Cumbersome procedures for importing construction stone

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Customs officers of BinhPhuoc Customs Department inspect imports and exports at Hoa Lu International Border Gate. Photo: N.H

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hai Yen, Head of Import-Export Department of Binh Phuoc Logistics Service Company Limited, said that the company faced problems related to procedures for importing construction materials specified in Circular No. 19/2019/TT-BXD of the Ministry of Construction.

Ms. Hai Yen said that as per the provisions of Circular 19, in order to carry out the procedures for importing construction stone, the importer is required to be granted the Inspection Result Notification by the Department of Construction to submit to the Customs. However, in order to be granted this certificate, the importer must submit inspection dossier at the verification organization such as Vinacontrol, VietnnamControl... then submit them to the Department of Construction.

“For the process, it takes the importer 3-4 days, even one week to be cleared goods, increasing cost for the importer” Yen said.

For each imported container, the importer must spend over VND2 million per day, including car rental and warehousing costs. With more than 100 containers of imported construction stone per month, the costs arising from this procedure are huge, causing difficulties for the importer, especially amid the current difficult situation.

Talking to Customs News, the leader of Binh Phuoc Customs Department said that the problem of Binh Phuoc Logistics Company is also a general problem of local construction material importers.

Specifically, according to the provisions of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP dated May 15, 2018 of the Government amending and supplementing Decree 132/2008/ND-CP dated December 31, 2008, Circular No.19 /2019/TT-BXD, the importer must submit the Inspection Result Notification by the Department of Construction issued by the Department of Construction to the Customs for customs clearance.

However, the Department of Construction does not have enough equipment and machinery for quality inspection; it has to base on the results of conformity certification issued by inspection organizations such as Vinacontrol, VietnnamControl... to grant the Inspection Result Notification on the quality of imported goods. The importer then submits the notification to the customs for customs clearance.

Binh Phuoc Customs Department said that in fact most of the samples sent for inspection by the inspection organizations are recognized by the Department of Construction and issued the Inspection Result Notification on the quality of imported goods. From the practical results, the inspection method of the Department of Construction is unnecessary and needs to be abolished to create conditions for the importers under the regime of consumer business import. This will reduce moving costs, administrative procedures, shorten customs clearance and release time and still comply with the guidelines and direction of the Government in Resolution No. 01 -2023/NQ-CP dated 6/1/2023.

Based on the report and proposal of the Binh Phuoc Customs Department, the People's Committee of Binh Phuoc province has made a written proposal to the Government and the Ministry of Construction to revise process of the state inspection for quality of products by cutting intermediate inspection stage at the local Department of Construction. Accordingly, it is proposed that importers only need to submit an application for state inspection of the quality of construction materials certified by the inspection authority to the Customs for customs clearance.