Allow to buy duty-free goods online

Duty free shop at Noi Bai International Airport. Photo: N.Linh

Beside purchasing directly at a store, customers can buy duty-free goods online and receive goods at duty-free stores.

This procedure is stipulated at Article 19, Decree No.100/2020/NĐ-CP.

“Article 19. Online sale of duty-free goods procedures

1. Responsibilities of enterprises trading duty-free goods

In addition to responsibilities for selling goods to each entity specified in Articles 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 of this decree, enterprises shall:

a) Enter data on customer and goods information into electronic data processing system when accepting orders and completing payment procedures. Particularly, when selling to customers waiting to leave the country or transit through international civil airports, updating information about passengers will be implemented via scanning barcodes on boarding pass before checking and comparing information in accordance with the provisions of Point b of this clause.

b) When delivering goods to customers, checking and comparing information declared when buying online with information on paper related to customers who buy goods.

2. Responsibilities of the Customs branch managing duty-free shops, duty-free warehouses and the Customs branch at the border gate where buyer entry and exit country: comply with the regulations stipulated at Articles 13 and 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 of this decree are relevant to each subject buying duty-free goods ”.

When implementing this regulation, the General Department of Vietnam Customs noted that duty-free shops are only allowed to sell to the right people, for example, domestic shops only sell to customers waiting to leave the country, duty-free shops in the restricted area at the airport only sell to customers entering the country via airway, the duty-free shops in the quarantine area only sell to passenger on exit or in transit.

The delivery of goods to customers should comply with regulations as for direct purchase in accordance with each case:

If passengers entering the country purchase goods from duty-free shops within a restricted area, they must receive the goods before exiting the restricted area.

If passengers buy goods from domestic stores while waiting to leave the country, the delivery of goods will be made in quarantine areas or overseas as requested by customers.