Officials of the Express Customs Sub-department (Hanoi Customs Department) inspect import and export goods. Photo: N.Linh

Diversified solutions to support e-commerce development

Cross-border e-commerce is having great development opportunities. Such development contributes to helping the Government's digital economic goals achieve further progress. Thereby, contributing to helping Vietnamese enterprises increase their reach in international markets, bringing Vietnamese brands to consumers in many markets around the world.

Along with that, domestic consumers also have access to more diverse and abundant products from foreign markets.

In that context, the Customs sector has been proactively implementing many solutions to support import-export enterprises, especially those operating in the field of cross-border express delivery of goods.

Specifically, the Customs agency has diversified forms of support for enterprises, including guidance and advice on customs declaration, tax incentives and support for customs clearance procedures. This helps enterprises reduce time and costs in the import-export process.

Support from the Customs authority helps increase accuracy and compliance, thereby helping businesses master customs regulations and procedures, contributing to building partnerships and creating trust between the Customs authority and businesses.

Mr. Dao Duy Tam, Deputy Director of the Customs Supervision and Management Department, said that e-commerce is still a new model in Vietnam, although trading activities through e-commerce trading floors have existed for a long time and especially after the Covid-19 pandemic, e-commerce activities in Vietnam are more vibrant than before.

The Customs Department was assigned by the Government to develop a Decree on the management of export and import activities through e-commerce transactions and the draft Decree was submitted to the Government by the Ministry of Finance in 2023.

“According to the Government's direction, after having an information technology system to serve the management of buying and selling activities and transactions on the floor, this Decree will be issued and officially put into effect. In the current period, when participating in e-commerce transactions, organizations and individuals often purchase goods through electronic transaction systems, and goods transportation is carried out through express delivery companies,” informed Mr. Dao Duy Tam.

According to Mr. Dao Duy Tam, the Customs authority always facilitates these transactions based on the principle of compliance with international practices, as well as the Conventions on the management of transported goods, express postal services, compliance with tax exemption standards, and compliance with the provisions of the Law on Export Tax and Import Tax.

In addition, the Customs authority also continues to review policies and guidelines to ensure that the regulations on e-commerce activities both facilitate organizations and individuals to conduct quick transactions and protect domestic production.

Completing the legal basis for good management

Institutionally, Vietnam currently does not have specific regulations for goods traded via e-commerce. Depending on each case, goods traded via e-commerce sent to Vietnam are subject to customs procedures according to different types.

For example: goods sent via postal services or express delivery are subject to regulations on goods sent via postal services or express delivery; goods sent via regular sea, road, and air services are subject to customs procedures as for regular goods.

Therefore, when the Decree on customs management of exported and imported goods traded via e-commerce is issued, it will create a legal basis for management of this type.

In particular, the draft Decree focuses on building a coordination mechanism between management units on e-commerce policies, product policies, and payments for e-commerce transactions to facilitate the development of e-commerce activities, ensuring smooth operations between buyers, e-commerce trading floors, manufacturers, and shipping units while still ensuring the management of state agencies.

Building a system to control e-commerce transactions for exported and imported goods on the basis of the National Single Window and ASEAN Single Window.

Synchronously implementing solutions such as: perfecting the legal basis, promoting the application of information technology, applying risk management to subjects participating in e-commerce transactions.

According to the General Department of Customs, in recent times, some subjects have taken advantage of the open policies, the development of e-commerce, express delivery services, goods and luggage consignment services, etc. to commit illegal acts.

In order to prevent and control smuggling and illegal transportation of goods across the border on postal and express delivery routes, the Customs agency has proactively collected information, grasped the local situation; closely coordinated and exchanged information between functional forces inside and outside the sector to proactively prevent from afar and early.

Thereby, it has promptly prevented, detected and strictly handled violations, contributing to ensuring social security and safety and preventing loss of state budget revenue.