Circular No. 06/2026/TT-BTC

CIRCULAR

AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF THE MINISTER OF FINANCE'S CIRCULAR No. 13/2015/TT-BTC OF 30 JANUARY 2015 PROVIDING FOR CUSTOMS INSPECTION, SUPERVISION AND SUSPENSION OF CUSTOMS PROCEDURES FOR EXPORTED AND IMPORTED GOODS UPON REQUESTS FOR THE PROTECTION OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS; CONTROL OF COUNTERFEIT GOODS AND GOODS INFRINGING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, AS AMENDED AND SUPPLEMENTED BY CIRCULAR No. 13/2020/TT-BTC

Pursuant to the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13, as amended and supplemented by Law No. 90/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, as amended and supplemented by Law No. 36/2009/QH12, Law No. 42/2019/QH14 and Law No. 07/2022/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Electronic Transactions No. 20/2023/QH15;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP of 21 January 2015 detailing and providing measures for implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, inspection, supervision and control, as amended and supplemented by Decree No. 167/2025/NĐ-CP;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 65/2023/NĐ-CP of 23 August 2023 detailing a number of articles of, and providing measures for implementation of, the Law on Intellectual Property regarding industrial property, protection of industrial property rights, plant variety rights and state management of intellectual property;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 17/2023/NĐ-CP of 26 April 2023 detailing a number of articles of, and providing measures for implementation of, the Law on Intellectual Property regarding copyright and related rights;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 29/2025/NĐ-CP of 24 February 2025 defining the functions, tasks, powers and organisational structure of the Ministry of Finance, as amended and supplemented by Decree No. 166/2025/NĐ-CP;

At the request of the Director General of the Customs Department;

The Minister of Finance hereby promulgates the Circular amending and supplementing a number of articles of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC of 30 January 2015 providing for customs inspection, supervision and suspension of customs procedures for exported and imported goods upon requests for the protection of intellectual property rights; control of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights, as amended and supplemented by Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

Article 1. Amendment and supplementation of a number of articles of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, as amended and supplemented by Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC

1. To amend and supplement Article 3, as amended and supplemented under Clause 1, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC, as follows:

“Article 3. Interpretation of terms

In this Circular, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. Counterfeit goods include the goods defined in Clause 7, Article 3 of the Government's Decree No. 98/2020/NĐ-CP of 26 August 2020 providing for penalties for administrative violations in commercial activities, the production and trading of counterfeit and banned goods, and the protection of consumer rights.

2. Protection of intellectual property rights in the customs domain means the application by customs authorities of measures taken in the course of customs inspection, supervision, control and suspension of customs procedures for exported and imported goods related to intellectual property rights, under Article 216 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, as amended and supplemented under Clause 80, Article 1 of Law No. 07/2022/QH15; Article 73 of the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13, as amended and supplemented under Point b, Clause 2, Article 2 of Law No. 07/2022/QH15; Articles 74, 75 and 76 of the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13; and relevant legal documents, in order to detect, combat and handle acts of exporting or importing counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights.

3. Suspension of customs procedures for goods suspected of infringing intellectual property rights means a measure taken by customs authorities at the request of the intellectual property right holder in order to collect information and evidence on a consignment so that the right holder may exercise the right to request the handling of the infringement and to request provisional urgent measures or preventive measures that ensure the imposition of administrative penalties; or a measure proactively taken by customs authorities where, in the course of inspection, supervision and control, they find clear grounds to suspect that exported or imported goods are goods counterfeiting intellectual property.

4. Customs inspection of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights means the inspection, by customs authorities, of customs dossiers and relevant documents and the physical inspection of goods and means of transport in order to detect goods suspected of being counterfeit or infringing intellectual property rights.

5. Customs supervision of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights means a professional measure applied by customs authorities to ensure the integrity of the goods and compliance with the law in the preservation, storage, loading, unloading, transport and use of exported and imported goods related to intellectual property rights that are under customs management.

6. Customs control of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights means the application, by customs authorities, of customs control measures and other professional measures under the law to prevent and combat smuggling and illegal transport of counterfeit goods and goods infringing intellectual property rights within the customs operation area.

7. Applications include: the Application for inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights; the Application for updating and supplementing information on exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights; the Application for extension of inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights; the Application for termination of a request for inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights; and the Application for suspension of customs procedures.

8. The applicant is the intellectual property right holder (including the owner of the intellectual property right and the organisation or individual to which the owner has transferred the right) or a person lawfully authorised by the right holder.

9. Goods infringing intellectual property rights are exported or imported goods that violate Articles 28 and 35 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, as amended and supplemented under Clauses 8 and 10, Article 1 of Law No. 07/2022/QH15, and Articles 126, 127, 129 and 188 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11.

10. Goods counterfeiting intellectual property are the goods defined in Article 213 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, as amended and supplemented under Clause 79, Article 1 of Law No. 07/2022/QH15.”

2. To amend and supplement Article 6, as amended and supplemented under Clause 4, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC, as follows:

“Article 6. Submission of dossiers requesting inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights

1. A dossier requesting inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights comprises:

a) The Application for inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights, made according to the information criteria or as 01 original in Form No. 01 of Appendix II to this Circular.

b) The certificate of protection of industrial property rights or other documents proving that the industrial property right is protected in Vietnam, or the certificate of registration of a contract for the transfer of the right to use an industrial property object; the Certificate of copyright registration, the Certificate of related rights, the Certificate of plant variety rights, or other documents proving copyright, related rights or plant variety rights, including certificates issued abroad in conformity with international treaties to which Vietnam is a party: 01 copy;

Where a certificate of protection or certificate has been issued by the competent authority in electronic form on a website as announced by that authority, the applicant is not required to submit it but must declare in full the information on the certificate in the Application for inspection and supervision, together with the website address, so that the customs authority can check and cross-check it.

c) Actual photographs of the goods for which intellectual property protection is requested; photographs and detailed descriptions of goods infringing intellectual property rights and of the features distinguishing genuine goods from counterfeit goods or goods infringing intellectual property rights (if any).

d) A list of organisations and individuals lawfully exporting or importing the goods subject to the inspection and supervision request; a list of organisations and individuals likely to export or import goods infringing intellectual property rights.

dd) The power of attorney (where the application is submitted by authorisation): 01 copy;

2. The applicant for inspection and supervision of exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights shall submit the dossier to the Customs Department through the customs electronic data processing system.

Where the customs electronic data processing system encounters an incident or is not yet able to meet requirements, the applicant shall submit 01 paper dossier comprising the documents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article directly at the one-stop division of the Customs Department or send it by post to the Customs Department.

The applicant is responsible before law for the accuracy, legality and validity of the contents declared and submitted in the dossier.

3. To amend and supplement Article 7, as amended and supplemented under Clause 5, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC, as follows:

“Article 7. Examination and handling of dossiers

1. The Customs Department shall check the completeness of the dossier prescribed in Clause 1, Article 6 of this Circular and handle it as follows:

a) Where the dossier is incomplete, within 05 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier, the Customs Department shall notify the applicant to supplement it.

b) Where the dossier is complete, the following contents shall be examined:

b.1) The legal capacity of the applicant under law;

b.2) The conformity between the contents of the Application and the enclosed documents;

b.3) The information and validity period of the certificate of protection or certificate of intellectual property rights;

b.4) Whether the photographs, descriptions and information on the goods conform to the contents of the relevant intellectual property right or to the contents of the report on the infringement;

b.5) Whether the contents of the authorisation conform to law and the validity period of the power of attorney (if any).

2. Within 20 working days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier, the Customs Department shall examine the contents in Point b, Clause 1 of this Article, cross-check the information in the Application against the intellectual property database, and handle the dossier as follows:

a) Where the application is not accepted, notify the applicant and clearly state the reasons;

b) Where the application is accepted, notify the applicant, the regional Customs Sub-Departments and the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Sub-Department to carry out customs inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods under Article 12 of this Circular.

3. Notification shall be made through the customs electronic data processing system. Where the system encounters an incident or is not yet able to meet requirements, the Customs Department shall notify the applicant and the relevant units in writing.

4. Cases in which receipt of an application is refused:

a) The applicant does not have sufficient legal capacity under law;

b) The contents of the Application and the enclosed documents are inconsistent or not uniform;

c) The contents of the authorisation are inappropriate or the authorisation period has expired;

d) While the Application is being processed, the Customs Department receives a written notice from a competent authority on a dispute or complaint concerning the intellectual property right holder or the lawful authorised person, or the eligibility or scope of protection of the intellectual property right;

dd) The supplementary dossier is submitted more than 10 working days after the date on which the Customs Department sent the notice requesting supplementation under Point a, Clause 1 of this Article.

5. Updating and supplementing information on exported or imported goods related to intellectual property rights.

a) Where there is any change or addition to the information for which the customs authority has accepted inspection and supervision of goods related to intellectual property rights, the applicant shall send a dossier requesting the update or supplement, according to the information criteria or in Form No. 07 of Appendix II to this Circular, to the Customs Department by the method prescribed in Clause 2, Article 6 of this Circular; the application must clearly state the number and date of the customs authority's notice accepting inspection and supervision, the updated and supplemented information, and be accompanied by relevant documents.

b) Within 05 working days from the date of receipt of the application for updating or supplementation, the Customs Department shall examine and handle it under Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article.

4. To add Article 10a after Article 10 as follows:

“Article 10a. Order and procedures for proactive suspension of customs procedures

1. In the course of implementing measures of inspection, supervision and control of exported and imported goods related to intellectual property; through analysis of the intellectual property database; and on the basis of information provided by customs professional units, if there are clear grounds to suspect that exported or imported goods are goods counterfeiting trademarks, goods counterfeiting geographical indications or pirated goods, the Customs Team Leader of the place where the declaration is registered shall issue a Decision to suspend customs procedures in Form No. 10 of Appendix II to this Circular.

2. The customs office where the declaration is registered shall, within 08 working hours after issuing the Decision to suspend customs procedures, notify the intellectual property right holder, the copyright or related rights holder or the lawfully authorised person, using the contact information in the acceptance dossier, and the organisations and individuals concerned, through the customs electronic data processing system.

Where the customs electronic data processing system encounters an incident or is not yet able to meet requirements, the customs office where the declaration is registered shall notify the parties concerned in writing.

3. The period of suspension of customs procedures for goods counterfeiting trademarks and goods counterfeiting geographical indications is prescribed in Clause 3, Article 103 of the Government's Decree No. 65/2023/NĐ-CP of 28 March 2023, and for pirated goods in Clause 3, Article 89 of the Government's Decree No. 17/2023/NĐ-CP of 24 April 2023.

4. Immediately after issuing the Decision to suspend customs procedures, the customs office where the declaration is registered shall physically inspect the goods to determine violations and handle the case as follows:

a) Where there is no violation, continue the customs procedures under Article 11 of this Circular.

b) Where the customs authority determines that the suspended goods are goods counterfeiting trademarks, goods counterfeiting geographical indications or pirated goods, handle them under law.

Where the violation is found to show signs of a crime under the Penal Code, the customs authority shall transfer the case to the competent authority for investigation and prosecution under law.

c) Where there are not yet sufficient grounds to determine a violation, the customs office where the declaration is registered shall carry out the following:

c.1) Send full images of the exported or imported goods to the intellectual property right holder, the copyright or related rights holder or the lawfully authorised person (if contact information is available);

c.2) Request the importer or exporter, or the holder of rights to the trademark or geographical indication, or the copyright or related rights holder or the lawfully authorised person (if contact information is available), to provide documents related to the goods (catalogues, expert appraisal conclusions, foreign documents, results of handling similar cases, etc.);

c.3) Request the organisations and individuals concerned to take samples for appraisal under Article 201 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, as amended and supplemented under Clause 26, Article 1 of Law No. 36/2009/QH12 and Clause 78, Article 1 of Law No. 07/2022/QH15. The procedures, techniques, storage place and storage period for goods samples comply with the guidance of the Ministry of Finance (where necessary);

c.4) Where coordination and consultation with state management agencies for industrial property, copyright and related rights is needed because of a dispute or complaint over the right holder, the eligibility or scope of protection of rights to the trademark or geographical indication or to copyright or related rights, or the authority to handle the violation, handle the case under the replies of those state management agencies, in accordance with regulations.

d) Where the applicant files a civil lawsuit, the customs authority shall act on the opinion of the Court;

dd) Report to the directly responsible regional Customs Sub-Department and the Customs Department for direction in timely settling cases beyond its competence.

5. Where customs procedures are proactively suspended incorrectly and cause damage to the goods owner, the customs authority that issued the suspension decision within the 10-working-day period shall compensate the goods owner and pay the incurred costs, including fees for warehousing, yards, loading and unloading, and preservation of goods, as prescribed.

6. Within 30 days from the date of issuing a decision applying an administrative measure to handle goods counterfeiting trademarks or geographical indications and pirated goods under Clause 1, Article 216 of the Law on Intellectual Property No. 50/2005/QH11, the customs authority that issued the decision on handling the violation shall notify the intellectual property right holder or the lawfully authorised person in writing of the following information: the name and address of the consignor; the exporter, consignee or importer; a description of the goods; the quantity of goods; and the country of origin of the goods, if known.”

5. To amend and supplement Article 11 as follows:

“Article 11. Resumption of customs procedures

1. The Customs Team Leader of the place where the declaration is registered shall issue a decision to resume customs procedures for the consignment in Form No. 05 of Appendix II to this Circular in the following cases:

a) As prescribed in Clause 4, Article 76 of the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13;

b) The customs authority's inspection results determine that there is no violation;

c) The decision to suspend customs procedures is revoked under law.

2. Within 10 working days from the date of completing customs procedures for a consignment suspended at the applicant's request, the customs office where the declaration is registered shall:

a) Notify the intellectual property right holder or the lawfully authorised person to pay the goods owner the incurred costs prescribed in Clause 5, Article 76 of the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13.

b) Return to the intellectual property right holder or the lawfully authorised person the security amount prescribed in Clause 6, Article 76 of the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13.”

6. To add Article 14a after Article 14 as follows:

“Article 14a. Customs inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods related to intellectual property rights traded through e-commerce

1. Customs inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods related to intellectual property rights traded through e-commerce shall be carried out on the basis of the risk management principle.

Where the customs office where the declaration is registered has clear grounds to find goods counterfeiting intellectual property, it shall follow the order and procedures prescribed in Article 10a of this Circular.

2. Exported and imported goods traded through e-commerce that show signs of being counterfeit or infringing intellectual property rights shall be handled under Articles 13 and 14 of this Circular.”

Article 2. Amendment, supplementation and replacement of a number of words, phrases and forms

1. To replace the phrase “hàng hóa xuất khẩu, nhập khẩu có yêu cầu bảo vệ quyền sở hữu trí tuệ” (exported and imported goods upon requests for the protection of intellectual property rights) with the phrase “hàng hóa xuất khẩu, nhập khẩu liên quan đến quyền sở hữu trí tuệ” (exported and imported goods related to intellectual property rights) in Article 1, Clause 4 of Article 4 and the title of Chapter II of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, and in Clauses 7 and 9, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

2. To replace the phrase “Tổng cục Hải quan” (General Department of Customs) with the phrase “Cục Hải quan” (Customs Department) in Point c, Clause 3, Article 10 and Clause 1, Article 17 of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, and in Clauses 6, 9 and 10, Article 1 and Clause 2, Article 2 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

3. To replace the phrase “Tổng cục Hải quan (Cục Giám sát quản lý về hải quan)” (General Department of Customs (Customs Supervision and Management Department)) with the phrase “Cục Hải quan” (Customs Department) in Clauses 3 and 4, Article 7 of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, and in Clauses 4, 6, 7, 9 and 10, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

4. To replace the phrase “Cục Hải quan tỉnh, thành phố” (provincial or municipal Customs Department) with the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan khu vực” (regional Customs Sub-Department) in Point e, Clause 3, Article 10 of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC.

5. To replace the phrase “Cục Hải quan các tỉnh, thành phố” (Customs Departments of provinces and cities) with the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan khu vực” (regional Customs Sub-Department) in Clauses 6 and 10, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

6. To replace the phrase “Cục Hải quan tỉnh, liên tỉnh, thành phố trực thuộc Trung ương (sau đây gọi tắt là Cục Hải quan tỉnh, thành phố)” (provincial, inter-provincial or centrally-run city Customs Department (hereinafter referred to as the provincial or municipal Customs Department)) with the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan khu vực” (regional Customs Sub-Department) in Clause 10, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

7. To replace the phrase “Chi cục trưởng Chi cục Hải quan” (Head of the Customs Sub-Department) with the phrase “Đội trưởng Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu” (Customs Team Leader at a border gate or outside a border gate) in Clauses 1 and 5, Article 10 of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, and in Clauses 9 and 11, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

8. To replace the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan nơi quyết định tạm dừng” (the Customs Sub-Department that decides on the suspension) with the phrase “Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi quyết định tạm dừng” (the border-gate or non-border-gate customs office that decides on the suspension) in Clause 3, Article 10 of Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC.

9. To replace the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan” (Customs Sub-Department) with the phrase “Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi đăng ký tờ khai” (the border-gate or non-border-gate customs office where the declaration is registered) in Point a, Clause 5, Article 10, and Point b, Clause 8, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

10. To replace the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan nơi làm thủ tục hải quan” (the Customs Sub-Department where customs procedures are carried out) with the phrase “Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi làm thủ tục hải quan” (the border-gate or non-border-gate customs office where customs procedures are carried out) in Clauses 7 and 13, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

11. To replace the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan nơi quyết định tạm dừng” (the Customs Sub-Department that decides on the suspension) with the phrase “Đội trưởng Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi quyết định tạm dừng” (the Customs Team Leader at the border gate or outside the border gate that decides on the suspension) in Clause 8, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

12. To replace the phrase “Chi cục trưởng Chi cục Hải quan nơi đăng ký tờ khai hoặc nơi lưu giữ hàng hóa” (the Head of the Customs Sub-Department where the declaration is registered or where the goods are kept) with the phrase “Đội trưởng Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi đăng ký tờ khai hoặc nơi lưu giữ hàng hóa” (the Customs Team Leader at the border gate or outside the border gate where the declaration is registered or where the goods are kept) in Clause 9, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

13. To replace the phrase “Chi cục Hải quan nơi làm thủ tục hải quan/Chi cục Hải quan nơi lưu giữ hàng hóa” (the Customs Sub-Department where customs procedures are carried out/the Customs Sub-Department where the goods are kept) with the phrase “Hải quan cửa khẩu/ngoài cửa khẩu nơi làm thủ tục hải quan hoặc nơi lưu giữ hàng hóa” (the border-gate or non-border-gate customs office where customs procedures are carried out or where the goods are kept) in Clause 13, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

14. To replace the phrase “Cục Điều tra chống buôn lậu” (Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department) with the phrase “Chi cục Điều tra chống buôn lậu” (Anti-Smuggling Investigation Sub-Department) in Clauses 6 and 9, Article 1 of Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

15. To add Appendix I and Forms No. 07, 08, 09, 10 and 11 of Appendix II issued together with this Circular.

16. To replace Form No. 01-ĐĐN/SHTT/2020, Form No. 02-ĐTD/SHTT/2020, Form No. 03-QĐTD/SHTT/2020, Form No. 04-GHTD/SHTT/2020, Form No. 05-TT/SHTT/2020 and Form No. 06-TBTD/SHTT/2020 in the Appendix issued together with Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC with Form No. 01, Form No. 02, Form No. 03, Form No. 04, Form No. 05 and Form No. 06 of Appendix II issued together with this Circular.

Article 3. Effect

1. This Circular takes effect on 01 March 2026.

2. Dossiers received by the customs authority before the effective date of this Circular shall be subject to Circular No. 13/2015/TT-BTC, as amended and supplemented by Circular No. 13/2020/TT-BTC.

3. Where the legal documents referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or replaced by other legal documents, the provisions of the amending, supplementing or replacing documents shall apply./.

APPENDIX I

INFORMATION CRITERIA FOR INSPECTION, SUPERVISION AND SUSPENSION OF CUSTOMS PROCEDURES FOR EXPORTED AND IMPORTED GOODS RELATED TO INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS (Attached to the Minister of Finance's Circular No. 06/2026/TT-BTC of 26 January 2026)

1. List of declaration documents

2. Information criteria

APPENDIX II

FORMS FOR INSPECTION, SUPERVISION AND SUSPENSION OF CUSTOMS PROCEDURES FOR EXPORTED AND IMPORTED GOODS RELATED TO INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS (Attached to the Minister of Finance's Circular No. 06/2026/TT-BTC of 26 January 2026)