Scene of the conference

It was a topic of dialogue conference in 2024 held by three border gate customs branches under Binh Phuoc Customs Department (including Hoa Lu International Border Gate Customs Branch, Hoang Dieu Customs Branch and Loc Thinh Customs Branch) recently, with the participation of more than 20 enterprises.

Speaking at the conference, Mr. Phan Van Dung – Deputy Director of Binh Phuoc Customs Department

reported that despite economic challenges, the import and export activities in Binh Phuoc have continued to grow since the beginning of 2024. As a result, the unit's revenue has increased by 72% compared to the same period last year.

Mr. Dung requested that the customs offices continue to capitalize on their achievements, particularly in supporting and facilitating businesses in import and export activities.

Mr. Ho Ngoc Anh, Director of Hoa Lu International Border Gate Customs Office, stated that over the years, the Binh Phuoc Customs Department has consistently created favorable conditions for businesses in the province to carry out customs procedures, thereby helping businesses grow and contribute significantly to the province's economic development. This has also enhanced the Customs Department's management efficiency in processing customs clearance for import and export goods, reducing disputes between businesses and the Customs authorities.

According to Anh, given the current global situation with many potential risks, the role of the Customs authorities in management, supervision, and control in accordance with the Customs Law is crucial in proactively detecting and preventing fraudulent activities, such as mislabeling goods and illegal transshipment. This will help protect Vietnamese manufacturers, attract investment into Vietnam for the production of export products that meet the criteria of Vietnamese origin, and enhance businesses' compliance with trade defense measures. In managing the export of agricultural and forestry products, the Customs authorities play a vital role in both controlling import and export activities and promoting their development.

Therefore, the border gate customs offices organized the dialogue conference with the aim of helping businesses learn about new customs procedures and gather feedback on difficulties and obstacles encountered during customs clearance and inspection. This will support agricultural and forestry export businesses in developing their operations and maximizing the benefits of free trade agreements (FTAs).

At the conference, representatives from Binh Phuoc Customs introduced businesses to the management and specialized inspection policies for imported agricultural and forestry products, including Decree No. 15/2018/ND-CP dated February 2, 2018, and Decree No. 102/2020/ND-CP dated September 1, 2020. Binh Phuoc Customs also reminded businesses about several issues related to the certificate of origin (C/O) as stipulated in Circular No. 33/2023/TT-BTC, such as the time of submitting C/O, submission methods, C/O retention, and C/O deduction.

In particular, when declaring goods, importing businesses need to classify, describe goods, and apply the correct HS code for each type of goods according to the Vietnam Commodity Nomenclature issued in Circular No. 31/2022/TT-BTC dated June 8, 2022.

Representatives from Binh Phuoc Customs also pointed out some common violations by businesses, including incorrect declaration of goods names and weights as stipulated in Articles 7, 8, and 9 of Decree 128/2020/ND-CP. Notably, import and export businesses that commit violations multiple times will be considered high-risk businesses, and this risk assessment result will directly affect the outcome of declaration classification. For businesses operating centralized goods storage and inspection locations, serious violations may result in the suspension of their operations.

In addition, representatives from the border gate customs offices answered numerous questions from businesses regarding C/O deduction, removing goods from the supervised area after customs clearance, etc.

Businesses also proposed extending the opening hours of border gates to 8 PM, instead of the current 6 PM, to support businesses during peak import and export seasons for agricultural products. In response, representatives from Binh Phuoc Customs stated that they would record this suggestion and report it to the relevant authorities.