HCM City seeks ways to attract more remittances

The information was heard at a seminar held in the city on May 29 by the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs of HCM City, in coordination with the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Branch in HCM City to seek comments and solutions of overseas Vietnamese intellectuals to effectively attract and optimise remittance resources in the city. 

Remittances to Ho Chi Minh City have always maintained a relatively high growth rate and play a crucial role in the city’s socio-economic development. Photo by VNA.

According to Nguyen Duc Lenh, Deputy Director of the SBV Branch in HCM City, remittances to the city have always maintained a relatively high growth rate and play a crucial role in the city’s socio-economic development.

He acknowledged that one of the factors leading to the strong growth of remittances to Vietnam in general, and to the city in particular, is the consistent maintenance of favourable policy incentives. These incentives include tax and fee exemptions for recipients, as well as the availability of increasingly convenient methods for money transfer and receipt.

The official noted that the city needs to create favourable conditions, and improve the investment environment to attract remittances, thereby making a significant contribution to the city's development.

According to Dr. Nguyen Tri Hieu, in order to attract remittances, macroeconomic factors must be improved to increase confidence of overseas Vietnamese in the country’s development as well as in investment opportunities in the city.

He said that another important factor is to maintain a tax-free policy on overseas remittances and allow recipients to keep foreign currencies or make deposits in foreign currencies at credit institutions.

Peter Hong, Standing Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the Business Association of Overseas Vietnamese (BAOOV), said in order to effectively attract and promote the efficiency remittances and make it an important "boost" to contribute to the economy of Vietnam in general and the city in particular, the government and localities need to have positive policies to create confidence for overseas Vietnamese while creating breakthroughs in policies for expatriates and remittances.

Accordingly, the revised Law on Land should be more open so that overseas Vietnamese can buy houses in Vietnam or increase the attraction of overseas resources into key programmes, works and projects of the State and the city through the  issuance of Government and local administration bonds with many incentives.

Professor Vo Hong Duc, from the University of Western Australia Business School, proposed that the city issue municipal bonds or overseas Vietnamese bonds as a source to provide capital for the construction of large projects in the city.

Source: Vietnamplus