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Deputy Director General Mai Xuan Thanh chaired the online conference. Photo: H.N

On October 19, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc promulgated Decree No.128/2020/ND-CP on the sanctioning of administrative violations in the customs area (hereinafter referred to as Decree 128). Decree 128 will take effect on December 10 and replace Decree 127/2013/ ND-CP dated October 15, 2013 and Decree 45/2016/ND-CP.

According to arepresentative of the Legal Department, after nearly fouryears of implementing Decree 45/2016/ND-CP, besides achievements like contributing to improving the efficiency of customs operations, preventing and handling violations of customs law, enhancing law compliance of customs declarants; reforming administrative procedures and ensuring State management requirements on customs area. Decree 45/2016/ND-CP has shortcomings that need to be amended and supplemented in line withreality.

Some legal documents on import and export goods; tax regulations on import and export goods; regulations on customs procedures, inspection and supervision have been revised in documents like the Law on Export and Import Duty No.107/2016/QH13, Law on Foreign Trade Management No. 05/2017/QH14, Decree No.134/2016/ND-CP dated September 1, 2016, Decree 69/2018/ND-CP dated May 15, 2018 detailing articles of the Law on Foreign Trade Management, Decree 08/2015/ND-CP dated January 21, 2015 regulating enforcement measures of the Customs Law on customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision, control amended and supplemented in Decree No. 59/2018/ND-CP dated April 20, 2018.

In addition, the Government issued Resolution No.119 / NQ-CP dated December 31, 2019 on urgent measures to strengthen State management on the prevention of origin fraud, illicit transshipment and assigned the Ministry of Finance to work with ministries and sectors to revise content related to the handling of violations on origin of import and export goods in the decree on sanctioning of customs administrative violations.

A representative of the Legal Department said some shortcomings have arisen in the process of implementing regulations on sanctioning administrative violations in the customs area such as alack of sanctions for some arising violations andsome inappropriate violations.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Director General Mai Xuan Thanh said the Customs sector has focused on the reform of administrative procedures between Customs agencies and individuals, organisations, enterprises, ensuring synchronous reform in all stages from the development of institutions, policies and laws to receiving and handling administrative procedures; enhanced IT application and modern customs management methods in handling administrative procedures, especially amid the outbreak of the Covid 19 pandemic.

However, according to many provincial and municipal customs units, import and export activities across border gates still havemany risks such as some enterprises have abused the convenience of the e-customs procedure system to make false declaration of goods names, quantity, categories, codes and origin for smuggling, trade fraud andillegal cross-border goods transport for seeking profit.

To enhance compliance and strictness of the law for customs clearance at border gates, Decree 128 is issued for further ensuring strict penalties but feasibility, efficiency and in line with reality. At the same time, Decree 128 ensures and maintains State management on customs, facilitating import-export activities; encourages customs declarants and taxpayers to actively abide by the customs law and other relevant laws.

To contribute to ensuring and maintaining the State management on customs, Deputy Director General Mai Xuan Thanh requested units across the sector effectively comply with regulations on sanctioning of administrative violations as prescribed in Decree 128 when it take effect. In addition, the units need to disseminate and guide enterprises to quickly grasp provisions specified in Decree 128 to meet the practical requirements of State management on customs. At the same time, units need to overcome and handle problems and shortcomings in performance, if the problems go beyond their competency, they should immediately report to the General Department of Vietnam Customs for instructions.