Guidelines for Implementing Resolution 19/2026/NQ-CP on Reduction, Decentralization, and Simplification of Administrative Procedures

Table of Contents

On May 29, 2026, the General Department of Customs issued Official Dispatch No. 16951/CHQ-GSQL to guide regional Customs Sub-Departments in implementing Government Resolution No. 19/2026/NQ-CP on the reduction, decentralization, and simplification of administrative procedures and business conditions under the management scope of the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Key Contents:

1. Decentralization of Authority from the Ministry of Industry and Trade to Provincial-level People’s Committees (Effective May 29, 2026)

Chemicals sector: Receipt of applications and issuance of export/import licenses for specially controlled chemicals (Group 1) and prohibited chemicals.
Import-Export sector: Issuance of Certificates of Eligibility for remanufactured goods under the EVFTA and UKVFTA agreements for items specified under Decree No. 66/2024/ND-CP.

2. Abolition of Certain Administrative Procedures (Effective April 29, 2026)

Several procedures are no longer required, including:

Tobacco sector: Abolition of procedures for importing, transferring, and liquidating specialized tobacco machinery and equipment, as well as procedures for approving investment in tobacco production technology renewal.

Import-Export sector:

Abolition of import licenses for goods affecting national defense and security but not serving national defense or security purposes.
Discontinuation of the issuance of Temporary Import for Re-export Business Codes for frozen food, excise-taxable goods, and used goods.
Abolition of C/O issuance procedures in certain cases, such as: retroactively issued C/O, goods stored in bonded warehouses, or goods traded between the domestic market and export processing enterprises/non-tariff zones.

3. Simplification of Procedures in the Chemicals Sector

Provisions for exemptions from licensing or certification requirements for chemicals:

By concentration: Exemption from export/import licenses for chemical mixtures with low concentrations of controlled substances (≤1% for Group 1; ≤5% for Group 2; <0.1% for prohibited chemicals).
By intended use: Exemption from export/import licenses for specially controlled chemicals used in laboratory settings with quantities of 1mg or less (≤1mg) per import.
By product type: Exemption for chemicals contained in consumer and industrial products such as pharmaceuticals, food, cosmetics, paints, printing inks, batteries, accumulators, petroleum products, and medical devices, etc.
Specific transactions: License exemption for on-the-spot import/export activities and transactions between domestic enterprises and enterprises located in separate customs territories.
Extended document submission deadline: Deferral of the requirement to present chemical manufacturing and trading licenses until December 31, 2026 for certain chemical categories under new regulations.

(Pursuant to Official Dispatch No. 16951/CHQ-GSQL dated May 29, 2026)

Related services: Customs Clearance Procedures