What are the principles for developing a List of goods to be imported free of duty in Vietnam?

What are the principles for developing a List of goods to be imported free of duty in Vietnam?

Clause 2, Article 30 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP stipulates the principles for developing a List of goods to be imported free of duty (hereinafter referred to as the duty-free list) as follows:

- Organizations or individuals using the goods (project owners; production and business facility owners; shipbuilding facility owners; organizations or individuals engaged in oil and gas operations), hereinafter referred to as project owners, are the ones to notify the list of tax-free exported and imported goods.

In case the project owner does not directly import the tax-free goods, but the main contractor, subcontractor, or financial leasing company imports the goods, the contractor or financial leasing company shall use the duty-free list notified by the project owner to the customs authority;

- Goods must fall under the categories eligible for tax exemption as stipulated in one of the cases specified in Clauses 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 18 of Article 16 of the Export and Import Tax Law 2016; and must align with the industry, field of investment, objectives, scale, and capacity of the project, production facility, or activities using the tax-free goods;

- The duty-free list is developed once for the project, production facility, or activities using tax-free goods, or developed in stages, for each item, assembly, or production line in alignment with the actual situation and documents for implementing the project, production facility, or activities using tax-free goods, hereinafter collectively referred to as the project.

What are the principles for developing a List of goods to be imported free of duty in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

When and where should the duty-free list be notified in Vietnam?

The time and place for notifying the duty-free list as prescribed in Clause 4, Article 30 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP, amended by Clause 20, Article 1 of Decree 18/2021/ND-CP, are as follows:

(1) The project owner is responsible for submitting the dossier for notifying the duty-free list as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 30 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP before registering the customs declaration for the first batch of tax-free imported goods;

(2) The venue for receiving the duty-free list notification is the Customs Department where the project is implemented, the Customs Department where the head office is located or the centralized management site for projects implemented in multiple provinces or cities, and the Customs Department where the assembly, production line is installed for the tax-free imported goods list according to the assembly or production line.

Additionally, in case the notified duty-free list contains errors or needs amendments, the project owner should notify the amended duty-free list before importing the goods along with relevant documents to prove that the additions or adjustments are in line with the project’s needs.

Moreover, the customs authority's responsibilities include:

- Within a maximum of 3 working days from the receipt date of the dossier, the customs authority shall notify the project owner of the receipt of the duty-free list; supplement any missing dossiers as required in Clause 3, Article 30 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP; explain and clarify the information in the dossier notifying the duty-free list or notify that the goods are not eligible for tax exemption;

- If amending the duty-free list changes the tax amount already exempted, the customs authority that received the duty-free list notification must notify the customs authority that handles the import procedures to reclaim the tax amount that was exempted improperly;

- Checking the use of tax-free goods based on the application of risk management mechanisms according to the regulations on tax management and customs law;

- Revoking, notifying the project owner to adjust the duty-free list, ceasing the tax exemption procedures, reclaiming the tax amounts already exempted suitable for projects ceasing or adjusting operations in case the project ceases or adjusts operations.

What types of goods of foreign entities are eligible for diplomatic immunity and privileges in Vietnam?

Based on Clause 1, Article 5 of Decree 134/2016/ND-CP, goods of foreign entities enjoying diplomatic immunity and privileges are exempted from import tax as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 16 of the Export and Import Tax Law 2016, including:

- Diplomatic missions, consular offices are entitled to tax-free importation and temporary importation of goods according to the list and quantity specified in Appendix 1 issued together with Decree 134/2016/ND-CP.

Diplomatic officers, consular employees are entitled to tax-free importation and temporary importation of goods according to the list and quantity specified in Appendix 2 issued together with Decree 134/2016/ND-CP.

Administrative and technical employees of diplomatic missions, consular employees of consular offices are entitled to tax-free importation and temporary importation of goods according to the list and quantity specified in Appendix 3 issued together with Decree 134/2016/ND-CP.

- Representative offices of international organizations under the United Nations system, public employees of these offices are entitled to tax-free importation and temporary importation of goods according to the list and quantity specified in Appendices 1 and 2 issued together with Decree 134/2016/ND-CP.

- Representative offices of international organizations outside the United Nations system, members of these offices are exempt from import tax according to international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member.

- Representative offices of non-governmental organizations, members of these offices are exempt from import tax according to agreements between the Government of Vietnam and the relevant non-governmental organization.