Strictly control sources of smuggled goods transporting into HCM City

	Smuggled goods transported to HCM City Customs Department forecast to increase at the end of the year
	HCM City prevents and handles many prominent groups of counterfeit and smuggled goods

Officers of Zone 4th Sai Gon Seaport Customs Branch use sniffing dog to inspect goods. Photo: T.H

Preventing smuggled goods at border gate

According to Steering Committee 389 of HCM City, smuggled and counterfeit goods are consumed and transported into HCM City from many provinces, including from border provinces. To strictly control the source of these goods, law enforcement authorities have closely controlled at border gates in HCM City.

With the characteristics of HCM City having many border gates, seaports, international airports and international post offices, HCM City has focused on controlling goods across border gates. According to the assessment of HCM City Customs Department, the smuggling and trade fraud in the area under the management of Customs is increasingly complicated and occurred new tricks. Notably, the transportation of banned products such as drugs in and out Vietnamese territory has increased with more sophisticated tricks.

Deputy Director of HCM City Customs Department Do Thanh Quang, the department regularly assesses legal compliance of businesses and individuals; classifies commodity groups to apply risk management methods to facilitate trade and closely control import and export goods. Currently, over 95% of declarations are not required physical inspection of goods, including more than 65% of goods cleared via Green channel within 3 seconds; 30-35% of declarations cleared in less than 10 minutes. Some subjects have taken advantage of channel classification to smuggle and commit trade fraud.

Deputy Director of HCM Minh City Market Surveillance Department Nguyen Tien Dat said, the transportation of smuggled goods, especially electronic products, household electrical appliances, cigarettes, sugar, and cosmetics, food... transported to the City in the direction of the Southwest border increases. Transporters operate without fixed time and transport goods via delivery applications, leading to difficulties for enforcement authorities to determine business locations and warehouses for inspection and handling.

In July, at Tan Tao A ward, Binh Tan district, Ho Chi Minh City, the Market Surveillance Department and HCM City Police detected 4,500 LED LED light bulbs and solar lights of unknown origin, without invoice and documents and valued at over VND1billion showing signs of smuggling.

Earlier, in July, HCM City enforcement authorities inspected a truck moving on Cu Chi Bridge, Cu Chi district, HCM City and discovered and seized 120,000 smuggled cigarette packs worth over VND3.5 billion.

To effectively prevent smuggled goods and counterfeit goods, HCM City leaders directed the member units of HCM City Steering Committee 389 to coordinate closely and combat effectively smuggling, trade fraud and counterfeit goods in the domestic market, especially focusing on inspecting and controlling rings of smuggling, producing and trading counterfeit goods, banned goods, and goods of unknown origin, and drastically preventing smuggling hotspots.

Improving gold market security

One of the works that HCM City Anti-smuggling forces have paid attention over the past time is improving gold market security. At the end of July, HCM City People's Committee established a working group to remain gold market security in the area. The working group is in charge of cooperating in inspection of compliance with legal regulations on gold trading by gold bar traders and gold and fine art jewelry producers and traders; checking organizations and individuals suspected of speculation and profiteering, causing instability in the local gold market.

Lieutenant Colonel Le Manh Ha, HCM City Police Department's Advisory Department, said that the Police and other units will coordinate, exchange information, and take measures to ensure legal regulations on preventing and combating money laundering, ensuring national security in the economic field. The establishment of the working group aims to ensure gold market security and meet requirements of management and stabilization of the gold market, contributing to stabilizing financial and monetary market, thereby positively impacting socio-economic development.

HCM City Market Surveillance Department, during the specialized inspection of gold jewelry products under the direction of the Prime Minister, the General Department of Market Surveillance, HCM City People's Committee, in the first 6 months of 2024, the department inspected and detected 196 violations, temporarily seized 1,657 units of gold jewelry products with items such as rings, necklaces, bracelets… of unknown origin with total value of more than VND14.2 billion. In the near future, the Department will strengthen management, proactively coordinate with enforcement forces to closely monitor subjects involving gold trading activities to promptly inspect and detect violations.