The General Department of Customs has expanded solutions to support businesses amid the turbulence of the Covid-19 pandemic to avoid interrupting the operations of warehouses, yards and ports operators.

Imports and Exports at Hai Phong Port. Photo: N. Linh

The General Department of Customs said local customs units have explained provisions of the law on the responsibilities of warehouse, yard and port operators in the management and supervision of exported, imported and transited goods.

However, many operators have neither been fully aware of their responsibilities in this work nor built more warehouses, yards and ports to separate the storage areas for exported, imported and transited goods from the storage areas for domestic goods; and nor had conditions at warehouses, yards and locations.

Regarding conditions for customs inspection and supervision at seaports, inland waterway ports, international airports, inland container depots (ICDs), international railway stations (warehouses, yards and ports) according to the instructions in Official Dispatch No. 6712/TCHQ-GSQL dated October 16, 2020 and Official Dispatch 2260 dated May 14, 2021, the General Department of Customs said:

For warehouses, yards and ports that have met the conditions of separating storage areas or separating paths/gates for exported, imported and transited goods from the storage areas for domestic goods but have not met requirements for software and sent the overall diagram of the storage area to the customs system, local customs departments should work with warehouse, yard and port operators to complete the diagram to send it to the Customs system.

For warehouses, yards and ports that have not yet met conditions on separating storage areas or separating paths/gates for exported, imported and transited goods from storage areas for domestic goods, local customs department will conduct the customs management and supervision of imported, exported and transited goods in and out the warehouses, yards and ports.

After the Covid-19 pandemic is controlled, the General Department of Customs assigns the Customs Control and Supervision Department to conduct surveys and work at the Customs departments of provinces and cities to have a basis for reviewing and assessing storage of exported, imported and transited goods separated from domestic goods at warehouses, yards and ports and report to the General Department of Customs to guide local Customs Departments.

For warehouses, yards and ports that do not meet conditions on separating storage areas or separating paths/gates for export, import and transit goods from storage areas for ​​domestic goods, the General Department of Customs has guided about the deadline for completing the construction of additional warehouses, yards and ports to meet the conditions of goods supervision is before June 30, 2021.

However, due to the complicated situation of the Covid-19 pandemic, to create favourable conditions for warehouse, yard and port operators, the General Department of Customs delayed the deadline for building warehouses, yards and ports until the pandemic is supressed.

Regarding the inspection and supervision of warehouses, yards and locations according to the provisions of Decree 68/2016/ND-CP dated July 1, 2016 as amended and supplemented in Decree 67/2020/ND-CP dated June 15, 2020 of the Government, Official Dispatch 43/TCHQ-GSQL dated January 6, 2021 of the General Department of Customs guides that conditions of warehouses, yards and locations must be developed before March 30, 2021.

However, due to pandemic, the General Department of Customs postponed the deadline for developing conditions until the pandemic is controlled.

Besides, after the Covid-19 pandemic is over, the General Department of Customs assigns the Customs Control and Supervision Department to review and report to the General Department of Customs to sanction responsibility for units that did not comply with regulations on inspection and supervision of warehouses, yards, ports and locations.