DECISION

PROMULGATING THE REGULATION ON GOODS IMPORT LICENSING

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;
At the proposal of the Minister of Trade in Report No. 0135/TM-XNK dated January 27, 2005,

DECIDES:

Article 1. To issue together with this Decision the Regulation on goods import licensing.

Article 2. This Decision takes effect as from September 1, 2005. The Ministers of Trade; Industry; Agriculture and Rural Development; Fisheries; Culture and Information; Health; Post and Telematics; and Finance, the State Bank of Vietnam, the General Department of Customs and other State agencies competent to license goods import shall have to revise and adjust documents guiding the import of goods under their respective management before September 1, 2005, so as to make them suit the provisions of the Regulation on goods import licensing, issued together with this Decision.

Article 3. The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the Government-attached agencies and the presidents of the provincial/municipal People's Committees shall have to implement this Decision.

REGULATION

ON GOODS IMPORT LICENSING
(Issued together with the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 41/2005/QD-TTg dated March 2, 2005)

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Regulation prescribes basic principles, forms and procedures for goods import licensing by import-licensing agencies for subjects importing goods subject to import management under licenses.

Article 2. Interpretation of terms

1. ''Import licensing procedures'' mean processes and procedures related to goods import licensing, from the procedures on dossiers of application for import licenses to the process of receiving and processing dossiers and making decisions by agencies with import licensing competence.

2. ''Import-licensing agencies'' mean the State agencies with import licensing competence according to law provisions.

3. ''Applicants for import licenses'' mean organizations and individuals entitled to import goods according to law provisions.

4. ''Automatic import licensing'' means a licensing form to be applied under specific conditions, which, however, does not aim to restrict import and requires the to-be-approved dossiers of application for import licenses to be compatible with the provisions of Article 4 of this Regulation.

5. ''Non-automatic import licensing'' means a licensing form beyond the scope of automatic import licensing.

6. ''Import goods subject to management under licenses'' shall be prescribed by the Prime Minister for each period, except for those on the list of goods subject to automatic import licensing.

Article 3. Import licensing principles

1. To clarify import-licensing procedures

a) The import licensing must be prescribed in a simple, transparent and objective manner.

b) Import-licensing agencies must notify concretely documents and information to be included in the dossiers of application for import licenses for the license applicants to know and implement. All regulations and information related to the procedures of application for import licenses, including conditions for organizations and individuals to be entitled to submit dossiers of application for licenses; licensing agencies; lists of goods subject to import licensing must be published in the Official Gazette within twenty one (21) days before such regulations take legal effect, and at the same time, be published on the websites of import-licensing agencies and posted up at such agencies' offices. All exceptional cases or changes in regulations related to import licensing procedures or lists of goods items subject to import licensing must be announced in the above-said ways within the above-said time limit.

2. Procedures for submission of dossiers of application for import licenses and procedures for extension of import licenses

a) The applicants for import licenses shall have to submit dossiers therefor to only one agency. In cases where it is necessary to contact with many agencies, the number of such agencies must not exceed three (3).

b) Procedures for submission of dossiers of application for import licenses or procedures for extension thereof (if any) must be prescribed in a simple and clear manner. The time limit for submission of dossiers (if any) shall be prescribed to be at least twenty one (21) days and may be extended in cases where import-licensing agencies have not yet fully received the dossiers within such time limit. The contents of the applications for import licenses or for extension thereof must be prescribed in a simple and clear manner.

c) Import-licensing agencies must not refuse dossiers of application for import licenses for small mistakes on information, provided that such mistakes do not alter the important and basic contents of such dossiers. In case of mistakes or errors related to documents or procedures, import- licensing agencies may issue appropriate cautioning or warning notices, provided that such mistakes or errors are not attributed to fraudulence or negligence.

d) In case of refusal to license import, the licensing agencies must clearly state the reasons therefor.

e) It is not allowed to refuse the customs clearance for licensed import goods only for reasons of little disparities in their value, quantity or weight as compared to the figures inscribed in licenses, which have arisen in the course of goods delivery, or for reasons of the nature of goods loading and unloading as well as other little disparities compatible to normal trade practices.

f) The access to foreign exchange for the import of goods under licenses shall apply on an equal footing with goods imported without import licenses and compatible with current regulations on foreign exchange management.

Chapter II

IMPORT LICENSING FORMS

Article 4. Automatic import licensing

Apart from the general principles prescribed in Article 3 of this Regulation, the automatic import licensing must also comply with the following provisions:

1. All applicants for import licenses, if meeting the legal requirements on import of goods eligible for automatic import licensing, may submit dossiers therefor and be licensed automatically.

2. Dossiers of application for automatic import licensing shall be submitted to licensing agencies before goods are cleared from customs procedures.

3. Valid dossiers of application for automatic import licensing shall be approved by licensing agencies right after a reasonable period of time in terms of administrative procedures, which, however, must not exceed ten (10) working days after receiving the valid dossier sets; the customs clearance shall be effected only after the issuance of automatic import licenses.

The provisions on valid dossier sets shall be announced by licensing agencies in a clear and specific manner as prescribed in Article 3 of this Regulation.

4. The Prime Minister authorizes the Minister of Trade to, on the basis of the practical situation and demands and after consulting with concerned agencies, announce or adjust lists of goods imported under automatic import licenses and the grant of import licenses for such goods. In cases where the automatic import licensing is no longer necessary, it must be immediately annulled.

Article 5. Non-automatic import licensing

Apart from the principles prescribed in Article 3 of this Regulation, the non-automatic import licensing must comply with the following provisions:

1. In cases where licenses are used for the management of import quotas or for the performance of other import management measures, they must not cause further obstacles to import goods. The procedures for non-automatic import licensing shall be prescribed in compatibility with the scope and time limit of application of import management measures and must not complicate the application of such import management measures.

2. In cases where the licensing does not aim to restrict goods quantity, licensing agencies shall announce grounds for import licensing for domestic as well as foreign organizations and individuals to know.

3. In cases where import quotas are allocated according to supplying countries, the import-licensing agencies of Vietnam must announce in time the total volume of import quotas calculated according to import goods' quantity or value, time of commencement and completion of quota allocation for the Governments of supplying countries, domestic as well as foreign organizations and individuals to know.

4. All applicants for import licenses are equal in the submission of dossiers as well as in the process of consideration for licensing. In cases where subjects submitting dossiers of application for import licenses are refused, the import-licensing agencies must clearly state the reasons therefor; license applicants may lodge complaints to agencies with licensing competence, requesting such agencies to review the refusal according to the law provisions on import licensing.

5. In cases where the import licensing is carried out on the principle that dossiers, which are submitted first shall be considered first, the time limit for consideration of dossiers of application for import licenses must not exceed thirty (30) days after import management agencies receive valid dossier sets, except for exceptional cases due to force majeure events. In cases where import management agencies consider all dossiers concurrently, the time limit for consideration thereof must not exceed sixty (60) days after the announced deadline for submission of dossiers.

6. The valid duration of licenses must be reasonable, being not so short that the importation becomes infeasible. The valid duration must not be prescribed at such levels that exclude the import of goods from far sources, except for cases where goods must be brought into the country immediately in order to satisfy unexpected short-term demands.

7. Import management agencies must not block the import, which is compatible with the contents of import licenses, as well as the full use of allocated quotas.

8. When licensing import, import management agencies should pay attention to license applicants' desires so as to grant licenses with reasonable quantity and in compatibility with their business practice.

9. When licensing import, import management agencies need to formulate the procedures for considering import activities of license applicants and achievements recorded in implementing the granted import licenses recently (2 years at most).

In cases where such import licenses have not yet been fulfilled, import management agencies shall investigate into the reasons therefor so as to consider the grant of new licenses. Import management agencies shall also have to consider current principles and regulations and practical trading of concerned commodity lines so as to allocate quotas and grant import licenses to new importers in a reasonable manner.

10. In cases where import quotas are allocated according to licenses not under conditions on goods-supplying countries, licensed subjects shall have the right to select supplying sources. If import quotas are allocated under conditions on goods-supplying countries, the import licenses must be clearly inscribed with country(ies) from which the licensed subjects may import goods into Vietnam.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 6. Implementation organization

1. The Ministries of Industry; Agriculture and Rural Development; Fisheries; Culture and Information; Health; Post and Telematics; and Finance, the State Bank of Vietnam, the General Department of Customs and other State agencies with import licensing competence shall have to supply relevant information to, and coordinate with the Ministry of Trade in supervising the implementation of this Regulation.

2. The Ministry of Trade shall supervise and sum up the situation of implementation of this Regulation by concerned ministries and branches; report to the Prime Minister for handling cases of guidance and implementation in contravention of this Regulation as well as matters falling beyond competence of concerned ministries and branches; and act as coordinating body supplying information on import licensing to the Committee for Import Licensing of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and WTO member countries in accordance with the obligations prescribed in the WTO Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures once Vietnam becomes member of this organization.