Tighten management to combat origin fraud

The new US tax policy is greatly affecting global trade, including Vietnam.

Ms. Dao Thu Huong, Deputy Head of the Customs Tax Department - Customs Department ( Ministry of Finance ), said that in addition to tax advisory measures for the Ministry of Finance and the Government, the Customs Department also strengthened many measures to reduce the US government's concerns in the Vietnam - US trade relationship.

Typical solutions include anti-commercial fraud and protection of the origin of Vietnamese goods.

Pursuant to Decision 713 dated April 3, 2025 of the Prime Minister , Vietnam Customs continues to strengthen inspection and close monitoring of goods exported to the US, and assess the origin of raw materials imported into Vietnam to produce goods exported to the US.

Orchid export stand.jpg
Customs authorities will strictly control input materials to avoid cases of foreign goods disguised as Vietnamese products being exported to the US market or other countries.

This agency has issued a document to rectify and warn about applying measures against cheap consumer goods that are feared to be smuggled into Vietnam through unofficial channels, or fraudulent in terms of price, code, etc., which will negatively impact domestic manufacturing enterprises.

“The management agency is considering applying anti-dumping taxes on textiles, electronics, and agricultural products from other countries... if there are signs of unfair competition,” said Ms. Huong.

The Customs Department also compiled a list of businesses suspected of possible origin fraud and illegal transshipment to strengthen control.

“We strictly control the input of raw materials to avoid cases of foreign goods disguised as Vietnamese products being exported to the US market or other countries. This measure to combat trade fraud and protect origin is being implemented very vigorously,” Ms. Huong emphasized.

Recently, the Customs Department has proposed that the Ministry of Industry and Trade promptly issue regulations on how to identify goods produced in Vietnam to avoid confusion about Vietnamese origin when exporting and requested that the ministry supplement and clarify regulations on simple processing stages in Decree No. 31/2018 detailing the Law on Foreign Trade Management on the origin of goods.

Strengthening Vietnam - US customs cooperation

On the other hand, Vietnam Customs is promoting cooperation and enhancing information exchange with US Customs.

The two sides are coordinating to implement the Container Initiative: At major ports in Vietnam, international security standards will be applied, and in coordination with US Customs, they will ensure the safety of exported goods by screening before the goods are exported to the US.

In addition, the customs authorities of the two countries also promoted the implementation of the “Declaration of Intent to Seek Cooperation Opportunities in the Field of Risk Management for Goods” including the establishment of the Foreign Electronic Cargo Data Exchange Program (FECDEP) in Vietnam, which the two sides signed in May 2024. Accordingly, the two sides continued to exchange opinions on the draft “Cooperation Agreement on Cooperation in the Use of Cargo Manifests”.

In addition, the Customs Department will promptly negotiate and sign agreements with the United States on preventing the circumvention of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures. This will be the basis for the two sides to support each other in investigating trade defense violations. At the same time, the two sides will agree on the exchange of port information for export shipments.

According to statistics from the General Department of Customs, in 2024, Vietnam will have 14,200 enterprises participating in exports to the US. The total tax revenue will be VND 226,700 billion (accounting for 11.2% of the total state budget revenue in 2024), creating jobs for 7.2 million workers (about 22.3% of workers in the formal sector).

Of these, there are nearly 5,000 FDI enterprises, accounting for 78.3% of total export turnover, especially in key industries: phones and components (99.7%), footwear (79.04%), textiles (59.76%) and wooden furniture (61.33%). 18/18 enterprises with export turnover of over 1 billion USD are FDI enterprises.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/ung-pho-nguy-co-my-ap-thue-hang-viet-nam-nganh-hai-quan-se-lam-gi-2394672.html