Re-export rule change proposed
Re-export rule change proposed
Goods temporarily imported into Viet Nam for re-export will be permitted to stay in the country for only 60 days after customs procedures instead of 120 days if a proposal by the Ministry of Industry and Trade is approved.
The ministry's proposed amendment to import regulations aims to make it more difficult for smuggled goods from abroad to enter the Vietnamese market, and to address deficiencies in the six-year-old Governmental Decision 12/2006/ND-CP on international trade.
Deputy director of the ministry's Import and Export Department Tran Thanh Hai said the new rules aimed to help curb the smuggled, banned and sub-standard goods being sold in Viet Nam.
According to Duong Xuan Sinh, an official from the Smuggling Investigation Department at the Viet Nam Customs, goods temporarily imported for re-export were mainly goods that were not encouraged or banned for import, such as foreign wine and tobacco or industrial waste.
In addition, when importing goods for the purpose of re-export, under current regulations importers were exempt from value added tax, said Sinh.
Taking advantage of Viet Nam's policies for goods imported for re-export, businesses imported goods and later opened containers at customs warehouses to illegally take the goods for sale in the domestic market.
"The longer the goods are allowed to stay in Viet Nam, the more possibilities there are for the goods to penetrate the domestic market," he said.
At a recent workshop to collect ideas on the draft, deputy minister Nguyen Thanh Bien said that after six years of implementation, some of the regulations revealed major shortcomings, including inconsistent mechanisms and legal documents to manage goods for import and export and overlapping or vague responsibilities of ministries and agencies in this field.
Moreover, the decision was issued before Viet Nam gained full membership of the World Trade Organisation, he said, and in the current context the country attached more importance to management of imports and curbing the trade deficit, thus relevant regulations should be more specific.
Under the draft, in Article 4 on procedures for import and export, there will be a regulation on border gates for customs clearance. This clarifies which border gates goods go through.
In Article 5 on goods that are prohibited from being imported, ministers or heads of authorised bodies may consider permitting the import/export of these goods in special cases if they take responsibility for the decision.
In Article 7, goods for import or export must undergo quarantine inspection prior to customs clearance; based on the existing Law on Food Safety and other relevant legal documents, specialised ministries announce lists of goods to inspect prior to customs clearance.
Another new point in the draft is about terms and conditions in goods-outsourcing contracts that involve foreign parties. Accordingly, the contract must include names and addresses of involved parties and the direct outsourcing company; name, quantity and price of outsourced products, time and kinds of payment, and information on imported material value and waste treatment measures.
The draft amendments are expected to be finalised and proposed for approval by the Prime Minister during the first three months of next year.
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