HCM City Customs refuses to grant import permits for "gifted and donated" cars

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Recently, H.T.S.G Investment Trading Co., Ltd. submitted an application for import permit of a car with less than 9 seats as a gift or donation to the HCM City Customs Department.

Many enterprises have just been established but have been gifted cars

By reviewing the documents attached to the application, the HCM City Customs found that the content of the Letter of Car Donation, the Service Consulting Agreement and the Business Registration Certificate is not eligible for the donation of high-value cars.

Specifically, according to the Business Registration Certificate issued by the HCM City Department of Planning and Investment, H.T.S.G Investment and Trading Co., Ltd was established on April 20, 2021. To prove the cooperation relationship with the car donor, the company provided the Customs agency with a service agreement, signed on May 3, 2021 with Synergy Investment Group, LLC. (13 days after the establishment of HTSG Trading Investment Company Limited); a donation letter from S.I.G. dated May 11, 2021 (21 days after H.T.S.G company was established and eight days after the service consulting agreement was signed.

Pursuant to Point b2, Clause 2, Article 4 of Circular 143/2015/TT-BTC dated September 11, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance on customs procedures and management of cars and motorbikes of entities eligible for importing or temporarily importing for non-commercial goods and the instructions at point 1.6 of Official Dispatch 3173/TCHQ-GSQL dated June 23, 2021 of the General Department of Customs, the HCM City Customs Department rejected the application and notified H.T.S.G Company of insufficient grounds to be granted an import license for cars for non-commercial purposes. The HCM City Customs Department proposed H.T.S.G Company carry out procedures to return the car to the partner.

Similarly, through reviewing the documents attached to the application for a car import license of VD Investment and Trading Co., Ltd., the HCM City Customs Department discovered the content of the Letter of Donation, Service Consulting Agreement and Business Registration Certificate are not suitable for the donation of high-value cars, so the application was refused.

According to the HCM City Customs, this company was also newly established on April 20, 2021. The company signed a consulting service agreement with A.T.I Company after 15 days of establishment. And 26 days after the Service Consulting Agreement was signed, V.D. Trading Investment Co., Ltd. received a letter of donation of a car with less than nine seats from the partner.

Donate a car to an auto business

According to Customs News, H.T.S.G Investment and Trading Co., Ltd. has the licensed business line of trading in automobiles and other motor vehicles; and auto parts and other motor vehicle parts.

Similarly, V.D. Trading Investment Co., Ltd is also engaged in business line related to the trading of automobiles and auto parts, such as: selling spare parts and accessories of automobiles and other motor vehicles; and spare parts and auxiliary parts of motorbikes; wholesale automobiles and other motor vehicles; maintenance and repair of motorcycles and motorbikes.

According to the HCM City Customs Department, the applications for car donation rejected by the unit showed unreasonable signs; the companies that are given cars were newly established. After establishment, the signing a service consulting agreement with a foreign partner has a short time but the companies have been donated cars.

The case of K.B.D Trading Co., Ltd. is typical. After this company was licensed for establishment in nine days, on April 19, 2021 the company signed a service consulting contract with a foreign partner. And just 11 days later, K.B.D Trading Co., Ltd. was given a gift by the partner with a "genuine" car.

In addition to the above cases, earlier, the HCM City Customs Department discovered a number of suspicious cases when all companies were given cars as gifts having business lines of trading in cars, even garages. For example, recently, a company applied for a license to import cars as gifts or presents. Through the review of records, HCM City Customs Department discovered that this company was a garage, so the case has been reported to the General Department of Customs.