Circular No. 203/2014/TT-BTC guides the handling of goods in surplus within the customs operation area.

CIRCULAR

HGuidelines for handling goods in storage within the customs arean

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Based on the Civil Code dated June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to the Customs Law dated June 23, 2014;

Pursuant to the Vietnam Maritime Code on June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to the Civil Aviation Law on June 29, 2006;

Pursuant to the Law on Posts dated June 17, 2010;

Pursuant to the Law on Trade dated June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to Decree No. 29/2014/NĐ-CP dated April 10, 2014 of the Government on the authority and procedures for establishing state ownership rights over assets and managing and disposing of assets established as state-owned property;

Pursuant to Decree No. 215/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 23, 2013, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the proposal of the Director of the State Asset Management Agency,

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular guiding the handling of goods in storage within the customs area.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Circular guides the handling of goods in storage that are under customs supervision and stored in port, warehouse, or yard areas within the customs area.

2. Goods in storage that are under customs supervision and stored in port, warehouse, or yard areas within the customs area (hereinafter referred to as goods in storage) include:

a) Goods declared abandoned by the owner or where the owner has performed acts indicating abandonment.

Abandonment by the owner or acts indicating abandonment shall not be recognized for goods suspected of violating the law.

b) Imported goods remaining at the customs checkpoint for more than 90 days without being collected by anyone.

c) Goods collected by port, warehouse, or yard operating enterprises during cargo handling operations.

d) Imported goods outside the bill of lading or cargo declaration but not collected by anyone.

3. This Circular does not apply to:

a) Goods in storage outside the customs area or goods in storage within the customs area but not subject to customs supervision.

b) Goods in storage identified as contraband and subject to administrative confiscation for state funds or criminal proceedings.

4. For goods in storage that are temporary import for re-export, transshipment, or stored in bonded warehouses and require a deposit or guarantee, in addition to following the provisions of this Circular, they must also comply with the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Finance regarding the management and use of deposits made by traders.

Article 2. Applicability

1. Customs authorities at all levels.

2. Port, warehouse, or yard operating enterprises.

3. Bonded warehouse operators.

4. Postal service providers (including international express delivery service providers).

5. Shipping companies; shipping company agents; freight forwarders; agents authorized by shipping companies or freight forwarders (hereinafter collectively referred to as carriers).

6. Shippers or consignees named on the bill of lading.

7. Other entities related to the handling of goods in storage within the customs area.

Article 3. Principles for Managing and Handling Goods in Storage

1. Handling of goods in storage must follow the timeframes, procedures, and formalities stipulated in this Circular and relevant laws.

2. Handling of goods in storage must be timely, transparent, and conducted in accordance with prescribed regulations.

Chapter II

HANDLING OF GOODS IN STORAGE

Section 1

MONITORING, PRESERVATION, AND NOTIFICATION OF GOODS IN STORAGE

Article 4. Monitoring and preserving stored goods

1. The carrier shall be responsible for providing information on the list of bills of lading exceeding 90 days from the date of arrival at the import customs checkpoint without a recipient to the port, warehouse, and yard operating enterprises as a basis for monitoring and compiling the situation of stored goods.

2. Enterprises managing port, warehouse, and yard operations, bonded warehouse owners, postal service provision enterprises (hereinafter referred to as enterprises managing stored goods) shall be responsible for:

a) Monitoring, statistics, and categorizing stored goods;

b) Arranging port, warehouse, and yard locations meeting customs supervision conditions to store and preserve stored goods during the waiting period for processing according to the requirements of the Customs authority.

Article 5. Determining goods declared abandoned or demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner

1. Goods declared abandoned by the owner are goods for which the owner has submitted a written declaration of abandonment; goods left at sea ports by sea carriers in Vietnam and for which the carrier has submitted a written declaration of relinquishment of custody.

2. Goods demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner are goods under customs supervision within the customs operational area (sea ports, inland waterway ports receiving foreign vessels, inland intermodal container depots (ICD), container freight stations (CFS), bonded warehouses, airports, postal service provision enterprises, and other customs operational areas) that the owner does not come to collect or respond to after being notified by the competent authority.

The determination of goods demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner at certain special customs operational areas shall be carried out as follows:

a) For goods in bonded warehouses:

- At least 15 days before the expiration date of the bonded warehouse rental contract or the extended rental contract, the bonded warehouse owner shall be responsible for notifying the owner in writing about the upcoming expiration of the rental contract so that the owner can process the removal of goods from the bonded warehouse;

- After 90 days from the expiration date of the bonded warehouse rental contract or the extended rental contract, if the owner does not remove the goods from the bonded warehouse, such goods will be determined as goods demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner.

b) For goods at postal service provision enterprises:

- Within five working days from the date of discovering imported goods sent through postal service provision enterprises but not yet completed customs procedures, or goods sent through postal service provision enterprises that have completed export customs procedures but cannot be delivered to the recipient, the postal service provision enterprise shall notify the owner in writing to collect the goods. If there is no response within 15 days from the first notification, the postal service provision enterprise shall issue a second written notification to the owner. Notifications shall be sent via guaranteed mail services with return receipt acknowledgment. The deadline for the owner to collect the goods is 90 days from the date of the first notification;

- Upon expiration of the collection period and the owner does not collect the goods or does not respond, the goods will be determined as goods demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner.

c) For goods and baggage at airports:

- Within five working days from the date the recipient refuses to accept the goods or there is no recipient (for goods) or from the date the baggage arrives at the destination (for baggage), the carrier shall notify the sender in writing to collect the goods (for goods) or post notices at the airport (for baggage). The notification period is 60 days (for goods) and 30 days (for baggage) from the start of the notification and posting;

- Upon expiration of the notification period and no one collects the goods or responds, the goods and baggage will be determined as goods demonstrating abandonment actions by the owner.

Article 6. Notification of Surplus Goods to Customs Authorities

In cases where it has not yet reached the regular reporting deadline but surplus goods that meet the conditions to be considered as surplus goods, such as goods prone to damage, frozen goods, dangerous chemicals, toxic substances, or goods with a remaining shelf life of less than 60 days, are discovered, the enterprise managing surplus goods shall be responsible for notifying the Customs Sub-Department within two working days from the date of discovery.

2. Enterprises managing surplus goods shall be responsible for providing information related to the consignment of surplus goods when requested by the Customs Authority to clarify matters.

Article 7. Inspection and Verification of Surplus Goods

3. The enterprise managing surplus goods shall be responsible for presenting surplus goods to the Customs Authority for inspection and verification as prescribed. The enterprise managing surplus goods and the carrier shall not request the Customs Authority to advance payment for warehouse, yard, and container storage fees when conducting inspections; the payment of these fees shall be carried out according to the provisions of Clause 7, Article 17 of this Circular.

Article 8. Notification to Find the Owner of Surplus Goods

b) Posting on the Customs Portal website and the State Asset Information page;

c) Publicly posting at the headquarters of the Customs Department and the Customs Sub-Department.

3. The period for the owner to claim the goods is sixty days from the date of the first notification. For goods prone to damage, frozen goods, dangerous chemicals, toxic substances, or goods with a remaining shelf life of less than sixty days, the notification period for the owner to claim the goods is fifteen days from the date of the first notification.

6. Cases Not Requiring Notification:

a) Goods declared abandoned by the owner or where actions indicating abandonment are carried out as stipulated in Article 5 of this Circular;

b) The Customs Authority determines that the goods belong to the list of prohibited export/import goods or temporarily suspended export/import goods as stipulated in Article 7 of this Circular.

Section 2

SURPLUS GOODS DISPOSITION BOARD

Article 9. Council for Handling Surplus Goods

a) Chairman of the Council: Leader of the General Department of Customs;

b) Members:

- Representative of the Provincial Finance Department where the surplus goods are located;

- Leaders of specialized departments under the General Department of Customs;

- Representative of the price management department under the Provincial Finance Department.

- Leader of the enterprise managing surplus goods;

- Leader of the Customs Sub-department;

- Representative of the carrier (if necessary).

- Representative of the relevant local administrative agency (if necessary).

The Director of the General Department of Customs decides specifically who will be the Vice Chairmen of the Council from among the members specified herein.

4. During the course of performing its tasks, the Council is permitted to:

a) Establish specialized units to assist the Council (such as inventory checking, classification of surplus goods, Council secretary);

b) Hire organizations or individuals with the appropriate functions to conduct appraisals, valuation, destruction, or auction of surplus goods;

c) Hire experts in relevant fields;

d) Hire enterprises to organize the implementation of plans to handle surplus goods.

Article 10. Principles of Operation of the Council

1. The Council operates based on the principle of collective work. Meetings of the Council are chaired by the Chairman and must have at least two-thirds of the total number of Council members present. In the event that the Chairman cannot attend, they may delegate authority to a Vice Chairman to chair the meeting.

2. The Council discusses and votes on prices and plans for handling surplus goods. Decisions on prices and plans for handling surplus goods must be approved by more than half of the Council members. In the event of a tie vote, the decision is made according to the vote of the meeting chair.

3. The Council must prepare minutes regarding the inventory, classification, valuation, and proposed plans for handling surplus goods.

4. The main contents of the Minutes include: Names of those participating in the handling of surplus goods; time and location of the proceedings; results of inventory, classification, and valuation of surplus goods; opinions of Council members and attendees regarding prices and plans for handling surplus goods; voting results of the Council on prices and plans for handling surplus goods; completion time and location of inventory, classification, and valuation of surplus goods; signatures of Council members.

Article 11. Responsibilities of the Chairman and Members of the Council for Handling Surplus Goods

1. The Chairman of the Council for Handling Surplus Goods shall be responsible for:

a) Assigning tasks to members of the Council;

b) Deciding on the establishment of specialized units to assist the Council;

c) Deciding on the plan and time for handling surplus goods;

d) Chairing meetings of the Council;

đ) Representing the Council to sign contracts with organizations and individuals providing services during the process of handling surplus goods; signing Sales Contracts with buyers of assets; assigning enterprises managing surplus goods to perform certain tasks stipulated in this Circular;

e) Preparing a budget for the work of handling surplus goods according to this Circular.

2. Other members of the Council shall perform their tasks as assigned by the Chairman. Specifically, the representative of the Department of Finance shall be responsible for chairing and advising the Council in determining the value of surplus goods.

Section 3

INVENTORY, CLASSIFICATION, VALUATION, AND ESTABLISHMENT OF STATE OWNERSHIP RIGHTS FOR SURPLUS GOODS

Article 12. Inventory, Classification, and Valuation of Surplus Goods

a) Opening seals on goods or containers (if any);

b) Conducting inventory, classifying surplus goods, and preparing a detailed list of surplus goods according to Model No. 07-THHĐ issued together with this Circular;

c) Determining the value of surplus goods.

2. Based on actual circumstances, the Chairman decides:

a) To assign the enterprise managing surplus goods to mobilize its staff to participate in conducting inventory and classifying surplus goods under the supervision of the Council;

b) To hire an organization with appraisal functions to appraise and determine the value of goods for the Council to consider and refer to as a basis for determining the value of goods.

1. Within seven working days from completing the inventory, classification, and valuation as prescribed in Article 12 of this Circular, the Council shall be responsible for preparing files and reporting to the Director of the Customs Department to decide on establishing state ownership rights over surplus goods along with the disposal plan for surplus goods as stipulated in Article 14 of this Circular.

The application documents include:

a) A request for establishing state ownership rights: one original copy;

b) A detailed list of surplus goods: one original copy;

c) A letter requesting notification sent to the Customs Newspaper (accompanied by the announcement published), the Customs Electronic Information Portal, the State Asset Information Website, or the announcement of the enterprise managing surplus goods to the consignor/cargo owner: one copy of each request or announcement;

d) A notice of abandonment of goods or documentation proving the abandonment of goods by the consignor or cargo owner (if any): one original copy.

All copies must be signed and stamped by the Chairman of the Council.

2. Specifically, for air cargo and baggage determined as surplus goods, within seven working days from the expiration of the deadline for the entitled person to claim the remaining amount from the disposal of surplus goods as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 16 of this Circular, the Council shall be responsible for submitting to the Director of the Customs Department to decide on establishing state ownership rights.

3. Within five working days from the date of receiving the complete application file from the Council, the Director of the Customs Department issues a Decision establishing state ownership rights over surplus goods according to Model No. 02/QĐ-XL issued together with this Circular.

Section 4

HANDLING OF GOODS IN STORAGE

1. Within seven working days from the date of completing the inventory, classification, and valuation as prescribed in Article 12 of this Circular, the Council shall be responsible for establishing measures for handling surplus goods according to the forms prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article and reporting to the Director of the General Department of Customs.

2. Forms of handling surplus goods:

a) Transfer to specialized state agencies for management and disposal of goods with cultural-historical value, national treasures, antiques, rare forest products, weapons, auxiliary tools, and other assets related to national defense and security;

b) Transfer to state agencies, public service units, people's armed forces units, political organizations, and socio-political organizations for management and use of usable goods such as transportation means, machinery, equipment, and work tools, and experimental equipment according to standards, norms, and regulations set by competent state authorities;

c) Destruction of goods that have lost their usability (rotten, broken, damaged, deteriorated quality, expired, not meeting usage quality standards, harmful items to human health, animals, and plants) or those required to be destroyed under Vietnamese law; in special cases where alternative disposal methods are necessary to ensure economy and effectiveness, the General Department of Customs shall report to the General Customs Department to coordinate with the State Asset Management Agency to seek the Minister of Finance’s decision;

Specifically, for goods causing environmental pollution, the consignor, carrier, driver, or authorized representative of the carrier shall be responsible for transporting such goods out of Vietnam. In cases where the carrier, driver, or authorized representative cannot be identified, the Council shall coordinate with relevant agencies to carry out destruction;

d) Direct sale (without auction) in the following cases:

- Fresh perishable food, easily spoiled, difficult to store; flammable and explosive goods (gasoline, gas, oil, liquefied gas, and other flammable materials);

- Processed food with less than thirty days remaining before expiration;

- Medicines and veterinary drugs with less than sixty days remaining before expiration;

- Other types of goods that will deteriorate or expire if not handled immediately;

- Goods valued at less than fifty million dong per lot according to the valuation by the Council;

e) Auction for goods not covered by points a, c, and d of this clause and assets specified in point b of this clause but not transferred according to the form prescribed in point a and point b of Clause 2 of this Article;

3. Within five working days from the date the Council submits the measures for handling surplus goods, the Director of the General Department of Customs shall decide on the measures for handling surplus goods according to Model No. 03/QD-PA issued together with this Circular within his authority, or report to the General Customs Department to coordinate with the State Asset Management Agency to seek the Minister of Finance’s decision for transfer as prescribed in point a and point b of Clause 2 of this Article;

4. For goods subject to special state management requirements, the General Department of Customs shall report to the General Customs Department to coordinate with the State Asset Management Agency to report to the Ministry of Finance for approval.

Within forty-five days from the date the competent authority decides on the plan to handle surplus goods, the Council must complete the implementation according to the following provisions:

1. For goods to be destroyed:

a) The Council shall organize the destruction or hire organizations with the appropriate functions to carry out the destruction; in cases where the destruction is carried out by the Council, the Council may entrust enterprises managing surplus goods to mobilize their employees to perform the destruction.

b) The destruction must be recorded in a Record. The main contents of the Destruction Record include: basis for implementing the destruction; time and location of destruction; participants in the destruction; name, type, quantity, and condition of the goods at the time of destruction; form of destruction and other related contents.

c) Forms of destruction:

Depending on the nature, characteristics of the goods, items, and requirements to ensure environmental hygiene, the destruction will be carried out in the following forms:

- Using chemicals;

- Using mechanical methods;

- Burning;

- Burial;

- Other forms as prescribed by law.

d) For types of goods whose destruction affects the environment, approval and guidance from the local environmental management agency must be obtained before organizing the destruction.

2. For goods transferred to specialized management agencies for handling or transferred to agencies, organizations, units for management and use, the Council organizes the handover of assets to the receiving unit according to the decision of the Minister of Finance. The handover and receipt of assets are recorded in a Record. The main contents of the Record include: participants in the handover; name, type, quantity, and condition of the assets being handed over; value of the assets being handed over (if applicable) and other related contents.

For goods handled through transfer, accounting entries for central government budget revenue are made when the decision to establish state ownership and the handling plan is made; accounting entries for central government budget expenditure are made when transferring to agencies, organizations, and units. The value of goods recorded as revenue and expenditure in the budget is determined by the Council.

3. For goods sold directly (without auction):

a) Based on the value of the goods determined by the Council according to point c, Clause 1, Article 12 of this Circular (including all types of taxes and fees as prescribed), the Council shall post information about the sale of goods at the Customs Branch and General Customs Office headquarters within three days. In case only one organization or individual registers to purchase, it shall be sold to that organization or individual. If multiple organizations or individuals register to purchase, a draw among them shall be organized to determine the buyer. The draw to determine the buyer must be conducted by the Council under the witness of those registering to purchase; registrants who do not attend the draw will lose their right to purchase. The draw to determine the buyer must be recorded in Form No. 04-BBBT issued together with this Circular, signed by the Chairman of the Council and representatives of the purchasers. The Council responsible for the transparency and fairness of the draw to select the buyer.

b) The sale of goods must be recorded in a Purchase and Sale Contract for Surplus Goods according to Form No. 05-HĐBTT issued together with this Circular.

c) The purchaser has the responsibility to pay the purchase price within three working days from the date of signing the Contract. After this period, if the purchaser does not pay the purchase price or fails to collect the goods or remove them from the customs area without a valid reason within fifteen days from the payment date, the Council shall reannounce the sale of goods according to point a of this clause to select a new buyer (in case the non-paying or non-collecting purchaser is the sole registrant) or organize a draw among remaining registrants to select the next buyer (in case there were multiple registrants in the previous sale). The amount paid by the purchaser will be managed according to Chapter III of this Circular and not refunded to the purchaser.

4. For goods sold through auction:

a) The starting price for organizing the auction is set by the Council (including all types of taxes and fees as prescribed);

b) The Council hires a professional auction organization to conduct the auction of surplus goods; in case a professional auction organization cannot be hired, the Chairman of the Council invites representatives of the Department of Justice of the province or centrally-administered city where the surplus goods are located to participate in the Council to organize the auction of surplus goods;

c) The procedures and formalities for selling surplus goods through auction are carried out according to the laws on auctioning assets;

d) The successful bidder has the responsibility to pay the purchase price and move the goods out of the customs surveillance area within fifteen working days from the date of signing the Contract. After this period, if the successful bidder does not pay and collect the goods or move them out of the customs surveillance area without a valid reason, the Council shall reorganize the auction according to points a, b, and c of this clause. The deposit and any payments already made will be managed according to Chapter III of this Circular and not refunded to the purchaser.

5. Purchasers of goods specified in Clause 3 and Clause 4 of this Article have the responsibility to pay the purchase price to the Council, without having to go through import procedures, and without paying import-related taxes and fees.

6. When purchasers of surplus goods specified in Clause 3 and Clause 4 of this Article make payment and move the goods out of the customs surveillance area, the Council is responsible for providing the purchaser with a set of documents, including:

a) Invoice for the sale of confiscated or national treasury property according to Form No. 01/TSSQ-3L.04 issued together with Decision No. 12/2004/QĐ-BTC dated January 9, 2004 of the Minister of Finance: one original copy;

b) A goods sale contract for surplus inventory (in case of direct sale) or an auctioned asset sale contract (in case of auction sale): 01 original copy;

c) The warehouse release form of the entity entrusted with custody and preservation of goods: 01 original copy.

Chapter III

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

1. Funds from the disposal of surplus inventory include:

a) Revenue from selling surplus inventory;

b) Deposit amounts and payment amounts made by the buyer but not collected due to the buyer's failure to collect the goods or remove them from the customs area.

2. All revenue from the sale of surplus inventory (excluding surplus inventory at airports specified in Clause 3 of this Article) shall be deposited into a temporary account opened by the Ministry of Finance at the State Treasury. The Minister of Finance authorizes the Director of the General Department of Customs to manage the account.

At the end of the fiscal year, the remaining revenue from the sale of surplus inventory on the temporary account, after deducting costs as stipulated in Article 17 of this Circular, shall be deposited into the central budget.

3. For revenue from the disposal of surplus inventory at airports:

Revenue from the sale of surplus inventory at airports shall be deposited into a temporary account opened by the Ministry of Finance at the State Treasury, and the Minister of Finance authorizes the Director of the General Department of Customs to manage the account.

After deducting costs as stipulated in Article 17 of this Circular, any remaining amount (if any) shall be returned to the entitled party; the entitled party must pay any taxes required by law (if applicable) before receiving the revenue from the sale of surplus inventory. If the entitled party does not claim the remaining amount within 180 days from the date of sale of surplus inventory, the Director of the General Department of Customs shall decide to establish state ownership over the assets according to Article 13 of this Circular and deposit the remaining amount into the central budget.

1. Costs for inspection, verification, inventory, and classification of goods.

2. Costs for appraisal and valuation of goods.

3. Costs for publishing information about surplus inventory carried out by the Customs Sub-department and the Disposal Council.

4. Costs for office supplies, printing, and photocopying documents.

5. Auction fees (in cases where professional auction organizations are hired to conduct auctions).

6. Costs for loading, unloading, transportation, counting, and warehousing services (if applicable).

7. Costs for preserving surplus inventory, including: port storage costs, warehouse and yard storage costs, container storage costs, costs for cold storage containers, and other related preservation costs (if applicable) from the date of the decision establishing state ownership.

All preservation costs for surplus inventory prior to the Director of the General Department of Customs issuing the decision to establish state ownership shall be borne by the consignor or the carrier; if the consignor cannot be identified, the consignor has abandoned the goods, or the consignor or carrier does not pay within one year from the end of the disposal process, the enterprise managing the surplus inventory may record these costs as business expenses.

8. Allowances for members of the Disposal Council, the Working Group, and other staff mobilized during the disposal of surplus inventory (inventory, classification, appraisal, valuation, formulation of disposal plans, organization of surplus inventory disposal, and other related tasks).

9. Costs for hiring experts in specialized fields (if applicable).

10. Costs for implementing the destruction of goods (including environmental handling costs during destruction).

11. Other costs related to the disposal of surplus inventory (if applicable).

1. For expenses that have standard rates, standards, or unit prices prescribed by the competent state authority, they shall be implemented according to current regulations.

2. Allowance for members of the Disposal Council, Working Group, and persons mobilized during the disposal process shall not exceed a maximum of VND 100,000 per day per person. The number of payment days is based on the actual number of days each member performs tasks assigned by the Disposal Council.

3. Expenses for printing, photocopying documents, office supplies, fuel, transportation, and other services related to the management machinery shall be calculated based on the actual needs of each specific case.

4. For expenses stipulated in Article 17 of this Circular that do not fall within the scope of Articles 1, 2, and 3 of this Article, the Director of the General Department of Customs shall decide on expenditures based on actual occurrences, contracts with service providers, and experts (if any), and the available budget for asset disposal, while bearing responsibility for their decisions.

1. The funds for payments shall be sourced from the proceeds from the sale of surplus goods deposited in a temporary account opened at the State Treasury.

2. In cases where the proceeds from selling assets in one disposal process are insufficient to cover the costs and there is a remaining balance in the temporary account from previous disposals, the remaining amount in the temporary account shall be used to cover the costs. If there is still a shortfall, assistance from the central budget shall be requested according to current regulations.

3. In cases where there are no funds available for payment, the Council may temporarily borrow funds from the temporary account, the regular budget estimate of the General Department of Customs, or the enterprise managing the surplus goods to make payments. The borrowed amount shall be reimbursed from the sources specified in Article 1 and Article 2 of this Article.

4. For goods subject to temporary import for re-export, transshipment, or storage in bonded warehouses, which require security deposits or guarantees, the payment of expenses shall be carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Finance.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 20. Transitional Provisions

1. For surplus goods existing before the effective date of this Circular, if the competent authority has already approved the disposal plan, they shall continue to be disposed of in accordance with the laws in effect prior to the effective date of this Circular.

2. For surplus goods existing before the effective date of this Circular that have not yet been approved for a disposal plan, they shall be disposed of in accordance with this Circular. In cases where the competent authorities have already completed notification, inventory, and classification procedures for surplus goods according to the regulations in effect prior to the effective date of this Circular, subsequent steps shall be carried out in accordance with this Circular.

Article 21. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from February 5, 2015.

2. Repeal Circular No. 15/2014/TT-BTC dated January 27, 2014, issued by the Ministry of Finance guiding the disposal of surplus goods in customs-controlled areas.

3. During implementation, if any difficulties arise, relevant agencies, organizations, and units are advised to promptly report to the Ministry of Finance for coordination and resolution./.