Decree No. 167/2025/ND-CP

DECREE

AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING A NUMBER OF ARTICLES OF THE GOVERNMENT'S DECREE NO. 08/2015/NĐ-CP DATED JANUARY 21, 2015 DETAILING AND PROVIDING MEASURES FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE LAW ON CUSTOMS REGARDING CUSTOMS PROCEDURES, CUSTOMS INSPECTION, SUPERVISION AND CONTROL

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated February 18, 2025;

Pursuant to the Law on Customs dated June 23, 2014;

Pursuant to the Law on Commerce dated June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty dated April 6, 2016;

Pursuant to the Law on Foreign Trade Management dated June 12, 2017;

Pursuant to the Law on Tax Administration dated June 13, 2019;

Pursuant to the Law on Electronic Transactions dated June 22, 2023;

Pursuant to the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property dated June 25, 2025;

At the request of the Minister of Finance;

The Government hereby promulgates the Decree amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 detailing and providing measures for implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision and control.

Article 1. Amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 detailing and providing measures for implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision and control

1. Clause 1 and Clause 3 of Article 4 are amended and supplemented as follows:

a) Clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Locations for carrying out customs procedures shall comply with Article 22 of the Law on Customs.

Letters, packages and parcels of exported or imported goods sent via postal services; exported or imported goods sent via express delivery services, including goods on the list of imported goods that must undergo customs procedures at the border gate of importation promulgated by the Prime Minister as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article, may undergo customs procedures at the regional Sub-department of Customs managing the location for gathering, inspection and centralised supervision of postal goods and express delivery goods.

For goods in transit sent via postal services or express delivery services, the location for carrying out customs procedures shall comply with Article 43 of this Decree.

For goods traded under the mode of temporary import for re-export sent via postal services or express delivery services, the location for carrying out customs procedures shall comply with relevant laws.”

b) Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. Based on the planning and announcement of the system of seaports, inland waterway ports, international airports, road border gates, inland container depots (ICDs), international intermodal railway stations, the public postal network providing international services and other areas within customs operation areas, the Minister of Finance shall decide on the organisation of the apparatus and the deployment of forces to carry out customs procedures; the customs authority shall recognise warehouses, yards and locations within seaports, inland waterway ports, international airports and international intermodal railway stations as satisfying the conditions for gathering, customs inspection and customs supervision in accordance with the Government's Decree No. 68/2016/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 2016 providing for the conditions for duty-free goods business, warehouses, yards and locations for carrying out customs procedures, gathering, customs inspection and customs supervision, as amended and supplemented by the Government's Decree No. 67/2020/NĐ-CP dated June 15, 2020.”

2. Clause 3 and Clause 4 of Article 5 are amended and supplemented as follows:

a) Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. Persons authorised by the owner of the goods, with respect to the following types of goods:

a) Gifts and presents of individuals;

b) Movable assets of individuals;

c) Goods of individuals entitled to privileges and immunities;

d) Luggage sent before or after the trip of persons on exit or entry;

đ) Goods temporarily imported for re-export for the replacement or repair of foreign seagoing vessels or aircraft;

e) Goods imported for the implementation of duty-exempt investment projects.”

b) Clause 4 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“4. Persons providing goods transit and goods transhipment services.”

3. Article 6 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“Article 6. Subjects required to carry out customs procedures and subject to customs inspection and customs supervision

1. Subjects required to carry out customs procedures:

a) Exported, imported and transited goods; foreign currency in cash, Vietnamese dong in cash, negotiable instruments, gold, precious metals, gemstones, cultural products, relics, antiques, national treasures, exported and imported postal items and postal parcels; luggage of persons on exit or entry; other articles exported, imported or transited within the operation area of the customs authority;

b) Road, railway, air, sea and inland waterway means of transport on exit, entry or in transit.

2. Subjects of customs inspection:

a) The subjects prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Articles on means of transport on exit, entry or in transit;

c) Customs dossiers and documents relating to the subjects prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. Subjects of customs supervision:

a) The subjects prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Articles on means of transport on exit, entry or in transit;

c) Goods and means of transport within customs operation areas; goods being machinery, equipment, raw materials and supplies imported for processing or for production of exported goods that are being stored at the production establishments of organisations and individuals;

d) Goods subject to specialised inspection that are brought to storage pending customs clearance;

đ) Goods transported under customs supervision.”

4. Clause 4 is added to Article 9 as follows:

“4. To be exempt from post-clearance audit at the office of the customs authority, except for the cases prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs.”

5. Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Article 10 are amended and Clause 7 is added thereto as follows:

a) Clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Condition on compliance with the customs law and the tax law:

The enterprise has not violated the provisions of the customs law and the tax law to the extent of being sanctioned for the following acts:

a) Duty evasion; smuggling; production of or trading in banned goods, or illegal transportation of goods or currency across the border;

b) Administrative violations for which the form and level of sanction exceed the competence of the Head of a Customs Team and equivalent titles.

Where the enterprise applies for the priority regime: The scope of evaluation of this condition is 02 consecutive years (24 months) up to the date on which the enterprise submits its written application for the priority regime.”

b) Clause 2 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“2. Condition on good compliance with the law on accounting and auditing:

a) Applying accounting standards as prescribed by the Minister of Finance;

b) Annual financial statements must be audited by an audit firm qualified to provide audit services in accordance with the law on independent audit. The audit opinion on the financial statements stated in the audit report must be an unqualified opinion in accordance with Vietnamese auditing standards.

Where the enterprise applies for the priority regime: The scope of evaluation of this condition is 02 consecutive years (24 months) up to the date on which the enterprise submits its written application for the priority regime.

For an enterprise prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property, which has not operated for a period sufficient to prepare audited annual financial statements, this condition shall be evaluated under Point a of Clause 2 of this Article from the date of issuance of the first enterprise registration certificate to the date on which the enterprise submits its written application for the priority regime.”

c) Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. Condition on the internal control system

a) The enterprise establishes, implements and maintains an internal control system to monitor and control the actual operation of the enterprise, which includes the following contents:

a.1) Archiving dossiers, vouchers, documents and data relating to exported and imported goods as prescribed, and being able to provide them to the customs authority upon request;

a.2) Internal supervision of the enterprise: Conducting self-evaluation and review of the operations of its divisions and proposing improvement measures; having a process for internal training on security assurance matters prescribed in Point b of this Clause and on response measures when security incidents occur;

a.3) Managing and preventing irregularities relating to the security of exported and imported goods; having improvement and remedial measures where irregularities occur; remedying the enterprise's errors and violations after being recommended or concluded upon by state agencies;

a.4) Controlling financial capacity so as to be able to fulfil duty obligations towards state management agencies where priority in respect of duty payment time limits is granted.

At the time of evaluation, the enterprise has no outstanding duty debt as prescribed.

b) The enterprise establishes, implements and maintains an internal control system ensuring the security and safety of the supply chain of exported and imported goods, which includes the following contents:

b.1) Goods security: Having measures to ensure the intact condition of the goods and to control access to the goods in conformity with the enterprise's operations;

b.2) Transport security: Having measures to ensure the security of the goods supply chain;

b.3) Security at the enterprise's working areas: Having measures to divide and separate working areas in conformity with the specific nature of the line of goods and the requirements on goods security; assigning access rights and restricting access to the goods, and having measures to prevent unlawful intrusion into the enterprise's working areas; having a camera system capable of observing the positions at entry and exit gates and doors and the goods storage positions at all times of the day (24/24 hours, including days off and public holidays), with camera data retained at the enterprise for at least 03 months;

b.4) Information technology system security control: Having measures to ensure the proper use, storage, recovery and confidentiality of the enterprise's information and data;

b.5) Personnel security: Having measures to ensure that personnel working in key positions (general director, director, chief accountant, heads of divisions: export, import, warehouse, security) have not, upon recruitment, been dealt with for criminal violations or have had their criminal records expunged in accordance with law; having measures to periodically verify basic information on personnel working in the above key positions; having measures to identify the enterprise's employees and to prevent employees who have left their jobs from accessing the enterprise's information systems and facilities;

b.6) Business partner security: Contracts signed with business partners (partners in the purchase and sale of goods, domestic transport, international transport, customs brokerage agents and other service providers relating to exported and imported goods) must contain security clauses appropriate to the form, scale and nature of the business and the goods traded in order to ensure the accuracy of information and the intact condition of the goods and services.”

d) Clause 4 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“4. Condition on export and import turnover:

a) An enterprise engaged in export and import achieving a turnover of at least USD 100 million/year;

b) An enterprise exporting goods produced in Vietnam achieving a turnover of at least USD 40 million/year;

c) An enterprise exporting goods being agricultural or aquatic products produced, raised or cultivated in Vietnam achieving a turnover of at least USD 30 million/year;

The turnover prescribed in Points a, b and c of this Clause is the average export and import turnover over 02 consecutive years (24 months) up to the date on which the enterprise submits its written application for the priority regime, or during the extension evaluation period, excluding entrusted export and import turnover.”

đ) Clause 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“5. Other conditions shall comply with Point c and Point d of Clause 1 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property.”

e) Clause 7 is added as follows:

“7. For an enterprise prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property that applies for the priority regime: The customs authority shall evaluate the satisfaction of the conditions for application of the priority regime as prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article.

For an enterprise prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property that applies for the priority regime: The customs authority shall evaluate the satisfaction of the conditions for application of the priority regime as prescribed in Clauses 2, 3 and 5 of this Article.

An enterprise recognised under Clause 1 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property must maintain and satisfy the conditions prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article from the date of being recognised for application of the priority regime.

An enterprise recognised under Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property must maintain its status as announced by the Ministry of Science and Technology as belonging to the group of enterprises under Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property, and must maintain and satisfy the conditions prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 5 of this Article from the date of being recognised for application of the priority regime.”

6. Article 11 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“Article 11. Recognition, extension, temporary suspension and termination of application of the priority regime

1. A dossier of application for the priority regime comprises:

a) A written application using the form promulgated by the Minister of Finance: 01 original;

b) A report on the situation and statistics of the enterprise's export and import figures for the 02 most recent years: 01 original;

c) A report on compliance with the customs law, the tax law and the law on accounting for the 02 most recent years: 01 original;

d) Audited financial statements for the 02 most recent years: 01 copy;

đ) Audit reports for the 02 most recent years (if any): 01 copy;

e) Inspection and examination conclusions for the 02 most recent years (if any): 01 copy;

g) A description of the enterprise's internal control system (accompanied by explanatory documents): 01 copy, which includes:

g.1) A description of the processes, measures, software or systems for: archiving dossiers, vouchers, documents and data relating to exported and imported goods; internal supervision of the enterprise; managing and preventing irregularities relating to the security of exported and imported goods; remedying the enterprise's errors and violations after being recommended or concluded upon by state agencies; controlling financial capacity so as to be able to fulfil duty obligations towards state management agencies where priority in respect of duty payment time limits is granted;

g.2) A description of the processes, measures, software or systems ensuring: goods security; transport security; security at the enterprise's working areas; information technology system security control; personnel security; business partner security.

Where the enterprise's dossier does not yet meet the requirements or is not complete as prescribed, within 05 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier, the Customs Department shall notify the enterprise so that it may complete the dossier and resubmit it within 30 days from the date of receipt of the notice. Upon expiry of that time limit, if the enterprise fails to submit the dossier, the dossier shall be determined as failing to meet the requirements.

The enterprise may request consultation with the customs authority on the regulations relating to the priority regime before submitting its dossier.

2. A dossier of application for the priority regime in respect of an enterprise prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property comprises:

a) A written application using the form promulgated by the Minister of Finance: 01 original;

b) Audited financial statements for the 02 most recent years (if any): 01 copy;

c) Audit reports for the 02 most recent years (if any): 01 copy;

d) Inspection and examination conclusions for the 02 most recent years (if any): 01 copy;

đ) A description of the enterprise's internal control system accompanied by explanatory documents: 01 copy, which includes:

đ.1) A description of the processes, measures, software or systems for: archiving dossiers, vouchers, documents and data relating to exported and imported goods; internal supervision of the enterprise; managing and preventing irregularities relating to the security of exported and imported goods; remedying the enterprise's errors and violations after being recommended or concluded upon by state agencies; controlling financial capacity so as to be able to fulfil duty obligations towards state management agencies where priority in respect of duty payment time limits is granted;

đ.2) A description of the processes, measures, software or systems ensuring: goods security; transport security; security at the enterprise's working areas; information technology system security control; personnel security; business partner security.

e) The announcement by the Ministry of Science and Technology regarding enterprises prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended and supplemented in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Model; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property: 01 copy;

3. The authority receiving dossiers of application for priority treatment: the Customs Department.

4. Recognition of enterprises eligible for priority treatment:

a) Verification:

The Customs Department shall carry out the verification and consideration of the application of priority treatment to the enterprise from the date of receipt of a complete dossier as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, specifically:

a.1) Dossier verification: Based on the enterprise's dossier, the customs authority shall assess and compare the information provided by the enterprise and the information collected on the enterprise against the conditions for the application of priority treatment prescribed in Article 10 of this Decree. The verification period shall not exceed 05 working days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier.

Where the enterprise fails to satisfy the prescribed conditions for the application of priority treatment, within 15 days from the date of completion of the dossier verification, the Customs Department shall issue a written reply to the enterprise, clearly stating the reasons for the failure to satisfy the conditions.

Where, according to the results of the dossier verification, the enterprise satisfies the conditions for the application of priority treatment, the Customs Department shall organise on-site verification;

a.2) On-site verification:

The customs authority shall conduct a post-clearance audit at the premises of the customs declarant in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs. The duration of the post-clearance audit shall comply with Article 80 of the Law on Customs.

Where the enterprise has been subject to a post-clearance audit under Clause 3 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs within 02 consecutive years (24 months) up to the time the enterprise submits its written request for the application of priority treatment, the customs authority shall rely on the results of such post-clearance audit and carry out on-site verification at the enterprise in order to assess the information declared in the enterprise's dossier against the enterprise's actual operations and to assess the satisfaction of the conditions for the application of priority treatment. The on-site verification period shall not exceed 10 days from the first working day at the premises of the customs declarant.

For enterprises specified in Clause 2 of Article 42 of the Law on Customs, as amended in Clause 1 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Method; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value-Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property, where the period from the date of issuance of the first enterprise registration certificate to the date on which the enterprise submits its written request for the application of priority treatment is less than 02 years, the customs authority shall not conduct a post-clearance audit under Clause 3 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs for the purpose of recognition assessment. The customs authority shall carry out on-site verification at the enterprise. The on-site verification period shall not exceed 10 days from the first working day at the premises of the customs declarant.

b) Handling of verification results

Within 15 days from the date of completion of the on-site verification or of the handling of the post-clearance audit results:

Where the enterprise satisfies the prescribed conditions for the application of priority treatment, the Director of the Customs Department shall issue a decision on the application of priority treatment using the form issued by the Minister of Finance. This decision shall be valid for 03 years from the date of its issuance.

Where the enterprise fails to satisfy the prescribed conditions for the application of priority treatment, the Customs Department shall issue a written reply to the enterprise, clearly stating the reasons for the failure to satisfy the conditions.

In complex cases where the opinion of a specialised agency is required, this time limit may be extended but shall not exceed 30 days.

5. Extension of the application of priority treatment:

a) An enterprise shall be granted an extension of the application of priority treatment where it continues to satisfy the conditions for the application of priority treatment prescribed in Article 10 of this Decree.

Within the 03 months prior to the deadline for the extension of the application of priority treatment, the Customs Department shall, on the basis of the information collected and the management results, organise an assessment for the extension of the application of priority treatment to the enterprise;

b) Assessment for the extension of the application of priority treatment:

b.1) The Customs Department shall organise a self-assessment of the enterprise's continued satisfaction of the conditions for the application of priority treatment as prescribed in Article 10 of this Decree;

b.2) Where there is insufficient information to self-assess the enterprise's continued satisfaction of the conditions for the application of priority treatment, the Customs Department shall carry out on-site verification or a post-clearance audit at the premises of the customs declarant in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs.

Where on-site verification at the premises of the customs declarant cannot be carried out due to force majeure as prescribed by law, the customs authority shall assess the continued satisfaction of the conditions for the application of priority treatment by online means, on the basis of the information, data and documents provided or shared by the enterprise.

The on-site verification period shall not exceed 10 days from the first working day. The duration of the post-clearance audit shall comply with Article 80 of the Law on Customs.

c) The Director of the Customs Department shall issue a decision extending the application of priority treatment for a period of 03 years, using the form issued by the Minister of Finance, if the enterprise continues to satisfy the prescribed conditions.

6. Temporary suspension of the application of priority treatment: Where an enterprise has not discharged its responsibilities prescribed in Article 45 of the Law on Customs after having been notified by the customs authority, the Director of the Customs Department shall issue a decision on the temporary suspension of the application of priority treatment (using the form issued by the Minister of Finance) for a period of 90 days from the date of issuance of the decision. Where the enterprise has complied with Article 45 of the Law on Customs within the prescribed time limit, it shall notify the Customs Department for consideration of the issuance of a decision annulling the decision on the temporary suspension of the application of priority treatment, using the form issued by the Minister of Finance.

7. Suspension of the application of priority treatment

The Director of the Customs Department shall issue a decision on the suspension of the application of priority treatment, using the form issued by the Minister of Finance, in the following cases:

a) The enterprise fails to continue to satisfy one of the conditions for the application of priority treatment prescribed in Article 10 of this Decree;

b) Upon expiry of the period of temporary suspension of the application of priority treatment, the enterprise has not complied with Article 45 of the Law on Customs;

c) The enterprise requests the suspension of the application of priority treatment: The enterprise shall send a document to the Customs Department stating the reasons for requesting the suspension of the application of priority treatment. Within 15 days from the date of receipt of such document, the Director of the Customs Department shall issue a decision on the suspension of the application of priority treatment to the enterprise.

8. The Minister of Finance shall prescribe in detail the forms and dossier templates relating to the implementation of priority treatment.”

7. Article 12 is amended as follows:

“Article 12. Management of enterprises eligible for priority treatment

1. Responsibilities of the customs authority:

a) To monitor, collect and analyse the enterprise's operations in order to guide the enterprise in improving its legal compliance capacity, to detect errors early for timely remedy, and to maintain the conditions for the application of priority treatment;

b) To cooperate with the enterprise in immediately resolving any problems arising;

c) To cooperate with port, warehouse and yard operators in giving priority enterprises priority in goods delivery and receipt procedures and in advance inspection and supervision;

d) The Customs Department shall carry out on-site verification at the enterprise's premises periodically for the extension of the application of priority treatment, or on an ad hoc basis; shall apply supervision and assessment measures on the basis of risk management with respect to the continued satisfaction of the conditions for the application of priority treatment after recognition; and shall conduct a post-clearance audit at the premises of the customs declarant not more than once in three consecutive years from the date of recognition or extension of the application of priority treatment by the Director of the Customs Department (except where there are signs of violation);

đ) The Director of the Customs Department shall decide on random inspections to assess legal compliance as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 43 of the Law on Customs.

2. Responsibilities of enterprises eligible for priority treatment:

a) To comply well with the customs law and the tax law, and to observe well the law on accounting and auditing;

b) To submit quarterly reports on the enterprise's import and export operations and its compliance with the law on customs, tax and accounting (using the form issued by the Minister of Finance) by electronic means to the Customs Department within the first 15 (fifteen) days of the following quarter;

c) Within 90 days from the end of the financial year, the enterprise shall send to the Customs Department, by electronic means, its financial statements and audit report for the preceding year;

d) To notify the Customs Department in writing of any decision of a competent authority on the handling of violations of the law on tax and accounting committed by the enterprise, within 30 days from the date of receipt of such decision;

đ) To exchange information with the customs authority in order to report any problems arising (if any) and any matters relating to the maintenance of the conditions for the application of priority treatment;

e) To conduct reviews and self-inspections, to detect and remedy errors, and to report to the customs authority on the errors detected and remedied;

g) Where the customs authority notifies errors or matters requiring clarification in the course of managing the enterprise, the enterprise shall be responsible for examining and fully and promptly reporting on the matters notified by the customs authority;

h) To notify the Customs Department of the list of customs brokerage agents providing services to the enterprise;

i) To be able to monitor, control and manage exported and imported goods, and to manage the use of imported raw materials, supplies, machinery and equipment and of exported and imported goods eligible for duty exemption or not subject to duty; to have an information technology system connected to or shared with the customs authority managing the enterprise, ensuring the provision of dossiers, documents, records, data on the system, historical data and data by period (for a period of 05 years from the date of registration of the customs declaration) relating to exported and imported goods at the request of the customs authority.

The enterprise shall be responsible for proving the completeness and accuracy of the data it has declared to the customs authority.

3. Responsibilities of related agencies

The relevant State management agencies shall be responsible for cooperating with the customs authority in assessing legal compliance in their respective fields of responsibility upon written request of the customs authority.

Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the written request of the customs authority, the relevant State management agencies shall be responsible for replying in writing.”

8. Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 20 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“1. For exported goods:

a) The customs value of exported goods is the selling price of the goods up to the border gate of export, exclusive of international insurance costs and international transport costs, determined on the basis of the actual value of the goods at the border gate of export, according to the following order of methods:

a.1) The selling price of the goods up to the border gate of export, comprising the selling price stated in the goods sale and purchase contract or the commercial invoice and the expenses relating to the exported goods that are consistent with the relevant documents, where such expenses are not yet included in the selling price of the goods;

a.2) The selling price of identical or similar exported goods in the customs value database, after conversion into the selling price of the goods up to the border gate of export, at the time closest to the date of registration of the export declaration of the consignment whose value is being determined;

a.3) The selling price of identical or similar exported goods on the Vietnamese market, after conversion into the selling price of the goods up to the border gate of export, at the time closest to the date of registration of the export declaration of the consignment whose value is being determined;

a.4) The selling price of exported goods collected, compiled and classified by the customs authority in accordance with Clause 1 of Article 22 of this Decree, after conversion into the selling price of the goods up to the border gate of export.

b) The border gate of export shall be determined as follows:

b.1) For sea and air transport, the border gate of export is the port of loading where the exported goods are loaded onto the means of transport at the port stated on the customs declaration;

b.2) For rail transport, the border gate of export is the place of loading where the exported goods are loaded onto the means of transport at the international through-transport railway border gate stated on the customs declaration;

b.3) For road and inland waterway transport, the border gate of export is the border gate where the goods are exported out of the territory of Vietnam as stated in the goods sale and purchase contract or other relevant documents.

Where goods are exported into a non-tariff zone, the border gate of export is the point separating the non-tariff zone from other areas within the inland of Vietnam.”

b) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. For imported goods:

a) The customs value of imported goods is the price actually payable up to the first border gate of import, determined according to the following order of methods:

a.1) The transaction value method for the imported goods;

a.2) The transaction value method for identical imported goods;

a.3) The transaction value method for similar imported goods;

a.4) The deductive value method;

a.5) The computed value method;

a.6) The fall-back method.

Where the customs declarant so requests in writing, the order of application of the deductive value method and the computed value method may be reversed.

b) The first border gate of import shall be determined as follows:

b.1) For sea and air transport, the first border gate of import is the port of discharge of the imported goods stated on the bill of lading;

b.2) For rail transport, the first border gate of import is the international through-transport railway station stated on the customs declaration;

b.3) For road and inland waterway transport, the first border gate of import is the border gate where the imported goods enter the territory of Vietnam as stated on the customs declaration.

Where goods are imported from a non-tariff zone into the inland of Vietnam, the first border gate of import is the point separating the non-tariff zone from other areas within the inland of Vietnam.”

9. Article 21 is amended as follows:

“Article 21. Inspection and determination of customs value

1. The inspection and determination of customs value shall be based on the customs dossier, the relevant documents and records, and the actual goods.

2. Where there are sufficient grounds to reject the declared value, the customs authority shall notify and request the customs declarant to make an additional declaration within a time limit of no more than 05 working days from the date of notification, and shall release the goods as prescribed. If the customs declarant makes the additional declaration within the aforesaid time limit, the customs authority shall grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed. Upon expiry of the time limit, if the customs declarant does not make the additional declaration, the customs authority shall determine the value and impose the duty in accordance with the Law on Tax Administration in order to grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed.

3. Where the declared value is doubted, the customs authority shall notify the grounds for the doubt, the price level and the method that the customs authority expects to apply for the determination, and shall release the goods as prescribed; the customs declarant shall carry out consultation with the customs authority in order to clarify the accuracy of the declared value.

a) Where the customs declarant agrees with the price level and the method that the customs authority expects to apply for the determination, the customs declarant shall make an additional declaration as prescribed within a time limit of no more than 05 working days from the date of attending the consultation at the customs authority, and the customs authority shall grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed. Where the customs declarant does not make the additional declaration within the aforesaid time limit, the customs authority shall determine the value and impose the duty in accordance with the Law on Tax Administration in order to grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed;

b) Where the declared value is rejected, the customs authority shall request the customs declarant to make an additional declaration within a time limit of no more than 05 working days from the date of completion of the consultation. If the customs declarant makes the additional declaration within the aforesaid time limit, the customs authority shall grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed. Upon expiry of the time limit, if the customs declarant does not make the additional declaration, the customs authority shall determine the value and impose the duty in accordance with the Law on Tax Administration in order to grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed;

c) Where there are not yet sufficient grounds to reject the declared value, the customs authority shall grant customs clearance for the goods at the declared value.

4. In cases not falling under Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article, the customs authority shall accept the declared value in order to grant customs clearance for the goods as prescribed.

5. The exchange rate between the Vietnamese dong and a foreign currency used for determining the dutiable value is the foreign-currency buying rate by wire transfer of the Head Office of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam at the end of the day on the Thursday of the immediately preceding week, or the end-of-day rate of the working day immediately preceding that Thursday where such Thursday is a public holiday or a day off. This exchange rate shall be used to determine the dutiable exchange rate for customs declarations registered during the week.

For foreign currencies for which the Head Office of the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam does not announce an exchange rate, the rate shall be determined according to the cross rate between the Vietnamese dong and a number of foreign currencies announced by the State Bank of Vietnam on the website of the State Bank of Vietnam. For foreign currencies for which no cross rate has yet been announced, the State Bank of Vietnam shall, at the request of the Ministry of Finance, determine and announce the exchange rate.

6. The Minister of Finance shall prescribe this Article in detail.”

10. Article 22a is added as follows:

“Article 22a. Customs value used for the purpose of statistics on exported and imported goods

1. The customs value used for statistical purposes shall be established according to the principles and methods prescribed in Article 20 of this Decree, except for the cases prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. In the following cases, the customs value used for statistical purposes shall be based on the declaration of the customs declarant according to the following principles:

a) Goods imported into Vietnam after being processed abroad: the value of the goods up to the first border gate of import, comprising the entire constituent value of the product, including the value of the raw materials constituting the product, the processing price of the product and other expenses (if any) relating to the determination of the product cost;

b) Exported goods being products processed for a foreign party: the value of the goods up to the border gate of export, comprising the entire constituent value of the product, including the value of the raw materials constituting the product, the processing price of the product and other expenses (if any) relating to the determination of the product cost;

c) Goods under a finance lease contract: the entire value of the goods, excluding the services provided together with the finance lease contract.

3. The Minister of Finance shall prescribe in detail the collection, processing, use and storage of information on the customs value used for statistical purposes.”

11. Clauses 2, 3 and 7 of Article 24 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. Responsibilities of organisations and individuals requesting advance rulings on codes, origin and customs value:

a) To submit a complete dossier requesting an advance ruling on codes, origin and customs value to the Customs Department at least 60 days before the export or import of the consignment;

b) To participate in a dialogue with the customs authority in order to clarify the content of the request for an advance ruling on codes, origin and customs value, as requested by the customs authority;

c) To notify the Customs Department in writing within 10 working days from the date on which there is any change relating to the goods for which advance determination of the code, origin or customs value has been requested, clearly stating the content, the reason and the date of the change.”

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. Responsibilities of the Customs Department:

a) Within 05 working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Customs Department shall send a written refusal of the advance determination of the code, origin or customs value to the organisation or individual in cases where the conditions or the dossier for advance determination of the code, origin or customs value are not satisfied, or where the goods stated in the application for advance determination of the code, origin or value are awaiting the outcome of handling by a State management agency, or where the goods stated in the application for advance determination of the code have already been the subject of a written guidance on codes issued by a State management agency;

b) The Director of the Customs Department shall issue a written notification of the results of the advance determination of the code, origin or customs value within 30 days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier (for ordinary cases) or 60 days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier (for complicated cases requiring verification and clarification). The written notification of the results of the advance determination of the code, origin or customs value shall be sent to the organisation or individual and shall, at the same time, be updated in the database of the customs authority and published on the website of the Customs Department.”

c) Clause 7 is amended as follows:

“7. The Minister of Finance shall prescribe the dossier for advance determination of the code, origin and customs value and the cases awaiting the outcome of handling by State management agencies.”

12. Clauses 2, 3, 4, 5 and 10 of Article 25 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. In the following cases, the customs declarant may choose to make the declaration electronically or on a paper customs declaration:

a) Luggage in excess of the duty-free allowance;

b) Goods exported, imported, temporarily exported or re-imported to serve national defence and security;

c) Goods of individuals entitled to privileges and immunities;

d) Where the customs electronic data processing system and the electronic customs declaration system are unable to carry out electronic transactions with each other, whether the cause lies in one or both of the systems or in other causes.

Where the customs electronic data processing system is unable to carry out electronic customs procedures, the customs authority shall be responsible for posting a notice on the customs website no later than 01 hour from the time at which the electronic transactions became impossible.

Where the customs declarant’s electronic customs declaration system is unable to carry out electronic customs procedures, the customs declarant shall send a written request to the Regional Sub-department of Customs where the customs procedures are expected to be carried out, clearly stating the name and cause of the failure, the expected time for remedying the failure, and the chosen method of carrying out the customs declaration procedures, either through a customs brokerage agent or by making the customs declaration on a paper customs declaration during the period in which the customs declarant’s electronic customs declaration system is out of order;

đ) Other goods as prescribed by the Minister of Finance.”

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. The customs declarant must declare fully, accurately, truthfully and clearly all the criteria on the customs declaration, self-assess the amount of duty and other amounts payable to the State budget, and be liable before the law for the contents declared.

Where exported or imported goods are subject to a permit issued by a specialised management agency, the permit must be obtained before registration of the customs declaration and all permit information must be fully declared on the customs declaration in accordance with the guidance of the Minister of Finance.

Where, upon document inspection, the customs authority has sufficient grounds to determine that the goods are subject to a permit requirement but no permit was available at the time of registration of the declaration, the case shall be handled in accordance with the law on handling of administrative violations.”

c) Clause 4 is amended as follows:

“4. When making the customs declaration, the customs declarant shall:

a) Create the customs declaration information on the electronic customs declaration system;

b) Submit the customs declaration and the documents in the customs dossier in the form of electronic data or digitised data to the customs authority through the customs electronic data processing system.

Where the documents in the customs dossier are already available on the National Single Window Portal, the customs declarant shall not be required to submit them to the customs authority. Where the originals of documents in the customs dossier must be submitted, the customs declarant shall submit them directly or send them by post to the customs authority;

c) Receive the feedback information and comply with the guidance of the customs authority.

For customs declaration made on a paper customs declaration, the customs declarant shall fully declare the criteria on the customs declaration, sign and affix a seal (except where the customs declarant is an individual) on the customs declaration, and submit the paper documents in the customs dossier to the customs authority.”

d) Clause 5 is amended as follows:

“5. The customs declarant must make a new customs declaration in the following cases:

a) Exported or imported goods that are not subject to export duty, import duty, special consumption tax, value added tax or environmental protection tax, or that are duty-exempt, or to which tariff-quota duty rates or absolute duty levels apply, and that have been released or granted customs clearance, but in respect of which there is subsequently a change in the non-taxable status or in the purpose for which the duty exemption or the application of tariff-quota duty rates or absolute duty levels was granted;

b) Goods being raw materials, supplies or components imported for processing or production of goods for export, and goods temporarily imported or temporarily exported, that have been released or granted customs clearance but subsequently have their use purpose changed or are transferred for domestic consumption.

The policies on management of exported and imported goods and the tax policies applicable to exported and imported goods shall be those applied at the time of registration of the new customs declaration, except where the policies on management of exported and imported goods were fully complied with at the time of registration of the initial declaration.”

đ) Clause 10 is amended as follows:

“10. The Minister of Finance shall provide detailed regulations on additional declaration, cancellation of customs declarations and one-time registration of customs declarations; the making of new customs declarations for goods whose use purpose is changed or which are transferred for domestic consumption; and the handling of cases where the customs electronic data processing system or the electronic customs declaration system breaks down.”

13. Clause 4 of Article 26 is amended as follows:

“4. The Director of the Customs Department shall, based on the risk-level classification criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance, decide on customs inspection and give notice thereof on the customs electronic data processing system in one of the following forms:

a) Accepting the information declared on the customs declaration in order to decide on customs clearance of the goods;

b) Inspecting the relevant documents in the customs dossier submitted or presented by the customs declarant, or the relevant documents available on the National Single Window Portal, in order to decide on customs clearance of the goods, or carrying out physical inspection of the goods in order to decide on customs clearance.

The Minister of Finance shall specify the time of notification of customs inspection on the customs electronic data processing system.”

14. Article 28 is amended as follows:

“Article 28. Customs inspection during the storage and the loading and unloading of goods within customs operation areas

1. Based on the results of the analysis of risk management information, the customs authority shall decide on the inspection of goods by means of scanners or other technical devices.

2. Enterprises operating ports, warehouses or yards shall be responsible for arranging locations for the installation of scanners and other technical devices and for transporting the goods to be scanned to the inspection location as required by the customs authority.

3. Where, upon inspection of goods by scanners or technical devices, the customs authority detects that a consignment is suspicious and requires physical inspection of the goods by a customs officer, the customs authority shall notify the enterprise operating the port, warehouse or yard in order to coordinate in arranging a separate storage area.”

15. Clause 5 of Article 29 is amended as follows:

“5. Where, using the machinery and technical devices provided by the customs authority, the customs officer carrying out the physical inspection of goods does not have sufficient grounds to determine the accuracy of the customs declarant’s declaration as to the name of the goods, the code, the quality or the volume, the following shall apply:

a) Where the goods are on the List of goods received for handling by the customs verification body: the customs office where the physical inspection of goods is carried out shall request the customs verification body to carry out analysis for classification and to inspect and assess the technical criteria of the goods using machinery and equipment in order to determine the above contents, and shall base its decision on customs clearance of the goods on the results of the customs verification body.

The Customs Department shall announce the List of goods received for handling by the customs verification body.

b) Where the goods are not on the List of goods received for handling by the customs verification body: the customs office where the physical inspection of goods is carried out shall solicit an assessment by an assessment organisation in accordance with law and shall base its decision on customs clearance of the goods on the assessment results.”

16. Clause 1 of Article 32 is amended as follows:

“1. The release of goods shall be carried out in accordance with Article 36 of the Law on Customs. The cases in which goods may be released include:

a) Exported or imported goods that must undergo analysis and classification or assessment in order to determine the commodity code (HS code), quantity, weight or volume of the exported or imported goods, and in respect of which the customs declarant has paid the duty or has had the duty amount guaranteed by a credit institution on the basis of the customs declarant’s self-declaration and self-assessment of duty.

Exported or imported goods shall also be regarded as falling within the case of having to undergo analysis and classification or assessment in order to determine the commodity code, without having to take samples for analysis and classification or assessment, where they have the same name, composition, structure, physical and chemical properties, features, use and packing specifications and the same manufacturer as goods of the same customs declarant that were previously sampled and are awaiting the results of analysis and classification or assessment;

b) Exported or imported goods for which no official price is available at the time of registration of the declaration and in respect of which the customs declarant has paid the duty or has had the duty amount guaranteed by a credit institution on the basis of the price provisionally calculated by the customs declarant;

c) Exported or imported goods as provided for in Clause 2 of Article 21 of this Decree and in respect of which the customs declarant has paid the duty or has had the duty amount guaranteed by a credit institution on the basis of the customs declarant’s self-declaration and self-assessment of duty;

d) Where the customs declarant does not yet have sufficient information and documents to determine the customs value of the exported or imported goods, the goods may be released if the duty amount is guaranteed by a credit institution on the basis of the customs value determined by the customs authority.”

17. The title of the Article and Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 33 are amended as follows:

a) The title of Article 33 is amended as follows:

“Article 33. Responsibilities and coordination relationships of competent State agencies in the inspection of goods and means of transport”

b) Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“1. Exported, imported or transited goods and means of transport on exit, on entry or in transit that are subject to quarantine must undergo quarantine at the border gate before the completion of customs procedures, except where the law on quarantine permits the goods to be brought to inland locations for quarantine. Where exported, imported or transited goods are subject to quality inspection or food safety inspection, such inspection shall be carried out in accordance with the law on quality inspection and food safety inspection, and the customs authority shall base its decision on customs clearance on the conclusion of the specialised management agency or the specialised inspection agency or organisation, or on other documents as prescribed by the law on specialised management and inspection.

Specialised management agencies and specialised inspection agencies and organisations shall be responsible for coordinating in carrying out simultaneous inspection of exported, imported or transited goods at the border gate or at the goods inspection locations, except where, for technical or professional requirements, the goods must be brought to specialised inspection locations.”

c) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. Coordination in sampling and specialised inspection:

a) For exported or imported goods subject to specialised inspection, the taking of samples shall be carried out in accordance with the law on specialised inspection;

b) The specialised inspection agency or organisation shall directly take samples of the exported or imported goods at the location notified by the customs declarant; where samples are taken within a customs operation area, the customs authority shall supervise the sampling;

c) Before samples are taken, the customs declarant must notify the customs authority and the specialised inspection agency of the time and place of sampling.

The customs declarant must present the goods for the specialised inspection agency or organisation or the customs authority to take samples;

d) The sampling must be carried out in the presence of a representative of the customs declarant. The samples must be sealed and a record certifying the sampling must be made with the confirmation of the customs declarant and of the specialised inspection agency or organisation;

đ) The specialised inspection agency or organisation shall carry out the inspection and notify the inspection results on the National Single Window Portal to the customs authority and the customs declarant within 02 working days from the date on which the inspection results are available.

Where the specialised inspection agency or organisation has not yet carried out the inspection procedures and updated the inspection results on the National Single Window Portal, the customs authority shall accept a copy of the notice of inspection results submitted by the customs declarant through the customs electronic data processing system.”

18. Point a of Clause 2 of Article 34 is amended as follows:

“a) Arranging separate storage areas for exported, imported and transited goods and for imported goods that have remained more than 90 days from the date of arrival at the border gate without anyone coming to receive them; and for goods that violate the customs law;”

19. Article 35 is amended as follows:

“Article 35. Customs procedures and customs inspection and supervision applicable to goods exported or imported on the spot

1. Goods exported or imported on the spot are the goods provided for in Clause 1 of Article 47a of the Law on Customs, as supplemented by Clause 3 of Article 3 of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Bidding; the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership Method; the Law on Customs; the Law on Value Added Tax; the Law on Export Duty and Import Duty; the Law on Investment; the Law on Public Investment; and the Law on Management and Use of Public Property, including:

a) Goods processed in Vietnam and sold or transferred by the foreign trader placing the processing order to organisations or individuals in Vietnam;

b) Goods purchased, sold, leased or borrowed between Vietnamese enterprises and foreign traders where the foreign trader designates an enterprise in Vietnam for the delivery or receipt of the goods.

2. Goods exported or imported on the spot must undergo customs procedures; they may be delivered and received before the customs procedures are carried out, or the customs procedures may be carried out before the goods are delivered and received; they shall be subject to customs inspection and supervision from the time of delivery and receipt of the goods until the completion of the customs procedures, or from the time the customs procedures are carried out until the completion of the delivery and receipt of the goods.

3. Goods exported or imported on the spot shall be regarded as having completed customs procedures when both the on-the-spot export declaration and the on-the-spot import declaration have completed customs procedures.

4. The time limit, place and method of delivery and receipt of the goods shall follow the designation of the foreign trader and must be notified to the customs authority when carrying out the customs procedures or before the time of delivery and receipt of the goods.

5. The Minister of Finance shall provide detailed regulations on this Article.”

20. Clause 1 of Article 37 is amended as follows:

“1. Notification of the processing and production establishment for goods for export and of the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products

a) Before carrying out the import procedures for the first consignment of raw materials, supplies, machinery and equipment for the processing or production of goods for export, the organisation or individual shall notify the processing and production establishment for goods for export and the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products, according to the information indicators issued by the Minister of Finance, to the customs authority managing the area where the production establishment is located, through the customs electronic data processing system;

b) Where a change in the contents of the notification of the processing and production establishment for goods for export results in a change in the premises, the address, the production scale, the trader’s legal representative, the conditional business lines, the outsourcing of re-processing, or a change in the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products, the customs authority must be notified before the raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment, semi-finished products or products are imported or brought to the re-processing recipient or to the new storage location. Where there are changes other than the above contents, the customs authority must be notified no later than the tenth day of the first month of the following quarter from the date on which the change arises.”

21. Article 39 is amended as follows:

“Article 39. Inspection of the processing and production establishment and of the processing and production capacity; the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products

1. Cases subject to inspection:

a) An organisation or individual imports goods for the processing or production of goods for export for the first time;

b) Where signs are detected indicating that an organisation or individual has changed the information on its address, line of goods, production scale or production capacity without notifying the customs authority;

c) An organisation or individual imports goods for processing for a foreign trader but hires another organisation or individual to carry out the re-processing of the entire processing contract;

d) Where signs are detected indicating that an organisation or individual stores imported raw materials, supplies and components and export products outside the locations notified to the customs authority;

đ) Other cases inspected on the basis of the application of risk management.

2. The customs authority receiving the notification of the processing and production establishment for goods for export shall decide on the inspection of the processing and production establishment, the processing and production capacity, and the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products.

The inspection shall be carried out no later than 05 working days from the date on which the organisation or individual receives the inspection decision. The inspection period shall not exceed 05 working days.

3. Contents of the inspection:

a) Inspection of the address of the processing and production establishment and of the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products;

b) Inspection of the investment and business lines;

c) Inspection of the workshops, machinery and equipment;

d) Inspection of the status of the human resources involved in the production line;

đ) Inspection of the process, capacity and scale of production and processing;

e) Inspection of the storage of imported raw materials and supplies and of export products at the notified locations, and inspection of the monitoring of raw materials, supplies, export products, machinery and equipment through warehouse accounting books or software for managing the imported, exported and inventory quantities of raw materials, supplies, export products, machinery and equipment.

4. Handling of the results of the inspection of the processing and production establishment and of the processing and production capacity; the places for storing raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and export products:

a) Where the production facility satisfies the conditions for carrying out processing or production for export, the organisation or individual shall be entitled to export duty, import duty and other tax incentives (if any) from the time the organisation or individual notifies the production facility to the customs authority;

b) Where there is no processing or production facility, or where a processing or production facility exists but does not conform to the notified contents or is not suitable for carrying out processing or production for export, the organisation or individual shall pay in full the export duty, import duty and other taxes (if any), together with late-payment interest from the date of registration of the import customs declaration to the date of actual payment of duty, and shall be sanctioned for the violation in accordance with regulations, in respect of the quantity of imported raw materials and supplies that are not entitled to tax incentives under the regulations;

c) Where there are grounds to determine that the organisation or individual imports raw materials, supplies, machinery or equipment in excess of its production capacity, or in a sector subject to conditional business investment under the law but the organisation or individual is unable to produce the licence or the certificate of eligibility for business, or imports raw materials, supplies, machinery or equipment inconsistent with the production sector notified to the customs authority, the organisation or individual shall be allowed to explain and prove; where the organisation or individual fails to explain, or the explanation is not reasonable, the matter shall be handled in accordance with regulations.”

22. Clause 1 of Article 40 is amended as follows:

“1. Cases subject to inspection:

a) An organisation or individual falling within the category showing signs of risk has imported machinery, equipment, raw materials or supplies but has no exported products after the production and business cycle has elapsed;

b) Where there are signs to determine that the organisation or individual imports raw materials, supplies, machinery or equipment, or exports products, with abnormal increases or decreases compared with its production capacity;

c) Where there are signs to determine that the organisation or individual sells raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment or products into the domestic market without making a customs declaration;

d) Where the organisation or individual is found to have declared exported products contrary to regulations and inconsistent with the actual situation;

đ) Inspection on the basis of risk management in respect of organisations and individuals required to immediately notify changes in premises, address, production scale, the trader's legal representative, conditional business sectors, sub-contracted processing, or changes in the place of storage of raw materials, supplies, machinery, equipment and exported products as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 37 of this Decree.

For the cases mentioned at Point a and Point b of Clause 1 of this Article, the organisation or individual shall provide a written explanation at the request of the customs authority. The inspection shall be carried out only after the organisation or individual has failed to provide an explanation or the customs authority has grounds to consider the explanation of the organisation or individual to be unreasonable.”

23. Article 43 is amended as follows:

“Article 43. Customs procedures, customs inspection and supervision applicable to goods in transit

1. Customs procedures for goods in transit shall be carried out at the customs office of the first border gate of import and of the last border gate of export

a) The first border gate of import shall be determined as follows:

a.1) For the sea and air transport modes, it is the port of destination stated on the bill of lading.

Where the port of destination stated on the bill of lading is not a seaport or an airport, the first border gate of import is the port of discharge where the ship or aircraft enters Vietnam;

a.2) For the rail transport mode, it is the international intermodal railway station at the border;

a.3) For the road and inland waterway transport modes, it is the international border gate where the goods are imported into the territory of Vietnam;

a.4) For goods sent via postal or express delivery services, the first border gate of import is the location for centralised gathering, inspection and supervision of postal and express delivery goods.

b) The last border gate of export is the border gate through which the means of transport carrying the goods in transit exits the country.

Goods in transit under multilateral agreements on the transit of goods to which Vietnam is a signatory shall be governed by separate regulations of the Government.

2. The customs dossier:

a) The customs declaration or the document replacing the customs declaration; where detailed information on the goods cannot be declared on the customs declaration or on the document replacing the customs declaration, the customs declarant shall declare a detailed list of goods in transit according to the form issued by the Minister of Finance;

b) The transport document, where the goods in transit are carried by sea, air or rail: 01 copy;

c) The transit licence; the notice of specialised inspection results as prescribed by relevant laws: 01 original.

3. Responsibilities of the customs declarant:

a) To comply with Clause 4 of Article 25 of this Decree;

b) To transport the goods along the correct route, through the correct border gates and within the time limit prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 65 of the Law on Customs;

c) To maintain the original condition of the goods, the customs seals and the carrier's seals.

In a force majeure event in which the original condition of the goods, the customs seals or the carrier's seals cannot be maintained, or in which the goods are not transported along the correct route or within the correct time, the customs declarant shall, after applying the necessary measures to limit and prevent losses, immediately notify the customs authority for handling; where it is impossible to notify the customs authority immediately, the customs declarant shall, depending on the appropriate locality, notify the police authority, the border guard, the coast guard or the local government for handling in accordance with law;

d) To use means of transport for goods in transit that satisfy the customs supervision conditions prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 71 of the Law on Customs;

đ) Where the goods in transit undergo transloading, warehousing, a change of transport mode or of means of transport, or consolidation with exported goods, the customs declarant shall send a written request to the Customs of the first border gate of import according to the form issued by the Minister of Finance.

Transloading, warehousing and the change of transport mode or of means of transport shall be carried out in border-gate areas, bonded warehouses, container freight stations, locations for carrying out customs procedures at inland export and import ports, locations for the gathering, inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods, and other locations recognised by the Director of the Customs Department in accordance with Article 22 of the Law on Customs;

e) Goods in transit consolidated with exported goods must satisfy the following conditions:

e.1) The goods in transit and the exported goods must be packed separately (packages, cartons, packaging);

e.2) The goods in transit must not be on the list of items whose transit falls within the authority of the Prime Minister to permit;

e.3) The consolidation must be carried out at a container freight station at the last border gate of export or at a location for the centralised gathering, inspection and supervision of postal and express delivery goods.

g) To present the goods for physical inspection at the request of the customs authority.

4. Responsibilities of the Customs of the border gate of import:

a) To receive and process the customs dossier prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article;

b) To carry out customs supervision as prescribed in Clause 7 of this Article;

c) To conduct physical inspection of the goods where there are signs of violation;

d) To monitor the transport of the goods subject to customs supervision;

đ) In the case of transloading, warehousing, a change of transport mode or of means of transport, or consolidation with exported goods, the customs authority receiving the written request shall carry out an inspection; if the location satisfies the conditions prescribed at Point đ of Clause 3 of this Article and is consistent with the transit route registered with the customs authority, it shall prepare a handover record and send it, together with the approved written request, to the Customs of the place where the transloading, warehousing, change of transport mode or of means of transport, or consolidation with exported goods is carried out.

5. Responsibilities of the Customs managing the location where transloading, warehousing or a change of transport mode or of means of transport is carried out:

a) To receive the incoming consignment and to inspect and compare the condition of the seals or the original condition of the goods against the handover record;

b) To supervise the transloading, warehousing, change of transport mode or of means of transport, and consolidation with exported goods;

c) To affix customs seals where there is a change in the customs seals or the carrier's seals;

d) To prepare a handover record for the Customs of the border gate of export or for the Customs of the place where the transloading, warehousing, change of transport mode or of means of transport, or consolidation with exported goods is carried out.

6. Responsibilities of the Customs of the border gate of export:

a) To check the information on the customs declaration or on the document replacing the customs declaration in the customs electronic data processing system;

b) To check the condition of the seals or the original condition of the goods.

Where the goods in transit are carried by inland waterway out of the country, the Customs of the border gate of export shall, based on information on the itinerary, the transport time and warnings (if any), decide whether to check the customs seals or the carrier's seals;

c) To conduct physical inspection of the goods where there are signs of violation;

d) To receive the written request for consolidation with exported goods as prescribed at Point đ of Clause 4 of this Article;

đ) To supervise the goods until they are actually exported.

7. Customs supervision:

a) Goods in transit must be sealed with customs seals or with the carrier's seals, or must be supervised by technical means. Where the goods cannot be sealed, the customs declarant shall be responsible for preserving the original condition of the goods;

b) Goods in transit that are on the List of goods banned from trading, banned from export or suspended from export, goods banned from import or suspended from import; goods exported or imported under licence, and goods subject to special consumption tax must be supervised by technical means;

c) Goods in transit that are weapons, ammunition, explosives or highly dangerous goods must be supervised by technical means or supervised directly by customs officers.”

24. Article 44 is amended as follows:

“Article 44. Customs procedures, customs inspection and supervision applicable to goods in transhipment at seaports

1. Goods in transhipment are goods carried by sea from abroad into port terminals of Vietnamese seaports and then brought abroad from that same terminal, or brought to another terminal within the same seaport or to another seaport in order to be brought abroad. Goods in transhipment may be brought abroad in their entirety in one time or in several times.

2. Goods transhipment activities prescribed in this Article include the loading and unloading, container substitution, transport and storage of goods at the request of the carrier at the border gate of import or the border gate of export.

The storage period for goods in transhipment shall not exceed 30 days from the date of completion of customs procedures at the border gate of import.

Where goods in transhipment are damaged or suffer losses during the period of storage at a Vietnamese seaport and additional time is required to remedy the situation, the transhipment period shall be extended in correspondence with the time necessary to carry out such work and must be approved by the customs authority where the transhipment procedures are carried out.

3. Goods in transhipment shall be subject to customs supervision from their arrival at a Vietnamese seaport, throughout the period of storage at the port and throughout the transport process until the goods are brought out of the territory of Vietnam. Physical inspection of goods in transhipment shall apply only where there are signs of violation of law.

4. Responsibilities of the customs declarant:

a) To make the customs declaration as prescribed in Clause 4 of Article 25 of this Decree, or to declare the document replacing the customs declaration;

b) To be responsible for maintaining the original condition of the goods and the intactness of the customs seals or of the carrier's seals throughout the transport and storage of the goods at the port;

c) To present the goods for physical inspection at the request of the customs authority;

d) To bring all goods in transhipment abroad within the time limit prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article.

5. Responsibilities of the Customs of the border gate of import:

a) To receive and process the customs declaration or the document replacing the customs declaration;

b) To supervise the goods in transhipment;

c) To affix customs seals to the goods containers where the carrier's seals are no longer intact;

d) To conduct physical inspection of the goods where there are signs of violation.

6. Responsibilities of the Customs of the border gate of export:

a) To check the information on the customs declaration or on the document replacing the customs declaration;

b) To check the condition of the customs seals or of the carrier's seals, or the original condition of the goods where the goods cannot be sealed;

c) To supervise the loading of the goods in transhipment onto the means of transport for export abroad;

d) To conduct physical inspection of the goods where there are signs of violation.

The Minister of Finance shall provide detailed regulations on this Article.”

25. Article 47 is amended as follows:

“Article 47. Customs procedures for the re-import of exported goods

1. A trader may re-import its own unused goods that have been returned. Goods processed for a foreign trader that have been exported may not be re-imported for destruction.

2. The customs dossier:

a) The customs declaration;

b) The transport document, where the goods are carried by sea, air or rail: 01 copy to be submitted.

3. Customs procedures shall be carried out in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter. The customs declarant is not required to submit an import licence or a notice of specialised inspection results, unless the law on specialised management and inspection provides otherwise.

4. The tax policy applicable to exported goods that must be re-imported shall comply with the law on taxation.

5. For goods re-imported for destruction, repair or reprocessing and subsequent re-export, or re-imported for re-export to a third country or for export into a non-tariff zone, the time limit for destruction or re-export shall not exceed 12 months from the date of registration of the re-import declaration, except in the case of special goods whose repair or reprocessing time exceeds 12 months as required by the production cycle, in which case the customs authority shall decide in accordance with the agreement of the parties.

The customs declarant is not yet required to pay duty during the repair or reprocessing period; if the registered repair or reprocessing time limit has expired without re-export, the law on taxation shall apply.

6. Procedures for the re-export of repaired or reprocessed goods shall be carried out in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter.

7. Handling of repaired or reprocessed goods that cannot be re-exported:

a) For repaired or reprocessed products that are processed goods or goods produced for export: customs procedures shall be carried out for domestic consumption or destruction.

In the case of domestic consumption, declaration and payment of duty must be made in respect of the imported raw materials and supplies (including supplies used as packaging materials or packaging for packing exported products), components and semi-finished products directly constituting the exported products; and the imported finished products used for packing, labelling, or attaching or assembling to the exported products, or packed together with the exported products as a synchronous item;

b) For repaired or reprocessed products that are not processed goods or goods produced for export, they shall be transferred to domestic consumption in the same manner as goods re-imported for domestic consumption. Tax treatment shall be carried out in accordance with the law on taxation;

c) For processed products or products produced for export that are re-imported for repair or reprocessing but of which only part of the raw materials and supplies can be used to continue producing exported products (of the same or a different product type), separate consumption norms must be monitored and established for the product codes after repair or reprocessing. Scrap, defective products and waste discharged from the repair or reprocessing process shall be monitored and handled in the same manner as scrap, defective products and waste from the processing and production of exported goods.

8. Where the re-imported goods are exported products manufactured from imported raw materials and supplies that were exempt from import duty, or exported goods of imported origin for which import duty has been refunded, the customs authority where the re-import procedures are carried out shall notify the customs authority where the final settlement report procedures or the duty refund procedures are carried out (if they are two different customs authorities) of the case of failure to re-export mentioned in Clause 7 of this Article or of the case of expiry of the time limit mentioned in Clause 5 of this Article, for tax treatment in accordance with regulations.

9. Where exported goods that have been used by the trader itself are re-imported for reprocessing or warranty at the request of a foreign trader and are subsequently re-exported, customs procedures shall be carried out in accordance with Article 50 of this Decree.”

26. Article 48 is amended as follows:

“Article 48. Customs procedures and customs supervision applicable to imported goods that must be re-exported abroad or re-exported into a non-tariff zone

1. The customs dossier:

a) The customs declaration;

b) The commercial invoice in the case of sale abroad, or the sales invoice or the value-added invoice in the case of sale into a non-tariff zone: 01 copy.

2. Customs procedures shall be carried out in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter.

3. Where goods (other than goods banned from import or suspended from import) are under customs supervision but were sent by mistake, went astray, have no consignee or were refused because they do not conform to the contract, if the carrier or the goods owner submits a written request for re-export (clearly stating the reason for the mistake, the loss or the refusal), or if the goods are subject to compulsory re-export under a decision of a competent authority, the goods must be brought out of the territory of Vietnam through the border gate of import or through an international border gate.”

27. Article 49 is amended as follows:

“Article 49. Customs procedures applicable to means of containing goods used on a rotating basis for temporary import or temporary export

1. Means used on a rotating basis under the mode of temporary import for re-export or temporary export for re-import to contain exported and imported goods include:

a) Containers with or without hangers;

b) Means (tanks) for containing gases or liquids that have a stable and durable structure, are used exclusively for containing and transporting gases or liquids, bear serial numbers permanently printed on the tank shell and are carried by specialised motor vehicles;

c) Flexitanks lined inside containers for carrying liquid goods;

d) Other means that can be used many times to contain or pack exported and imported goods.

2. The time limit for temporary import for re-export and for temporary export for re-import shall be as agreed between the trader and the partner and shall be registered with the customs authority where the procedures are carried out. Where an extension of the temporary import or temporary export time limit is needed, the customs declarant shall make an additional declaration on the customs declaration or, in the case of a declaration by List, shall send a written request for extension of the temporary import or temporary export time limit, together with 01 copy of the written agreement with the partner on the extension of the time limit for temporary import for re-export or temporary export for re-import, to the Sub-department of Customs where the temporary import or temporary export procedures are carried out, before the expiry of the temporary import or temporary export time limit registered with the customs authority.

With respect to goods-containing means used on a rotational basis prescribed at Point a and Point b of Clause 1 of this Article, the time limit for temporary import for re-export or temporary export for re-import shall not exceed 24 months, except where the goods-containing means used on a rotational basis is holding backlogged goods in a customs supervision area.

3. Customs procedures for the cases prescribed at Point a and Point b of Clause 1 of this Article

a) The customs declarant shall declare and submit the dossier at the border-gate Customs. The dossier comprises:

a.1) The list of temporarily imported or temporarily exported goods, or of re-exported or re-imported goods, made using the form issued by the Minister of Finance: 02 originals;

a.2) The transport document, for means not containing goods: 01 copy;

a.3) The written notice of specialised inspection results in accordance with the law on specialised management and inspection: 01 original.

b) The customs authority shall examine and compare the information declared on the list of temporarily imported, temporarily exported, re-exported or re-imported goods against the customs dossier; where the information is consistent and there is no suspicious sign, it shall certify on the 02 lists, retain 01 list and return 01 list to the customs declarant; where there is a suspicion, it shall conduct a physical inspection and handle violations in accordance with regulations;

c) Annually, no later than January 15, the customs declarant shall report to the customs authority on the use and the storage location of the goods-containing means.

4. Customs dossiers and procedures for the cases prescribed at Point c and Point d of Clause 1 of this Article

a) The customs declarant shall declare and submit the dossier at the border-gate Customs or at the Customs where the export or import procedures are carried out for the goods contained in the goods-containing means used on a rotational basis. The dossier comprises:

a.1) The customs declaration;

a.2) The sea, air or rail transport document, where the temporarily imported rotational means does not contain exported or imported goods: 01 copy;

a.3) The licence and the written notice of specialised inspection results in accordance with the law on specialised management and inspection: 01 original.

b) Customs procedures shall be carried out in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter.

5. Storage locations

Goods-containing means used on a rotational basis must be stored at the locations notified by the customs declarant to the customs authority when carrying out temporary import procedures.

Goods-containing means used on a rotational basis prescribed at Point a and Point b of Clause 1 of this Article that are owned by the carrier must be stored within customs operation areas, except where they are brought to the loading or unloading site of the exporter or importer.

6. Any change in the purpose of use of goods-containing means used on a rotational basis shall be handled in accordance with Clause 5 of Article 25 of this Decree.

7. Where goods-containing means prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article are exported or imported under a sale and purchase contract, a finance lease contract or in another form, customs procedures shall be carried out as for exported or imported goods prescribed in Section 5 of this Chapter.”

28. Article 50 is amended as follows:

“Article 50. Customs procedures for goods temporarily exported for re-import and goods temporarily imported for re-export

1. The cases of temporary export - re-import and temporary import - re-export include:

a) Equipment, machinery, construction machinery, means of transport, moulds and models temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import in order to implement investment projects or to serve production, construction and installation of works, testing, or research and product development;

b) Seagoing vessels and aircraft temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import for repair or maintenance;

c) Machinery, equipment, components, spare parts and supplies temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import to serve the replacement or repair of Vietnamese seagoing vessels or aircraft abroad, or of foreign seagoing vessels or aircraft anchored at Vietnamese ports;

d) Goods temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import in order to organise or participate in fairs, exhibitions or product displays;

đ) Goods temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import to serve work within a definite period, including: conferences, seminars, scientific research, education, sports competitions, cultural or artistic events or other events, and medical examination and treatment; machinery, equipment and professional instruments serving work within a definite period;

e) Goods temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import for warranty, repair or replacement;

g) Other goods temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import.

2. The customs dossier for goods temporarily imported for re-export:

a) The customs declaration;

b) For temporarily imported goods, the following shall be additionally submitted:

b.1) The transport document where the goods are carried by sea, air or rail (if any): 01 copy;

b.2) The licence for temporary import for re-export as prescribed by law; the written notice of specialised inspection results as prescribed by law: 01 original;

b.3) The contract for the supply of repair or maintenance services for seagoing vessels or aircraft, in the case prescribed at Point b of Clause 1 of this Article: 01 copy;

b.4) The written certification by the competent authority of the organisation of, or participation in, a fair or exhibition (except temporary import for re-export for product display), in the case prescribed at Point d of Clause 1 of this Article: 01 copy;

b.5) The document on participation in the work, in the case prescribed at Point đ of Clause 1 of this Article: 01 copy.

3. The customs dossier for goods temporarily exported for re-import:

a) The customs declaration;

b) For temporarily exported goods, the following shall be additionally submitted:

b.1) The licence for temporary export for re-import as prescribed by law; the written notice of specialised inspection results as prescribed by law: 01 original;

b.2) The written certification by the competent authority of the organisation of, or participation in, a fair or exhibition (except temporary export for re-import for product display): 01 copy.

c) For re-imported goods, the transport document shall be additionally submitted where the goods are carried by sea, air or rail (if any); 01 copy.

4. Places for carrying out customs procedures:

The customs declarant may choose to carry out customs procedures for temporary import for re-export, or temporary export for re-import, at the customs authority that is convenient.

5. Customs procedures:

a) They shall be carried out in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter;

b) For machinery, equipment, components, spare parts and supplies temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import to serve the replacement or repair of seagoing vessels or aircraft under a repair service supply contract, the regulations applicable to the processing type shall apply as guided by the Minister of Finance.

6. Time limits for temporary import, re-export, temporary export and re-import:

a) For the cases prescribed at Points a, b, c, e and g of Clause 1 of this Article, the time limit shall be as agreed between the trader and its partner and shall be registered with the customs authority.

Where it is necessary to extend the time limit for temporary import or temporary export as agreed with the partner, before the expiry of the time limit for temporary import or temporary export registered on the customs declaration, the customs declarant shall make an additional declaration on the customs declaration and submit 01 copy of the written agreement with the partner on the extension of the time limit for temporary import for re-export or temporary export for re-import to the customs authority where the temporary import or temporary export procedures are carried out. In the case of temporary import or temporary export of goods for the implementation of a project, the extension must not exceed the duration of implementation of the investment project;

b) For the case prescribed at Point d of Clause 1 of this Article, the time limits for re-export and re-import are as follows:

b.1) Goods temporarily imported in order to organise or participate in a fair, exhibition or product display in Vietnam must be re-exported within 30 days from the closing date of the fair, exhibition or product display registered with the customs authority;

b.2) The time limit for temporary export of goods for participation in a fair, exhibition or product display abroad is one year from the date on which the goods are temporarily exported; if such goods have not been re-imported upon expiry of the above time limit, they shall be subject to duties and other financial obligations in accordance with Vietnamese law.

c) For the case prescribed at Point đ of Clause 1 of this Article: The time limits for temporary import, re-export, temporary export and re-import shall follow the actual duration of the work arising and must be registered with the customs authority. Where it is necessary to extend the time limit for temporary import or temporary export, before the expiry of the time limit for temporary import or temporary export registered on the customs declaration, the customs declarant shall make an additional declaration on the customs declaration and submit 01 copy of the document evidencing the extension of the duration of the work arising to the customs authority where the temporary import or temporary export procedures are carried out.

7. Where an enterprise carrying out temporary import or temporary export changes the purpose of use or transfers the goods for domestic consumption, it must carry out import or export customs procedures in accordance with Section 5 of this Chapter.

8. Where goods temporarily imported or temporarily exported for product research and development are not in their original condition upon re-export or re-import, the customs declarant must re-export or re-import all products, components and spare parts constituting the original product.”

29. Clauses 2, 5 and 6 of Article 59 are amended and Clause 7 is added thereto as follows:

a) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. Persons on exit or entry are not required to make a customs declaration if they have no luggage in excess of the duty-free allowance prescribed by the law on taxation and no luggage sent before or after the trip.

Persons on exit or entry who bring goods in excess of the duty-free luggage allowance through the customs inspection area without making a customs declaration shall all be regarded as illegally exporting or importing goods and shall be handled in accordance with law.

When making a customs declaration, the customs declarant shall not aggregate the duty-free allowances of several persons on entry in order to declare a duty exemption for one person on entry, except for the luggage of individuals in one family brought along on the same trip. The declaration of the duty-free allowance shall be calculated for each entry.”

b) Clause 5 is amended as follows:

“5. Persons on exit or entry may temporarily deposit their luggage in the warehouse of an enterprise trading in warehouses, yards or ports at the border gate and may receive it back upon entry or exit. The period of temporary deposit of luggage shall not exceed 180 days from the date on which the luggage is deposited in the warehouse.

Before the end of the working day, the enterprise trading in warehouses, yards or ports shall send information on the luggage deposited in the warehouse to the border-gate Customs using the form in the Appendix to this Decree.”

c) Clause 6 is amended as follows:

“6. Within the period of temporary deposit of luggage prescribed in Clause 5 of this Article, if the person on exit or entry makes a written abandonment of the temporarily deposited luggage, or the period of temporary deposit of luggage expires but the person on exit or entry does not receive it back, or the agency or the enterprise trading in warehouses, yards or ports at the border gate determines that the owner of the luggage has performed an act demonstrating abandonment, the luggage shall be handled in the same manner as goods backlogged in customs operation areas.”

d) Clause 7 is added as follows:

“7. Where luggage carried by air has no baggage tag and the owner of the luggage cannot be identified, the airline shall be responsible for coordinating with the customs authority in handling the luggage in accordance with law.”

30. Clauses 4, 5, 6 and 7 of Article 60 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 4 is amended as follows:

“4. A person on entry shall carry out customs procedures for luggage sent before or after the trip within 30 days from the date on which the luggage arrives at the border gate; where luggage sent on the same trip exceeds the duty-free allowance, customs procedures shall be carried out immediately after entry.”

b) Clause 5 is amended as follows:

“5. Luggage of a person on entry with a total customs value exceeding the duty-free allowance prescribed at Point d of Clause 1 of Article 6 of the Government's Decree No. 134/2016/ND-CP dated September 1, 2016 detailing a number of articles and measures for the implementation of the Law on Export and Import Duties, which falls under the list of goods subject to an import licence as prescribed by law and has a total customs value of not more than VND 20,000,000, or luggage which is a whole article or a whole unit of a product with a total customs value exceeding VND 20,000,000, is not required to have an import licence when carrying out import procedures.”

c) Clause 6 is amended as follows:

“6. For luggage of a person on entry that falls under the list of goods subject to an import licence as prescribed by law and has a total value exceeding the level prescribed in Clause 5 of this Article, at the time of carrying out import procedures the person on entry must have a goods import licence. Where there is no import licence, the customs authority shall handle the matter in accordance with regulations.”

d) Clause 7 is amended as follows:

“7. When carrying out import procedures for luggage prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, if the person on entry does not have the customs declaration used for persons on exit or entry prescribed at Point c of Clause 2 of this Article, that person shall not be entitled to the duty-free luggage allowance prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 6 of the Government's Decree No. 134/2016/ND-CP dated September 1, 2016 detailing a number of articles and measures for the implementation of the Law on Export and Import Duties, and the management policy applicable to imported goods shall be applied in accordance with Clause 5 of this Article.”

31. Article 60a is added as follows:

“Article 60a. Customs procedures and customs inspection and supervision applicable to goods supplied to aircraft on exit and to foreign seagoing vessels anchored at Vietnamese seaports

1. Goods imported for supply to aircraft on exit and to foreign seagoing vessels shall be stored at the following locations:

a) Bonded warehouses;

b) Border-gate areas where aircraft or seagoing vessels exit or enter;

c) Meal processing and production establishments.

2. Goods supplied to aircraft or seagoing vessels on exit shall be subject to customs procedures and customs inspection and supervision under the corresponding export or import type, and the declaration may be registered once for multiple deliveries.”

32. Article 61 is amended as follows:

“Article 61. Dossiers and time limits for submission of customs dossiers for aircraft on exit, entry or transit

1. For aircraft on entry:

a) The customs dossier:

a.1) The declaration of goods imported by air, where the aircraft carries imported goods;

a.2) Information on bills of lading: the master bill of lading and the house bill of lading, where the aircraft carries imported goods;

a.3) The passenger list, where the aircraft carries passengers;

a.4) The list of the flight crew and persons working on board the aircraft;

a.5) The manifest of checked luggage, where the aircraft carries passengers;

a.6) Passenger name record (PNR) information;

a.7) Flight information, including: the route, the flight number, the name of the airline, the border gate, the number of passengers and the time of entry.

b) The time limit for submission of the customs dossier:

b.1) At the latest 03 hours before the expected time of entry of the aircraft, for flights of more than 03 flight hours;

b.2) At the latest 30 minutes before the expected time of entry of the aircraft, for flights of less than 03 flight hours;

b.3) At the latest 24 hours before the expected time of entry of the aircraft, for passenger name record (PNR) information.

c) The time limit for amendment and supplementation of the customs dossier:

c.1) The documents prescribed at Points a.1 and a.2 of Clause 1 of this Article shall be amended and supplemented before the completion of customs procedures for the goods and while the goods have not yet been taken out of the customs supervision area;

c.2) The documents prescribed at Points a.3, a.4, a.5 and a.7 of Clause 1 of this Article shall be amended and supplemented before or immediately after the aircraft on entry has parked at the prescribed position;

c.3) The document prescribed at Point a.6 of Clause 1 of this Article shall be amended and supplemented at the latest 08 hours before the expected time of entry of the aircraft.

2. For aircraft on exit:

a) The customs dossier:

a.1) The declaration of goods exported by air, where the aircraft carries exported goods;

a.2) The passenger list, where the aircraft carries passengers;

a.3) The list of the flight crew and persons working on board the aircraft;

a.4) The manifest of checked luggage, where the aircraft carries passengers;

a.5) Passenger name record (PNR) information;

a.6) Flight information, including: the route, the flight number, the name of the airline, the border gate, the number of passengers and the time of exit.

b) The time limit for submission of the customs dossier:

b.1) Before the time of exit of the aircraft, for the documents prescribed at Points a.2, a.3, a.4 and a.6 of this Clause;

b.2) At the latest 01 hour after the time of exit of the aircraft, for the document prescribed at Point a.1 of this Clause;

b.3) At the latest 24 hours before the expected time of exit of the aircraft, for the document prescribed at Point a.5 of this Clause.

c) The time limit for amendment and supplementation of the customs dossier:

c.1) Before the time of exit of the aircraft, for the documents prescribed at Points a.2, a.3, a.4 and a.6 of this Clause;

c.2) Within 24 hours from the exit of the aircraft, for the document prescribed at Point a.1 of this Clause;

c.3) At the latest 08 hours before the time of exit of the flight, for the document prescribed at Point a.5 of this Clause.

3. For aircraft in transit

When carrying out entry procedures for an aircraft in transit, the customs declarant shall comply with Clause 1 of this Article; when carrying out exit procedures, if there are changes to the documents submitted upon entry, the customs declarant shall submit a customs dossier comprising the documents that have changed compared with those submitted upon entry, within the time limits prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article.

An aircraft in transit that makes a technical stop is not required to carry out customs declaration procedures but shall be subject to customs supervision.”

33. Article 63 is amended as follows:

“Article 63. Customs procedures for aircraft on exit, entry or transit

1. Declaration and submission of customs dossiers for aircraft on exit, entry or transit:

a) The customs declarant shall declare the relevant documents prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 61 of this Decree according to the information indicators prescribed by the Minister of Finance and submit them on the National Single Window Portal. The issuer of the house bill of lading shall be responsible for providing the airline with complete house bill of lading information for aircraft on entry for declaration within the time limits prescribed in Article 61 of this Decree and for submitting it on the National Single Window Portal;

b) In the case of amendment or supplementation of a customs dossier already submitted for an aircraft on exit or entry, the customs declarant shall declare according to the information indicators prescribed by the Minister of Finance and submit explanatory and supporting documents on the National Single Window Portal;

c) Where the dossier has been submitted but the aircraft does not exit or enter, the customs declarant shall declare and send a request for cancellation of the customs dossier according to the information indicators prescribed by the Minister of Finance on the National Single Window Portal;

d) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs declarant shall complete 01 original of the paper documents specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 61 of this Decree using the form issued by the Minister of Finance and submit it to the customs authority handling the customs procedures for the outbound or inbound aircraft.

In the cases specified at Points b and c of this Clause, the customs declarant shall submit a written request for amendment, supplementation or cancellation to the customs authority handling the customs procedures for the outbound or inbound aircraft.

Immediately after the malfunction is remedied, the customs declarant shall update the electronic document information on the National Single Window Portal.

2. Receipt and inspection of the customs dossier for outbound, inbound and transit aircraft:

a) The National Single Window Portal shall receive and inspect the declared information and respond with the dossier receipt number to the customs declarant within 30 minutes from the time of receiving complete and valid declared information. For incomplete or invalid declared information, the National Single Window Portal shall respond with a refusal to accept the dossier (clearly stating the reasons) to the customs declarant within 01 hour from the time of receipt of the dossier;

b) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority carrying out procedures for the inbound or outbound aircraft shall receive the paper dossier, inspect the completeness and validity of the documents within 30 minutes from the time of receipt of the dossier and issue a dossier receipt number.

3. Handling of the results of inspection of the customs dossier for outbound, inbound and transit aircraft

a) The customs authority shall certify the completion of customs procedures for the outbound or inbound aircraft through the National Single Window Portal.

For an inbound aircraft carrying goods banned from import, goods suspended from import, or goods failing to satisfy the provisions of the law on environmental protection, the customs authority shall notify the customs declarant, the port operating enterprise and the Airport Authority so that the goods are not unloaded at the port, except where a permit of the competent authority is available.

For an aircraft on the list of aircraft refused or temporarily suspended from entry, exit or transit issued by the competent authority, the customs authority shall notify the customs declarant that the aircraft is not eligible for customs procedures;

b) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority shall notify the customs declarant in writing of the results of processing the dossier;

c) Where the Airport Authority, a court, the police or another competent authority issues a written request for suspension of customs procedures for an outbound or inbound aircraft, the customs authority carrying out the procedures shall coordinate with the competent agencies in handling the matter in accordance with law.

4. Receipt, inspection and processing of information declared for amendment, supplementation or cancellation of the customs dossier for outbound, inbound and transit aircraft

a) The National Single Window Portal shall receive the information declared for amendment, supplementation or cancellation and respond to the customs declarant within 30 minutes from the time of receiving complete and valid information.

For incomplete or invalid information, the National Single Window Portal shall respond with a refusal to accept (clearly stating the reasons) to the customs declarant within 30 minutes from the time of receipt;

b) Based on the explanatory and supporting information submitted by the customs declarant, the customs authority carrying out the procedures shall inspect the contents of the request for amendment, supplementation or cancellation in order to update it into the system, or clearly state the reasons in case of refusal to accept, and shall respond with the processing results on the National Single Window Portal;

c) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority carrying out procedures for the inbound or outbound aircraft shall receive the paper dossier and inspect the completeness and validity of the documents within 30 minutes from the time of receipt of the dossier.

5. Customs inspection and supervision of outbound, inbound and transit aircraft

The customs authority shall be responsible for carrying out supervision of outbound, inbound and transit aircraft throughout the period during which the aircraft is parked at the airport.

On the basis of the information declared in the customs dossier for the outbound or inbound aircraft, the information provided by the airport operating enterprise under Article 61 of this Decree and other relevant information sources (if any), the customs authority shall apply risk management to decide on the appropriate form of inspection and customs supervision measures for the goods and means of transport.

During the course of supervision, where signs of smuggling or illegal transportation of goods or currency are identified, the customs authority shall implement inspection and preventive measures in accordance with law.”

34. Article 64 is amended as follows:

“Article 64. Responsibilities of airport operating enterprises, airlines or persons authorised by airlines

1. Responsibilities of the airport operating enterprise:

a) At least 24 hours for scheduled flights or at least 01 hour for non-scheduled flights before the entry of the aircraft, and before the carrier completes aviation procedures for outbound passengers and exported goods on outbound and transit flights, to provide the customs authority managing the airport with the following information:

a.1) Nationality of the aircraft;

a.2) Type of aircraft;

a.3) Flight itinerary;

a.4) Arrival time and departure time of the aircraft;

a.5) Parking position of the aircraft;

a.6) Passenger entry gate;

a.7) Time of loading and unloading of goods onto and from the aircraft.

b) At least 01 hour before the exit or entry of the aircraft, to notify the customs authority of any change in the information specified at Point a of Clause 1 of this Article;

c) To share information data from the camera system and the scanner system at the international terminal with the customs authority in order to serve customs inspection and supervision of outbound, inbound and transit aircraft, exported, imported and transit goods, and the luggage of outbound, inbound and transit persons.

2. Responsibilities of the airline or the person authorised by the airline:

a) To declare the customs dossier for outbound, inbound and transit aircraft with complete, accurate and clear information criteria and within the prescribed time limit;

b) To be legally liable for the authenticity of the declared information contents and of the documents submitted, produced or sent to the National Single Window Portal, and for the consistency of the information contents between the dossier kept at the enterprise and the dossier kept at the customs authority;

c) For an inbound aircraft carrying imported goods, the airline or the authorised person must load and unload all imported goods at the airport where the aircraft carries out entry procedures;

d) For an aircraft that has completed a domestic leg and is used to continue on an international leg, the airline or the authorised person may load exported goods onto the outbound aircraft only when no goods remain on board the aircraft.”

35. Article 65 is amended as follows:

“Article 65. Dossiers and time limits for submitting customs dossiers for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels

1. For inbound seagoing vessels:

a) The customs dossier:

a.1) The general declaration;

a.2) The crew list;

a.3) The declaration of luggage of crew members and personnel working on board the seagoing vessel;

a.4) The ship's stores declaration;

a.5) The passenger list, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying passengers;

a.6) The cargo declaration, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying goods;

a.7) Information on bills of lading: the master bill of lading and the house bill of lading, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying goods;

a.8) The dangerous goods declaration, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying dangerous goods.

b) Time limits for submitting the customs dossier:

b.1) The documents specified at Points a.2, a.3, a.4 and a.5 of Clause 1 of this Article: At least 08 hours before the expected arrival of the vessel at the port;

b.2) The documents specified at Points a.1, a.6, a.7 and a.8 of Clause 1 of this Article: At least 12 hours before the expected arrival of the vessel at the port for seagoing vessels with a voyage of less than 5 days, or at least 24 hours before the expected arrival of the vessel at the port for other seagoing vessels.

c) Time limits for amending or supplementing the customs dossier:

c.1) The documents specified at Points a.1, a.2, a.3, a.4 and a.5 of Clause 1 of this Article: To be carried out before or immediately after the expected arrival of the vessel at the port;

c.2) The documents specified at Points a.6, a.7 and a.8 of Clause 1 of this Article: To be carried out before the goods are brought out of the customs supervision area.

2. For outbound seagoing vessels:

a) The customs dossier:

a.1) The general declaration;

a.2) The crew list;

a.3) The declaration of luggage of crew members and personnel working on board the seagoing vessel;

a.4) The ship's stores declaration;

a.5) The passenger list, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying passengers;

a.6) The cargo declaration, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying goods;

a.7) The dangerous goods declaration, in the case of a seagoing vessel carrying dangerous goods.

Upon the exit of the seagoing vessel, if there is no change compared with the contents declared upon the entry of the vessel, the customs declarant shall only be required to submit the general declaration specified at Point a.1 of Clause 2 of this Article.

b) Time limit for submitting the customs dossier: At least 01 hour before the expected departure of the vessel from the port;

c) Time limit for amending the customs dossier: Within 24 hours from the departure of the vessel from the port.

3. For transit seagoing vessels

When carrying out entry procedures for a transit seagoing vessel, the customs declarant shall comply with Clause 1 of this Article; when carrying out exit procedures, if there are changes to the documents submitted upon entry, the customs declarant shall submit a customs dossier comprising the documents that have changed compared with the time of entry, within the time limit specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. For port-transferring seagoing vessels

The dossier transfer note for the port-transferring vessel and the relevant documents specified in Clause 1 of this Article shall be effected before the expected arrival of the vessel at the next port of call.”

36. Article 67 is amended as follows:

“Article 67. Customs procedures for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels

1. Declaration and submission of the customs dossier for outbound and inbound seagoing vessels:

a) The customs declarant shall declare the relevant documents specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 65 of this Decree according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance and submit them on the National Single Window Portal. Where the customs declarant does not have house bill of lading information, it shall provide the receipt number of the inbound seagoing vessel dossier to the issuer of the house bill of lading so that the latter may fully declare the house bill of lading information within the prescribed time limit and submit it on the National Single Window Portal;

b) In case of amendment or supplementation of a submitted customs dossier for an outbound or inbound seagoing vessel, the customs declarant shall make the declaration according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance and submit the documents explaining and substantiating the amended or supplemented contents in respect of the documents specified at Points a.6, a.7 and a.8 of Clause 1 of Article 65 of this Decree on the National Single Window Portal;

c) Where the dossier has been submitted but the seagoing vessel does not exit or enter, the customs declarant shall declare and send a request for cancellation of the customs dossier according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance on the National Single Window Portal;

d) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs declarant shall submit 01 set of the paper dossier as prescribed in the Government's Decree No. 58/2017/ND-CP of May 10, 2017 detailing a number of articles of the 2015 Vietnam Maritime Code to the customs authority handling the customs procedures for the outbound or inbound seagoing vessel.

Immediately after the System malfunction is remedied, the customs declarant shall update the electronic document information on the National Single Window Portal.

In the cases specified at Points b and c of this Clause, the customs declarant shall submit a written request for amendment, supplementation or cancellation to the customs authority handling the customs procedures for the outbound or inbound seagoing vessel;

đ) Where an outbound or inbound seagoing vessel carries out transhipment or ship-to-ship transfer activities at an anchorage or transhipment area announced by the competent authority, before the seagoing vessel arrives at the anchorage or transhipment area, the customs declarant shall notify the transhipment or ship-to-ship transfer plan to the customs authority managing the transhipment or ship-to-ship transfer area for the conduct of supervision as prescribed.

2. Receipt and inspection of the customs dossier for outbound and inbound seagoing vessels:

a) The National Single Window Portal shall receive and inspect the declared information and respond with the dossier receipt number to the customs declarant within 01 hour from the time of receiving complete and valid declared information. For incomplete or invalid declared information, the National Single Window Portal shall respond with a refusal to accept the dossier (clearly stating the reasons) to the customs declarant within 01 hour from the time of receipt of the dossier;

b) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority carrying out procedures for the inbound or outbound seagoing vessel shall receive the paper dossier, inspect the completeness and validity of the documents within 01 hour from the time of receipt of the dossier and issue a dossier receipt number.

3. Handling of the results of inspection of the customs dossier for outbound and inbound seagoing vessels:

a) The customs authority shall certify the completion of customs procedures for the outbound or inbound seagoing vessel through the National Single Window Portal.

For an inbound seagoing vessel carrying goods banned from import, goods suspended from import, or goods failing to satisfy the provisions of the law on environmental protection, the customs authority shall notify the customs declarant, the port operating enterprise and the Maritime Administration so that the goods are not unloaded at the port, except where a permit of the competent authority is available.

For a seagoing vessel on the list of vessels refused or temporarily suspended from entry, exit or transit issued by the competent authority, the customs authority shall notify the customs declarant that the seagoing vessel is not eligible for customs procedures;

b) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority shall notify in writing the results of processing the dossier to the Maritime Administration for the completion of procedures for the outbound or inbound seagoing vessel;

c) The customs authority shall suspend customs procedures for seagoing vessels carrying environmentally polluting goods of a shipping line that fails to comply with Point c of Clause 3 or Point c of Clause 4 of Article 68 of this Decree.

Where there is a written request for suspension of customs procedures from other competent agencies such as the Maritime Administration, a court, the police, the border guard, quarantine agencies or other competent authorities, the customs authority carrying out procedures for the outbound or inbound seagoing vessel shall coordinate with the competent agencies in handling the matter as prescribed.

4. Receipt, inspection and processing of the customs dossier for transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels:

a) For transit seagoing vessels

Customs procedures for transit seagoing vessels shall be carried out in accordance with Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article right at the customs authority of the place where the seagoing vessel enters.

Where a transit seagoing vessel passes through the territorial sea, it must satisfy the conditions prescribed in Article 23 of the 2012 Law of the Sea of Vietnam; entry procedures shall be carried out at the customs authority of the first border gate of entry and exit procedures shall be carried out at the customs authority of the last border gate of exit;

b) For port-transferring seagoing vessels:

b.1) Where a seagoing vessel plans to transfer to another seaport in Vietnam, the customs authority of the place from which the vessel departs shall receive the port-transfer vessel information transferred by the Maritime Administration or the shipping line/shipping agent and shall make a dossier transfer note for the port-transferring vessel according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance and send it to the customs authority of the place where the vessel is expected to arrive;

b.2) The customs authority of the place where the vessel arrives shall receive the dossier transfer note for the port-transferring vessel, respond with information to the customs authority that made the note, and carry out the customs procedures for the outbound seagoing vessel in accordance with Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article;

b.3) Where the System experiences a malfunction, the customs authority of the place from which the vessel departs shall make a dossier transfer note for the port-transferring vessel using the form issued by the Minister of Finance; seal it together with the dossier set prescribed in Clause 3 of Article 65 of this Decree and hand it over to the customs declarant for transfer to the customs authority of the place where the vessel arrives.

The customs authority of the place where the vessel arrives shall receive from the customs declarant the sealed dossier set transferred by the customs authority of the place from which the vessel departed and shall respond with information to the customs authority that made the dossier transfer note.

5. Receipt, inspection and processing of information declared for amendment, supplementation or cancellation of the customs dossier for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels:

a) The National Single Window Portal shall receive the information declared for amendment, supplementation or cancellation and respond to the customs declarant within 01 hour from the time of receiving complete and valid information.

For incomplete or invalid information, the National Single Window Portal shall respond with a refusal to accept (clearly stating the reasons) to the customs declarant within 01 hour from the time of receipt;

b) Based on the explanatory and supporting information submitted by the customs declarant, the customs authority carrying out the procedures shall inspect the contents of the request for amendment, supplementation or cancellation in order to update it into the system, or clearly state the reasons in case of refusal to accept, and shall respond with the processing results on the National Single Window Portal;

c) Where the National Single Window Portal experiences a malfunction, the customs authority carrying out procedures for the inbound, outbound, transit or port-transferring seagoing vessel shall receive the paper dossier and inspect the completeness and validity of the documents within 01 hour from the time of receipt of the dossier.

6. Customs inspection and supervision of outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels:

a) On the basis of the information declared in the customs dossier for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels and other relevant information sources (if any), the customs authority shall apply risk management to decide on the appropriate form of inspection and customs supervision measures for the goods and means of transport;

b) During the supervision of seagoing vessels anchoring, loading or unloading goods or moving within customs operation areas, if there are grounds to determine that smuggled or illegally transported goods are on board the seagoing vessel, the Head of the Customs Team managing the supervision area, the Head of the Customs Team carrying out procedures for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring seagoing vessels, the Head of the Customs Control Team of the Regional Sub-department of Customs, the Head of the Anti-smuggling Control Team of the Sub-department of Anti-smuggling Investigation, or their deputies when so authorised, shall decide on the physical inspection of the seagoing vessel and handle violations in accordance with the relevant law, or stop or temporarily postpone the departure of the seagoing vessel in accordance with law;

c) On the basis of the notification of the transhipment or ship-to-ship transfer plan, the customs authority shall carry out supervision on the principle of risk management.”

37. Article 68 is amended as follows:

“Article 68. Responsibilities of the Maritime Administration, seaport operating enterprises, the master and the shipping line or the person authorised by the shipping line

1. Responsibilities of the Maritime Administration:

a) Immediately after receiving confirmation of the time of arrival of the vessel at the port or the expected time of departure of the vessel from the port, the Maritime Administration must immediately notify the customs authority and other specialised state management agencies at the seaport for coordination;

b) Immediately after issuing a decision to move an outbound, inbound or transit ship into the port, or to change the berthing position of ships or boats (if any), the Maritime Port Authority shall notify the customs authority and other specialised State management agencies at the seaport of the time and place designated for ships and boats to berth at the seaport;

c) The Maritime Port Authority where procedures for a ship's entry into or departure from the port are carried out shall send the port clearance permit or the shifting order to the customs authority at that port via the National Single Window Portal. Where the Maritime Port Authority has not yet been connected via the National Single Window Portal, immediately upon issuing the port clearance permit or the shifting order at that port, the Maritime Port Authority shall send 01 copy to the customs authority;

d) To share information from the automatic identification system for outbound and inbound ships with the customs authority for the purposes of customs management and customs supervision.

2. Responsibilities of seaport operating enterprises:

a) To share camera information with the customs authority for the purposes of customs supervision of ships and of exported and imported goods stored in the seaport area;

b) Before unloading goods at the port, the port operating enterprise shall notify the customs authority of the location of the warehouse or yard where imported goods are expected to be stored;

c) To cooperate in the customs monitoring, inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods brought into, stored at and taken out of the seaport area in accordance with the Law on Customs and the guidance of the Minister of Finance.

3. Responsibilities of the Master:

a) To operate an inbound means of transport, from its arrival in the territory of Vietnam until it reaches the customs operation area, and to operate an outbound means of transport, from the customs operation area until it leaves the territory of Vietnam, along the correct route and to berth at the position prescribed by the competent authority. Any change of route or of berthing position must be permitted by the competent authority;

b) To transship or transfer goods and articles on board the means of transport only with the consent of the customs authority and at the berthing position permitted by the competent authority;

c) To transport out of the territory of Vietnam, at the request of the customs authority, goods stored at the seaport that cause environmental pollution and goods that are not eligible to be gathered at the port, as declared by the shipping line or the person authorised by the shipping line upon the ship's entry.

4. Responsibilities of the shipping line or the person authorised by the shipping line:

a) To declare the customs dossier for outbound, inbound, transit and port-transferring ships fully, accurately and clearly as to all information criteria and within the prescribed time limit;

b) To be legally responsible for the authenticity of the declared information and of the documents submitted, produced or sent to the National Single Window Portal, and for the consistency of the information between the dossier kept at the enterprise and the dossier kept at the customs authority;

c) To transport out of the territory of Vietnam, at the request of the customs authority, goods stored at the seaport that cause environmental pollution and goods that are not eligible to be gathered at the port, as declared by the shipping line or the person authorised by the shipping line upon the ship's entry.”

38. Article 70 is amended as follows:

“Article 70. Customs dossier for outbound trains

1. At inland international intermodal railway stations:

a) The confirmation of train marshalling order, for passenger trains undergoing customs procedures at the inland international intermodal railway station: 01 original;

b) The bill of lading (if any): 01 copy;

c) The extract of the cargo manifest at the inland international intermodal railway station, made using the form issued by the Minister of Finance: 01 original;

d) The passenger list, for passenger trains and passengers undergoing customs procedures at the inland international intermodal railway station (if any): 01 original.

2. At border international intermodal railway stations:

a) The documents specified at Points b and c of Clause 1 of this Article;

b) The cargo handover note: 01 original;

c) The confirmation of train marshalling order: 01 original;

d) The passenger list, for passenger trains and passengers undergoing customs procedures at the border international intermodal railway station (if any): 01 original.”

39. Article 71 is amended as follows:

“Article 71. Time limits for providing information and for receiving customs dossiers

1. Time limits for providing customs dossier information:

a) For inbound trains:

a.1) At border international intermodal railway stations: The customs declarant shall submit the document prescribed at Point c of Clause 1 of Article 69 of this Decree according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance and shall submit the attachments of the documents at Points a, b, d and dd of Clause 1 of Article 69 of this Decree through the customs electronic data processing system before the train arrives at the border international intermodal railway station;

a.2) At inland international intermodal railway stations: To submit the documents specified in Clause 2 of Article 69 of this Decree through the customs electronic data processing system before the train arrives at the inland international intermodal railway station.

Where the customs electronic data processing system breaks down or is not yet capable, the customs declarant shall submit to the customs authority at the border international intermodal railway station the paper documents prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 69 of the Decree when the train arrives at the border international intermodal railway station, and shall submit to the customs authority at the inland international intermodal railway station the documents specified in Clause 2 of Article 69 of this Decree when the train arrives at the inland international intermodal railway station.

b) For outbound trains:

b.1) At inland international intermodal railway stations: The customs declarant shall submit the document prescribed at Point c of Clause 1 of Article 70 of this Decree according to the information criteria prescribed by the Minister of Finance and shall submit the attachments of the documents at Points a, b and d of Clause 1 of Article 70 of this Decree through the customs electronic data processing system 30 minutes before the train departs from the station in the case of passenger trains and 01 hour before such departure in the case of freight trains;

b.2) At border international intermodal railway stations: To submit the documents prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 70 of this Decree through the customs electronic data processing system 30 minutes before the train departs from the station in the case of passenger trains and 01 hour before such departure in the case of freight trains.

Where the customs electronic data processing system breaks down or is not yet capable, the customs declarant shall submit to the customs authority at the inland international intermodal railway station the paper documents prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 70 of this Decree 30 minutes before the train departs from the station in the case of passenger trains and 01 hour before such departure in the case of freight trains. The declarant shall submit and produce to the customs authority at the border international intermodal railway station the documents prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 70 of this Decree 30 minutes before the train departs from the station in the case of passenger trains and 01 hour before such departure in the case of freight trains.

c) Once the information technology system is capable of supporting declaration by electronic means, the customs declarant shall make the declaration on the system in accordance with regulations.

2. Time limit for amending and supplementing customs dossier information

The customs declarant shall make amendments and supplements to the documents and information criteria before and after the completion of the document inspection for inbound or outbound trains, within the time limits prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article and before the goods are taken out of the customs supervision area.

3. Receipt of customs dossiers for outbound and inbound international intermodal trains:

a) Immediately after the customs declarant provides the customs dossier information for an outbound or inbound international intermodal train, the customs electronic data processing system shall automatically receive and process the declared information and shall give feedback on the successful declaration to the customs declarant where the declared information covers all the documents prescribed in Article 69 and Article 70 of this Decree.

Where the customs dossier information is incomplete, the customs electronic data processing system shall give feedback and request the customs declarant to make amendments and supplements in accordance with regulations;

b) Where the customs electronic data processing system breaks down, the customs authorities at the border international intermodal railway station and at the inland international intermodal railway station shall receive the paper documents submitted and produced by the customs declarant in accordance with Article 69, Article 70 and Article 71 of this Decree.”

40. Clause 1 and Clause 3 of Article 72 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“1. Customs dossiers submitted and produced by declarants under Article 69, Article 70 and Article 71 of this Decree shall be processed as follows:

a) To inspect and compare the information in the dossier on wagon numbers, the number of wagons or containers and seal numbers (if any) against each wagon or container containing goods or consigned luggage; to inspect the seals of the transport organisation (if any) on each wagon or container containing goods or consigned luggage;

b) To affix customs seals on each wagon containing goods or consigned luggage under customs supervision that are to be transported onward to the border international intermodal railway station or the inland international intermodal railway station; where the goods cannot be sealed, such as over-sized or over-weight cargo or bulk cargo, the train chief shall be responsible for maintaining the status quo of the goods, the consigned luggage and the wagons during transport to the station of destination as prescribed;

c) To hand over imported and exported goods to the customs authority at the inland or border international intermodal railway station, in the case of transport of goods under customs supervision to an inland international intermodal railway station for inbound trains or to a border station for outbound trains, using the form prescribed by the Minister of Finance;

d) To certify and affix a seal on the papers submitted by the station master, the train chief or the lawful representative; to seal the customs dossier comprising the documents handed over to the station master, the train chief or the lawful representative for delivery to the customs authority at the border international intermodal railway station or the inland international intermodal railway station as prescribed;

dd) To certify and give feedback to the customs authority at the border international intermodal railway station or the inland international intermodal railway station on the receipt of the goods and of the dossier of the consignment under customs supervision and on the condition of the goods delivered. To keep the customs dossier, comprising: the cargo manifest and related documents as prescribed;

e) Where there are signs of transport of goods in violation of the customs law, the Customs Team Leader of the international intermodal railway station shall decide to conduct a physical inspection of the means of transport or to apply other professional measures in accordance with law.”

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. Time limit for the customs authority to carry out customs procedures for inbound and outbound intermodal trains: Not more than 01 hour from the time the customs declarant fully submits and produces the customs dossier as prescribed in Article 69, Article 70 and Article 71 of this Decree.”

41. The title of the Article and Clause 1 of Article 73 are amended as follows:

a) The title of Article 73 is amended as follows:

“Article 73. Responsibilities of the station master and the train chief of international intermodal trains”

b) Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“1. Responsibilities of the station master:

a) To notify the customs authority at the international intermodal railway station in advance, via computer network, in writing or by fax, of information on the itinerary of inbound and outbound trains, including: the numbers of the locomotive and the wagons; the position and the time of the train's arrival at, stop at and departure from the intermodal station; and information on imported and exported goods and on the luggage of inbound and outbound passengers, including: the position and time of loading onto and unloading from the train and any changes relating to the train, the goods and the luggage;

b) To certify and affix a seal on the documents submitted by the train chief for the carrying out of customs procedures;

c) To submit and produce the documents included in the customs dossier and to carry out customs procedures as prescribed;

d) To be responsible for the authenticity of the contents of the documents submitted to the customs authority;

dd) To arrange warehouses and yards for the storage of exported and imported goods separately from the area for handling domestic goods, ensuring customs supervision of international intermodal trains and of exported and imported goods. To cooperate with the customs authority in inspection, supervision and control in order to prevent and promptly detect acts of violation of the customs law on trains and at international intermodal railway stations.”

42. The title of Section 4 of Chapter IV is amended as follows:

“Section 4. CUSTOMS PROCEDURES, CUSTOMS INSPECTION AND CUSTOMS SUPERVISION APPLICABLE TO OUTBOUND, INBOUND AND TRANSIT AUTOMOBILES, MOTORCYCLES AND MOPEDS”

43. Article 74 is amended as follows:

“Article 74. Dossiers and time limits for inbound customs declaration for foreign automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds temporarily imported and for Vietnamese automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds re-imported

1. Dossier for inbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds:

a) The cross-border transport permit, the transport permit or the written approval issued by the competent authority: submit 01 copy and produce the original;

b) The passenger list, for automobiles carrying passengers: submit 01 original;

c) The declaration of a road means of transport temporarily imported for re-export, or the declaration of a road means of transport temporarily exported for re-import bearing the certification of temporary export by the border-gate customs authority that carried out the temporary export procedures: submit 01 original;

d) The statement of information on imported goods, for means of transport carrying imported goods: 01 original.

The documents prescribed at Points b, c and d of this Clause shall be made using the forms issued by the Minister of Finance.

2. Time limit for submitting the dossier:

a) The customs declarant shall submit the dossier prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the customs authority when the means of transport arrives at the border gate;

b) The customs declarant may make amendments and supplements to the documents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article before the goods are taken out of the customs supervision area;

c) Once the information technology system is capable of supporting declaration by electronic means, the customs declarant shall make the declaration on the system in accordance with regulations.

3. For automobiles entering the country under the Agreement on the Facilitation of Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People between the Greater Mekong Subregion countries (the GMS Agreement), the provisions of that Agreement and its guiding documents shall apply.”

44. Article 75 is amended as follows:

“Article 75. Dossiers and time limits for outbound customs declaration for Vietnamese automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds temporarily exported and for foreign automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds re-exported

1. Dossier for outbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds:

a) The cross-border transport permit, the transport permit or the written approval issued by the competent authority: submit 01 copy and produce the original;

b) The passenger list, for automobiles carrying passengers: submit 01 original;

c) The declaration of a road means of transport temporarily exported for re-import, or the declaration of a road means of transport temporarily imported for re-export bearing the certification of temporary import by the border-gate customs authority that carried out the temporary import procedures: submit 01 original.

The documents prescribed at Point b and Point c of this Clause shall be made using the forms issued by the Minister of Finance.

2. Time limit for submitting the customs dossier:

a) The customs declarant shall submit the dossier prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the customs authority when the means of transport arrives at the border gate;

b) The customs declarant may make amendments and supplements to the documents prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article before the means of transport exits the country;

c) Once the information technology system is capable of supporting declaration by electronic means, the customs declarant shall make the declaration on the system in accordance with regulations.

3. For automobiles exiting the country under the Agreement on the Facilitation of Cross-Border Transport of Goods and People between the Greater Mekong Subregion countries (the GMS Agreement), the provisions of that Agreement and its guiding documents shall apply.”

45. Article 77 is amended as follows:

“Article 77. Customs procedures for outbound and inbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds

1. Responsibilities of the customs declarant:

a) To complete and sign the declaration of a road means of transport temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import, using the form prescribed by the Ministry of Finance; to submit and produce the customs dossier as prescribed in Article 74 and Article 75 of this Decree. To bring the means of transport to the inspection position as required by the customs authority;

b) Where, upon re-export or re-import, the customs declarant is unable to produce the declaration of temporary import for re-export or the declaration of temporary export for re-import bearing the certification of the border-gate customs authority, the declarant must give an explanation and make a new declaration on the declaration of temporary import for re-export or the declaration of temporary export for re-import.

2. Responsibilities of the customs authority:

a) To receive the customs dossier submitted and produced by the customs declarant and to enter the information into the road means of transport management software system;

b) To inspect the dossier; to inspect the contents of the documents in the customs dossier in accordance with Article 74 and Article 75 of this Decree and with the Government's regulations on the management of foreign motor vehicles brought into Vietnam;

c) Where the dossier and papers are incomplete or invalid, to refuse to receive and register the dossier and to clearly notify the customs declarant of the reason for the non-receipt and of the deficiencies to be remedied;

d) Where the dossier is complete and valid, to print from the system the declaration of a means of transport temporarily imported for re-export or the declaration of a means of transport temporarily exported for re-import, to affix the seal of the receiving customs officer and the “VIET NAM CUSTOMS” seal, made using the form issued by the Director of the Customs Department, on the declaration and on the original of the cross-border transport permit, the TAD booklet or the papers of the competent authority permitting the means of transport to exit and enter the country under the international treaties to which Vietnam is a party or under the law, and to hand them over to the customs declarant for the completion of procedures for the means of transport to exit or enter the country; to keep in the file the declaration submitted by the customs declarant upon the carrying out of the re-import or re-export procedures;

dd) Where the road means of transport management software cannot be used, the customs authority shall provide the customs declarant with the means of transport declaration form free of charge and shall guide the customs declarant in filling in the information on the means of transport declaration;

e) The customs authority shall apply risk management in conducting document inspection and physical inspection and in certifying temporary import and re-export or temporary export and re-import for inbound and outbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds.

3. Customs inspection of outbound and inbound means of transport

On the basis of risk management, or where there are grounds to determine that smuggled or illegally transported goods are on board the means of transport, the Customs Team Leader shall decide to conduct a physical inspection of the means of transport or to apply other professional measures in accordance with law.

4. Customs supervision of outbound and inbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds

a) Within the customs operation area, the customs authority shall take the lead and use technical devices to supervise inbound and outbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds;

b) Outside the customs operation area, the police authority shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors in organising the inspection and supervision of inbound and outbound automobiles, motorcycles and mopeds.

5. Where single-window, single-stop inspection is carried out, the regulations on single-window, single-stop customs procedures or on the national single-window mechanism shall apply.”

46. The title of Section 5 of Chapter IV is amended as follows:

“Section 5. CUSTOMS PROCEDURES, CUSTOMS INSPECTION AND CUSTOMS SUPERVISION APPLICABLE TO OUTBOUND AND INBOUND INLAND WATERWAY MEANS OF TRANSPORT AND TO MEANS OF TRANSPORT TRAVELLING TO AND FROM BORDER-GATE AREAS FOR THE DELIVERY AND RECEIPT OF GOODS”

47. Article 79 is amended as follows:

“Article 79. Dossiers and time limits for submitting dossiers; receipt and processing of dossiers for outbound and inbound inland waterway means of transport through inland waterway border gates

1. The customs dossier for entry of foreign inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported and of Vietnamese inland waterway means of transport re-imported:

a) The cross-border waterway transport permit issued by the competent authority: submit 01 copy and present the original;

b) The declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export, or the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import bearing the temporary export certification of the border-gate customs authority that carried out the temporary export procedures: submit 01 original;

c) The list of supplies and stores on board the inland waterway means of transport: submit 01 original;

d) The list of crew members and staff working on the waterway means of transport (if any): submit 01 original;

đ) The declaration of luggage of crew members and staff working on the inland waterway means of transport: submit 01 original;

e) The cargo declaration, where the inland waterway means of transport carries goods: submit 01 original;

g) The passenger list, where the inland waterway means of transport carries passengers: submit 01 original.

The documents specified at Points b, c, d, đ, e and g of this Clause shall follow the forms issued by the Minister of Finance.

2. The customs dossier for exit of foreign inland waterway means of transport re-exported and of Vietnamese inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported:

a) The cross-border waterway transport permit issued by the competent authority: submit 01 copy and present the original;

b) The declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import, or the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export bearing the temporary import certification of the border-gate customs authority that carried out the temporary import procedures: submit 01 original;

c) The list of crew members and staff working on the waterway means of transport (if any): submit 01 original;

d) The list of supplies and stores on board the inland waterway craft: submit 01 original;

đ) The declaration of luggage of crew members and staff working on the inland waterway means of transport: submit 01 original;

e) The cargo declaration, where the inland waterway means of transport carries goods: submit 01 original;

g) The passenger list, where the inland waterway means of transport carries passengers: submit 01 original.

The documents specified at Points b, c, d, đ, e and g of this Clause shall follow the forms issued by the Minister of Finance.

3. Responsibilities of the customs declarant: to complete and sign the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export and the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import according to the forms prescribed by the Minister of Finance; to present the dossier of the waterway means of transport (boats, canoes) on exit or entry as provided in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article; and to be responsible for the accuracy of the information provided to the customs authority.

Where, upon re-export or re-import, the customs declarant is unable to present the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export or the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import bearing the certification of the border-gate customs authority, the declarant shall provide an explanation and re-declare on the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export or the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import.

Once the information technology system supports declaration by electronic means, the customs declarant shall make the declaration on the system as prescribed.

4. Receipt and processing of dossiers:

a) The customs authority shall receive the customs dossier; and apply risk management to conduct document inspection and physical inspection and to certify the temporary import and re-export, or the temporary export and re-import, of inland waterway means of transport on entry and exit.

Where the dossier or documents are incomplete or invalid, the customs authority shall refuse to accept the registration of the dossier and shall clearly notify the customs declarant of the reasons for the refusal and of the deficiencies to be supplemented.

Where the dossier is complete and valid, the customs authority shall print from the system the declaration of waterway means of transport temporarily imported for re-export or the declaration of inland waterway means of transport temporarily exported for re-import, affix thereon the stamp of the receiving customs officer and the “VIET NAM CUSTOMS” stamp in the form issued by the Director General of the Customs Department, and hand it over to the customs declarant for the completion of procedures upon re-import or re-export; and shall retain the declaration dossier submitted by the customs declarant upon the completion of the re-import or re-export procedures;

b) In the course of supervision, where signs of smuggling or illegal transportation of goods are identified, the customs authority shall apply measures of inspection, prevention, temporary seizure and search in accordance with law.

5. Foreign vessels transiting Vietnam to Cambodia and foreign vessels transiting Vietnam from Cambodia to a foreign country; and Vietnamese vessels and Cambodian vessels having call signs (IMO) that exit and enter via the Tien River and the Hau River shall comply with Articles 65, 67 and 68 of this Decree.

6. Customs supervision of inland waterway means of transport:

a) Within customs operation areas, the customs authority shall use technical devices to supervise inland waterway means of transport on entry and exit;

b) Outside customs operation areas, inland waterway means of transport on exit and entry shall be subject to the inspection and supervision of the competent agencies and forces in accordance with law.”

48. Article 81 is amended as follows:

“Article 81. Customs procedures and customs inspection and supervision in certain special cases

1. For means of transport carrying passengers on fixed routes or carrying goods that regularly exit and enter through the same border gate under a transport permit or a cross-border transport permit, the operator of the means of transport shall make the customs declaration for the means of transport only once within a period of 30 days. Subsequent exits and entries shall be updated and monitored by the customs authority in a logbook or in the system, and the declaration shall be liquidated upon the final re-export or re-import.

2. For means of transport on exit or entry that are ambulances, fire-fighting, rescue, salvage or humanitarian relief vehicles, or vehicles performing emergency missions at the request of a State management agency, the procedures shall be as follows:

a) The operator of the means of transport on exit or entry shall complete the declaration of means of transport on exit or entry and present the documents relating to the means of transport and the personal identification papers of the operator of the means of transport;

b) The customs authority shall receive the dossier submitted and presented by the customs declarant, conduct physical inspection of the means of transport, enter the information into the road means of transport management software system, and notify the relevant units and agencies for coordination, monitoring and handling.

3. Means of transport in transit shall, upon entry and exit, carry out customs procedures as provided in Articles 74, 75 and 77 of this Decree.

4. For motor vehicles of foreigners brought into Vietnam under the Government's Decree No. 151/2024/ND-CP dated November 15, 2024 detailing a number of articles of, and measures for implementing, the Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety, which are temporarily imported through a land border gate and re-exported through an international seaport, air or railway border gate, and vice versa, the customs procedures for means of transport temporarily imported for re-export shall be carried out as provided in Article 77 of this Decree.

5. Where goods are transported across land border gates by other modes of transport under agreements between Vietnam and bordering countries (goods transport means operating automatically, without a driver, crossing the land border gate within a defined area, conveyor belts, pipelines, transmission lines, or other forms as prescribed by law or as agreed between the competent authorities of Vietnam and the competent authorities of the bordering country), organisations and individuals shall be responsible for providing the customs authority in advance with information on the goods and the transport time for the purpose of supervision as prescribed.

The owner of the means of transport shall provide the customs authority with a list of the means of transport crossing the border gate and shall not be required to carry out customs procedures for the means of transport on exit and entry. The customs authority shall update the list of means of transport in a monitoring logbook and shall supervise the means of transport from the time of their arrival in the Vietnamese territory until they enter the gathering and inspection location at the border gate and return out of the Vietnamese territory.

6. Rudimentary means of transport and other means of transport as provided in the Law on Inland Waterway Navigation and the Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety (except motor vehicles) that cross the border for the delivery and receipt of goods in border trade activities shall only be permitted to operate within the land border-gate area and shall be subject to the inspection and supervision of the customs authority.

When crossing the border gate, the owner or the operator of the means of transport shall present to the customs authority personal identification papers and the papers of the means of transport (if any). Where the means of transport carries exported or imported goods, the owner or operator shall submit the export or import goods declaration (or documents proving that the goods are exported or imported goods) and 01 statement of information on imported goods (in the case of transporting imported goods from abroad into Vietnam).

The operator of the means of transport shall be responsible for bringing the means of transport carrying imported goods into the location for gathering, inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods, or into the area for gathering, inspection and supervision of goods as prescribed within the border-gate area, pending the completion of customs procedures.

The customs authority shall receive and check the documents submitted and presented by the operator of the means of transport as provided in this Clause; update the monitoring logbook as prescribed; and supervise the means of transport during the time it operates in the border-gate area. Where the documents are incomplete or invalid, the customs authority shall not permit the means of transport to exit or enter and shall clearly notify the operator of the means of transport of the reasons.

The time for the delivery and receipt of goods by road means of transport specified in this Clause shall not exceed 48 hours, and the time for the delivery and receipt of goods by inland waterway means of transport specified in this Clause shall not exceed 72 hours, from the time the means of transport exits or enters through the border gate. Where there are legitimate reasons for extending the time of stay in the border-gate area, the operator of the means of transport or the goods owner shall submit a written request and the Head of the Customs Team shall consider granting an extension, which shall not exceed 48 hours.

7. Means of transport of individuals, agencies and organisations in border areas that regularly cross the border gate for daily living needs must be registered with the customs authority (once a year) for inspection and supervision as prescribed. During the registration period, when crossing the border gate, such individuals, agencies and organisations shall not be required to make a customs declaration; the customs authority shall carry out supervision and cross-check the information on the registered means of transport when the means of transport crosses the border.

8. The types of means of transport specified in this Article may only be temporarily imported for re-export or temporarily exported for re-import through the same border gate. The border-gate customs authority shall be responsible for carrying out customs procedures and for inspecting and supervising means of transport that exit and enter and that come into the border-gate area for the delivery and receipt of goods, in strict accordance with law. Where there are signs of transportation of smuggled goods or illegal transportation of goods, the customs authority shall conduct physical inspection of the means of transport and handle the case as prescribed.”

49. Clause 4 of Article 86 is amended and Clause 5 is added as follows:

a) Clause 4 is amended as follows:

“4. Where it is desired to destroy a consignment that is broken, damaged, deteriorated in quality or beyond its expiry date arising in the course of storage in Vietnam, the bonded warehouse owner must have a written agreement with the goods owner or the lawful representative of the goods owner on the consent to the destruction. The written agreement shall be sent to the customs authority of the place where the goods are stored or the place managing the bonded warehouse for monitoring. The goods owner or the bonded warehouse owner shall be responsible for carrying out the destruction and for paying the costs of destroying the goods in accordance with law.”

b) Clause 5 is added as follows:

“5. Goods released from a bonded warehouse and brought to the border gate of export for exportation may only be stored in the customs supervision area at the border gate of export for no more than 15 days from the date of arrival at the border gate of export. If, within the above time limit, the goods cannot be exported and the time limit for storage in the Vietnamese territory provided in Article 61 of the Law on Customs has not expired, the goods owner must send a written notice to the customs authority for permission to place the goods in a bonded warehouse at the border gate of export, or to return them to the original bonded warehouse or to a location for gathering, inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods in the border-gate or border area, and shall carry out the procedures for the transportation of goods subject to customs supervision.

Where the goods owner does not submit a written request to place the goods in a bonded warehouse at the border gate of export, or to return them to the original bonded warehouse or to a location for gathering, inspection and supervision of exported and imported goods in the border-gate or border area, the customs authority shall handle the violation as prescribed and shall compel the goods to be brought out of the Vietnamese territory through the original border gate of import within 15 days; if the goods owner fails to bring the goods out of the Vietnamese territory, the owner shall be handled in accordance with law.”

50. Clause 1 of Article 91 is amended as follows:

“1. Where exported or imported goods stored at a container freight station beyond the time limit provided in Clause 3 of Article 61 of the Law on Customs are not brought out of the container freight station, they shall be handled in accordance with Article 58 of the Law on Customs.”

51. Article 97 is amended as follows:

“Article 97. Post-clearance audit at the office of the customs authority

1. For the customs dossiers provided in Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs, the Director of the Regional Sub-department of Customs or the Head of the Customs Team shall issue a decision on post-clearance audit at the office of the customs authority. Where the volume of goods is large, the types of goods are complex, or there are tax risks, the Director of the Regional Sub-department of Customs shall issue a decision on post-clearance audit at the office of the customs declarant.

Where the head office or the tax identification number of the customs declarant does not fall within the administrative area of the Regional Sub-department of Customs, the audit shall be conducted only in respect of the declarations for which customs procedures were carried out within that administrative area. Where signs of violation are detected in respect of declarations for which customs procedures were carried out within the administrative area of another Regional Sub-department of Customs, the unit detecting the signs of violation shall report to the Customs Department for consideration and decision on the assignment of the auditing unit.

2. Notification of audit results

Within 05 working days from the date of completion of the audit (determined by the date of signing of the last audit record at the office of the customs authority and within the audit time limit stated in the audit decision as prescribed), the person who signed the audit decision shall sign and issue a notification of the audit results and send it to the customs declarant.

3. The Minister of Finance shall provide detailed regulations on the conduct of post-clearance audit at the office of the customs authority.”

52. Article 98 is amended as follows:

“Article 98. Post-clearance audit at the office of the customs declarant

1. Competence to decide on post-clearance audit:

a) The Director General of the Customs Department and the Director of the Post-Clearance Audit Sub-department shall decide on post-clearance audit nationwide:

a.1) The Director General of the Customs Department shall decide on post-clearance audit in respect of priority enterprises, enterprises implementing nationally important projects, and enterprises applying for the priority regime;

a.2) The Director of the Post-Clearance Audit Sub-department shall decide on post-clearance audit in respect of customs declarants nationwide. The cases mentioned at Point a.1 of this Clause shall be carried out upon assignment by the Director General of the Customs Department.

b) The Director of the Regional Sub-department of Customs shall decide on post-clearance audit in respect of customs declarants whose head office or tax identification number falls within its administrative area. The cases mentioned at Point a.1 of this Clause shall be carried out upon assignment by the Director General of the Customs Department.

Where signs of violation are detected in respect of a customs declarant not falling within its administrative area, the Regional Sub-department of Customs shall report to the Customs Department for consideration and decision on the assignment of the auditing unit.

2. Post-clearance audit conclusions: the customs authority shall issue conclusions on each of the matters in respect of which the post-clearance audit was conducted.

a) Where the customs authority has sufficient grounds to conclude the audit, the order for issuing the audit conclusion shall be as follows:

a.1) Draft post-clearance audit conclusion

Within 05 working days from the date of completion of the audit (determined by the date of signing of the last audit record at the office of the customs declarant and within the audit time limit stated in the audit decision as prescribed), the person issuing the audit decision shall complete the draft post-clearance audit conclusion and send it to the customs declarant;

a.2) Explanation by the customs declarant

Within 10 days from the date of completion of the audit, the customs declarant shall have the right to provide a written explanation or to work directly with the person who signed and issued the audit decision on the matters relating to the audit results and the draft conclusion.

Where the customs declarant refuses to provide a written explanation or fails to provide an explanation within the above time limit, the customs authority shall deal with the audit conclusion on the basis of the available dossier;

a.3) Signing and issuance of the audit conclusion: within 15 days from the date of completion of the audit, the person who signs and issues the audit decision shall be responsible for:

a.3.1) Considering the written explanation of the customs declarant and the results of the working session with the competent representative of the customs declarant, in cases where there remain matters requiring clarification, in order to sign and issue the audit conclusion;

a.3.2) Signing and issuing the conclusion of the post-clearance audit at the office of the customs declarant and sending it to the customs declarant (except for the case provided at Point b of this Clause).

Where the last day of the time limit for signing and issuing the post-clearance audit conclusion falls on a Saturday, a Sunday, a public holiday or the Lunar New Year holiday, the time limit for signing and issuing the post-clearance audit conclusion shall be the immediately following working day.

b) Where the customs authority does not yet have sufficient grounds to issue a conclusion and a professional opinion of a competent authority is required, the order for issuing the audit conclusion shall be as follows:

b.1) Where the entire content of the conclusion must await an opinion: within 15 days from the date of completion of the audit, the customs authority shall send a written request for an opinion. The time limit for signing and issuing the audit conclusion shall be 15 days from the date of receipt of the written opinion of the competent professional authority, following the order for issuing conclusions provided at Point a of this Clause;

b.2) Where the audit conclusion contains matters for which there are already sufficient grounds to conclude and matters requiring a professional opinion, the customs authority shall issue the audit conclusion in respect of the matters for which there are sufficient grounds to conclude within the time limit provided at Point a of this Clause. Within 10 days from the date of signing of the audit conclusion, the customs authority shall send a written request for an opinion; after receiving the opinion of the professional authority, the customs authority shall issue a supplementary conclusion (where necessary) and handle the audit results in accordance with Clause 4 of Article 100 (if any arise). Where a supplementary conclusion is issued, the time limit for signing and issuing it shall be 15 days from the date of receipt of the written opinion of the competent professional authority, following the order for issuing conclusions provided at Point a of this Clause;

b.3) The competent professional authority shall give its opinion in writing within 30 days from the date of receipt of the written request of the customs authority.

Where, upon the expiry of the 30-day time limit, the customs authority has not received the written opinion of the competent professional authority, the customs authority shall issue the audit conclusion (following the order provided at Point a of this Clause) within 15 days from the date of such expiry, based on the audit results and the data available to the customs authority.”

53. Clause 2 of Article 99 is amended as follows:

“2. A post-clearance audit decision shall be considered for suspension by the person who issued the audit decision in the following cases:

a) Suspension where the customs authority has not yet conducted the post-clearance audit:

a.1) The customs declarant is subject to inspection, examination or investigation by the customs, tax, inspection, state audit or police authorities;

a.2) Owing to a force majeure event, the customs declarant is unable to comply with the audit decision.

b) Suspension where the customs authority is conducting the post-clearance audit:

b.1) Where the customs authority suspends the audit in order to carry out verification at related agencies, organisations or individuals, or suspends it owing to a force majeure event or other objective factors affecting the time for conducting the audit, the person who issued the audit decision shall issue a notice of suspension and send it to the customs declarant. The notice shall state the reason for and the duration of the suspension;

b.2) Where the customs declarant requests a suspension in order to have time to handle or remedy an incident caused by a force majeure event or other objective factors affecting the time for conducting the audit, the customs declarant shall send a written request for suspension stating the reason for and the duration of the suspension to the person who issued the audit decision for consideration and decision, and such person shall inform the customs declarant thereof.

This suspension period shall not be counted towards the audit period of the post-clearance audit decision.”

54. Article 100 is amended as follows:

“Article 100. Organisation of post-clearance audit activities

1. Post-clearance audit shall be carried out on the basis of applying risk management to the selection of the subjects, scope, contents and methods of the audit and during the course of the audit.

2. Collection of information in support of post-clearance audit

Where necessary, the customs authority shall request the customs declarant, state management agencies, organisations and individuals related to export and import activities and to exported and imported goods to provide information, data and documents in support of post-clearance audit activities.

3. Order of conducting post-clearance audit

a) Issuance of the post-clearance audit decision

The post-clearance audit decision shall be sent to the customs declarant in one of the following forms: direct delivery, registered mail, fax or email; the time limit for sending is within 03 working days from the date of signing and at the latest 05 working days before the date on which the audit is conducted, except for an audit at the premises of the customs declarant under Clause 1 of Article 78 of the Law on Customs;

b) Conduct of the post-clearance audit:

b.1) Announcement of the post-clearance audit decision in the case of post-clearance audit at the premises of the customs declarant

The customs authority and the customs declarant shall sign a record of announcement recording the audit principles and the audit methods and determining the time at which the audit commences;

b.2) Audit record

The customs authority shall conduct the audit in accordance with the contents and scope of the audit decision on the basis of applying risk management and shall record the contents already audited with the customs declarant in audit records.

For the case of post-clearance audit at the premises of the customs declarant: The audit records shall be made and signed during the period of implementation of the audit decision. After the completion of the audit (determined by the date of signing of the last audit record at the premises of the customs declarant and within the audit time limit of the audit decision in conformity with the law), where the customs declarant supplements documents, materials or data, gives additional explanations, or in complicated cases requiring clarification of the contents already audited: Within 05 working days from the date of completion of the audit, the audit team shall make and sign an audit record recording the contents of the explanations and supplements in accordance with Point c of Clause 3 of Article 80 of the Law on Customs;

b.3) Working record

The customs authority shall record the contents of its work with the customs declarant and with related individuals, units and organisations (if any) in a working record;

b.4) Handover record

The customs authority shall record the handover of dossiers, documents and data with the customs declarant and with related individuals, units and organisations (if any) in a handover record;

c) Handling of post-clearance audit results:

c.1) Where the customs declarant provides information, dossiers, documents, materials and data and gives explanations proving that the contents of the customs declaration are correct, the customs authority shall accept the declared contents;

c.2) Where the customs declarant fails to provide information, dossiers, documents, materials or data, or fails to give explanations proving that the contents of the customs declaration are correct, the customs authority shall not accept the declared contents and shall handle the post-clearance audit results in accordance with Clause 4 of this Article.

The customs authority shall issue a notice of audit results and an audit conclusion in accordance with Clause 2 of Article 97 and Clause 2 of Article 98 of this Decree.

4. Organisation of the handling of post-clearance audit results

The person competent to decide on the post-clearance audit shall organise the implementation of, or assign to a competent person at a lower level in accordance with the law the implementation of, the following:

a) Issuing administrative decisions on tax administration and customs in accordance with regulations (if any);

b) Handling in accordance with the criminal law and the law on sanctioning of administrative violations (if any);

c) Urging the customs declarant to pay duty, late-payment interest and fines under the decisions (if any) in accordance with the law;

d) Issuing decisions on, and organising the implementation of, enforcement measures in accordance with the law (if any);

dd) Updating information on the database system of the customs authority in accordance with regulations (if any);

e) Making recommendations on shortcomings in policies, laws and management measures (if any).”

55. Article 101 is amended as follows:

“Article 101. Customs control operational measures

1. Customs control operational measures comprise:

a) Mobilising the masses to participate in the prevention and combat of smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods;

b) Customs patrol;

c) Collecting and studying information on areas, goods transportation routes, cases, phenomena, means of transport on exit, entry or in transit, and related persons;

d) Collecting and studying information on individuals showing signs of activities related to smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods;

dd) Collecting and processing domestic and foreign information related to customs activities. Assigning customs officials and officers to go abroad to verify and collect information and documents in accordance with the law of Vietnam and the international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a party;

e) Selecting, developing and using persons who are not on the payroll of the customs authority to perform the tasks of preventing and combating smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods;

g) Assigning customs officers to inspect, supervise and monitor the developments in the activities of subjects engaged in smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods;

h) Using specialised operational means and techniques in accordance with the law to perform the tasks of inspecting, supervising and monitoring the developments and activities of subjects engaged in smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods;

i) The customs authority shall use a combination of customs control operational measures, means and technical equipment in the prevention and combat of smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods.

2. The Minister of Finance shall guide the implementation of the customs control operational measures and prescribe the regime for ensuring the implementation of the customs control operational measures provided for in this Article.”

56. Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 103 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. Competence to postpone departure and to stop means of transport

a) Customs Team Leaders, Leaders of Customs Control Teams of Regional Sub-departments of Customs, Leaders of Anti-smuggling Control Teams of the Anti-smuggling Investigation Sub-department, or their deputies when authorised, may stop or postpone the departure of means of transport within customs operation areas.

Where there are grounds to believe that, unless the means of transport is stopped immediately, the exhibits, documents or means of transport may be dispersed or destroyed, the customs officer on duty may stop the means of transport for search and shall immediately report to the competent person referred to in this Clause;

b) Leaders of Customs Control Teams of Regional Sub-departments of Customs, Leaders of Anti-smuggling Control Teams of the Anti-smuggling Investigation Sub-department, or their deputies when authorised, may stop or postpone the departure of means of transport in internal waters and the territorial sea in conformity with the Law of the Sea of Vietnam.”

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. The authorisation must be made in writing, clearly specifying the scope, contents and duration of the authorisation. When stopping a means of transport, customs officers may use signal lights, signal flags, signal flares, loudspeakers and whistles to require the means of transport to stop.

The stopping or postponement of departure of a means of transport must be effected by a decision of the competent person as provided for in Clause 2 of this Article. In the case of postponement of departure of inland waterway and maritime means of transport, the customs authority must notify the maritime port authority.”

57. Clause 2 and Clause 4 of Article 104 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 2 is amended as follows:

“2. Customs Team Leaders, Leaders of Customs Control Teams of Regional Sub-departments of Customs, Leaders of Anti-smuggling Control Teams of the Anti-smuggling Investigation Sub-department, or their deputies when authorised, may decide on pursuit.

Where there are grounds to believe that, unless pursuit is carried out immediately, the means of transport or the goods smuggled or illegally transported across the border may be dispersed or destroyed, the customs officer on duty may carry out the pursuit and shall immediately report to the competent person referred to in this Clause.”

b) Clause 4 is amended as follows:

“4. The pursuit and stopping of means of transport and of goods smuggled or illegally transported across the border must be notified to the police, border guard, coast guard and market surveillance authorities in the area for coordination, and preventive and handling measures shall be applied concurrently in accordance with the law. The agencies receiving the notice shall be responsible for coordinating with and assisting the customs authority in pursuing and stopping the means of transport in accordance with the law.”

58. Article 104a is added as follows:

“Article 104a. Equipping of means in support of the prevention and combat of smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods

1. In order to perform the tasks of preventing and combating smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods on road, sea and inland waterway routes, the customs authority shall be equipped with automobiles, motorcycles, high-speed boats, motorboats, canoes and other specialised means fitted with signal lights, customs signal flags, customs emblems, signal flares, loudspeakers and whistles.

2. The means of the customs authority performing tasks on road routes shall have the priority right when carrying out the pursuit, seizure and search of means of transport and of goods smuggled or illegally transported across the border, the escorting of subjects engaged in smuggling and illegal cross-border transportation of goods, and other urgent tasks in accordance with the law.

The licensing, management and use of the signalling devices of vehicles of the customs authority having the priority right when performing tasks on road routes shall comply with the law on signals of vehicles having the priority right.”

59. Article 106 is amended as follows:

“Article 106. Responsibility of the customs authority for the collection and provision of information

1. The customs authority shall be responsible for organising the collection of customs information, including:

a) Receiving and processing customs information through the provision, exchange, connection and sharing of information with state management agencies, organisations and individuals related to the customs field;

b) Assigning customs officers to go abroad to perform the operation of collecting information in support of state management of customs in accordance with Clause 1 of Article 6 and Article 96 of the Law on Customs.

The Minister of Finance shall provide specific guidance on the collection of customs operational information provided for in this Point;

c) Taking other necessary operational measures to collect relevant information on goods, means of transport, organisations and individuals related to export, import, exit, entry and transit activities.

2. The customs authority shall be responsible for providing customs information, including:

a) Providing information on customs regimes, policies and guidance to organisations and individuals participating in or related to production and to export, import, exit, entry and transit activities;

b) Providing the customs declarant with information relating to the rights and obligations of the customs declarant;

c) Providing customs information to judicial agencies and other state management agencies;

d) Providing customs statistical information in accordance with the law on statistics;

dd) In force majeure cases where it is required to restore the data of the customs dossier of the customs declarant, the customs authority shall provide the customs declarant with information on the customs dossier;

e) Providing customs information to foreign customs authorities and international organisations in conformity with the law of Vietnam, the relevant international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a party, or the international agreements that have been signed.”

Article 2. Replacement and annulment of a number of phrases, points, clauses and articles of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP of January 21, 2015 detailing and providing measures for implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision and control

1. The following phrases are replaced:

a) The phrase “the General Department of Customs” in Clause 2 of Article 3; Clause 1 of Article 22; and Clauses 2, 3 and 5 of Article 24 is replaced with the phrase “the Customs Department”;

b) The phrase “the Customs Department” in Clause 1 of Article 96 is replaced with the phrase “the Regional Sub-department of Customs”;

c) The phrase “the Sub-department of Customs” in Clause 1 of Article 56; Clause 2 of Article 86; Clause 2 of Article 87; and Clauses 1 and 2 of Article 88 is replaced with the phrase “Customs”;

d) The phrase “the Sub-department of Customs” in Point c of Clause 2 of Article 60 is replaced with “the Border-gate Customs”;

dd) The phrase “the Director General of the General Department of Customs” in Clause 2 of Article 13; and Clauses 4 and 6 of Article 24 is replaced with the phrase “the Director of the Customs Department”;

e) The phrase “the Director of the Customs Department of a province or city” in Clause 2 of Article 40 is replaced with the phrase “the Head of the Regional Sub-department of Customs”;

g) The phrase “the Head of the Sub-department of Customs” in Clause 5 of Article 26; Clauses 2 and 3 of Article 27; Clauses 2, 3 and 4 of Article 29; Clause 2 of Article 32; Clause 4 of Article 34; and Clause 2 of Article 40 is replaced with the phrase “the Customs Team Leader”.

2. The following are annulled: Article 7; Article 8; the phrase “Clause 1” in Clause 1 of Article 17; the phrase “before the effective date of this Decree” in Clause 4 of Article 19; the phrase “type” in Clause 1 of Article 29 and Clause 1 of Article 30; Article 31; Clause 4 of Article 33; the phrase “post-clearance” in Clause 2 of Article 40; Article 51; Article 52; Article 53; Article 54; Article 55; Article 58; Article 62; Article 66; Article 76; Article 78; Article 80; Article 82; Point c of Clause 2 of Article 84; Article 89; and Article 92 of Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP.

Article 3. Responsibility for organising implementation

Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities, and related agencies, organisations and individuals shall be responsible for organising the implementation of this Decree.

Article 4. Implementation provisions

1. Effect

This Decree takes effect from August 15, 2025.

Particularly, Clauses 5, 6 and 19 of Article 1 of this Decree, which amend Article 10, Article 11 and Article 35 of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP of January 21, 2015, take effect from July 1, 2025.

2. Transitional provisions

Enterprises granted the priority regime before the effective date of this Decree must satisfy the conditions provided for in Clause 5 of Article 1 of this Decree, which amends Clause 3 of Article 10 of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP of January 21, 2015, within a maximum period of not more than 01 year from the effective date of this Decree.

3. This Decree annuls the Government's Decree No. 59/2018/NĐ-CP of April 20, 2018 amending a number of articles of the Government's Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP of January 21, 2015 detailing and providing measures for implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision and control.

APPENDIX

(Attached to the Government's Decree No. 167/2025/NĐ-CP of June 30, 2025)

NOTICE OF LUGGAGE OF PERSONS ON EXIT OR ENTRY DEPOSITED IN A WAREHOUSE

To: The Border-gate Customs …………………….

Pursuant to Clause 29 of Article 1 of the Government's Decree No. …../2025/NĐ-CP of ...., the Company hereby notifies the quantity of luggage of passengers on exit and entry, from .... hrs on .... ...., .... to .... hrs on .... ...., ...., deposited in the Company's warehouse, specifically as follows:

1. Luggage of passengers on exit:

2. Luggage of passengers on entry: