In April alone, State revenues from crude oil only reached 56 per cent from the same month last year. — VNS Photo Huy Hung

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Although tax revenues from crude oil declined following plunging world prices, domestic tax collections rose in the first four months of 2015, the General Department of Taxation's report showed.

During the period, domestic tax collections were estimated to total VND269.7 trillion (US$12.49 billion), representing an increase of 10.2 per cent over the same period last year.

Taxes from crude oil, however, dropped by nearly 33 per cent over the same period and was equivalent to only 27.2 per cent of the target for the full year.

The report said that State revenues from crude oil fell below expectations.

In April alone, State revenues from crude oil only reached 56 per cent from the same month last year.

The tax sector planned to collect VND731.6 trillion ($33.87 billion) this year, VND93 trillion ($4.3 billion) of which would come from crude oil.

The report also revealed that 55 out of 63 provinces and cities in the country reported rises in tax revenues in the period.

According to Le Xuan Duong, Deputy Director of HCM City Department of Taxation, online tax filings and electronic tax payments helped boost tax collection this year.

He added that tax departments were also implementing other measures to simplify tax procedures and reduce tax filing times for companies. Meanwhile, Luu Thanh Thao from the accounting department of Sai Gon Beer-Alcohol-Beverage Joint Stock Corporation said that tax simplification helped firms to reduce tax filing times, but more improvements, especially the upgrading of online tax systems, were still needed. — VNS