A dialogue between Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department and Dutch traders to deal with difficulties

Ho Chi Minh City Department’s leaders exchanging with traders. Photo: T.H.

Raising inquiries at the conference, Dutch traders shared that they faced numerous obstacles in terms of specialized inspections which impeded their importation and exportation. Hence, the traders proposed several solutions to simplify the procedures of specialized inspections such as mutual recognition of findings, and risk management application in specialized inspections.

In reply to questions by traders, Deputy Director of Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department, Mr. Nguyen Huu Nghiep said that Customs had proposed to recognize mutually specialized inspection results by foreign countries for trade facilitation.

Material imported from the same manufacturer, inspected many times without faults or violations would have risk managemetn pronciples applied and be exempted from specialized inspection. Channeling goods subjected to specialized inspection should be performed; the rate of inspecting goods imported from targeting countries should be increased whilst the rate of inspecting imports from safe countries should be reduced.

Representatives from an enterprise importing material for decal paper production located in Phan Thiet – Binh Thuan Industrial Park raised a question relating to the Law on Import and Export Duties. This trader’s representatives supposed since September 1st 2016 in accordance with the Law on Import and Export Duties, consignments of material imported for decal paper production had been exempted from duties. However, the question was whether duties, which had been paid on goods in stock which had not been exported, could be refunded.

Responding to traders’ questions, Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department said that according to the Law on Import and Export Duties 2016, imports for export manufacture are free of duty. With regard to this matter, the Ministry of Finance issued a guiding document with the following contents: import declarations since September 1st 2016 have been exempted from duties; for declarations made before September 1st, 2016 there are many cases. If material imported for export manufacture has not been exported, traders can make new declarations for duty exemption.

If material imported remains in stock and is not used for manufacture, then traders can make new declarations for duty exemption for the material in stock. Products which have not been exported beyond 275 days, but duties have been paid, would undergo drawback procedures when they are actually exported as regulated.

Representatives from Philips Viet Nam Company produced a case: if imports have been cleared but the company’s foreign partner provides false invoices, can the trader make a supplementary declaration?

This issue was explained by Mr. Nguyen Huu Nghiep. In concrete cases, traders can contact Customs for supplementary declarations. If the traders do not carry out such work, Customs conduct post clearance audit and detect the fact that the traders have paid more than the declared prices, the traders will be required to pay duties and be fined for their tax fraud.

Answering traders’ questions on HS codes for imported goods, Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department supposed in accordance with the Law on Import and Export Duties, if traders want to benefit from preferential duty rates, they must declare clearly their importation patterns. In the light of regulations, duty exemption would be offered to importation for the export manufacture pattern meanwhile importation for commercial purposes is not free of duty.

Not only raising difficulties, some traders also made several proposals to Customs administration. They said that the requirement of C/O submission for preferential duty treatment at the time of importation, would make cargoes get stuck at border gates. The traders proposed Customs to reinforce post clearance audit instead of preventing violations by common management measures at the time of importation.

Besides, Customs should review Decree No. 68 regulating that traders shall ask permission from the General Department of Customs for narrowing or expanding Customs warehouses instead of asking permission from provincial Customs departments before.

At the conference, the Deputy Director of Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department , Mr. Nguyen Huu Nghiep informed about new regulations of the Law on Import and Export Duties which became effective from September 1st 2016, noting traders that they must have and present C/Os at the time of registering declarations for preferential duty rates.

This means traders must not submit C/O after declaration lodgment as before. In parallel, traders should strictly manage and control use of their digital signatures; selecting reputable Customs brokers for import and export.