Quyết định 1233/QD-TTg

DECISION

APPROVING IMPORT MANAGEMENT SCHEME BY 2020 IN CONFORMITY WITH INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 2471/QD-TTg dated December 28, 2011 on approving the strategy for exporting and importing goods for the period 2011 - 2020 with a vision to 2030;

Pursuant to the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 950/QD-TTg dated July 25, 2012 on promulgating the Action Plan to implement the strategy for exporting and importing goods for the period 2011 - 2020 with a vision to 2030;

After considering the request made by the Minister of Industry and Trade in the Report No. 4125/TTr-BCT dated April 24, 2015 on approving the Scheme for import management measures by 2020 in compliance with international commitments,

HEREBY DECIDES

Article 1. Approve the import management scheme by 2020 in conformity with international commitments, including the following significant contents:

I. OBJECTIVES OF THE SCHEME

1. General objective

The scheme is aimed at setting up the system of measures to manage import of goods in conformity with international commitments and the progress of integration into the international economy by 2020 with the intention of achieving objectives set out in the strategy for import of goods for the period 2011 - 2020 with a vision to 2030.

2. Specific objectives

a) Create the import management toolkit in the upcoming time which conforms to international commitments in order to provide an open, transparent, stable and foreseeable legislative environment for enterprises, and contribute to controlling import activities as well as ensure that the objective of sustainable socio-economic development will be achieved.

b) Provide guidance on import management activities in order to meet the objectives stated in the strategy for export and import of goods for the period 2011 - 2020 with a vision to 2030, such as an average increase of 11%/year in the export of goods, an average increase of less than 10%/year in the import of goods reported for the period 2016 – 2020. Gradually reduce the trade deficit and work towards the trade balance in 2020. 

II. CONTENTS OF IMPORT MANAGEMENT MEASURES

1. General orientation

a) Sustain, make best use of tariff and non-tariff measures permitted for implementation in commitments to the World Trade Organization (WTO), and bilateral and multilateral Free Trade Agreements.

b) Intensify implementation of non-tariff measures, regulations on technical barriers to trade (TBT), sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS) as well as types of trade defence measures.

c) Make the Law on Foreign Trade Management in order to assure that policies are stable and consistent, and regulations are practical and feasible to serve the purpose of facilitating enterprises’ business operations.

d) Design and apply import management measures in a uniform and efficient manner, and focus on information-related tasks as well as monitor and assess the effectiveness of measures which have been applied. 

dd) Regularly review, check, amend, modify or abolish unnecessary regulations and administrative procedures to both reach the managerial objectives of guaranteeing the national security, social order, food and traffic safety, and protecting environment and the people’s health  as well as other public ones, and assure the administrative procedure reform with a view to creating favorable conditions for enterprises.  

2. Specific measures

a) Tariff

Use import duty and other tax (green tax, etc.) as an effective instrument to support domestic production activities at an appropriate level and improve the competitive capacity of domestic goods in compliance with commitments. As for goods that can be produced domestically, consider maintaining ceilings on the import tariffs as agreed upon in WTO commitments, and outline the roadmap for abolishing relevant custom tariffs imposed on goods imported from FTA member countries.

b) Tariff quota

Carefully examine and negotiate with opposing parties to bilateral and multilateral Trade Agreements in order to sketch out the roadmap for import management by employing the method of imposing tariff quotas on goods of which domestic production must be protected in a reasonable and appropriate manner to adapt to the tendency towards international economic integration.

c) Import ban

Sustain the current system for applying measures to ban import of certain goods in order to ensure the national security, environment and occupational safety and achieve other relevant public objectives in conformity with International Agreements of which our country is a signatory and member. 

d) Import quota

Comply with WTO commitments under which the measure to impose import quotas is not allowed. There is a possibility that import quotas are imposed in a non-discriminatory manner to cope with certain emergencies which are allowed by WTO. 

dd) Import permit

- Apply import management measures in the form of permits for import of goods that may cause impact on the national security and defence, social order, occupational and traffic safety, and environment as well as the people's health.

- Set up the interdisciplinary management system in order to exchange information and collaborate in controlling import of goods relating to the national security and defence, dual-use goods, chemicals, toxic chemicals and precursors.

- Specify the nomenclature of specific goods permitted for import according to import permits and those subject to specialized management. Clearly specify the management form and principle, and use correct HS codes specified in export and import tariffs in order to enable enterprises to comply with regulations.

- Consider applying automatic import permits to necessary situations to monitor and control import activities in order to assist in the work of administration, data analysis and study to draw up policies.

- Make sure that issuance of import permits and procedures for issuance of import permits conforms to procedures for issuance of import permits under WTO commitments and the Prime Minister's Decision No. 41/2005/QD-TTg dated March 2, 2005 on introducing the Regulation on issuance of permits for import of goods.

e) Technical and specialized measures

- Stimulate the design and application of measures which are necessary and agree with international commitments in the form of a TBT and SPS in order to protect the people’s health, environment, livestock, plants, and ensure the occupational, traffic and construction safety.

- Perfect legislative documents, consider modifying regulations which have not been consistent with the standards of product quality management. Promulgate the system of technical regulations that apply to specific goods specified in the nomenclature of goods or products that may pose risk to the safety (2^nd commodity headings). 

- Take proactive action to study and set out technical requirements of goods in the form of technical regulations and standards, and generate forms of evaluation of conformity with technical standards or regulations appropriate for the features of products, and level of impact on the import turnover as well as impact of these measures on domestic enterprises. 

- Stimulate negotiation and conclusion of mutual recognition agreements with regard to conformity assessments and certificates of conformity categorized by specialized sectors.

- Learn international experience so that it will apply to the import management by implementing sanitary, phytosanitary and food safety measures in which only enterprises accredited for food production activities and food safety practices by Vietnam’s competent authorities will be permitted for import of their goods into Vietnam.   

- With respect to several types of fruits, livestock, plants and goods that can cause impact on human health, study implementation of measures to carry out inspection at exporting countries and issue certificates to allow them to be exported to Vietnam.

- Form the legal bases for these measures with strict adherence to principles of national treatment (NT) and most-favored-nation treatment (MFN).

g) Trade defence

- Perfect and amend legislative documents on trade defence measures so that they conform to WTO regulations. Supplement more specific provisions on procedures, processes and methods for calculation in order to create necessary conditions for easy and flawless use of trade defence instruments.  

- Disseminate legislative documents on trade defence measures, increase awareness and capability of enterprises in implementing antidumping, anti-subsidy and self-defence measures.

- Enhance the capability of specialized agencies in charge trade defence. Assist Trade Associations in gathering information, initiating investigation into trade defence cases.

h) Product origin

- Rules of origin negotiated as part of a Free Trade Agreement serve as the measure to manage import of goods in which preferential tariffs are imposed to help sort out and restrict preferences for goods that need domestic production assistance to have access to market.   

- Intensify the work of preventing fraudulent origins of imported products, and taking control of the situation in which goods that fail to conform to product origin standards, or goods with fraudulent origins, will be treated as preferential ones which can result in illegal competitions and contribute to protecting domestic production and consumer rights.

i) Exchange rate

Manage the exchange rate in a flexible manner with a view to maintaining the macroeconomic stability, and in a way to match the export and import management orientation as well as contribute to sustaining the competitive capacity for Vietnamese goods on the international market.

k) Other import management measures

- Intensify and improve the efficiency in specialized inspection activities on the basis of promulgating the nomenclature of specific goods subject to the specialized inspection, and regulations on the process and procedure for inspection with the aim of facilitating enterprises' business operations and ensuring that requirements for import management are all satisfied. Stimulate the cooperation amongst Ministries and departments in order to guarantee the consistent management and reduced overlapping in organizing the work of specialized inspection.

- Outline technical standards and regulations that apply to goods or products in accordance with environmental regulations (such as ecolabels, waste and recycling package, etc.).

- Attach warnings and instructions printed in Vietnamese language on goods imported from overseas, but do not allow auxiliary labels to be attached to these goods as well.  For the time being, consider piloting implementation of this regulation on several kinds of goods.

- Ponder on the possibility of applying the measure to protect intellectual rights in the practice of import management which takes into account Vietnam’s growth level and other relevant regulations.

Article 2. Implementation

1. Ministries and departments under their assigned duties specified in the appendix enclosed herein shall carry out the scheme and adhere to implementation stages. 

2. In order to ensure the uniform policies on goods import management, when issuing new policies and solutions concerning the import management, Ministries and departments are obliged to cooperate and consult with the Ministry of Industry and Trade to enter into mutual agreements prior to implementation of the Scheme.

3. The Ministry of Industry and Trade shall preside over the establishment of an interdisciplinary coalition in charge of export and import activities of which the leader is coming from the leadership of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and members are representatives of relevant Ministries or departments. The coalition shall monitor the progress in implementation of the Scheme and import situations, and propose measures to make on-time adjustments.

4. Budget for implementation of the Scheme shall be funded by the State Budget and other legitimate financial sources in accordance with legal regulations.

Article 3. This Decision shall enter into force as from the signature date.

Article 4. Ministers, Heads of Ministry-level agencies, Heads of Government agencies, and Heads of organizations or individuals concerned shall be responsible for implementing this Decision./.

APPENDIX

DUTIES TO INITIATE THE SCHEME FOR IMPORT MANAGEMENT MEASURES BY 2020 IN COMPLIANCE WITH INTERNATIONAL COMMITMENTS (Issued together with the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 1233/QD-TTg dated August 3, 2015)