VietNamNet Bridge - According to a report from the General Department of Taxation, arrears of tax in the first half of 2013 reached VND64.632 trillion ($3.23 billion), up 32 percent compared to 2012 and 30 percent over the same period.

Some localities with high tax arrears are Dak Nong (up 152%), An Giang (up 132%), Binh Duong (up 116%), Ba Ria - Vung Tau (up 83%). In the first five months of the year, the tax sector recovered only 30 percent of the arrears of tax of 2012.

Tax revenue in the first half of 2013 is less than half of the plan, with VND291.6 trillion ($14.58 billion), equivalent to 45% of the estimate. Of the 63 provinces in the country, up to 22 provinces had tax revenue less than 45% of the estimate.

The difficulty in collecting taxes and the rise of tax arrears are blamed on economic recession. According to the Business Registration Agency, up to 28,755 companies were dissolved and ceased operations, an increase of 10% over the same period. Most of them were non-state firms (98%).

The areas with the highest number of companies being dissolved and suspended are finance, banking and insurance (up 94%), mining (58%), real estate (8.7%) and construction (8.1%).

Son Tung