Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang attends the Europe Day 2026 celebration in May 2026. (Photo: Thanh Long)

Reconfiguring trade flows

While six years is a concise chapter against thirty-six years of formal diplomatic relations, the Agreement has fundamentally transformed this economic corridor, converting political goodwill into high-value commercial integration, reinforcing corporate confidence, and embedding Vietnam firmly into global value chains.

Official records from Vietnam’s Customs Department and the National Statistics Office (NSO) highlight the scale of this integration: cumulative bilateral trade between Vietnam and the EU reached 900 billion USD between January 1995 and June 2026. Notably, 383.8 billion USD, or 42.6% of that three-decade total, was generated in just the six years following the EVFTA's implementation in August 2020.

Reflecting on this milestone, EuroCham Chairman Bruno Jaspaert analysed: "Nearly half of three decades of EU-Vietnam trade has taken place under the framework established by the Agreement, highlighting how rapidly commercial integration accelerates once market access barriers begin to lift.

Six years ago, the EVFTA was an ambitious political commitment. Today, its impact is measurable and concrete: it has reshaped trade flows, deepened business confidence, and established Vietnam as one of Europe's most vital economic anchors in Asia. Having supported the framework from the negotiating table to on-the-ground implementation, EuroCham marks this milestone to celebrate how trade diplomacy delivers tangible economic value. As the primary voice of European business in Vietnam, we will continue to drive growth through evidence-based advocacy and constructive public-private dialogues".

This structural momentum is particularly evident in 2026. As the EVFTA enters its seventh year, the Agreement reaches a significant tariff milestone: the EU completes its tariff liberalisation schedule, granting duty-free access to 99% of Vietnamese exports.

Today, the majority of Vietnamese exports already enter the EU under around 80% preferential rates, and this final tariff elimination opens maximum market access for Vietnamese producers. Meanwhile, Vietnam will continue its phased tariff reductions on EU imports over the next four years, with its commitments concluding in 2030 (EVFTA’s Year 10).

Official H1 2026 figures show bilateral trade reaching 41.4 billion USD, driven by 31.8 billion USD in Vietnamese exports against 9.7 billion USD in European imports, yielding a first-half trade surplus of 22 billion USD for Vietnam, a six-month surplus that exceeds the full-year surplus of $21.7 billion recorded in 2019 before the Agreement took effect.

EuroCham Vice-Chair Jean-Jacques Bouflet, who served as one of the EU’s lead negotiators during the EVFTA talks, highlighted how this dynamic creates long-term competitiveness: "While Vietnam maintains a substantial trade surplus with the EU, this partnership should not be viewed through a zero-sum lens. European exports advanced technology, machinery, and pharmaceuticals that directly elevate Vietnam's industrial productivity. In return, Vietnam's strengths in electronics, machinery, textiles, footwear, furniture and agricultural products reinforce European supply chains and serve consumers across the EU.

The EVFTA has established a complementary economic relationship where both sides build competitiveness around their structural strengths. Nevertheless, there is always room for further progress. We encourage Vietnam to expand imports of high-value European technologies that support its industrial upgrading and manufacturing value chains. Today, the EU accounts for around 12% of Vietnam's global exports, yet only 4% of its total imports. Increasing high-value imports from Europe would not only create a more balanced trade relationship, but also strengthen Vietnam's long-term competitiveness and move its industries further up the global value chain".

Six years on, the commercial value of the EVFTA is evident in how deeply European businesses are integrating its provisions into their core operations. (Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade)

Operational impact on the ground

Six years on, the commercial value of the EVFTA is evident in how deeply European businesses are integrating its provisions into their core operations. According to EuroCham’s Q2 2026 Business Confidence Index (BCI), 55% of surveyed European enterprises now regard Vietnam as a core operational base or major growth location, while a further 22% identify it as an important component of their regional footprint. Vietnam has matured into a competitive regional platform for long-term expansion across Asia.

Among European enterprises in Vietnam actively engaged in bilateral trade, half directly benefit from EVFTA tariff preferences. Furthermore, 33% apply preferential rates to at least one-fifth of their trade volume, and nearly 20% apply them to more than half of their trade flows.

Crucially, two-thirds (66%) of these firms report measurable financial savings. The majority achieve duty reductions of 5-15%, while 11% record cost savings exceeding 30%. Sectoral breakdowns reveal that firms in Trade, Logistics, and Consumer Goods achieved the highest gains, with one in every four respondents reported cost savings between 16-30%, double the cross-sector average.

These statistical findings mirror concrete operational experiences on the ground. One European importer participating in the BCI explained that more than 80% of its EU-Vietnam trade now benefits from EVFTA tariff preferences. While the resulting savings have marginally improved profit margins, the greater value lies elsewhere: lower import costs have enabled the company to reduce prices by between 5-15%, making its products more competitive in the Vietnamese market while expanding opportunities for growth. For logistics providers, increased client utilisation of the EVFTA has driven steady growth in freight forwarding, warehousing, and distribution services across the supply chain.

As explicit tariff walls fall, administrative complexity and compliance overhead replace them as primary friction points. Among businesses encountering utilisation obstacles, 50% identify domestic tax administration, complex tariff handling, and delayed VAT refund mechanisms as key constraints. Another 33% cite the complexity of Rules of Origin (RoO), Certificate of Origin (C/O) documentation, and varying verification demands across jurisdictions. For 17%, compliance cost remains too high relative to the marginal duty savings available.

A multinational manufacturer serving markets across Europe, Australia, and North America exemplifies this challenge. Despite operating in sectors positioned for high EVFTA benefit, less than 20% of its EU-bound shipments currently qualify for preferential treatment. The firm attributes this low utilisation rate not to a lack of commercial opportunity, but to varying documentary interpretations across EU Member States and Vietnam, noting that evolving origin requirements make consistent compliance difficult.

To support businesses in navigating these frameworks, EuroCham actively contributes to public-private policy dialogues with evidence-based advocacy and practical engagement. During its flagship Whitebook Dialogue Week in May 2026, EuroCham worked directly with the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) to clarify Rules of Origin and preferential tariff applications, especially within Special Economic Zones and bonded trade routes. On 30 July 2026, EuroCham convened its annual Customs Dialogue & Training in Ho Chi Minh City, building on these outcome-oriented discussions and equipping member companies with practical guidance to customs procedures and maximise the Agreement benefits.

Addressing regulatory friction is becoming even more essential as European sustainability frameworks take effect. Vice-Chair Bouflet added: "Unlike earlier generations of FTAs, the EVFTA extends well beyond tariff reductions to encompass customs cooperation, technical standards, intellectual property, sustainable development, and regulatory transparency. As environmental standards, product traceability requirements, and due diligence expectations continue to evolve, particularly under the European Green Deal, the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), a company's ability to understand and implement these requirements will become an increasingly important determinant of competitiveness."

Sustaining Vietnam's export advantage will increasingly depend on regulatory efficiency. Simplifying customs routines, accelerating tax refunds, digitalising documentation, and clarifying Rules of Origin will allow more enterprises, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), to participate fully in EVFTA opportunities.

European investors continue to place a high premium on regulatory predictability, administrative efficiency, and robust legal protection mechanisms when allocating long-term capital. (Photo: VNA)

A catalyst for high-value FDI and regional integration

While merchandise trade has accelerated rapidly, European foreign direct investment (FDI) has expanded at a more gradual pace. European investors continue to place a high premium on regulatory predictability, administrative efficiency, and robust legal protection mechanisms when allocating long-term capital.

This dynamic underscores why full ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) by all EU Member States remains a strategic priority. Where the EVFTA liberalised product trade, the EVIPA will establish formal legal certainty and modern dispute settlement mechanisms, creating a stable foundation for high-quality European capital across clean energy, digital infrastructure, and advanced manufacturing.

Looking ahead to Vietnam's role in the wider region, Chairman Jaspaert concluded: "Following the elevation of EU-Vietnam relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in January 2026, the EVFTA stands as the bedrock of a fundamentally new era of economic diplomacy. Its legacy is not measured by trade volumes alone, but by the precedent it sets. By proving that a high-ambition trade agreement between Europe and an emerging Asian economy can deliver tangible growth, the EVFTA offers a powerful reference model for regional and transnational partnerships.

Vietnam is actively paving the way for deeper EU-ASEAN bloc-to-bloc cooperation, fostering the confidence needed between partners who see each other not merely as trade destinations, but as indispensable collaborators in an uncertain global economy".