The financial sector conducted 13,279 inspections in the first quarter of this year and proposed administrative penalties totaling over VND24.8 trillion ($1.04 billion), according to the Ministry of Finance.

The ministry also proposed other fines of over VND17.7 trillion ($746 million).

More than VND5.6 trillion ($236 million) will be contributed to the State budget through fines and penalties.

During the period, tax authorities performed 12,854 site inspections and examined over 186,000 tax documents. The also retrieved over VND3.2 trillion ($135 million) that would have otherwise been lost to fraud.

The customs sector discovered and handled 1,259 cases of smuggling.

The Ministry of Finance said it will enhance inspections over the remaining months of the year to prevent further violations, particularly in taxation and smuggling.