Circular No. 217/2015/TT-BTC guiding customs procedures and tax management for border trade activities of traders and border residents pursuant to Decision No. 52/2015/QĐ-TTg dated October 20, 2015 of the Government Prime Minister

CIRCULAR

Guidelines on customs procedures and tax administration for cross-border trade activities of traders and border residents pursuant to Decision No.
52/2015/QĐ-TTg dated October 20, 2015 of the Prime Minister
Based on the Law on Tax Administration No. 78/2006/QH10 dated November 29, 2006; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Tax Administration No. 21/2012/QH13 dated November 20, 2012; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of Laws on Taxation No. 71/2014/QH13 dated November 26, 2014;

Pursuant to the Law on Customs No. 54/2014/QH13 dated June 23, 2014;

Based on the Trade Law No. 36/2005 dated June 14, 2005;

Based on Decree No. 12/2015/NĐ-CP dated February 12, 2015 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of Laws on Taxation and Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of Decrees on Taxation;

Pursuant to the Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government detailing and providing implementation measures for the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, inspection, supervision, and control;

Based on Decree No. 187/2013/NĐ-CP dated November 20, 2013 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Trade Law regarding international trade activities and agency buying, selling, processing, and transiting goods with foreign countries;

Based on Decree No. 01/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 2, 2015 of the Government detailing the scope of customs territory; responsibilities for cooperation in preventing and combating smuggling and illegal transportation of goods across borders;

Pursuant to Decree No. 112/2014/NĐ-CP dated November 21, 2014 of the Government on management of land border gates;

Based on Decision No. 52/2015/QĐ-TTg dated October 20, 2015 of the Prime Minister on managing cross-border trade activities with neighboring countries;

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular to stipulate customs procedures; tax administration for cross-border trade activities of traders and border residents as follows:

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 General of the General Department of Customs;

This Circular provides guidelines on customs procedures, customs inspection, supervision, and tax administration for goods exported and imported, means of exit and entry in cross-border trade activities; customs procedures, customs inspection, and tax administration for the collection and transportation of goods purchased and exchanged by traders and border residents.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. Organizations and individuals engaged in cross-border trade activities;

Article 2. Applicability

2. Border residents purchasing and exchanging goods across borders at border gates, border gate markets, border markets, and markets within border economic zones;

3. Customs authorities and other agencies, organizations, and management bodies overseeing cross-border trade activities;

4. Other agencies, organizations, and individuals related to cross-border trade activities as prescribed in this Circular.

CUSTOMS PROCEDURES, CUSTOMS SUPERVISION, AND TAX ADMINISTRATION FOR GOODS EXPORTED AND IMPORTED IN CROSS-BORDER TRADE ACTIVITIES - REGARDING THE COLLECTION AND TRANSPORTATION OF PURCHASED AND EXCHANGED GOODS BY TRADERS AND BORDER RESIDENTS

Chapter II

Article 3. Customs procedures and tax administration for traders exporting and importing goods across borders

Clause 1. Customs procedures for goods of traders exporting and importing goods across borders shall be carried out in accordance with Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance and must fulfill all tax obligations under current tax laws.

Clause 2. Goods exported and imported by traders across borders must comply with legal provisions on commodity policies, quarantine, quality inspection, and food safety.

Clause 3. Traders who are individual businesses registered in accordance with business registration laws must register their taxpayer code before proceeding with customs procedures.

Article 3. Customs procedures and tax management for traders exporting and importing goods across the border

1. Customs procedures for goods of traders exporting and importing goods across the border shall be carried out in accordance with Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance and must fully comply with all tax obligations under current tax management laws.

2. Exported and imported goods of traders across the border must comply with the provisions of laws on commodity policies, quarantine, quality inspection, and food safety.

3. Traders who are individual businesses registered in accordance with business registration laws must register for tax identification number before proceeding with customs procedures.

Article 4. Customs procedures and tax management for goods bought and sold, exchanged through border gates and border crossings by border residents

1. Goods bought and exchanged by border residents shall declare on the Border Resident Import Declaration Form and the Border Resident Export Declaration Form (Declaration Forms issued together with this Circular). The Border Resident Export and Import Declaration Forms are printed by the Customs Office (or Border Guard) according to the model and distributed to border residents.

2. The Customs Office at the border gate shall confirm on the border resident's declaration form as follows: The registration officer signs and stamps their seal in the top right corner of the declaration form; the inspection officer verifies the actual goods and the tax calculation officer signs and stamps their seal at the bottom of the declaration form, in the customs inspection and tax calculation section.

3. For goods within the list of goods for purchase and exchange by border residents but exceeding the tax exemption quota specified in Decision No. 52/2015/QD-TTg of the Government Prime Minister: The Customs Office at the border gate shall calculate taxes on the border resident's declaration form and collect taxes immediately at the border gate or crossing.

4. Goods of border residents outside the List of goods for purchase and exchange by border residents shall declare on the border resident's declaration form and must comply fully with commodity policy regulations; the Customs Office at the border gate shall calculate and collect taxes immediately at the border gate or crossing.

5. For border gates without tax collection equipment, the customs authority shall issue a receipt for direct payment; the transfer of collected taxes to the state budget shall be carried out in accordance with Article 10 of Circular No. 126/2014/TT-BTC dated August 28, 2014 of the Ministry of Finance.

6. Goods of border residents bought and exchanged through border gates must undergo quarantine, food safety inspection, and quantity control in accordance with Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP and Decision No. 52/2015/QĐ-TTg dated October 20, 2015 of the Government Prime Minister.

7. Imported goods of border residents within the tax-exempt quota but not used for personal life and production shall be subject to import duties as commercial imports under the law, and declared according to Article 6 of this Circular.

8. For border residents who need to transport goods back and forth, the Border Guard shall manage them in accordance with Article 51 of the Customs Law; inspect, control, and confirm according to the guidance in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 of this Article.

Article 5. Customs procedures for goods bought and sold across borders by traders and households operating at border gate markets, border markets, and markets in border economic zones

1. Traders meeting the conditions stipulated in Article 18 of Decision No. 52/2015/QD-TTg buying and selling goods at border gate markets, border markets, and markets in border economic zones when importing or exporting shall register declarations and complete customs procedures at the Customs Office at the border gate.

2. When traders import goods from neighboring countries into the market or export goods from the market to neighboring countries, they shall register paper declarations (according to Model IV of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC). Customs procedures and tax management shall be carried out in accordance with Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government and the guidance provided in Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015.

3. Foreign traders from neighboring countries who have been granted a Business Registration Certificate by their country but have not established a branch or representative office in Vietnam in accordance with the law and have not been granted a Business Registration Certificate by competent Vietnamese authorities, when handling export or import procedures, must go through a Customs Agent.

4. Goods imported from neighboring countries into the market or exported from the market to neighboring countries that fall under the category requiring quarantine (health, animals, plants, aquatic products) and quality and food safety inspection must complete the relevant quarantine, quality inspection, and food safety procedures before handling customs procedures.

Article 6. Customs procedures and tax management for the activity of purchasing goods from border residents

1. When conducting the purchase of goods from border residents at border markets, border gate markets, and markets within border economic zones, traders must prepare a list of purchased goods and declare on the paper declaration form (as stipulated in Appendix IV issued together with Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance).

2. Customs procedures, tax management policies, quarantine, and quality inspection shall be carried out according to current regulations, including the following documents:

2.1 Paper customs declaration form (Model in Appendix IV issued together with Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance);

2.2 Detailed list of purchased goods quantities from individual resident declarations, signed by the trader conducting the purchase (List Model issued together with this Circular);

2.3 Individual resident declarations;

2.4 Documents confirming quarantine and quality inspection (if applicable to items subject to state quarantine and quality inspection).

3. The location for purchasing goods: border gate area; border markets, border gate markets, and markets within border economic zones as specified in Clause 2, Article 15 of Decision No. 52/2015/QĐ-TTg.

4. The location for customs procedures: Border Gate Customs Office where the border gate market, border market, or market within the border economic zone is located; at the Joint Control Station or Border Gate Customs Office where the border residents have imported the goods. The time for completing customs procedures after purchasing goods shall not exceed 30 days.

5. Traders purchasing goods from border residents may only sell or transport goods out of the border area and into the domestic market after completing customs procedures, paying all taxes and other obligations as prescribed. Traders can use the completed customs declaration form as proof for circulation and transportation of goods into the domestic market.

6. The Border Gate Customs Office shall process and collect all types of taxes (if applicable) at the import stage; retain the individual resident declaration forms and the consolidation declaration form of the trader according to regulations.

7. Goods purchased by traders from border residents must be concentrated at the following locations to ensure the inspection of goods: border gate area; warehouses of traders within the border area; centralized inspection locations or border inspection and concentration locations; other locations recognized or established by customs authorities within the border area.

8. Goods stored in warehouses of traders must be arranged separately for goods that have completed customs procedures and those that have not yet completed customs procedures to facilitate inspections and controls by competent authorities when necessary.

Article 7. Customs supervision of goods of traders, business households, and border residents buying and exchanging through border gates

1. Principles of supervision and confirmation of goods passing through the customs supervision area for traders and business households are as follows:

1.1 In cases of declaration through the Automatic Clearance System: The Border Gate Customs Office will confirm goods passing through the customs supervision area via the system only when exported goods have been transported across the border and imported goods have been confirmed to meet conditions for release to the customs supervision area.

1.2 In cases of declaration on paper customs declaration forms (model in Appendix IV of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC and model export/import declaration forms for border residents issued together with this Circular), customs officers sign, stamp, and date the "Customs Supervision Confirmation" section of the export declaration form, import declaration form, or confirm in the actual inspection section of the export/import declaration form for border residents.

1.3 Customs officers supervising at the border gate check and compare information on the customs declaration form already confirmed to meet conditions for release to the customs supervision area with the actual condition of the exported and imported goods.

2. Handling of supervision results:

2.1 If the inspection and comparison results match, the customs officer supervising the goods will allow them to leave the customs supervision area; confirm on the System that the goods have passed through the customs supervision area or sign, stamp, and date Section 31 of the export declaration form and Section 36 of the import goods declaration form (for paper declarations).

2.2 If the inspection results do not match, the customs officer will not permit the export of goods or their removal from the customs supervision area; report to the Director of the Border Gate Customs Office to direct the cancellation of confirmation on the System (if already confirmed), verify and clarify, and handle according to regulations (if there is a violation).

3. Customs supervision of goods of border residents buying and exchanging through border gates:

3.1 For goods within the exemption list and standards: Customs officers will conduct direct supervision at the border gate and confirm in the actual inspection section of the import declaration form for border residents.

3.2 For goods outside the exemption list and exceeding exemption standards: Customs officers will conduct direct supervision at the border gate, confirm in the actual inspection section, and the tax calculation and collection section of the import declaration form for border residents.

Chapter III

INSPECTION, CUSTOMS SUPERVISION AND STATE MANAGEMENT OF THE ACTIVITIES OF MANAGING THE PURCHASE AND SALE, EXCHANGE OF GOODS BY BORDER RESIDENTS AND FREQUENT CROSSING TRANSPORTATION MEANS

MANAGEMENT OF THE ACTIVITY OF PURCHASING, SELLING, AND EXCHANGING GOODS BY RESIDENTS

ACTIVITIES OF MANAGING THE PURCHASE AND SALE, EXCHANGE OF GOODS BY BORDER RESIDENTS AND FREQUENT CROSSING TRANSPORTATION MEANS

Article 8. Customs Inspection

1. Goods bought and sold, exchanged by border residents when passing through a customs checkpoint must be subject to inspection and supervision by customs authorities.

2. Goods of border residents not included in the list of goods for trade and exchange between border residents, exceeding the tax-free quota as prescribed in the Decree guiding the Law on Export Tax, Import Tax when handling customs procedures shall be subject to actual inspection of goods. During the process of inspecting actual goods, if it is necessary to change the form of goods inspection, the Head of the Customs Sub-department conducting the actual inspection of goods shall decide.

3. Goods traded across borders by traders; goods collected from border residents by traders shall be subject to customs inspection in accordance with Article 29 of Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government and other relevant laws related to customs inspection.

Article 9. State Management of Customs Authorities over Goods Bought and Sold, Exchanged by Border Residents

1. The General Department of Customs shall coordinate with units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, and related units to organize the implementation of guidance and management of border trade activities in compliance with legal regulations.

2. Develop software for managing goods bought and exchanged by border residents based on barcode integration on border resident identity cards, border resident travel books, or other documents allowing border residents to cross the border.

3. Develop software for managing and calculating taxes on border resident declarations that comply with Article 14 of Decision No. 52/2015/QĐ-TTg dated October 20, 2015, and manage, calculate taxes, and print border resident declarations according to the import declaration form, export declaration form issued together with this Circular; the tax calculation software shall be connected to the declaration management software to calculate and collect taxes.

4. Equip computer systems and barcode reading devices to ensure customs authority management and facilitate border residents.

5. For checkpoints that have not been equipped with software and barcode checking equipment to manage border residents, the Customs Sub-department at the checkpoint shall maintain a record book for border resident goods (according to the model issued together with this Circular).

6. Update paper declaration information onto the system: The Customs Sub-department at the checkpoint shall update all information about the importer/exporter, taxpayer number, purchase/sale contract (if any), date of declaration, name of goods, quantity, value, amount of tax payable, and transmit the information to the General Department of Customs at the end of each day.

7. The General Department of Customs shall establish a Price Data System according to the List of Goods Bought and Exchanged by Border Residents to serve consultation work when necessary.

8. Paper declarations shall be made in accordance with Article 25 of Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government. Paper declarations according to Appendix IV of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC and border resident export declarations in this Circular shall not be used as proof for VAT refund.

Article 10. Customs Inspection and Supervision of Transport Vehicles of Individuals and Organizations Crossing the Border

1. Implement procedures, inspections, and supervision of vehicles of individuals and organizations entering the border area for cargo delivery in accordance with Article 81 of Decree No. 08/2015/NĐ-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government and Article 33 of Circular No. 42/2015/TT-BTC dated March 27, 2015 of the Ministry of Finance regarding customs procedures for transport vehicles entering and exiting the country.

1.1 Vehicles of individuals, agencies, and organizations in the border area frequently crossing the border must register once with the customs authority; the Customs Sub-department at the checkpoint shall maintain a vehicle management record book (according to the model issued together with this Circular), recording full information: Vehicle driver (or owner), residential address, personal identification number (ID card, passport number...), type of vehicle, license plate number (if applicable).

1.2 In cases of transporting exported or imported goods, the vehicle driver must present to the customs authority the completed export/import declaration form.

2. Duties of customs officers supervising vehicles of organizations and individuals crossing the border: Prevent, detect, and handle acts of smuggling and illegal transportation of goods across the border, ensuring that exported and imported goods must undergo customs procedures and inspections in accordance with regulations.

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 11. Responsibilities for Implementation. 

1. The Director of the General Department of Customs shall base on the guidance provided in this Circular to guide customs units to implement uniformly, ensuring both facilitation of border trade activities and effective customs management.

2. The customs authority responsible for implementing customs procedures; customs inspection and supervision; export duties, import duties, and tax administration for goods traded or exchanged shall comply with the provisions set out in this Circular. In case difficulties arise during implementation, the customs authority, declarant, and taxpayer shall report and reflect specific issues to the Ministry of Finance (General Department of Customs) for consideration and guidance to resolve each specific case.

3. During the implementation process, if related documents referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented, or replaced, they shall be implemented according to the newly amended, supplemented, or replaced documents.

Article 12. Effective Date:

This Circular takes effect 45 days from the date of signature. Repeal Article 94 of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 issued by the Ministry of Finance, Document No. 1883/BTC-TCHQ dated February 19, 2009, and Document No. 195/BTC-TCHQ dated January 6, 2011 issued by the Ministry of Finance regarding customs procedures and tax administration for border trade activities.