Vietnam import export license: when you need one

A Vietnam import export license is not needed for most goods, but it is required for some. This guide explains which goods move freely, which need a license or conditions, and which are banned. It is based on Decree 69/2018/ND-CP and is general information, not legal advice.

The rule: most goods need no license

Decree 69/2018/ND-CP was issued on 15 May 2018. It guides the Law on Foreign Trade Management, which the National Assembly passed on 12 June 2017. The decree sorts all goods into four groups, and each group has its own steps.

• Goods that need an export or import license. You get it from the ministry in charge of that product.
• Goods that can move only if you meet set conditions.
• Goods that must be checked by the competent authorities, as the Law on Foreign Trade Management requires for certain cases.
• All other goods. Here you only follow the normal procedures at the customs office.

The last group is the largest. So the first question is not "Do I need a license?" It is "Is my product on one of the lists?"

Source: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP of 15 May 2018, Article 4 (unofficial English translation, WTO import licensing portal).

Who may trade, and the foreign-invested rule

A Vietnamese trader that is not foreign-invested may export, import and do related work without tying it to the business lines on its registration. The exceptions are goods on the banned lists, other goods banned by law, and goods whose trade is suspended.

Foreign-invested companies and branches of foreign traders have an extra duty. Under Article 3, they must follow Vietnam's commitments in the treaties it has signed, and the tariff list and road map set by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Trade by foreign traders with no presence in Vietnam is set by the Government. If you are a foreign-invested firm, check your own commitments as well as the goods lists.

Source: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, Article 3.

Goods that are banned

Appendix I of the decree lists banned exports and banned imports. The Prime Minister may allow a banned item in for special purposes. The decree names warranty, analysis, testing, scientific research, medicine, drug production, and national defense and security.

Examples on the export list include weapons and ammunition, antiques and national treasures, and logs and sawn timber from natural forests in Vietnam. Examples on the import list include right-hand drive vehicles, with narrow exceptions for special-use vehicles that do not join traffic. Passenger cars of four wheels that are more than five years old, counted from the year of manufacture, are also banned. So are radio devices that do not meet Vietnam's radio frequency rules.

Each ministry publishes the detailed list and the tariff codes for the goods it manages. Use that list, not a summary, to decide for your product.

Source: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, Article 5 and Appendix I.

Goods that need a license or conditions

Appendix III lists goods that need a license or must meet conditions. It groups them by the ministry in charge. The Ministry of Industry and Trade, for example, handles several of them.

• Export license: chemical precursors used in industry, explosive precursors and industrial explosives, goods exported within quotas set by foreign countries, and goods controlled under treaties.
• Import license: goods under tariff quotas, which are salt, raw tobacco, poultry eggs, and raw and refined sugar. Explosive precursors and industrial explosives also need conditions and a license.
• Conditions only: some minerals, where the ministry sets the conditions or standards.

Article 6 adds a small group of goods that only designated traders may trade. These include cigarettes and cigars, and the paper, ink and machines used to print banknotes and mint coins. The ministry in charge picks the traders.

The Minister of Industry and Trade may also set automatic licensing for certain goods from time to time. Check the current notice for your product.

Sources: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, Articles 6 and 7, Appendices II and III.

How to apply, and how long it takes

Article 9 sets the basic steps for a license. You file with the ministry that manages the goods. You may file in person, by post or online where that is offered. A complete set holds three items.

• An application form, one original.
• A copy of your investment certificate or business registration certificate, stamped by your company.
• Any other papers the law asks for that product.

If your file is incomplete, the ministry must tell you within 3 working days and let you fix it. Unless another law sets a different time, it must send a written reply within 10 working days of getting a complete and valid file. If the ministry must ask other agencies for advice, the clock starts when their answers arrive. A license that is amended or replaced after loss can not run longer than the original.

You are legally responsible for the accuracy of what you submit, and you must hand over papers when an inspector asks. Keep copies of everything.

Source: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, Article 9 and Article 71.

Other cases and a checklist

Temporary import, temporary export and merchanting trade follow their own rules in Chapter III of the decree. Merchanting trade and temporary import can need a license from the Ministry of Industry and Trade when the goods are banned, suspended, under quotas, or on the license list. A merchanting deal needs no such license if the goods go straight from the exporting country to the importing country without entering Vietnam's checkpoints. Read that chapter if your deal looks like one of these.

Before you ship, run through four questions.

1. Find your product's tariff code.
2. Check it against the banned lists and the license and conditions lists for the ministry in charge.
3. If it is listed, ask that ministry for its license steps and current forms.
4. If it is not listed, plan the usual customs procedure and keep your papers ready.

Rules change, and later notices can add to these lists. Confirm with the ministry or a licensed adviser before you ship.

Source: Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, Chapter III.

Sources

• Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP of 15 May 2018, detailing a number of articles of the Law on Foreign Trade Management. Unofficial English translation, WTO import licensing portal (importlicensing.wto.org).
• Law on Foreign Trade Management, dated 12 June 2017, as cited in the decree's preamble.