Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the delay in customs clearance of Vietnamese goods exported to Australia, especially at the quarantine stage, has become serious, mainly in the two states of New South Wales and Victoria.
Customs clearance activities at the Ka Long international border gate in the northeastern province of Quang Ninh’s Mong Cai city were resumed on June 17 after over three years of suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic, marking the return to normal operation at all border gates and openings in the city.
Large volumes of mangoes, jackfruit, longans, dragon fruit, and lychees have been transported to the Tan Thanh border gate in the northern province of Lang Son for export to China. In a bid to ease congestion and facilitate fruit exports, relevant local authorities are working to accelerate customs clearance procedures.
The People’s Committee of Quang Ninh province’s Mong Cai city and authorities of Dongxing city in China’s Guangxi province held online talks discussing measures to speed up the customs clearance between the two localities in the time to come in association with the effective implementation of COVID-19 prevention and control.
A seminar was held by Customs E-Magazine in Ho Chi Minh City on April 6 to discuss synchronous solutions to cut input and commercialisation costs, thus reducing import-export spending.
Delegations from Mong Cai city in the northern border province of Quang Ninh and China’s Dongxing city engaged in an online talk on March 17 to discuss issues related to customs clearance for goods at their border gates.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and trade associations need to devise solutions together to address the congestion of farm produce at border gates, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan has said.
An official from the Foreign Trade Agency has said that authorities should instruct farmers and traders in how to meet packaging and labelling standards, before exporting goods.
Representatives of the Ministry of Industry and Trade has coordinated with authorities of China’s Yunnan province in holding a teleconference on customs clearance of goods and pandemic prevention and control cooperation at border gates between the two sides.
There are only nine border gates and crossings along the Vietnam-China land border operating after the Lunar New Year festival, causing difficulties for customs clearance for goods, the General Department of Vietnam Customs said.
Vietnam’s fruit container trucks have been allowed custom clearance through China earlier than expected despite China's original plan to cease custom clearance for a week for the Lunar New Year holiday.
Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has directed northern localities to apply drastic measures to resolve the congestion of goods in border gates, including setting up pandemic green zones for loading, unloading and technical treatment of goods, ensuring safety against the pandemic for both goods and transporters.
Close to 200 trucks carrying goods were cleared to cross the border on January 10, after China’s Guangxi province officially resumed customs clearance at border gates and border crossings in its Dongxing city bordering Mong Cai city of Vietnam’s Quang Ninh province.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that on January 10 morning, China’s Guangxi province officially resumed customs clearance at border gates and border crossings in its Dongxing city bordering Mong Cai city of Vietnam’s Quang Ninh province, including bridges Bac Luan 1 and Bac Luan 2, and pontoon bridge Km 3+4.
The average duration for customs clearance for exports last year stood at 38.4 hours, a decline by 57.38 hours compared to 2019, according to a survey of an inter-sectoral working group.
The time for customs clearance for exports, including the time for obtaining, preparing and submitting documents and and inspections, averaged 38.4 hours in Vietnam last year, a drop of 57.38 hours compared to 2019, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC).
Covid-19 has had an enormous impact on Vietnam’s import and export activities, causing congestion at many ports, including Cat Lai - the largest and most modern container port in the country. The Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department has introduced a number of measures to ensure smooth operations and goods clearance at ports.
Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has sent official letters to the Minister of Commerce of China and the Governor of Yunnan province (China) asking the Chinese side to facilitate customs clearance for and export of Vietnamese agricultural produce.
The General Department of Customs said that it is implementing a series of measures to remove difficulties and shortcomings related to identification code of goods.
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