Huy, deputy director general of the Department for Management and Supervision Tax, Fees, and Charges Policies

At the Ministry of Finance's (MoF) third-quarter press conference on October 3, Deputy Minister Nguyen Duc Chi said that several draft laws and decrees are being prepared for submission to the government and National Assembly.

"Real estate tax policies currently include specific regulations at various stages of the transaction process, from land-use rights registration to transfer and use," said Chi. "However, to align with real-world practices, the policy needs to be reviewed in a comprehensive and holistic manner, ensuring consistency with relevant laws such as the Land Law and Law on Real Estate Business, and aiming to create fairness and transparency in the market."

The MoF is working closely with relevant agencies and experts to study, draft, and propose specific solutions. Based on the research outcomes, it will report to the government and submit proposals to the National Assembly for review and decision.

Moreover, the ministry is drafting a revised Law on Personal Income Tax, which includes important content related to personal income tax on real estate transfers. This policy is being implemented under existing law.

During the drafting process, the Finance and Budget Committee of the National Assembly has conducted assessments, and the MoF will continue refining the draft to submit it at the upcoming session of the National Assembly.

"One of the proposals previously open for feedback was to tax personal income from real estate based on holding period," said Luu Duc Huy, deputy director general of the Department for Management and Supervision of Tax, Fees, and Charges Policies. "However, after collecting opinions from agencies, organisations, experts, and the public, the MoF has chosen to maintain and stabilise the current policy to ensure social consensus and feasibility in implementation."

Regarding gold transactions, Huy explained that the market includes several types of gold – monetary, bullion, raw, jewellery, and artistic – each subject to different tax treatments. For instance, the import tax on bullion gold is currently zero, while export taxes for jewellery and artistic gold will also be set at zero under an upcoming government decree.

Gold trading in general remains subject to VAT, which the VAT Law stipulates must be applied under the direct calculation method. Personal income tax currently applies only to household businesses, as individuals are not permitted to trade bullion gold; only banks and licensed financial institutions can do so. As a result, bullion gold transactions are not subject to taxation in the same way as ordinary goods.

In the forthcoming revised Personal Income Tax Law, the MoF intends to introduce a new regulation that classifies bullion gold transfers as “other income” for tax purposes. After consulting the State Bank of Vietnam, the ministry plans to submit this proposal for inclusion in the draft law.

"In the initial proposal, the applicable tax rate is 0.1 per cent of the transfer price of bullion gold. This tax will not apply to raw gold or jewellery and artistic gold. The exact implementation timeline and related adjustments will be determined by the government," Huy said.

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By Nguyen Huong

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