Circular No. 47/2020/TT-BTC stipulates the time for submitting origin certificates and the form of origin certificates for imported goods during the period affected by the acute respiratory disease caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

CIRCULAR

REGULATIONS ON THE TIME OF SUBMISSION AND FORM OF CERTIFICATES OF ORIGIN FOR IMPORTED GOODS APPLICABLE DURING THE PERIOD OF THE ACUTE RESPIRATORY DISEASE OUTBREAK CAUSED BY THE CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)

Pursuant to the Customs Law dated June 23, 2014;

Pursuant to the Law on Export Duties and Import Duties dated April 6, 2016;

Pursuant to the Law on Foreign Trade Management dated June 12, 2017;

Pursuant to Decree No. 08/2015/ND-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government detailing and providing guidance on implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, inspection, supervision, and control; Decree No. 59/2018/ND-CP dated April 20, 2018 amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 08/2015/ND-CP dated January 21, 2015 of the Government detailing and providing guidance on implementation of the Law on Customs regarding customs procedures, inspection, supervision, and control;

Article 1. Amending and supplementing some articles of Decision No. 53/2013/QĐ-TTg dated September 13, 2013 of the Prime Minister on temporary importation, re-exportation, destruction, and transfer of motor vehicles and motorcycles with engines for beneficiaries enjoying privileges and immunities in Vietnam

Pursuant to Decree No. 31/2018/NĐ-CP dated March 8, 2018, of the Government detailing the Law on Foreign Trade Management regarding the origin of goods;

Pursuant to Decree No. 87/2017/NĐ-CP dated July 26, 2017, issued by the Government, stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Directive No. 11/CT-TTg dated March 4, 2020 of the Prime Minister on urgent tasks and solutions to address difficulties for production and business operations and ensure social welfare in response to the COVID-19 outbreak;

Pursuant to Decision No. 447/QĐ-TTg dated April 1, 2020 of the Prime Minister declaring the COVID-19 outbreak as a disease;

At the proposal of the Director General of the General Department of Customs,

The Minister of Finance promulgates this Circular stipulating the time of submission and form of certificates of origin for imported goods applicable during the period of the acute respiratory disease outbreak caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular stipulates the deadline for submitting certificates of origin, the form of submission of certificates of origin for imported goods during the period of the acute respiratory disease outbreak caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Article 2. Applicability

1. The declarant.

2. Customs authorities, customs officers.

3. Other organizations and individuals have rights and obligations related to determining the origin of exported and imported goods.

Article 3. Time of Submission of Certificates of Origin for Goods

The declarant submits the certificate of origin for goods at the time of customs clearance procedures to apply the preferential tariff rate as specified in point a, Clause 1, Article 7 of Circular No. 38/2018/TT-BTC dated April 20, 2018 of the Minister of Finance on the determination of the origin of exported and imported goods (hereinafter referred to as Circular No. 38/2018/TT-BTC).

In cases where there is no certificate of origin for goods at the time of customs clearance procedures to apply the preferential tariff rate, the declarant must declare delayed submission of the C/O on the import customs declaration and be allowed to supplement and submit the certificate of origin within the validity period of the certificate of origin. The declarant declares according to the most-favored-nation (MFN) preferential tariff rate or the general tariff rate and is allowed to supplement the certificate of origin within the validity period of the certificate of origin to apply the corresponding special preferential tariff rate; the customs authority is responsible for refunding the difference in tax paid.

Article 4. Form of Certificates of Origin for Goods

1. In cases where imported goods apply the special preferential tariff rate, the declarant shall submit the certificate of origin as follows:

a) Certificate of Origin (C/O) using electronic signature and stamp:

The customs authority accepts the C/O using electronic signature and stamp under the condition that the competent authority of the exporting country has notified about issuing C/Os using electronic signature and stamp and provided an online information page for checking the C/O or other methods of checking the C/O.

The customs authority checks the validity of the C/O on the online information page or other checking methods provided by the issuing authority to apply the special preferential tariff rate as prescribed and prints a copy of the C/O to keep in the customs file.

b) Photocopy/scanned C/O:

The customs authority accepts photocopies/scanned copies of the C/O under the condition that the competent authority of the exporting country has notified about using photocopies/scanned copies of the original C/O and provided photocopies/scanned copies of the C/O or an online information page or other verification methods to the customs authority to determine the validity of the C/O.

The customs authority checks the validity of the photocopy/scanned copy of the C/O on the online information page or other verification methods provided by the issuing authority to apply the special preferential tariff rate as prescribed and prints a copy of the C/O to keep in the customs file.

2. In cases where imported goods must submit certificates of origin as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 4 of Circular No. 38/2018/TT-BTC:

The declarant submits the original C/O to the customs authority. In cases where the original C/O is not available at the time of customs clearance procedures, the declarant may submit a photocopy/scanned copy of the C/O to the customs authority and bears legal responsibility for the accuracy and validity of the photocopy/scanned copy of the C/O.

The customs authority bases on the photocopy/scanned copy of the C/O, customs file, actual goods, consignment route, and other relevant information to check and determine the origin of the goods and decide to clear the goods.

The declarant is responsible for submitting the original C/O again within 180 days from the date of registering the import customs declaration.

Article 5. Effective Date

This Circular takes effect from the date the Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam declared the COVID-19 outbreak (January 23, 2020) and applies to import customs declarations registered from January 23, 2020.

Based on the development of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide, the Minister of Finance announces the termination of the effectiveness of this Circular.

During the implementation process, if encountering difficulties and obstacles, the customs authority, declarants, and related units should report and reflect specific issues to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and resolution.