Business and tax registration of enterprises governed by the Enterprise Law will be simplified via an online system from June 1, according to the Government’s Decree No. 43/2010/ND-CP dated April 4, 2010.
Accordingly, individuals who want to set up their own enterprises merely register the businesses via the National Enterprises Registration Information Gate on the internet rather than follow complicated procedures at state agencies in person.
Specifically, the business registration agencies will take charge of receiving, appraising the enterprises’ applications, guiding any change or supplement of the documents and then giving back results of the business registration settlement via National Database on Enterprise Registration.
The online applications will have the same legal value as those done on paper.
In case the applicants haven’t had electronic signatures, their online business registration can still be done as follows: After their applications will have been accepted by the National Database on Enterprise Registration, the enterprises print confirmation of the online applications and then send it to the business registration agencies where the enterprises’ head offices are located. Receiving the confirmation of the online applications, the business registration agencies will consider granting licenses for the enterprises.
Under the decree, the duration for the issuance of a new license for enterprises will be shortened from 10 to 5 working days from the date of valid document submission. Within the set time-limit, the Business Registration Offices have to grant the business registration licenses for the enterprises; formalizing the verification of change in the licenses, of the enterprise division, separation, consolidation, merge and transformation; certifying registration of the enterprise branches and/or representative offices, of the business locations. Applicants can lodge complaints in conformity with Law on Complaints and Denunciations if they do not receive their business registration licenses or notices of the license adjustment and/or supplement within the five days.
The business registration agencies are organized at provincial and suburban district levels. The Provincial Business Registration Offices are under the Provincial Planning and Investment Services. Business Registration Offices at district level will be set up in case the city districts, the suburban districts, towns and the provincial cities see year-on-year 500 newly-registered businesses on average in the 2 latest years. If not, the People’s Committees at the district level assign their Finance and Planning services to do the task.
In addition, the decree also has some positive new changes: A business will not have to change its name even if the name has been taken by another company; each enterprise will have only one business code, which also acts as a tax code; registration fee is the same nationwide; the applications are the same, too.
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