HCMC – Many tour operators and hotels which have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic had hoped the Government’s support policies would help them overcome the hardships; however, a number of proposed tax and financial policies have yet to be approved.
Nguyen Trung Khanh, head of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, said that as soon as the coronavirus pandemic broke out and began to impact the tourism industry, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the administration sent two proposals to the Government to help ease the difficulties facing firms active in the tourism industry.
These proposals were aimed at supporting firms in terms of taxes and fees and laborers through Government relief packages.
In August, the ministry repeatedly wrote to the Government proposing some policies, including extending loan payment deadlines until December 2021 for travel firms and restructuring debts, among others.
Besides, the ministry also proposed reducing value-added taxes, revising down electricity prices for lodging facilities and offering financial support for workers. However, up to now, most of the policies have yet to be approved.
“Consulting with the tourism associations of localities, the Vietnam Tourism Association and some major firms, the ministry has put forward appropriate proposals based on the demand from travel firms,” Khanh told The Saigon Times Online on the sidelines of a seminar in HCMC.
Statistics from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism indicated that the number of international travelers to the country in the January-September period reached some 3.7 million, down 67.4% year-on-year. Meanwhile, Vietnam served 37.5 million domestic visitors, dipping by 43.2% year-on-year. The country’s tourism sector earned a mere VND233 trillion in revenue during the nine-month period, plummeting by 54% year-on-year.
By Dao Loan
