Laws of Vietnam

Proceeding from the Law on Organization of the Government passed on the 30th of September 1992;

Pursuant to the Resolution adopted by the Government at its session on the 13th of January 1994;

With a view to promoting vigorously exports, orienting import to the good service of production and consumption, protecting and developing domestic production, increasing the efficiency of imports and exports, and broadening external economic and trade cooperation in order to contribute to the realization of national socio-economic targets;

At the request of the Minister of Trade;

Article 1.- This Decree shall apply to the following import and export activities:

1. The import and export of goods (including complete equipment) with a foreign country and with an Export Processing Zone (EPZ) through trade, economic, scientific and technical cooperation, investment cooperation, aid, lending and debt payment.

2. The following acts are also regarded as the import and export commodities:

- Temporary import for re-export; temporary export for re-import and port transfer; and goods in transit;

- The transfer of industrial property ownership;

- Processing finished and semi-finished products pursuant to subcontract for a foreign country, or subcontracting a foreign country to process products;

- Acting as agent for purchases and sales of goods, providing for or accepting brokerage from domestic and foreign businesses to handle import and export.

Article 2.- The import and export of the following commodities and services shall be governed by a separate regulation and shall not be subject to this Decree:

- Gold, silver, gemstones.

- Gifts.

- Transferred property.

- Postal mail and parcel of a non-commercial nature.

- Personal belongings of Vietnamese upon port exit and entry.

- Personal belongings of foreign individuals and organizations upon port exist and entry.

- Commodities and utensils of diplomatic missions and international organizations in Vietnam.

- Imports and exports of commodities among EPZ's and between EPZ's and foreign countries.

- Services in tourism, banking, insurance as well as post, air, rail, sea and land transport.

Article 3.- The State management of import-export activities shall be conducted in compliance with the following principles:

1. Observance of the laws and related policies of the State on production, circulation and market management.

2. Respect for commitments with foreign countries and for international trade practice.

3. Guaranty for the autonomy of business, and the management by the State.

Article 4.- All commodities can be imported and exported, and shall be regulated by tariffs in accordance with the Law on Import and Export Tariffs, except for the following commodities, which are still regulated by non-tariff management measures:

1. Commodies banned from import and export.

2. Export and import of items regulated by quotas.

3. Special-purpose commodities.

4. Commodities related to major balances of the national economy.

At each period, the Prime Minister shall approve, or delegate the Director of the State Planning Committee to approve, the list of import and export items mentioned in this Article, and madate the Minister of Trade to promulgate it.

Article 5.- To engage in import and export, a business has to obtain a license from the Ministry of Trade.

Article 6.- The conditions for licensing a business for import and export are as follows:

1. A business intending to specialize in imports and/or exports must:

a) Be established in compliance with the law, commit itself to obeying all extant legal provisions;

b) Have an operating capital value in Vietnamese Dong at least equivalent to 200,000 US dollars at the time of registration for import-export operation. Businesses in mountainous provinces and economically disadvantaged provinces, and businesses engaged in products which receive export encouragement and which do not require much capital, need only have operating capital equivalent to 100,000 US dollars;

c) Trade within the class of commodities registered on its establishment;

d) Be staffed with adequate skilled personnel in business and in signing and performing contracts for foreign trade.

2. Business conducting manufacturing must:

Be established in compliance with the law, have the facilities necessary for steady export production, have a foreign market for consumption and be staffed with individuals possessing adequate skills in business and in signing and performing contracts for foreign trade, and be authorized to export its own products directly as well as import the materials needed for its production. In case its foreign customers wish to pay in kind (barter), licensing shall be made by the Ministry of Trade on a case-by-case and rational basis.

Article 7.- A business specialized in import and export, having the capability to trade in commodity lines other than the one for which it has been licensed, has the right to petition to the Ministry of Trade to add those commodity lines to its import-export license, after it has registered for the same additions in its establishing permit at the Economic Arbitration.

Article 8.- A business which has been licensed to import and export is obliged to pay a one-time fee in Vietnamese Dong. The Ministry of Finance, together with the Ministry of Trade, shall set the fee and provide a uniform guide for the payment and use of the fee.

Article 9.- The State shall encourage, and pursue support policies which assist the businesses to develop and expand their markets, and to export products encouraged by the State.

The Ministry of Trade, together with the State Planning Committee, the Ministry of Finance, the State bank of Vietnam and the related ministries, shall submit to the Government a list of products for which export is encouraged along with the policies and measures necessary to accomplish such export.

Article 10.- In the interest of promoting export, when a licensed exporter finds customers and markets which seek to acquire exports of other than those authorized by the license, the Ministry of Trade shall consider licensing contracts for those exports on a case-by-case basis.

Article 11.- Pursuant to Article 9 of the Law on Import and Export Tariffs, preferential tariffs shall be applied to:

1. Imported complete equipment and technology which increase the capacity of production and processing of exports for which proper approval from different levels of authority has been obtained.

2. New export products generated by new production capacity created from the joint investment of domestic enterprises.

The Ministry of Finance shall coordinate with the Ministry of Trade to establish concrete regulations and guidelines on the preferential tariffs and their time frame.

Article 12.- Export commodities to pay for debt, government aid and loan for foreign countries are governed by a separate regulation.

Article 13.- The Ministry of Trade is the agency to exercise unified State management over import and export activities. The Ministry of Trade is responsible to:

1. Research trade strategy; study the domestic market and markets in foreign regions, and propose policies for each foreign market region; work with related ministries and agencies to create a favorable business environment and orient the development of export products; issue, or recommend the Government to issue, documents with a view to perfecting the system of policies and laws on foreign trade.

2. Monitor compliance with import-export laws.

Article 14.- The Ministries and the People's Committees of provinces and cities directly attached to the Central Government are to coordinate with the Ministry of Trade to manage import and export activities in the following manner:

1. Guiding and directing the correct implementation of the policies and State regulations governing import-export management within their respective ministries and localities.

2. Recommending adjustments and changes to policies and measures of import-export management.

Article 15.- The management of imports and exports, through quotas, is to be regulated as follows:

1. In their preparation of the yearly plans, the Ministries shall propose which commodities under their charge are to be included in the list of the quota-controlled commodities, and the total quota for each import and export for the subsequent year.

2. The State Planning Committee shall, together with the Ministry of Trade, incorporate the proposed quota and submit them to the Prime Minister to be approved as the total quotas for imports and exports in the following year.

3. Upon consulting with the concerned branches and localities and the associations of importers and exporters (if any), the Ministry of Trade shall allocate quotas (including quotas that foreign countries have assigned to Vietnam) and directly announce them to the businesses which are engaged in the production and trade of imports and exports, and guide their implementation.

Businesses are not allowed to exchange or transfer, buy or sell their assigned quotas.

Article 16.- On the basis of the contents and requirements of the annual socio-economic obligations, and to ensure the major balances in the national economy and the realization of the government commitments, and upon proposals of the State Planning Committee, the Prime Minister shall approve and assign a number of State-run businesses to handle the import and export of certain essential commodities according to a given proportion and give them the corresponding conditions to do the work.

Article 17.- In regard to the complete equipment, specialized equipment, materials and a number of commodities related to national security and defense, to the ecology and to the environment, (special-purpose commodities), the Ministry of Trade shall license their import and export only after it has received the consent from the concerned State management bodies.

Article 18.- The import of individual machines and equipment and complete equipment, with State funds, shall be undertaken in accordance with Decision No. 91-TTg, issued on November 13, 1992 by the Prime Minister.

Article 19.- The Ministry of Trade, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance, the State Bank of Vietnam and the General Customs Office as required by its function, shall regulate and guide the signing and implementing of foreign trade contracts; license the import and export of commodities which require licensing; inspect the financial and payment capabilities of the importers and exporters; collect import and export tariffs; return the taxes; and complete customs procedures...

Article 20.- The payment of the imports and exports to foreign customers (including delayed payment) shall be handled in accordance with the regulations and guidance of the bank.

Article 21.- In regard to a number of important commodities or commodities being traded in a large volume, the Ministry of Trade, in a agreement with the State Planning Committee and the other Ministries, shall set the prices, or the methods for setting the minimum prices, for such export commodities and the maximum prices for import commodities, for each period of time. The Ministry of Trade shall promulgate the list of these commodities.

Article 22.- The Ministry of Trade shall, together with the General Customs Office, set the procedures for and organize the licensing of imports and exports in a suitable manner for each type of commodity, for each period, along the line of simplifying the procedure, gradually reducing the number of commodities which must be licensed for import and export, thereby creating favorable conditions for business and, at the same time, ensuring State control.

The General Customs Office and the customs offices at the ports are responsible for reporting in a timely manner, to the Ministry of Trade, the status of actual imports and exports, in order to help the guidance and management of imports and exports.

Article 23.- Under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Trade, the other ministries and the People's Committees of provinces and cities directly attached to the Central Government shall periodically inspect the import and export businesses, and take appropriate measures against those which fail to meet the proper criteria for business or have violated the law during their operation.

Article 24.- Under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance and the General Customs Office shall formulate regulations governing financial sanctions imposed against violators of import and export business regulations.

Article 25.- Under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Finance, the State Bank of Vietnam and other concerned agencies shall compile and submit to the Prime Minister, for approval, the following regulations regarding:

1. Vietnamese businesses opening shops, branches and companies abroad.

2. Trade fairs, exhibitions and commercial advertisement at home and abroad.

The Ministry of Trade is responsible for managing and guiding the observance of these regulations.

Article 26.- Under the chairmanship of the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry of Finance, the State Bank of Vietnam, the General Customs Office and other concerned agencies shall formulate and put into effect the following regulations regarding:

1. Sales agents in Vietnam for foreign companies.

2. Temporary import for re-export; temporary export for re-import and port transfer.

3. Goods in transit.

4. Assignment and acceptance of brokerage in import and export for domestic and foreign businesses.

5. Subcontracts to and from abroad.

6. Inspection of import and export commodities.

The Ministry of Trade shall be responsible for the issuance, management and implementation guidance of these Regulations.

Article 27.- This Decree becomes effective as of the date of signature and shall replace Decree No. 114-HDBT of April 7, 1992. All previous regulations which are contrary to this Decree shall be annulled.

Article 28.- All violations of the provisions of this Decree shall be dealt with as prescribed by law.

Article 29.- Under the chairmanship of the Minister of Trade, the Minister-Director of the State Planning Committee, the Minister of Finance, the Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam and the Director of the General Customs Office, are responsible for guiding the implementation of this Decree.

Article 30.- The Ministers, the Heads of agencies at the ministerial level, the Heads of the other offices attached to the Government, the Chairmen of the People's Committees of the provinces and cities directly attached to the Central Government, are responsible for the implementation of this Decree.