Job Discussion Forums

[harold]

question 1: do i get the 25% foreigner tax refunded to me after i've lived here for six months, or after the end of the fiscal year?

question 2: six months; is that my time at each school, or the total time i've ever been in vietnam? what if i traveled here a couple of years before for a while? does that count?

question 3: how do i go about getting this back? i assume it doesn't magically appear in a paycheck. are we filing taxes here?

you might assume that my employer would have clear information on this, but it's difficult to get explicit info in a language not native to someone.

[lizarddoctor]

The 25% tax is only to be applied for the time someone is in Vietnam for their first 6 months. Most schools don't apply it though, and is not dependant on a school. After those 6 months are up, you are to get 15% back from the school(s) that took it in the first place. Take SEAMEO for example, they do take it, but they give it back without any questions asked without hassle after your visa hits 6 months. Another example is IPS which will take it and not give it back in any circumstance and even tried to take 25% from everyone because they don't understand the laws themselves. I already have listed them with strict caution for anyone living here less than 6 months because you will get screwed there. I helped as much as I could before with the long termers, but they still are breaking the law in regards to new teachers and another concrete instance will have to go through the police or a lawyer to get some action.

Don't assume much towards an employer knowing what is the law as many papermills set up for the business of cash before education will find ways to take your cash without giving it back until they are caught and forced to refund it. This law doesn't apply to anyone who can show a visa status that they have lived in Vietnam for more than 6 months. You can even take a vacation and come back as long as the gaps in your visa aren't too far apart. Again, most schools don't even mess with it, but their are the occassional a$$ schools that aren't worth working at anyway.

[ChuckECheese]

If the school taxed you 25% from your gross pay, forget about getting it back.

You should never take a job that will take off 25% Tax because all these language mills are cheating on their taxes with government anyway. Especially when they are hiring teachers without proper WP.

[Riding One]

[ChuckECheese]

[Riding One]

[Riding One]

[Riding One]

[Mr. Kalgukshi]

We'll try this one again.

If there is a repeat of the trolling and inappropriate posting that occurred previously, the thread will be permanently removed and sanctions applied to responsible members.

[sethness]

I've heard that Apollo is hurting for teachers, right now, after a flotilla of the teachers quit. Perhaps their call to offer a tax refund was simply a way of saying "Hi, we're here, need a job?" to a very qualified ex-employee.

That'd make good business sense, though it's a calcualted risk. Sort of...fishing with good bait, eh?

[AnnMouse]

Hi I actually know a bit about this due to the experience of people I know. Apollo only deducts 10% from full time teachers and subsidizes the rest of the tax for the first 183 days in which the "foreigner tax" applies.

Part timers are deducted 25% but they get it back in their next pay cheque once they have been in the country 183 days.
I even know of a guy, not the same person as above who recently left for a higher level position they were offered elsewhere in the city and the accounts dept told them to come back once they'd been in the country 183 days and they would reimburse the extra tax he'd paid. So, may be some people above have had some bad experiences but I think others are just a bit cynical.

[Tanker]