Prime Minister directs to strengthen the fight against smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods in the new situation

The Directive clearly states: In recent times, ministries, branches, localities and functional forces have made great efforts in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods and infringement of intellectual property rights, achieving important results. However, the situation of smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods and infringement of intellectual property rights has become more complicated with a wider scope and many subjects, causing negative impacts on production and business, on people's health and trust, causing public anxiety and affecting social order and safety and the sustainable development of the country.

The cause of this situation is that the leadership and direction of all levels, sectors and localities have not been really drastic, close, specific, and not closely following reality, while the situation is complicated, many new problems have appeared in localities, areas, and on cyberspace; subjects of smuggling, production, and trade of counterfeit goods, fake goods, and trade fraud are increasingly reckless and sophisticated. The work of grasping the situation, advising, and reporting and proposing by ministries and sectors is not timely, not sensitive, and not keeping up with actual developments.

The state management of some agencies and localities is still limited, weak, and lax, especially in licensing activities for food testing and production. The awareness and responsibility of some leaders of local Party committees, authorities, units, and functional forces are not high, there are still signs of avoidance and shirking when violations occur; there are even situations of assisting and protecting law violators, and there are negative aspects in inspection, examination, and control of testing activities.

Institutions and legal regulations on handling smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property infringement are still inadequate, outdated, overlapping, and omitted, and do not meet the actual situation. Subjects have thoroughly exploited the regulations allowing enterprises to self-declare and take responsibility for quality for profit, colluding to hire celebrities, doctors, and nutritionists to promote, introduce, and exaggerate the quality, features, and uses of counterfeit products.

The work of organizing and defining functions and tasks in state management still overlaps, is lacking, and has gaps; inspection and supervision work is not regular, thorough, or comprehensive, and is superficial and perfunctory. The coordination, exchange, and sharing of information and databases between agencies and functional forces are not good or smooth.

Inadequate information and propaganda work has led to people not fully understanding the deceitful and sophisticated tricks of the subjects. The strength of the people has not been mobilized, and a nationwide movement has not been launched to fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, infringement of intellectual property rights, and violations of goods origin.

* Prevent, repel, and eventually end smuggling and trade fraud.

The Prime Minister 's Directive sets out the goal of combating smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, infringement of intellectual property rights, and violations of goods origin, which is to combat, prevent, repel, and eventually end smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights to protect the legitimate and legal rights and interests of the people and businesses, protect the security and health of the people, and contribute to the country's rapid and sustainable development.

The guiding viewpoint is that the work of combating smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement is a very important and long-term task that requires the decisive participation of the entire political system, leaders of Party committees at all levels, local authorities, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the business community, and especially the people. The people must be the center of protection, the subject of the struggle, and the strength of the people must be mobilized to create a movement.

The political organization system at the grassroots level plays a decisive role; the grassroots government is the core in organizing the implementation of tasks against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights. Identify the work of protecting the health, rights, and legitimate interests of the people and consumers as the top priority. Strengthen state management at all levels, sectors, and localities, contributing to enhancing the country's prestige and international competitiveness; build an independent, self-reliant economy and actively and proactively integrate deeply and effectively into the international community. This work needs to be done regularly, comprehensively, continuously, and relentlessly with the motto "handling one case, alerting the whole region, the whole field", "no forbidden areas, no exceptions". Enhance efficiency, create breakthrough changes in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement associated with the process of arranging administrative units at all levels, improving management capacity, defining responsibilities, functions, and tasks, avoiding overlapping, missing tasks, and leaving no gaps in state management. Ministries, branches, and localities proactively review, develop mechanisms, policies, and legal documents; guide, inspect, and urge to achieve the goal of preventing, repelling, and eventually ending smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement.

* Launch a high-profile campaign to combat and prevent smuggling, trade fraud, and counterfeit goods.

With the above objectives and guiding viewpoints, the Prime Minister requested the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations to closely coordinate with ministries, branches, and local authorities to mobilize union members, association members, and people to build a mass movement in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement; requested the Secretaries of Provincial and Municipal Party Committees directly under the Central Government to lead and direct Party committees at all levels and the entire political system in localities to actively participate in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement.

The Prime Minister requested to closely combine the inspection and supervision work of the Party, the inspection work with the supervision of agencies, elected representatives, the Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations, press agencies, media and the People to promptly detect, correct, rectify, overcome limitations and shortcomings; strictly handle officials, civil servants and officers who lack responsibility, slacken leadership, direction, management, and violate the work of combating smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights. The Prime Minister also requested ministries, branches, localities and functional forces to launch a high-point attack to fight, prevent and repel smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights nationwide, from May 15, 2025 to June 15, 2025, after which a preliminary assessment will be conducted.

The Prime Minister established a Working Group headed by Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son - Head of the National Steering Committee 389; assigned Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities to establish local Working Groups headed by Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities with appropriate participants, to promptly and synchronously deploy the peak attack effectively.

The Ministry of Home Affairs shall preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies to comprehensively review the functions and tasks of ministries, branches and functional forces, clearly define the responsibilities, areas and fields of each agency and unit; ensure no overlap, no omission of tasks, no legal gaps, no loosening of management due to organizational arrangements, affecting the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods and infringement of intellectual property rights; report to the Prime Minister in June 2025.

The Ministry of Public Security directs professional forces and local police to establish special projects, resolutely fight against and strictly handle criminal acts; coordinate with prosecution agencies to speed up the investigation, prosecution and trial of cases; clarify the responsibilities of relevant ministries, branches and localities for violations occurring within the scope of management, report and propose handling according to regulations; promptly publicize the results on mass media for general deterrence and prevention; advise competent authorities to amend the Penal Code with penalties sufficient to deter and strictly handle criminal acts.

The Ministry of National Defense directed the Border Guard and Coast Guard to coordinate with the Police and other functional forces to patrol and control border areas, combat smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and intellectual property rights infringement, and ensure the maintenance of order and safety in border areas on land and at sea.

The Ministry of Finance directs relevant agencies to perform well their professional tasks according to their assigned functions and tasks, closely coordinate with relevant forces to promptly detect and handle enterprises that commit smuggling, trade fraud, and tax fraud; take responsibility for strictly controlling imported goods, preventing counterfeit goods, goods of unknown origin, and poor quality goods from being smuggled into Vietnam.

The Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Industry and Trade to coordinate with the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities to direct the Market Management force to strengthen inspection and strictly handle cases of smuggling, production and trade of counterfeit goods, infringement of intellectual property rights, goods of unknown origin, especially violations in the e-commerce environment; be responsible for inspecting and strictly controlling goods circulating in the market, promptly detecting and handling counterfeit and poor quality goods; coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security to propose the construction of a database on goods as a basis for strategic orientation of goods, traceability, and anti-smuggling and counterfeit goods. Take the lead and coordinate with ministries, branches and localities to study and review the Law on Commerce, the Law on E-commerce and related regulations, promptly propose competent authorities to amend, supplement and promulgate in 2025.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall preside over and coordinate with relevant ministries to review, study, amend and supplement the functions, tasks and sanctioning authority of functional forces in the direction of clearly defining responsibilities, clear areas, clear fields, no overlap, no omissions, and report to the Prime Minister in July 2025, specifically: The head of the Market Management force at each level shall be primarily responsible for presiding over and coordinating with relevant agencies to inspect the compliance with the law of organizations and individuals in trading goods and commercial services in the market; specialized inspection and examination agencies under ministries, branches and localities shall be responsible for inspecting from licensing, production, trading and circulation of goods under their management (especially paying attention to medicines, functional foods, milk, cosmetics under the health sector; livestock, poultry, animals, animal products under the agriculture sector); Specify the tasks of the People's Committee at the commune/ward level in coordinating with Departments/branches, management units, inspection and supervision of production and business establishments in the area.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade coordinates with the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities to promptly complete the Market Management force in localities.

The Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Science and Technology to urgently review, amend and supplement the Law on Intellectual Property and the Law on Product and Goods Quality to ensure consistency and synchronization in legal regulations; strengthen inspection and strictly handle organizations and individuals who violate the provisions of the law on the publication of false information. The Ministry of Health shall strengthen and step up inspection, control and strictly handle the trading and trading of counterfeit drugs, smuggled drugs and fake pharmaceuticals; urgently review, amend and supplement the Law on Food Safety, the Law on Pharmacy, and documents regulating the production and trading of drugs, foods and functional foods; study and propose to increase sanctions for administrative violations. Launch a movement for people to participate in responding to the control of drug and food quality; At the same time, scientists and managers of the health sector are required to sign a commitment not to advertise or introduce false or unfounded information about the features and uses of the product without carefully verifying legal documents related to the product, and to be legally responsible for any fraudulent advertising.

The Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Environment, and Industry and Trade must proactively coordinate and conduct inspections and post-inspections on food safety, strictly handle acts of trading in fake, toxic, and unknown-origin foods; at the same time, perfect legal regulations on expertise, techniques, pre-inspection, post-inspection, and product licensing; especially apply digital transformation and build an interconnected database.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall strengthen inspection and strictly handle violations related to forestry, aquatic products, production and trade of fake plant varieties, livestock, fertilizers and pesticides; at the same time, take measures to control the use of growth stimulants for fruits, the excessive use of chemicals to increase weight, prevent dehydration after thawing to deceive about volume and reduce quality.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will study and supplement sanctions against agencies requesting advertising, agencies carrying out advertising, individuals, artists and celebrities who take advantage of their reputation to engage in false advertising, especially on social networks.

The Ministry of Justice continues to preside over or coordinate with ministries and branches in developing, appraising, and perfecting laws related to the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights.

Funding and resources for the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods and intellectual property infringement are drawn from regular funding allocated to ministries, branches and localities.

The People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities shall direct local Market Management forces to preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies to strictly handle acts of smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, goods of unknown origin, and infringement of intellectual property rights in the area; pay attention to socio-economic development, especially in remote areas, border areas, contributing to stabilizing people's lives, combining innovation and improving propaganda and dissemination of laws so that people do not participate in or assist in acts of smuggling, illegal transportation of goods, and production and trade of counterfeit goods.

Vietnam Television, Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam News Agency and the system of press agencies coordinate with ministries, branches and functional forces to develop appropriate communication programs, increase the duration, and propagate the dangers of smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, intellectual property infringement, and copyright infringement to raise awareness and responsibility of cadres, civil servants and people; propagate and disseminate tricks and methods of fraud and deception of subjects so that people can recognize, raise vigilance and inform competent state agencies; strictly manage and control to prevent false advertising on television, radio, newspapers and specialized magazines under their authority, which can easily cause confusion for people; commend positive examples and good practices of ministries, branches, localities and people; criticize and condemn negative behaviors and lack of responsibility.

* The Prime Minister requests the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations, Provincial and Municipal Party Committees directly under the Central Government, Associations, enterprises, and especially the entire people to join in the fight against smuggling, trade fraud, counterfeit goods, and infringement of intellectual property rights; requests Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Government agencies, and Chairmen of People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities to urgently disseminate and develop plans to organize synchronous, drastic, timely, and effective implementation according to the motto of 6 clear principles: "clear people, clear work, clear time, clear responsibility, clear products, clear authority"; direct agencies under their management to strictly implement the tasks stated in this Directive; take full responsibility before the Prime Minister for the implementation results.

The National Steering Committee 389 (Standing Office) monitors, inspects, and urges ministries, branches, and localities to implement this Directive, and periodically reports to the Prime Minister on implementation results on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis.

(According to VTV)

Source: https://baoyenbai.com.vn/12/350386/Thu-tuong-Chinh-phu-chi-thi-tang-cuong-cong-tac-chong-buon-lau-gian-lan-thuong-mai-va-hang-gia-tr111ng-tinh-hinh-moi.aspx