Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam Before the 2026 Year-End Close

Trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam has one central requirement: every import shipment must match across the contract, the seller’s invoice, the customs declaration, the tax payment document, the goods receipt note, the payable balance and the stock ledger. Under Circular 99/2025/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance guiding the enterprise accounting regime (Circular 99), the cost of purchased goods includes the purchase price, purchasing costs, import duty and related taxes, while import VAT is included in cost only if it cannot be credited. Goods must be tracked in detail by warehouse, by type and by item, in both quantity and value.

This article is for business owners, finance managers and accountants of trading companies that import goods for sale in Vietnam. It follows one shipment from the purchase order to the inventory report, and points out where errors arise and how to reconcile them. It does not advise on HS codes, customs value or import licences. Sources were checked on 04/11/2026.

The Shipment File in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

Article 26(2) of the Law on Accounting No. 88/2015/QH13 requires entries to be recorded from accounting documents, so the quality of the books depends on the document set for each shipment. In our professional view, trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam should keep a separate file for each shipment, containing the documents below.

Document	What it is used for	What to check
Contract, purchase order	Delivery terms, price, payment, transfer of risk	Whether the delivery terms match the recognition date
Seller’s commercial invoice	Value and quantity in foreign currency	Quantity and unit price against the contract
Packing list, bill of lading	Package and shipping details	Quantity and delivery date
Customs declaration	Import duty, import VAT, declared value	Items, quantity and value against the invoice
Tax payment document	Basis for crediting import VAT	Amount against the declaration
Purchasing cost invoices	Freight, insurance, handling, storage	Which shipment they belong to
Goods receipt note, inspection record	Quantity actually received	Differences against the documents
Payment documents to the seller	Settle the payable and meet the crediting conditions	Non-cash payment

Using one shipment code on every document and in the software makes reconciliation faster. If one declaration covers several items, prepare an allocation sheet by item code from the start. A bookkeeping service for a trading company should be designed the same way.

Recognising Cost in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

The guidance on Account 156 Goods in Circular 99/2025/TT-BTC sets out the components of cost. The table below summarises how each item is treated in trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam.

Item	Treatment	Reference entry
Purchase price on the seller’s invoice	Included in cost	Dr 156, Cr 331
Import duty	Included in cost	Dr 156, Cr 3333
Special consumption tax, environmental protection tax (if any)	Included in cost	Dr 156, Cr 3332, 33381
Creditable import VAT	Not included in cost	Dr 133, Cr 33312
Non-creditable import VAT	Included in cost	Dr 156, Cr 33312
Purchasing costs	Included in the value of goods purchased; small amounts relating to many items may go straight to cost of goods sold	Dr 156 or 632, Dr 133 (if any), Cr 111, 112, 331

Purchasing costs include cargo insurance, warehouse rent, yard and wharf rent, freight, handling, storage while bringing goods to the warehouse, and natural losses within norms. If a cost relates to several items, the company allocates it on a suitable basis and must apply that basis consistently. Trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam should record this basis in the accounting policy, for example by value or by weight, and not change it from shipment to shipment.

Purchases in foreign currency need care. Circular 99 provides that the part of the value matching an advance payment is recorded at the actual exchange rate on the date of the advance, and the unpaid part at the actual exchange rate on the date the goods are received. Tax obligations follow tax law, so the tax on the declaration and the value of goods in the books may be converted on different bases. This is not automatically an error, but it should be explained in the reconciliation.

Goods in Transit in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

At period end there are often goods that already belong to the company but have not reached the warehouse. Circular 99 uses Account 151 Goods in transit for goods that have been paid for or accepted for payment but are still at the seller’s warehouse, at a port, in a yard or bonded warehouse, in transit, or have arrived and are awaiting inspection.

During the period, when the invoice has arrived but the goods have not, the company keeps the invoice in a separate file. If the goods still have not arrived at period end, the invoice is used to record Dr 151, and when the goods arrive in the next period they are transferred to Account 156. The question to decide is whether ownership has passed to the company, and the delivery terms in the contract are the first document to read. A mistake here distorts both inventory and payables at period end in trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam.

Import VAT in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

VAT on imported goods is determined at the time import duty is determined, under Article 15(2) of Decree 181/2025/ND-CP. To credit it, Article 14(2)(a) of the Law on Value-Added Tax No. 48/2024/QH15 requires a document showing import VAT was paid, and point (b) requires a non-cash payment document, except in special cases.

Article 26 of Decree 181/2025/ND-CP applies the non-cash payment requirement to purchases of VND 5 million or more including tax, imported goods included. Imports below VND 5 million per shipment, and gifts, donations or free samples, do not need this document.

Deferred payment has its own rule. Under Article 26(2)(g) of Decree 181/2025/ND-CP (as amended by Decree 144/2026/ND-CP), if there is no payment document yet because payment is not due under the contract, the company may still credit the VAT. If payment falls due and there is no non-cash payment document, the company must reduce the corresponding input VAT in the period the payment obligation arises, and may declare it for crediting again once it has the document. Trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam should therefore track the payment due date of each shipment.

Another point to note is input VAT that cannot be credited because a non-cash payment document is missing. Article 14(1)(e) of the Law on Value-Added Tax does not allow this tax to be included in deductible expenses for corporate income tax or in the cost of fixed assets, so a missing document can cost both.

Monthly Reconciliation in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

Small differences on each shipment add up quickly. The reconciliation table below is our professional view of what should be done each month.

Reconciliation	Compare	Common differences
Declarations against tax ledgers	The month’s declarations against Accounts 3333, 33312, 133	Declarations not recorded, amended declarations not updated
Declarations against the warehouse	Declared quantity against goods receipt notes	Shortages, surpluses, wrong item codes
Warehouse against the general ledger	Stock movement report against the balances of Accounts 156, 151	Notes without a cost, costs not yet allocated
Supplier payables	Account 331 ledger against the seller’s confirmation or statement	Wrong exchange rate, advances not offset
Revenue against cost of goods sold	Goods issue notes against sales invoices	Goods issued without an invoice, or the reverse
Purchasing costs	Logistics invoices against shipments	Late invoices, booked to selling expenses by mistake

Two points should have written rules. First, trade discounts or price reductions received after purchase are allocated between goods still in stock and goods already sold, following the guidance on Account 156. Second, cost invoices that arrive after part of the goods has been sold must be handled consistently.

Inventory Reports in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

A monthly inventory report should answer three questions: how much is left, what is it worth, and does it match the general ledger. Circular 99 requires detailed accounting by warehouse, by type and by item, tracking both quantity and value. A summary report by value alone is therefore not enough.

Article 40(2)(a) of the Law on Accounting requires a stocktake at the end of the annual accounting period. Article 40(3) requires a summary report of the stocktake results and the handling of differences between actual counts and the books. A company with many item codes should do sample counts during the year instead of waiting for December. A manager abroad may also ask for reports on slow-moving stock, negative stock and goods in transit.

Negative stock in the software usually means a receipt note was posted late or under the wrong item code. It is a signal to act at once, because the cost of the related issue notes may already be wrong.

7 Mistakes to Avoid in Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

In our professional view, these are the mistakes most worth checking.

• Recording import duty as an expense instead of in the cost of goods.
• Including creditable VAT in the cost of imported goods.
• Recording goods in Account 156 on the invoice date although they have not arrived or been inspected.
• Not allocating purchasing costs, or changing the allocation basis from shipment to shipment.
• Not tracking payment due dates for goods bought on deferred terms.
• Not updating the books when a declaration is amended.
• Tracking inventory by value only, not by quantity and item code.

FAQ on Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

Is import duty included in cost of goods sold? Import duty is included in the cost of goods under the guidance on Account 156, and then flows into cost of goods sold when the goods are sold.

Is domestic freight to the warehouse included in cost? Yes, it is a purchasing cost. Small amounts relating to many items may go straight to cost of goods sold.

When can import VAT be credited? When the conditions in Article 14(2) of the Law on Value-Added Tax are met, including the import VAT payment document and a non-cash payment document as required. Input VAT arising in a month or quarter is declared and credited in that month or quarter.

Are goods at the port at period end included in inventory? If they already belong to the company but have not reached the warehouse, they are recorded in Account 151, not Account 156.

Does trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam need bilingual reports? The statutory books are kept in Vietnamese under Article 11(1) of the Law on Accounting. Management reports for the parent company may add English but must match the books.

How Pham Consult Supports Trading Company Bookkeeping in Vietnam

Pham Consult provides bookkeeping services and accounting services in Ho Chi Minh City. If your company imports goods for sale and the figures in the declarations, the warehouse and the general ledger do not match, ask for a trading company bookkeeping in Vietnam scope that sets out the document flow, the reconciliations and the monthly reports. The actual scope is confirmed in the service contract.

To discuss, book a scope call or call +84 909 660 105. Please tell us the number of import shipments per month, the number of item codes and the warehouse software you use.

Legal sources were checked on 04/11/2026. This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal, tax or accounting advice; regulations may change after the date of publication, so please seek professional advice for your specific situation before making any decision.