Laws of Vietnam

Decree No. 16/1999/ND-CP of March 27, 1999 stipulating the customs procedures, customs supervision and customs fees is generally applicable to objects of customs procedures, including imported and temporarily imported for re-export petrol and oil, which fall under the category of goods subject to conditional business as prescribed in current documents of the Government and the Ministry of Trade.

In order to ensure that uniform customs procedures are carried out for such category of goods, the General Department of Customs hereby further guides a number of relevant contents concretely as follows:

I. GENERAL PRINCIPLES

1. Imported and temporarily imported for re-export petrol and oil that must go through customs procedures include petrol (even petrol used as solvent), kerosene, diesel oil (DO), fuel oil (FO), Z A1 (jet fuel) and TC1.

2. Customs procedures for imported and temporarily imported for re-export petrol and oil shall be carried out by enterprises specialized in the business of importing petrol and oil as permitted by the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Trade (enterprises with the exclusive right to import petrol and oil) or by their authorized affiliate enterprises and branches, and other enterprises with the petrol and oil trading function, which are permitted by the Ministry of Trade to temporarily import petrol and oil for re-export in particular business transactions or by their authorized affiliate enterprises and branches.

3. Basing themselves on the enterprises’ business registration certificates and their annual petrol and oil import quotas granted by the Ministry of Trade (even adjusted ones) or the permits issued by the Ministry of Trade for temporary import of petrol and oil for re-export, the customs offices shall proceed with customs procedures therefor (also for petrol and oil imported though originally imported temporarily for re-export).

4. The customs procedural order for imported or temporarily imported for re-export petrol and oil shall comply with the Government’s Decree No. 16/1999/ND-CP of March 27, 1999, Circular No. 01/1999/TT-TCHQ of May 10, 1999 of the General Department of Customs and the specific provisions of this Circular.

The customs offices shall closely inspect and supervise petrol and oil from their arrival by transport means at the first Vietnamese border-gate till the completion of customs procedures therefor (for imported petrol and oil) or till their actual re-export from the Vietnamese territory (for petrol and oil temporarily imported for re-export); make records and handle violations (if any) according to current regulations

5. Basing themselves on the regulations on taxation and relevant regulations, the customs offices shall carry out procedures to collect tax on imported petrol and oil (including petrol and oil which are imported though originally imported temporarily for re-export), not collect tax, or refund tax for petrol and oil temporarily imported for re-export; conduct inspection after the goods are released; collect tax arrears and fines when detecting tax-related or other violations.

II. CUSTOMS PROCEDURES FOR IMPORTED PETROL AND OIL

1. In addition to the documents to be submitted and presented like for common import goods, enterprises with the exclusive right to import petrol and oil must add the following documents to the customs dossiers:

- An expertise certificate of the goods appellation and volume, issued by a qualified expertise body as prescribed by Vietnamese laws.

- A goods delivery and receipt record signed by the transport means owner and the importing enterprise.

- A written certification of import quality satisfaction (or a notice on the non-inspection of quality) for imported petrol and oil on the list of goods subject to quality State control.

2. The border-gate customs offices shall receive the customs dossiers (without registering declaration forms) before permitting the pumping of petrol or oil from the transport means into storage tanks at depots).

In cases where original invoices, expertise certificates of the goods appellation and volume, written certifications of import quality satisfaction or notices on the non-inspection of quality are not available for imported petrol and oil on the list of goods subject to quality State control, enterprises are requested to make written commitments to submit these documents within 5 working days (counted from the date the customs office sets its seal on the manifest) and ask for permission to pump petrol into storage tanks so that the customs procedures can be completed, which also clearly state the goods appellation, type, volume, quality as well as the time when pumping can start.

For goods delivery and receipt records signed between the transport means owners and the importing enterprises, the enterprises must submit them immediately after the pumping of petrol from the transport means into storage tanks finishes.

Only after the enterprises have submitted all additional papers as prescribed, shall the customs offices register their declaration forms.

3. In cases where enterprises carry out import procedures for petrol and oil which have been originally imported temporarily for re-export, the customs offices shall only agree to clear customs procedures when:

- The petrol or oil volume proposed for import procedure clearance is lower or equal to the volume set by the Ministry of Trade as compared to the temporarily imported volume for which the Trade Ministry’s permit is not required and the enterprise still has quota for importing petrol and oil of the same kind, which is allocated annually by the Ministry of Trade.

- The petrol or oil volume proposed for customs procedure clearance exceeds the volume set by the Ministry of Trade as compared to the temporarily imported volume for which the Trade Ministry’s permit is required at the time of registration of the import declaration form.

4. Enterprises shall have to supply the scheme and information on their depots and storage tanks and capacity and cards thereof to the border gate customs offices that deal with petrol and oil import procedures; to ensure all conditions for the customs officers to apply necessary inspection and supervision measures. The customs offices that deal with import procedures shall closely supervise the pumping of petrol or oil from the transport means into storage tanks according to regulations.

After the pumping is done, the customs offices shall certify the actually-imported petrol and oil volumes in the registered customs declaration forms for import procedure clearance or make written certifications of the actually-imported petrol and oil volumes (enclosed with the enterprises’ written requests for the petrol pumping) for future import procedure clearance after the enterprises have submitted all necessary papers as prescribed at Point 2, Part II of this Circular.

5. In cases where imported petrol and oil are on the list of goods subject to quality State control but the enterprises have not yet obtained expertise certificates of the goods appellation and volume, certificates of import quality satisfaction (or notices on non-inspection of quality) for the imported petrol or oil lot, if the enterprises have empty tanks, the customs offices shall allow the pumping of petrol or oil into such tanks and, after the pumping finishes, lead-seal them up according to their serial numbers.

6. The certification of actually-imported petrol and oil volumes shall be based on the results of the inspection and comparison of the types and volumes of petrol and oil already pumped into storage tanks with the petrol and oil types and volumes inscribed in the goods delivery and receipt records and expertise certificates of the goods appellation and volume, certificates of import quality satisfaction (according to regulations on the Vietnamese standards or quality registration) for petrol and oil as stated at Point 1, Part II above (including the expertise results after samples and reserve samples are taken, when necessary).

Imported petrol and oil lots which are of inferior quality must be compulsorily re-exported. If they cannot be re-exported immediately and need to be pumped into storage tanks, they must be stored by the enterprises in separate tanks for preservation and shall be placed under constant customs supervision until they are all re-exported.

7. Basing themselves on the tax amounts calculated by the enterprises themselves in the declaration forms on the basis of data in bills of lading, manifests, invoices (fax or telex copies), the customs offices shall issue notices on payable import tax and special sale tax amounts. Basing themselves on the results of certification of the actually-imported petrol and oil volumes, the customs offices shall re-calculate such tax amounts to be paid by the enterprises after having submitted all documents stated at Point 2, Part II above.

The tax calculation time (the date when the enterprises register their declaration forms with the customs offices) and the tax payment time limit 30 days) for imported petrol and oil shall strictly comply with the provisions of Article 4 of Decree No. 94/1998/ND-CP of November 17, 1998 detailing the implementation of the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Import Tax and Export Tax.

Particularly for imported petrol and oil which are originally imported temporarily for re-export, within the temporary import for re-export time limit prescribed in the Trade Ministry’s documents (applicable also to cases where extension is permitted), before changing to the form of import for domestic consumption, enterprises must declare such in new import declaration forms, register them, pay fully tax and other payable amounts as prescribed for such petrol and oil volumes. The time for tax calculation by the customs offices shall be the date when the enterprises submit their import declaration forms to the customs offices.

The time limit for payment of tax on such imported petrol and oil shall comply with current regulations (30 days).

III. CUSTOMS PROCEDURES FOR PETROL AND OIL TEMPORARILY IMPORTED FOR RE-EXPORT

1. For temporarily imported petrol and oil: the customs procedures therefor shall be like for the imported petrol and oil and also comply with the following provisions:

1.1. Enterprises shall submit and present all kinds of papers included in the customs dossiers as prescribed at Point 1, Part II of this Circular (excluding certificates of import quality satisfaction or notices on non-inspection of quality, issued by the State quality control body).

1.2. In cases where enterprises which are granted permits by the Ministry of Trade to conduct temporary import for re-export make more than one temporary import, when carrying out the procedures for first-time temporary import, they must submit to the customs offices one copy (certified as true copy by the enterprise) of the permits of the Ministry of Trade. The customs offices shall append a stamp of "monitoring card already issued" onto the original document copy and make monitoring cards for later deductions as prescribed.

1.3. The customs offices shall inspect and supervise the pumping of temporarily imported petrol or oil into separate storage tanks. If enterprises have no separate storage tanks and have to pump petrol or oil into tanks which are storing imported petrol or oil for domestic consumption, the customs offices shall only agree so after an inspection State body has concluded that such petrol or oil is of the same type and quality.

In cases where enterprises propose for customs procedure clearance at an inland place where customs procedure clearance is allowed, they must clearly inscribe such in the written request for the pumping of petrol at the site of inland petrol and oil depots and must ensure all conditions for the customs officers to apply inspection and supervision measures as prescribed.

1.4. In cases where petrol and oil temporarily imported for re-export are permitted to change to petrol and oil imported for domestic consumption as prescribed at Point 3, Part II of this Circular, if they are on the list of goods subject to quality State control and, when temporarily imported, have not gone through quality inspection, the enterprises must effect State quality inspection thereof before carrying out the procedures for change to domestic consumption.

1.5. The customs offices that deal with temporary import procedures shall open monitoring books in service of the liquidation stated at Point 3.2, Part III of this Circular.

2. For re-exported petrol and oil:

2.1. In cases where enterprises temporarily import petrol and oil in large lots at one border gate but then re-export them in different small lots from tanks of inland depots, besides the prescribed dossier sets, they must submit also the following documents to the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures:

- A written notice on the locations of inland depots of petrol and oil for re-export.

- An invoice-cum-delivery bill: 01 copy (certified as true copy by the enterprise).

2.2. The customs offices that deal with re-export procedures shall only agree to clear the procedures for pumping petrol or oil temporarily imported for re-export from storage tanks (including tanks of inland depots) onto specialized petrol and oil transport means if the storage tanks aboard these transport means ensure all conditions for the customs officers to seal up these tanks at necessary positions.

The customs offices that deal with re-export procedures must carefully check every storage tank or container aboard the transport means so as to ensure definitely that they are all empty before petrol or oil is pumped into; arrange officers to closely inspect and supervise to ensure that petrol and oil are re-exported at the right border gates and to the right subjects according to the right type, volume and deadline inscribed in the permits of the Ministry of Trade.

2.3. The certification of the type, volume and quality of actually re-exported petrol and oil shall comply the provisions at Point 6, Part II of this Circular.

2.4. If enterprises carry out temporary import as well as re-export procedures at the same place, the customs offices that deal with these procedures shall have to arrange their staff for inspection, close supervision and certification of the actually re-exported volumes

In cases where the re-export procedures for petrol or oil lots to be re-exported are carried out at another border gate or at an inland place where customs procedure clearance is permitted before such petrol or oil lots are transported to the last export border-gate, the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures shall, after completing the procedures according to regulations, make dossier hand-over and receipt cards, seal up the dossiers of the lots to be re-exported and immediately notify via the fastest communication means (telex or fax) the identification signs of the transport means as well as necessary information relating to such petrol or oil lots to the customs offices of the last border gates so that the latter closely supervise such petrol or oil lots until they are transported out of the export border gate, certify the actually exported volumes and coordinate with the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures according to current regulations.

2.5. Responsibilities of the customs offices of the last border-gates: To open separate books for monitoring re-exported petrol and oil as provided for at Point 2.6.1, Part III of this Circular; basing themselves on the dossiers of petrol or oil lots to be re-exported, customs seals and information received from the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures, to clear customs procedures for goods lots re-exported through the last border gate in the following order:

- Receiving and examining the dossiers transferred from the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures (through the enterprises or their lawful representatives).

- Checking the positions of the customs seals on the transport means, compare the goods with the declaration forms and then, if the seals remain intact and compatibility is ensured:

. Supervising and letting the transport means carrying exported petrol and oil cross the border, certifying the actually-exported volumes in two declaration forms and two dossier hand-over and receipt cards of the goods lots.

. Immediately notifying the inspection results and sealing up one dossier set returning it via the goods owner to the customs office that deals with re-export procedures, which includes: 01 declaration form and 01 hand-over and receipt card;

. Returning 01 declaration form to the goods owner;

. Filing at the customs office of the last border gate: 01 hand-over and receipt card.

- In cases where there are grounds to confirm that the re-exported goods lots fail to comply with the customs dossier in terms of type, volume or the customs seals have been broken or forged, the customs office of the last export border gate shall examine and decide on re-inspection and take a sample (not more than 1 liter) for expertise so as to determine the volume and type of the re-export goods before clearing the procedures for re-export through the last export border gate. If the re-inspection results show that the petrol or oil to be actually re-exported is compatible with the declaration form and the voucher set, making a record certifying the re-inspection then re-affixing the customs seals and clearing the re-export procedures.

- When the specialized transport means that carry petrol and oil for re-export come back, checking their storage tanks and/or containers in order to detect illegally imported goods or petrol and oil volumes that may have not been re-exported yet and now brought back for domestic consumption.

2.6. For petrol and oil re-exported through international airport border-gates:

2.6.1. The international airport customs offices shall open monitoring books (according to each calendar year) with the following details:

- Declaration form No date month year;

- Number and date of the permit; its effective time;

- Transport means; or means for purchase of petrol and oil (code number, nationality);

- Exit date and time; or time of petrol and oil sale;

- Types of petrol and oil (code)

- Actually re-exported petrol and oil volumes; or actually sold petrol and oil volumes;

- Temporary import declaration form No. and its date

2.6.2. Everyday, the international airport customs offices shall receive declaration forms from petrol and oil-selling enterprises (the aviation petrol and oil company’s branches under enterprises which are permitted by the Ministry of Trade to conduct temporary import for re-export of petrol and oil) at international airports. Basing themselves on the demand of petrol and oil for international flights, petrol and oil-selling enterprises shall fill in declaration forms before selling petrol and oil to international flights under petrol and oil sale contracts (or written agreements) signed with Vietnamese and foreign airlines at the airports under their management. Everyday they shall fill in one re-export declaration form for petrol and oil sold to foreign aircrafts landed in Vietnam; one re-export declaration form for petrol and oil sold to Vietnam Airlines’ international flights and one re-export declaration form for petrol and oil sold to Pacific Airlines’ international flights.

2.6.3. The international airport customs offices shall receive the voucher set for each sale of petrol and oil to each aircraft submitted by the aviation petrol and oil company’s branches (petrol and oil-selling enterprises) for liquidation of the export declaration forms, including:

- Sale invoice (or invoice-cum-delivery bill according to the form set by the Ministry of Finance);

- Petrol and oil purchase order signed by the flight captain or the airline’s representative (according to the form issued by the aviation petrol and oil company for uniform use by its branches at international airports).

Everyday, basing themselves on the already registered declaration forms of the aviation petrol and oil company’s branches and the above vouchers; the international airport customs offices shall certify in every sale invoice, ensuring the correct volumes and types of fuel actually exported for sale to each international flight; at the end of the day, inscribe the inspection results and certify the actually-exported volumes in the re-export declaration forms on the basis of synthesizing the data on petrol and oil volumes actually re-exported for sale recorded in the invoices cum delivery bills which have been certified by the aircraft-supervising customs officers.

2.6.4. The international airport customs offices shall have to arrange their staff to closely inspect, supervise as well as certify the actually-exported petrol and oil volumes for sale to each international flight.

2.6.5. For cases where petrol and oil are sold to Vietnam Airlines’ and Pacific Airlines’ international flights which do not exit Vietnam right away (flying to another domestic airport before exiting), the international airport customs offices shall request the petrol and oil-selling enterprises to formulate norms of petrol for domestic flights and take self-responsibility therefor before law. Basing themselves on such norms the customs offices shall certify the actually re-exported petrol and oil volumes calculated from the time the aircraft exit the country (for example, if 100 tons of petrol and oil are pumped at the Noi Bai airport and the petrol norm for flight from Noi Bai to Tan Son Nhat is 5 tons, the Noi Bai airport customs office shall certify that the actually re-exported petrol and oil volume is 95 tons) and then liquidate the re-export declaration form on the same day.

2.7. For petrol and oil re-exported through seaport, land and riverway border gates: The border gate customs offices shall open separate monitoring books for each year. Such books shall be affixed with overleaf stamps and signature of a border gate customs office leader certifying the book’s number of pages, as prescribed at Point 2.6.1, Part III of this Circular. The customs offices that deal with re-export procedures shall base themselves on the re-export dossiers to inspect, supervise and inscribe the actually re-exported petrol and oil volumes in the declaration forms (code, type and volume), lead-seal up the transport means and clear the procedures according to regulations.

In cases where enterprises are permitted to temporarily import petrol and oil in large lots at one border gate and re-export them in different small lots from inland depots for sale to enterprises in export processing zones and export processing enterprises in industrial parks or high-tech parks, or to foreign ships calling at Vietnamese ports, the customs offices that deal with re-export procedures for petrol and oil stored at inland depots shall base themselves on the certifications of the actually temporarily imported petrol and oil volumes by the customs offices that deal with temporary import procedures to clear re-export procedures, make dossier hand-over and receipt cards and transfer them together with the re-export dossiers to the customs offices that deal with temporary import procedures so that the latter have grounds to liquidate the declaration forms.

2.8. The customs procedures for petrol and oil sold by enterprises specialized in petrol and oil import to enterprises in export processing zones and export processing enterprises in industrial parks or high-tech parks, or to foreign ships calling at Vietnamese ports shall be carried out like for petrol and oil re-exported from the Vietnamese territory.

3. Liquidation of dossiers of petrol and oil temporarily imported for re-export:

3.1. Within 15 days after the deadline for temporary import for re-export (applicable also to cases where extension is granted) as set in the Trade Ministry’s regulatory documents, if having not yet conducted the re-export, enterprises must make temporary tax payments according to the customs offices’ tax notices and shall be considered for tax reimbursement, depending on the actually re-exported petrol and oil volumes. Past 15 days, if they fail to make tax payment, they shall be fined for late tax payment according to the tax laws currently in force.

3.2. Basing themselves on the temporary import and re-export declaration forms and customs dossiers, the provincial/municipal customs offices that deal with temporary import procedures shall complete the tax reimbursement procedures for petrol and oil which have been re-exported, according to the provisions in the Finance Ministry‘s Circular No. 172/1998/TT-BTC of December 22, 1998 and relevant guiding documents of the General Department of Customs; liquidate dossiers of temporarily imported and re-exported petrol and oil according to current regulations.

IV. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

1. Quarterly, the provincial/municipal customs offices shall have to deal with customs procedures for and supervise activities of importing and temporarily importing for re-export petrol and oil in their respective localities and must report to the General Department of Customs (the Department for Customs Supervision and Management) on the implementation of this Circular. Such reports must clearly analyze types of petrol and oil imported and temporarily imported for re-export, problems and remedial measures.

2. This Circular takes effect 15 days after its signing.

All acts of violating the provisions of this Circular and other relevant provisions of law shall be handled according to current regulations.

3. The director of the Department for Customs Supervision and Management shall have to assist the General Director of Customs in overseeing, inspecting and urging the direction and settlement of problems confronting the provincial/municipal Customs Departments in the course of implementing this Circular.

For the General Director of Customs
Deputy General Director
NGUYEN NGOC TUC