VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese management agencies are arguing about the legitimacy of the taxi app Uber in the country.

Uber, a service that connects taxi drivers and taxi firms, has stirred up the public since it made its official presence in Vietnam in June.

Taxi firms have accused Uber of “damaging the domestic taxi service market” because it is not registered as a business and does not pay tax to the State.

The companies have asked state management agencies to stop the service, which is “illegal” in their eyes.

Meanwhile, relevant agencies are confused about the situation because current laws do not clearly stipulate whether such a service is legal.

To use Uber taxi service, customers download the software from https://www.uber.com to their smartphones. Once they set up their itineraries, Uber provides maps and necessary information, and automatically connects customers with taxi drivers who have relations with the Uber network.

The outstanding feature of the service is that Uber does not have any head office or contact phone numbers, while the taxi drivers that join Uber’s network do not have to show meters, labels, logos or quote their service fees. And they are not required to present operation licenses.

This is why Uber’s taxi service is cheaper than traditional services and why taxi firms have asked the government to “punish” Uber. Customers now have to pay VND10,000 only for every kilometer of travel, lower than the VND16,500 per kilometer offered by other traditional taxi firms.

Customers do not make payment in cash, but with international cards, Visa or Mastercard. For every transaction, Uber pockets 20 percent of the revenue, while the taxi drivers get 80 percent.

Duong Hong Thanh, deputy director of the HCM City Transport Department, noted that Uber provides a transport-related service but does not have a business license and is not under management of state agencies.

What the city’s transport department can do is to propose the Ministry of Transport to clarify the legitimacy of the service and ask the information & communication department to consider licensing the Uber website and app.

Lawyer Dang Dinh Thinh from the Vietnam Bar Association said that, in principle, all businesses must register with state management agencies and pay tax.

Tran Thi Le Nga, deputy director of the HCM City, said Uber is run by overseas institutions, and taxi drivers do not register their business in Vietnam, but only their individual cars. Therefore, it is impossible for the taxation body to collect tax from them.

DDDN