Specialized Checking: There are a lot of things to do.

Hai Phong customs officers inspect import goods.

Clearance times reach target

One of the key issues of Resolution 19 is customs procedures for comprehensive reform of regulatory and control regulations for import and export goods (included in Resolution 19 2015) to improve the cross-border trade index of Vietnam. Accordingly, the Resolution requires the application of risk management principles, strongly transferring to post-inspection in line with international practices in management and technology of import and export goods.

With the strong determination of the Government, the active participation of ministries, branches and localities, and the close cooperation of associations, branches and enterprises in the implementation of Resolution 19, Vietnam has achieved encouraging results for improving the business environment and enhancing national competitiveness.

According to Dr. Nguyen Dinh Cung, the enterprise has significantly reduced costs and about 90% of procedures, which have long been related to declaration, import and export procedures, resulting in faster customs clearance. On the results of implementation of the Government's guidance in Resolutions 19 on the management of specialized examination, at the workshop on the implementation of Resolution 19 on the reform of administrative procedures in the management and inspection for import and export goods that has recently been organized by the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), Mr. Pham Thanh Binh, a state managing expert of USAID Project pointed out the achieved and not achieved aspects in accordance under the requirements of the Resolution on the issue of specialized checking

The requirement of transferring from basic checking to post-checking, up to now, the implementation of transferring post-checking before it was issued into market: In terms of quality control, Decree No. 74/2018 / ND-CP, Circular 07/2017 / TT-BKHCN and Circular 21/2017 / TT-BCT on formaldehyde and other sectors (animal feed, quarantine ...) have not been implemented.

In the area under the management of Hanoi Customs, in 2017 the proportion of imports which must be checked is 5.43%. In the first quarter of 2018 the proportion of import shipments of specialized checking was 5.63%. In the area covered by Hai Phong Customs, the pre-customs clearance rate in general as of March, 2018 is about 9% of total import declaration. In the area of Ho Chi Minh City Customs is about 14%.

The requirement of goods clearance time is 70 hours for imported goods, 90 hours for exported goods. According to the assessment of Hanoi Customs, the time for completing customs clearance procedures (goods are not checked) average is 48 hours (from customs declaration to collection), animal quarantine is 90 hours, a phytosanitary certificate is 50 hours.

According to incomplete statistics from the General Department of Customs, in the first five months of 2018, the General Department of Customs has coordinated with ministries and agencies to review and make a total of 337 legal documents on management and specialized checking, and has requested the ministries and branches to amend and supplement 79/87 documents; To review the list of goods of specialized checking with the codes of coefficient to reduce and promulgate more than 60 commodity items under Circular No. 65/2017 / TT-BTC. In addition, the General Department of Customs has developed a scheme to submit to the Prime Minister on the pilot implementation of a number of commodities at the customs office. Statistics show that, in the second quarter of 2015, there are 82,760 items under management and specialized checking; the first quarter 2018 to 78,390 items (decreased 4,403 items).

According to the representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, it issued Circular No. 24/2017 / TT-BNN & PTNT promulgating the codes of coefficient for those goods that must have specialized checking, and this was an initial review to basically reduce the category of handicraft items in the fields of agriculture and rural development. "Before that, this approached list was considered like entering the jungle with thousands of items. So far, more than 7,000 are under Circular 24. This is not an exact number, as there are duplicates in some categories. In the next round we will continue to cut on this Circular. With the group of goods under the management of many units under the Ministry, we agreed to assign a focal point for the implementation of the specialized checking. Now the opinion of staff at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is being waited for, but at the earliest, this decision could be issued in August," said the representative of MARD.

Labeling Energy: Spending more time and costs

According to Mr. Pham Thanh Binh, many of the requirements for improving specialized checking have not been met as required by Resolutions 19. In particular, the requirement for the application of risk management in specialized checking, because it requires the application of the principle of risk management on the basis of assessing the level of legal compliance of enterprises in the specialized checking. To date, the principle of risk management has been applied in the field of food safety management, other areas basically have not been applied. Along with that, the requirements for the priority enterprises in the management of specialized checking have not applied for any field of specialized checking.

According to the information provided by experts from the GIG, the implementation of requirements on the widespread adoption of international practice has not made any progress. In particular, there is no Ministry that applies the promotion of mutual recognition in specialized checking. Active recognition of the quality of well-known brands and manufacturers, goods produced in countries and regions with advanced quality standards (Europe, America, Japan)….. there has been not been any disclosure, even when it is published in law.

Regarding the change in the way of managing, inspecting and labeling energy efficiency, Pham Thanh Binh said that this is a complicated procedure that takes a lot of the time and costs. According to the evaluation of a regular importing company in Ho Chi Minh City, the total cost of inspection and technical regulation certification at Quatest 3 Technical Center is over 149 million for 4 models of industrial freezers. Regarding the requirements related to the abolition, simplification of procedures for announcement of conformity and norms, according to experts of GIG, in general the standard conformity announcement procedures have not changed significantly. For example, the announcement of products for nutritional products, baby products in about 3 months still requires one more additional time by the Department of Health (HCMC, which leads to the company to have to do it again.

Regarding the industrialization and modernization, Resolution 19, 2018, the requirements are the targets and tasks from the previous Resolutions 19 that have not been fulfilled, these must be continuously done such as: The application of risk management in the specialized checking; Applying the priority enterprise mode in the management of the specialized checking; To take initiative in recognizing the quality of well-known marks and manufacturers, those made in countries or regions with advanced quality standards; to electronically digitize the procedure of managing the specialized checking; Changing the way of management, testing, and labeling energy efficiency. In addition, the resolution required a strong transformation of state management from pre-audit to post-audit, attaching to the principles of risk management, assessing the level of legal compliance of organizations and individuals. Basically eliminating the status of a commodity for the specialized checking with more than one agency; To reduce at least 50% of goods items for specialized checking; To reduce the proportion of import shipments of products for specialized checking at the customs clearance period from 25-27%, now to less than 10%; Implementing 130 new administrative procedures through National Single Window and ASEAN Single Window. There are many problems with different understandings in the specialized checking that are also obstacles and difficulties for customs clearance of export goods. This is also the content group to be unified to facilitate the specialized checking.