Guidelines on Verification of Validity of Certificates of Origin under the CPTPP

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While awaiting the Ministry of Finance to issue a Circular to amend and supplement Circular 38/2018/TT-BTC, which includes guidance on determining the origin of goods within the CPTPP Agreement framework to apply special preferential tax rates, the General Department of Customs guides customs declarants to follow the Agreement, noting several points as follows:

Regarding the declaration of origin certificates on the customs declaration form: The General Department of Customs requires provincial and city Customs Departments to guide customs declarants to declare origin certificates in accordance with Article 5 of Circular 38/2018/TT-BTC.

Regarding the verification of information on the origin certificate: The General Department of Customs requires that when verifying the origin certificate, units must base their check on the provisions in Appendix 3-B, which stipulates the minimum information and the rules of origin related to Chapter 3 of the Rules of Origin of the CPTPP Agreement, which has been published on the website of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Decree 57/2019/ND-CP and Circular 38/2018/TT-BTC.

The minimum information required in Appendix 3-B includes:

- Exporter or producer: clarify whether the certifier is the exporter or the producer.

- Name, address (including country), phone number, and email address of the certifier.

- Name, address (including country), phone number, and email address of the exporter if the exporter is not the certifier.

Note: This information is not mandatory if the producer issues the origin certificate and does not know the exporter's information. The exporter's address must be the location where the goods are exported from the CPTPP member country.

- Name, address (including country), phone number, and email address of the producer if the producer is not the certifier or the exporter, or if there are multiple producers, state “Various” or provide a list of producers. If the information needs to be kept confidential, it may be stated as “Available upon request by the importing authorities”. The producer's address is the location where the goods are produced within the CPTPP member country.

- Name, address, email address, and phone number of the importer (if the importer's information is available). The importer's address must be within a CPTPP member country.

- Description and HS code of the goods: clearly state the description of the goods and the HS code at the 6-digit level of the goods. The description must match the certified goods, and if the certificate of origin is used for a single imported shipment, it must specify the invoice number related to the export (if known).

- Origin criteria: Specifically state the origin criteria that the goods meet.

- Validity period (Blanket Period): In case a single certificate of origin is used for multiple identical shipments, the certificate of origin should denote the applicable time period, which should not exceed 12 months.

- Date and authorized signature: The certificate of origin must be signed by the certifier, with the date and include the following confirmation: “I certify that the goods described in this document meet the origin requirements and the information contained in this document is accurate and true. I am responsible for proving this declaration and agree to maintain, present the documents supporting this certification upon request or during verification at the premises.”

Nguyen Trinh

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