Over the past time, the Ministry of Finance has closely followed the guidelines of the Party and State, taking the satisfaction of people and businesses as a service quality assessment measure to direct the implementation reform and modernization activities. Based on that view point, the Ministry of Finance has implemented synchronous solutions to reform administrative procedures, continue to build e-government towards digital government, digital Finance Ministry and digital economy, gradually turning information technology application into an effective support tool for budget - finance management and administration.
Photo: Quang Minh.
From 2022 up to now, the Ministry of Finance has promulgated or submitted to competent authorities for promulgation of various legal documents to reduce 134 administrative procedures, simplify 169 administrative procedures under the ministry’s management. Accordingly, total number of valid administrative procedures under the ministry’s management is 800, decreased 96 administrative procedures as per the same period in 2021 (about 12%). In which, the Ministry of Finance has provided 359 administrative procedures as full online public services, reaching the rate of over 45%; integrated 296 public services on the National Public Service Portal. Along with that, the Ministry of Finance has maintained the One-Stop-Shop Department to operate stably and efficiently, implemented digitization of documents and administrative procedures settlement results at the One-Stop-Shop Department from June 2022. Basically, administrative procedures in the financial sector are increasingly being improved towards unity, simplicity, publicity, transparency, maximizing IT application, creating favorable conditions for individuals, organizations, enterprises in accessing and implementing administrative procedures, initially forming an electronic database of documents and administrative procedure settlement results.
Determining "promoting modernization and development of digital financial platform based on information technology application associated with digital transformation" as one of the breakthroughs in the Finance Strategy to 2030, the Ministry of Finance has issued the Digital Transformation Plan to 2025, with orientation to 2030, the Digital Transformation Plan in 2022 and 2023. The Plans specify key tasks, responsibilities of the leading units as well as the coordinating units in implementing the tasks thereof. This is the legal basis for units to implement digital transformation tasks of the Finance sector.
At the same time, the Ministry of Finance has issued a plan to effectively implement the assigned tasks as provided at the Decision No. 06/QD-TTg dated January 6, 2022 of the Prime Minister. Accordingly, the Ministry of Finance has issued Circular No. 75/2022/TT-BTC dated December 22, 2022 on stipulating the rate, collection, payment and management of residence registration fees; completed the connection and sharing of data between the national database on population and the national database on finance (taxation database); reviewed, amended and supplemented to legal documents under the ministry’s management relevant to household registration books and temporary residence books when performing administrative procedures; ...
In addition, the Ministry of Finance has focused on effective implementation of major and core information systems closely following the digital transformation program, with special emphasis on administrative procedures settlement for people and businesses in taxation, customs and treasury. E-Tax declaration, payment and refund services are implemented at 100% of local taxation departments and sub-departments. Over 99% of businesses have used e-tax declaration, payment and refund services; 100% of enterprises, organizations and business households and individuals have implemented e-invoices. Up to now, more than 9 thousand enterprises, businesses households and individuals have registered to use e-invoices generated from cash registers with number of invoices reaching over 1.6 million.
The Ministry of Finance has officially deployed the electronic tax application on mobile devices (eTax Mobile) and the portal for foreign providers (Etaxvn.gdt.gov.vn). These applications have contributed to building a transparent and convenient digital society, reducing time and costs for people and businesses, making tax management more and more effective.
The Ministry of Finance has also further improved policies to strengthen tax administration for e-commerce and cross-border business activities. On December 15, 2022, the Ministry of Finance (General Department of Taxation) launched the e-commerce portal, so far, 285 e-commerce trading floors have sent data and information to tax authorities with 304 submissions.
The Ministry of Finance has implemented information technology applications to facilitate import and export activities, towards building a Smart Customs. Up to now, the 5E goals (E-Declaration; E-Payment, E-C/O, E Permit and E-Manifest) on information technology application have been completed. The Digital Customs and Smart Customs will allow businesses to declare customs procedures anytime, anywhere, on any devices with free declaration software provided by the Customs at the same time, shortening customs clearance time, reducing logistics costs; declare information only once to perform many administrative procedures through the national single-window system; easily track the processing progress of state management agencies.
The management and operation of VNACCS/VCIS system and the customs centralized IT systems has been maintained stable 24/7, ensuring security, safety and smoothness. 99.7% of businesses at 100% of customs units nationwide have participated in the VNACCS/VCIS system; 13 Ministries and sectors with 250 administrative procedures and over 55 thousand enterprises have connected on the National Single Window; Exchange of electronic certificates of origin has been implemented with 09 ASEAN countries. The automated customs management system at ports, warehouses and yards (VASSCM) has been successfully deployed at 33/35 Customs Departments of provinces and cities, creating favorable conditions for enterprises operating at ports, warehouses and yards, reducing time, expenses for import and export enterprises, and enhancing customs supervision effectiveness.
Thereby, it has helped to reduce paperwork, shorten time, reduce cost of implementing administrative procedures in the field of import and export, fundamentally change the specialized inspection management method, towards international integration and strong development of digital customs services.
Over the past time, the Ministry of Finance has actively modernized state budget revenues and expenditures management through the State Treasury towards simplicity, publicity and transparency in processes and administrative procedures; modern in technology; ensuring strict budget management towards the goal of building an electronic treasury, digital treasury with 3 “No” (“No customers at the office”, “No cash” and “No papers”).
Currently, 100% of full administrative procedures in the treasury sector have been integrated into the National Public Service Portal; transactions with the State Treasury has been implemented 24/7 (including holidays and holidays) with number of state budget expenditure transactions arising through online public services on TABMIS reaching over 99.6% of expenditure documents nationwide. The increasing number of transactions through online public services has timely met the units’ expenditure needs as well as timely disbursing state budget capital in investment projects implementation, promoting effectiveness and efficiency.
The State Treasury continues to improve remote monitor of administrative procedures receiving and handling process in state budget expenditures control when online public services searching utility serving for inspection and supervision has come into stable operation; Survey result has shown that 94.5% of individuals and organizations has satisfied with the State Treasury services in 2022.
The centralized and connected inter-bank e- payment system and information technology systems model has been successfully implemented by the State Treasury. This is a great improvement step in the State Treasury system modernization. In addition, the State Treasury has expanded coordination on state budget collection and electronic bilateral payments with commercial banks, coordinated with the Government Office and relevant agencies to promote the collection of fees, charges and fines through the National Service Portal, piloted automatic payment for electricity, water and telecommunications services as authorized by budget-using units at State Treasury Offices of Ha Noi and Ho Chi Minh City; ...
For many years, the Ministry of Finance has always been a pioneer in administrative reform associated with digital transformation. That has confirmed the Ministry’s determination in making fundamental and breakthrough changes when switching from the paper-based and direct communication method of public service management to automatic, modern method with IT application maximization, thus, it has brought many benefits to society, promoted digital transformation. Through such gained results, the Ministry of Finance has drawn a number of lessons in implementing administrative reform in association with digital transformation in financial sector, as follows:
Firstly, the most importance shall be the leadership’s political determination and participation in developing programs and plans, identifying priority administrative procedures to propose appropriate reform solutions, prioritize and allocate reasonable resources, avoid spreading investment, lack of synchronization causing waste of resources of the state and society.
Secondly, it shall put people and businesses as center of administrative reform, take people and businesses satisfaction as a measure to evaluate the reform effectiveness; take regularly people and businesses opinions and evaluation on administrative procedures settlement and public services implementation as a basis for improvement of policies, procedures and enhancement of service quality in financial field.
Thirdly, reform and innovation in building financial institutions are the premise for administrative reform associated with digital transformation in the financial sector. It shall focus on researching and proposing solutions to reform financial institutions and policies in a proactive, flexible and synchronous manner. At the same time, there must be a regular and continuous inspection and supervision mechanism to promptly remove difficulties and obstacles in administrative procedures reform and digital transformation of the finance sector.
Fourthly, administrative reform associated with digital transformation must come from transformation of awareness. Over the past time, the Ministry of Finance has promoted propaganda and thorough understanding of administrative procedure reform associated with digital transformation in the entire Finance sector, people, businesses and society, contributing to changing thinking and working methods from manual to digital environment. The change of mindset, awareness and determination of agencies and units in the finance sector will lead the change in social thinking, awareness and participation. Along with that, personnel training and fostering shall be focused to improve personnel capability and quality to meet the requirements of administrative reform, professional working mechanism reform associated with national digital transformation.
Fifthly, it shall focus on developing a widespread and modern digital infrastructure, in which special attention shall be paid to development of information system for handling administrative procedures of the Ministry and its affiliated units; and priority shall be given to investment in systems, applications and software serving for settlement of administrative procedures, especially in taxation, customs, and treasury.
Sixthly, it shall standardize all administrative procedures process and profession, restructure financial administrative procedures on National Public Service Portal, synchronize with legal document system; connect authentically with population database, specialized databases; complete financial databases for people and businesses to exploit and use conveniently, ensuring publicity and transparency, contributing to corruption prevention and fighting, promoting digital financial services development.
(Thu Hằng)