Guide to Registering Dependents for Personal Exemption in 2026: Conditions, Dossier, and Latest Procedures

Starting from the tax period of 2026, the Personal Income Tax Law of 2025 officially adjusts the personal exemption level with a significant increase, helping to reduce the tax burden for employees. However, to apply this exemption, taxpayers must not only meet the conditions for dependents but also register correctly with the tax authority.

In the article below, OPLAW summarizes all new regulations on eligible dependents, personal exemption levels, dossiers, registration procedures, and important notes that individuals and businesses need to know.

1. What are the changes in personal exemption from 2026?

According to the Personal Income Tax Law of 2025, applicable for the tax period of 2026, the personal exemption level is adjusted as follows:

Content	Until the end of 2025	From the tax period of 2026
Self-exemption	11 million VND/month	15.5 million VND/month (186 million VND/year)
Exemption for each dependent	4.4 million VND/month	6.2 million VND/month

The increase in the exemption level contributes to reducing the payable tax amount, especially for employees supporting multiple dependents.

However, it should be noted that the dependent exemption is not applied automatically. Taxpayers are only entitled to it after registering their dependents and completing the full dossier as prescribed.

2. Principles of Dependent Registration

According to the new regulations, each dependent can only be claimed for personal exemption by one taxpayer in the same tax year.

This means that:

Parents cannot simultaneously register the same child as a dependent.
Husband and wife cannot both register the same dependent.
If multiple individuals have the obligation to support, the parties must agree on who will claim the exemption.

This principle aims to prevent a dependent from being claimed for exemption multiple times in the same tax period.

3. Who can be registered as a dependent?

The law provides a broad definition of dependents. However, each group of dependents will have specific conditions.

3.1. Children of the taxpayer

Including:

Biological children;
Legally adopted children;
Stepchildren of the spouse.

Cases considered dependents include:

Children under 18 years old

Are identified as dependents without considering income conditions.

Children aged 18 or older with disabilities or loss of working capacity

Are considered dependents if they fall under the category of inability to work as prescribed.

Children aged 18 or older who are studying

Including those studying at:

University;
College;
Intermediate vocational school;
Vocational training;
Or still attending high school.

The conditions are:

No income; or
Average monthly income not exceeding 3 million VND.

3.2. Spouse

Taxpayers may register their spouse as a dependent if they meet the prescribed conditions.

Within working age, they must simultaneously:

Have no working capacity;
Have an average monthly income not exceeding 3 million VND.

Outside working age, they only need to:

Have no income; or
Have an average monthly income not exceeding 3 million VND.

3.3. Parents

Including:

Biological parents;
Adoptive parents;
Stepfather;
Stepmother;
Parents of the wife;
Parents of the husband.

The conditions for application are similar to those for spouses.

3.4. Other individuals without means of support

In addition to the above, taxpayers may also register:

Siblings;
Paternal grandparents;
Maternal grandparents;
Aunts, uncles;
Nieces/nephews;
Other individuals whom the taxpayer has a direct legal obligation to support.

This group of dependents must meet the income and working capacity conditions similar to those for parents or spouses.

4. How is "loss of working capacity" understood?

According to current regulations, an individual is considered to have lost working capacity when their working capacity reduction level is 81% or more, as certified by a competent authority.

This is an important basis for determining whether many groups of dependents within working age are eligible for personal exemption.

5. What are the methods for dependent registration?

Currently, there are two registration methods.

Method 1: Registration through the employer

This is a common method for employees.

The process includes:

Step 1: The employee submits the dependent supporting documents and a power of attorney to the HR or accounting department.

Step 2: The employer compiles the information and submits it to the tax authority according to the prescribed form.

Step 3: The tax authority issues a tax code for the dependent, and the employer retains the records for inspection and audit purposes when necessary.

Method 2: Individual self-registration

Taxpayers can directly:

Submit the dossier at the tax authority; or
Register on the tax authority's electronic portal.

For dependents who are Vietnamese citizens, when registering electronically, only the personal identification number needs to be declared, and the tax authority will extract information from the National Population Database.

6. Dependent Supporting Documents

The required documents will vary depending on the dependent's category.

For example:

For children

Birth certificate;
Citizen ID card (if any);
Adoption certificate (if adopted child);
Disability certificate or certificate of loss of civil act capacity (if applicable);
Student card or certificate of enrollment for children over 18 who are still studying.

For spouse

Citizen ID card;
Marriage certificate or documents proving marital relationship.

For parents

Citizen ID card;
Taxpayer's birth certificate or documents proving relationship.

For other dependent individuals without support

Citizen ID card;
List of individuals directly supported;
Documents proving relationship and obligation of support.

For individuals with disabilities, additional documents proving a reduction in working capacity of 81% or more are required.

7. Required forms

Depending on the registration case, taxpayers or businesses will use the following forms:

Form 20-ĐKT: Registration or change of dependent information.
Form 20-ĐKT-TH: Summary of dependent registration for businesses.
Form 05-ĐKT-TH: Summary of tax registration for employees.
Form 41/UQ-ĐKT: Tax registration authorization letter.
Form 07/XN-NPT-TNCN: List of individuals directly supported.
Form 08-MST: Adjustment, amendment of tax registration information.

8. Deadline for dependent registration

According to current regulations, December 31st of the tax year is the deadline for initial dependent registration within the year.

Additionally, taxpayers should note:

Dependent supporting documents only need to be submitted once for the entire deduction period.
When additional dependents arise, supplementary registration must be performed.
When a dependent no longer meets the conditions, a declaration of termination of deduction must be filed.
If transferring to a new employer, employees must resubmit dependent documents to the new income-paying entity.

COMPARISON TABLE OF NEW AND OLD PERSONAL INCOME TAX LAWS