On August 5, 2025, the General Department of Customs issued Official Letter No. 17615/CHQ-NVTHQ guiding the physical inspection of goods for Authorized Economic Operators (AEOs) and tax refund policies for re-exported goods.
1. Physical Inspection of Goods for Authorized Economic Operators (AEOs):
Authorized Economic Operators (AEOs) are exempt from document inspection for customs dossiers and exempt from physical inspection of goods, except in cases where:
- There are signs of legal violations; or
- Random inspection is conducted to assess compliance.
(Article 43.1 of the 2014 Law on Customs and Article 5 of Circular No. 72/2015/TT-BTC, as amended by Circular No. 07/2019/TT-BTC)
>>> Related topic: Converting to Authorized Economic Operator (AEO)
2. Conditions for Import Tax Refund for Goods Subject to Re-export:
- Case 1: Goods imported under customs procedure code A12 (import of raw materials and supplies for production/business), subsequently re-exported:
Import tax shall be refunded and export tax shall not be imposed if the following conditions are met:
- Import tax has been paid, and the same goods are re-exported abroad;
- Goods re-exported have not been used, processed, or manufactured in Vietnam;
- Re-export is conducted by the original importer or by a party authorized or entrusted by the original importer;
- The re-export declaration must be accurately and truthfully declared, including: confirmation that the goods were previously imported; contract number and date; and the name of the foreign buyer.
(Pursuant to Article 19.1(c) and Article 19.2 of the Law on Export and Import Duties and Article 34 of Decree No. 134/2016/NĐ-CP)
- Case 2: Goods imported under procedure codes E31 (export production) or E11, E15 (processing), then converted under declaration A42 (change of use purpose), import tax paid, and subsequently re-exported under code B13:
Import tax shall be refunded and export tax shall not be imposed if the following conditions are met:
- The re-exported goods are the same goods previously imported, which have not been used, processed, or manufactured;
- The goods re-exported have been declared under the A42 declaration (change of use purpose);
- Re-export is carried out by the original importer or a party authorized or entrusted by the original importer;
- The A42 declaration must clearly indicate the original import declaration number, and the form of change of use purpose or conversion to domestic consumption;
- The B13 declaration (re-export) must be accurately and truthfully declared, including: confirmation that the goods were previously imported; contract number and date; and the name of the foreign buyer.
(Pursuant to Article 19.1(c) and Article 19.2 of the Law on Export and Import Duties; Article 34 of Decree No. 134/2016/NĐ-CP; and Point a.1, Clause 2, Article 21 of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC)
3. Post-Refund Inspection:
- Inspection period: within 1 year from the date of issuance of the tax refund decision.
- If any signs of violations, fraud, or ineligibility are detected in the refunded dossiers, the Customs Authority shall re-impose tax and handle the violations in accordance with regulations.
(Pursuant to Article 77 of the 2019 Law on Tax Administration)
(According to Official Letter No. 17615/CHQ-NVTHQ dated August 5, 2025)
Relevant Services:
Duty-free Material Management, EPE & AEO Setup and Conversion Consulting
📞 Contact UNI Customs Consulting for free consultation:
📧 Email: uni@eximuni.com
📱 Hotline: +(84) 908-535-898 (Vietnamese) | +(84) 902-927-767 (Korean)