Selling without a license, Temu is causing chaos in the Vietnamese market

Over the past half month, Vietnamese consumers have been "bombarded" by countless advertisements, information, invitations... to participate in shopping on the e-commerce platform Temu (China) with super cheap prices and discounts of up to 90%.

Goods purchased on Chinese e-commerce platforms such as Temu, Taobao and 1688 are imported and delivered to customers - Photo: BONG MAI

In the "intoxication" of a "giant warehouse of cheap goods", so that people can rest assured to "shop like billionaires", few people wonder whether Temu e-commerce platform Has it been licensed in Vietnam yet? The answer is NO!

According to the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy (Ministry of Industry and Trade), on October 24, this agency received an application for a license to operate in Vietnam from Temu. So since the beginning of October, especially the past two weeks, Temu has been selling illegally in Vietnam.

Worrying in management

Temu is a "newbie" from PDD Holdings (China) - the world's leading online retail group. This trading floor is following in the footsteps of its "seniors" such as Taobao, 1688, Shein in entering the Vietnamese market.

Quite surprised by the fact that a large-scale e-commerce platform operates publicly in Vietnam but has not been licensed and has only just completed the licensing procedures, delegate Tran Van Lam, member of the National Assembly's Finance and Budget Committee, said that if such a situation were to occur, it would be a worrying issue in management and law enforcement.

"Currently, there are full legal regulations on state management of e-commerce platforms. Therefore, it is impossible for foreign enterprises to enter Vietnam and open platforms, operate without declaration or registration, and do whatever they want. This is a state management responsibility that needs to be reviewed for consideration and handling," Mr. Lam asked.

According to Mr. Lam, with the nature of cross-border e-commerce platforms, there are tools to check and review. Especially management by technology and techniques to prevent the activities of websites or platform owners when operating without permission in Vietnam. "The current legal mechanism is complete. This situation shows the lack of coordination between management agencies," he said.

According to delegate Tran Hoang Ngan (HCMC delegation), supporting cross-border e-commerce activities, however, the management is not strict, there are unregistered floors or even no tax collection, which does not ensure fairness in business. This affects small and medium enterprises, causing our enterprises to face unfair and transparent competition in the e-commerce environment.

"Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen control over the presence or absence of commercial fraud, avoid tax losses, and ensure fairness and transparency. Bringing goods into the market through such channels is not fair and will "kill" domestic small and medium enterprises, resulting in unemployment. Therefore, there must be warnings and strict management solutions," said Mr. Ngan.

Ministry of Industry and Trade "is reviewing"

Speaking to Tuoi Tre, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan said he is asking the relevant authorities to review the operation of this platform. According to Decree 85, e-commerce platforms operating in Vietnam are required to register.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade will control and manage all types of imported goods to protect domestic production. However, with modern trade channels, especially e-commerce channels which are emerging and have many advantages, there will need to be specific solutions to handle them.

"We need to be calm to make a thorough assessment and find the right cause. In the case of counterfeit goods, we need to stop them from circulating; if they are dumped goods, we must handle them according to market dumping regulations. If businesses make genuine products and create competitively priced products, they must comply with market principles," said Mr. Tan.

Faced with the complex developments of cross-border e-commerce, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said it is synchronously implementing many management solutions. That is, submitting to the Prime Minister a draft dispatch on strengthening e-commerce management, including proposing the development of specialized laws and amending Decision 78 on tax exemption levels for imported goods via express delivery services.

The Ministry directed the General Department of Market Management to coordinate with the General Department of Customs to strictly control goods from cross-border platforms. At the same time, the National Competition Commission will step up consumer protection in cyberspace and increase propaganda about the risks of cross-border online shopping.

At the same time, prepare a report to submit to the Prime Minister to direct the Ministry of Finance to study a plan to monitor imported goods from e-commerce platforms that do not comply with Vietnamese law.