HCM City Customs: Stop case of illegal export scrap camouflaged as furniture

Tens of tonnes of circuit boards exporting illegally were seized by Customs

Dining table turns into scraps!

According to case dossier, P. Limited company (Binh Tan district, HCM City) opened a declaration at Saigon port area 1 Customs Branch, declaring to export 240 sets of rubberwood dining tables (each set included one table and six chairs), brand new 100%, made in Vietnam. This item was not subject to export duty, the declared value was more than VND 138 million.

Detecting suspicious sign from this export consignment, on March 10, the Export Cargo Customs Procedures Team worked with the Customs Supervision and Enforcement Team - Saigon Port Area 1 Customs Branch to conduct a physical inspection for this shipment. The inspection results showed all goods contained in the two containers were used circuit boards of all kinds, with a weight of 3.607 kg, packed in 78 jumbo bags. There was no furniture set as declared by the enterprise.

The inspection certificate of Centre 3 showed the electric circuit boards contained in the container were scrap from the integrated electric circuits containing electric components. These goods are hazardous waste in accordance with Circular No. 36/2015/TT-BTNMT dated June 30, 2015 of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment.

Tens of tonnes of circuit boards exporting illegally were seized by Customs

Thus, P. Company made an incorrect declaration of goods names, HS codes, quantity of exported goods and goods as hazardous wastes without approval document from competent authority, which was discovered by the customs authority during the implementation of customs procedures.

The value of infringing goods was determined by the customs authority to exceed VND 441 million, and evading tax by more than VND 44 million VND. Based on the above results, the Saigon port area 1 Customs Branch made a record of the violation, temporarily seizing both containers of export scrap to expand verification and clarification.

The chorus of "mistaken"

After detecting a mistake from the export consignment, the enterprise sent a document to explain declaring the wrong information of another company and the reason for not being able to conduct an additional declaration for supplementing the above customs declaration. According to the explanation, the correctly declared item for export as plastic scrap which was plastic electric circuit board, chopped, quantity and weight was 36,190 kg, worth $3,908. However, at the time of conducting a physical inspection, the enterprise could not provide an approval document issued by the General Department of Environment on the cross-border transportation of hazardous waste as prescribed.

Working with the Customs authority, H.V.K., Director of P. Company said the customs declaration of the above shipment was made by a service company. The reason for this mistake was due to negligence, the customs broker declared wrong information of another company. This confusion the company was not intentional.

However, not only information showed on the customs declaration, through inspection of export documents, Saigon port area 1 Customs Branch discovered on the commercial invoice, signed and sealed by the director H.V.K of this company, showing the name of the product matched with the enterprise's declaration on the customs declaration.

Along with that, on the foreign trade contract, the value-added invoice provided by the company showed the product name: Plastic electric scrap, on both two commercial invoices, there are the same number of invoices, date and time with the signature of the director and the company’s seal. The information showed on the documents included in the export dossier and the documents provided by the company, there was the same import partner: Kabushiki Kaisa YamadaToshi/YamadaToshi And Co.,LTD. On the order to deliver the empty container number SITSGOSG184997 represents shipper: KVC Logistics & Trading CO., LTD, the product name was: Electric Scrap.

The verification results at the shipping company and partners involved in the above export consignment showed names of goods declared as electric scrap (roughly translated as scrap from electric boards).

Therefore, the company's explanation as the agent misrepresented the information of another company is unfounded. The Customs authority determined P. Company had intentionally declared incorrect goods names, HS codes and quantity of exported goods which was hazardous waste without the approval document of the competent State authority.