Closing a Branch, Representative Office or Business Location of an Enterprise

Before terminating a branch, the enterprise must terminate all business locations attached to that branch with the provincial-level business registration authority where each location is situated. Only after that does it carry out the tax procedures and file the dossier to terminate the branch.

• The short order: business location → branch → (if dissolving) the company — see question b17.

Basis: Clauses 1 and 5, Article 66 of Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP. Further reading: /hoi-dap/ (b18, b22). Thái Tín supports the closing of branches and business locations in many provinces — contact us to have your dossier reviewed.

The termination of a branch or representative office abroad is carried out under the law of that country. Within 30 days from the official date of termination, the enterprise sends a written notice to the provincial-level business registration authority where its head office is located; that authority updates the information within 03 working days.

Basis: Clause 6, Article 66 of Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP (Decree 296/2026/NĐ-CP does not amend this clause).

The provincial-level business registration authority issues a notice to the enterprise and does not yet change the status of the branch or representative office to "terminated". The enterprise must complete the outstanding tax obligations of the branch with the tax authority that manages the branch, and then proceed.

• The 02-day (tax authority's opinion) and 05-day (status change) time limits that apply when there is no refusal: see question b19.

Basis: Clause 3, Article 66 of Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP. Thái Tín helps review the branch's tax obligations before you resubmit.

After 180 days from the date the provincial-level business registration authority announces that a branch, representative office or business location is "undergoing termination procedures", if it has received no dossier and no written objection from the tax authority or a related party, that authority terminates the unit's operation in the database.

• The Ministry of Finance has directed that this status change be made within 01 working day after the period expires (Official Dispatch 16148/BTC-DNTN dated 12/10/2026 — a directive document).
• If the tax authority objects, the termination does not take place automatically.

Basis: Clause 7, Article 66 of Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP; Section 2 of Official Dispatch 16148/BTC-DNTN.

It starts with the tax authority. A taxpayer that has been notified as not operating at its registered address and wishes to terminate operations must first carry out the procedure to terminate the validity of its tax code; and before registering the termination of the branch, the enterprise must complete the branch's tax obligations with the tax authority.

• A status 06 branch cannot have its debt frozen while the enterprise is still operating — see HD-022.

Basis: Official Dispatch 10371/BTC-DNTN dated 17/7/2026; Clause 1, Article 66 of Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP. Further reading: /kien-thuc/khong-hoat-dong-tai-dia-chi-da-dang-ky/. This is a type of case Thái Tín focuses on handling — contact us to have your dossier reviewed.

Before filing the dissolution registration dossier, the company must finish the procedures to terminate the operation of its branches, representative offices and business locations with the business registration authority where each unit is situated. For tax purposes, all dependent units must complete the termination of their tax code validity before the parent company. It is advisable to do these in parallel right after the dissolution decision is made so that the work does not pile up at the end.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clause 4, Article 64; Circular 90/2026/TT-BTC, Clause 3, Article 14

Read the detailed guide →

The dossier to terminate the operation of a branch or representative office consists of a notice of termination and a copy or the original of the termination decision of the owner (single-member limited liability company), the Members' Council (limited liability company with two or more members, or partnership) or the Board of Directors (joint-stock company), submitted within 10 days from the date of the decision. Beforehand, the branch must carry out the procedure with the tax authority to complete its tax obligations, and if the branch has business locations attached to it, those must be terminated first.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clauses 1, 2 and 5, Article 66; Circular 90/2026/TT-BTC, Clause 5, Article 13

Read the detailed guide →

The termination dossier is filed with the provincial-level business registration authority where the branch is located, not where the company has its head office; the tax part is done with the tax authority that directly manages the branch before the dossier is filed. After receiving the dossier, the tax authority has 02 working days to give its opinion, and the business registration authority changes the branch to "terminated" within 05 working days if the tax authority does not refuse.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clauses 2 and 3, Article 66; Circular 90/2026/TT-BTC, Clause 5, Article 13

Read the detailed guide →

Legally, a branch is always a dependent unit of the enterprise; "independent accounting" or "dependent accounting" is only a way of organizing bookkeeping and tax declaration, so the termination procedure at the business registration authority is the same. Every branch must carry out the procedure with the tax authority before filing the termination dossier; a branch that files its own tax declarations has more work to do: it must itself complete its tax returns and invoices and pay tax to the tax authority managing the branch.

Basis: Law on Enterprises 59/2020/QH14, Clause 1, Article 44; Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clauses 1 and 2, Article 66; Circular 90/2026/TT-BTC, Clause 5, Article 13; Article 14

Read the detailed guide →

The enterprise that owns the branch must pay. The Law on Tax Administration provides that a taxpayer whose dependent unit terminates operations without having completed its tax payment obligations is responsible for completing them in its place; the Law on Enterprises likewise requires the enterprise to settle the debts, including tax debts, of a branch that has been terminated. It is therefore advisable to review and complete the branch's taxes before closing it, so that no debt arises that passes to the company.

Basis: Law on Tax Administration 108/2025/QH15, Point đ, Clause 1, Article 17; Law on Enterprises 59/2020/QH14, Clause 3, Article 213 (Clause 1, Article 213 was amended by Law 76/2025/QH15; Clause 3 was not amended)

Read the detailed guide →

You send the dossier to terminate the operation of the business location to the provincial-level business registration authority where the location is situated, within 10 days from the date of the termination decision. That authority changes the location to "terminated" within 02 working days from receipt of the dossier, and the information is transmitted automatically to the tax system. A business location is managed under its location code and the tax code of the parent unit, so the procedure is simpler than for a branch.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clause 2, Article 66; Clause 4, Article 66 (time limit amended to 02 working days by Clause 3, Article 19 of Decree 296/2026/NĐ-CP); Circular 90/2026/TT-BTC, Point đ, Clause 3, Article 15

Read the detailed guide →

The dossier consists only of a notice of termination of the business household's operation, filed with the commune-level business registration authority (the specialized division of the People's Committee of the commune, ward or special zone that is assigned to handle business household registration, or the commune-level People's Committee if no specialized division is established there). The condition is that the household has paid all its debts, including tax debts, unless otherwise agreed with its creditors; the dossier is filed within 05 working days from the date the debts are fully paid.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clause 2, Article 20 (amended by Article 5 of Decree 296/2026/NĐ-CP); Points a and b, Clause 1, Article 104 (not amended by Decree 296/2026/NĐ-CP)

Read the detailed guide →

It can be done online: the household owner logs in to the National Public Service Portal or the national identification application with an electronic identification account to file on the Information System for Business Household Registration. After receiving the dossier, the tax authority has 02 working days to give its opinion; within 05 working days from receipt of the dossier, the commune-level business registration authority changes the household to "terminated" if the tax authority does not refuse. A household that still owes tax will be refused, so check your tax obligations before filing.

Basis: Decree 168/2025/NĐ-CP, Clause 3, Article 94; Article 113 (amended by Article 18 of Decree 296/2026/NĐ-CP); Point c, Clause 1, Article 104

Read the detailed guide →