Importing commercial goods into Vietnam means lodging an electronic customs declaration on the VNACCS/VCIS system, paying import duty and import VAT (and, for a short list of goods, special consumption tax), and clearing any permit or quality check that applies to your product. The declaration is filed by the importer or by an authorised customs agent, and the system assigns it to a green, yellow or red lane. The two things that move the bill most are the duty class you can prove through origin documents and whether the goods need a specialised inspection from another ministry. This guide is general information as of November 2026; Vietnam changed several of its customs instruments in 2025 and 2026, so each section says what to confirm. For the wider picture of the process, see our customs clearance guide.
Who runs Vietnamese customs, and what is VNACCS/VCIS?
Customs sits under the Ministry of Finance. The body most older guides call the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) was reorganised in 2025 under Decision 382/QD-BTC into a three-level structure: a central Customs Department, regional customs branches that replaced the 35 provincial departments, and border-gate customs units. English-language sources use the older and newer names interchangeably, so do not be thrown if a document uses either.
VNACCS/VCIS is the automated clearance and risk-management system that went live nationwide on 1 April 2014. VNACCS handles the declaration; VCIS is the intelligence side that supports risk selection. Alongside it, the National Single Window lets specialised agencies issue permits and inspection results electronically, so an importer does not carry every paper to every office. Under the amendment to the Customs Law passed in August 2026 (Law 11/2026/QH16, effective 1 March 2027), documents issued through the National Single Window are meant not to be resubmitted to customs, though some operating detail depends on implementing rules not yet issued.
Who files the customs declaration?
Under the Customs Law 2014 the declarant is the goods owner, or an agent or other person the owner authorises. In practice most small and mid-sized importers use a licensed customs agent (a customs broker) or a freight forwarder that offers customs service, because the declaration is electronic, needs a digital signature and expects correct HS classification. Our broker versus forwarder versus filing yourself guide covers the trade-offs, and the importer of record guide explains why the named importer carries the legal liability even when an agent files.
A few points to confirm before your first shipment:
- Importer registration. A Vietnamese company is normally identified to customs by its tax code, and electronic declarations are signed with a digital certificate. Whether a company with foreign ownership may import a given product in its own name depends on its business registration and trading rights. Check this with your adviser.
- Agent conditions. The Customs Law sets conditions for customs agents, including electronic filing capability and certified staff. One legal summary of Decree 167/2025 reports that import-export turnover conditions for customs agents were removed; confirm the current licensing position before relying on it.
- Foreign sellers. A seller with no Vietnamese entity generally cannot be the declarant on its own. The buyer, or an authorised agent for the buyer, files.
Green, yellow and red lanes
When a declaration is registered, VNACCS checks it and assigns one of three lanes. This is risk-based, not random, and the lane can change if customs finds a mismatch.
- Green: accepted with no document check and no physical inspection; the goods go to duty payment and release.
- Yellow: customs examines the electronic documents (invoice, packing list, bill of lading, origin certificate and so on) but not the cargo.
- Red: customs examines the documents and inspects the goods, often by scanner or by opening the container.
Press reporting in 2026 put the green share at roughly 70% of declarations, with yellow and red together at about 30%, but those are news figures, not an official guarantee for your cargo. Commercial guides say first-time importers, high-risk products and declared values that do not match the commercial invoice tend to draw yellow or red. Customs may also query a declared value after release; the revised Decree 167/2025 gives the importer a short window (a maximum of five working days is reported) to supplement a declaration when value is questioned.
How are import duty classes decided?
Duty depends on the HS code, the customs value and the origin of the goods. Vietnam's tariff has several rate columns, and the one you pay is the lowest one your documents support. Start with finding the right HS code, because every column keys off it.
- Ordinary rate: for goods from countries with no most-favoured-nation (MFN) treatment with Vietnam. The 2016 import and export duty law sets it at a premium over the preferential rate (150% of it, as we understand it; confirm).
- Preferential (MFN) rate: the standard rate for goods from WTO members and other countries with MFN status. The schedule is in Decree 26/2023/ND-CP, amended since (Decree 73/2025 changed several MFN rates from 31 March 2025).
- Special preferential rate: a free trade agreement (FTA) rate, available only if the goods meet the agreement's rules of origin and you hold the right proof of origin. Vietnam publishes a separate schedule per agreement, for example Decree 126/2022 for ATIGA, Decree 129/2022 for RCEP (2022 to 2027, amended by Decree 84/2023) and Decree 116/2022 for the EU agreement.
Where an MFN rate is lower than the FTA rate for a product, the lower rate applies, so an FTA certificate is worth chasing only when the special rate is actually below MFN for your HS code. Our rules of origin guide explains how to check that the goods qualify before you ask the supplier for a certificate.
Which origin form goes with which deal?
The proof of origin you present to Vietnamese customs is issued or made out in the exporting country under the agreement's rules. The table below shows the forms that Vietnamese sources most often associate with each arrangement. Treat it as a map, not a rule: forms, electronic versions and self-certification options keep changing, so ask the supplier to confirm the exact document against the agreement text and the current Vietnamese notices before shipping.
| Arrangement | Typical proof of origin | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ASEAN (ATIGA) | Form D | Goods from other ASEAN members. Some self-certification options exist. |
| ASEAN-China (ACFTA) | Form E | Issued by the Chinese authority; an electronic version is in use. Compare with the MFN rate first. |
| ASEAN-Korea / ASEAN-Japan / Vietnam-Japan | Form AK / Form AJ / Form VJ | Separate forms for each pairing. Check which agreement the supplier is claiming. |
| RCEP | RCEP origin document | Special rates are in the RCEP schedule and depend on the exporting member being covered. |
| CPTPP | Self-certified origin | Not a government-issued form. Vietnamese guidance describes origin declarations by the exporter, producer or importer. Confirm the wording required. |
| EU (EVFTA) and UK (UKVFTA) | Origin statement by a registered exporter, or EUR.1 | Rules and any value thresholds differ by direction. Confirm with the exporter and the current Vietnamese circular. |
Our broader FTA certificates of origin guide covers the mechanics common to all of these, including why a certificate that is late, unsigned or for the wrong consignment can lose you the preferential rate.
How is customs value worked out?
Under the Vietnamese customs valuation rules, the value of imported goods is the price actually paid or payable up to the first port of import, which in practice means CIF-style value: the invoice price plus international freight and insurance, plus other additions the rules require. Six methods apply in sequence, starting with the transaction value, then identical goods, similar goods, deductive value, computed value and a fall-back method, in line with the WTO valuation approach. See how dutiable value is calculated for the general logic.
A common error is to cite old legal references. The commonly quoted pair, Decree 59/2018 and Circular 39/2015, belongs to an earlier layer of the framework. Decree 167/2025 (effective 15 August 2025) rewrote the key valuation articles of Decree 08/2015, and Circular 121/2025/TT-BTC (effective 1 February 2026) amended the customs procedure circulars again, including a new indirect route for high-compliance importers to clarify a declared value through the electronic system. Whether any particular article of Circular 39/2015 is still the operative text is a question for your customs adviser, not for a guide like this.
How much is VAT on imports in Vietnam?
Import VAT is charged at the border, in the same declaration, on the dutiable value plus import duty and any special consumption tax. The standard VAT rate is 10%. For a long list of goods the rate has been temporarily cut to 8% since 2022 in successive steps. The current step is Resolution 204/2025/QH15 and Decree 174/2025/ND-CP, which apply the 8% rate from 1 July 2025 to 31 December 2026 and state that the cut is applied uniformly at the import, production, processing and trading stages.
Three cautions as of November 2026:
- The cut does not cover everything. Decree 174/2025 excludes sector groups (it names telecommunications, finance, banking, securities, insurance, real estate, metal products and mining products among them) and goods that carry special consumption tax, except gasoline. Check your HS code against the decree's appendices.
- The cut ends on 31 December 2026 as written. One tax tracker reported on 5 October 2026 that it had found no proposal to extend it, so assume 10% from 1 January 2027 unless the National Assembly or the Ministry of Finance says otherwise. Confirm the position from the Ministry of Finance or Vietnam Customs before you price shipments that will clear in 2027.
- Import VAT is normally creditable for a VAT-registered business, so it is mostly a cash-flow cost, but a consignee that cannot claim it should budget it as a real cost.
Special consumption tax at a glance
Special consumption tax (SCT) applies to a defined list of goods, including tobacco, alcohol, motor vehicles and certain other items, and it is charged on imports as well as domestic production. A new Law on Special Consumption Tax (66/2025/QH15) takes effect from 1 January 2026 according to most sources, raising rates on alcohol and adding sugary drinks over a sugar threshold to the list. If your goods fall near that list, get the rate from a customs adviser and not from a general guide, because SCT feeds into the VAT base.
Permits and specialised inspection from other ministries
Customs release is not the only gate. Goods subject to quality, safety, health or biosecurity control need approval from the relevant ministry, and that can be the slowest step. Typical examples are food (Ministry of Health or Agriculture), plants and animals (quarantine certificates and import permits), medical devices, chemicals, telecommunications equipment and used machinery. The National Single Window is meant to carry these approvals electronically.
This is the area with the most movement in 2026. Decree 46/2026/ND-CP on food safety and Resolution 66.13/2026/NQ-CP were issued in January 2026 and then suspended; reporting in March 2026 said the Government Office extended the suspension until the revised Law on Food Safety and its decree take effect, with businesses told to follow Decree 15/2018/ND-CP in the meantime. The revised law has been reported as targeted for 2027. If you import food, confirm which regime applies on the date of arrival. For plant products see our phytosanitary certificates and plant import permits guide.
Bonded warehouses and export processing zones
Bonded warehouses let goods sit under customs control without paying duty and VAT until they are released for domestic use or re-exported. The amended Customs Law (effective 1 March 2027) is reported to set a 24-month maximum stay from the date of entry and to repeal the earlier extension provision, so plan stock movements accordingly. Export processing enterprises (EPEs) in designated zones operate under their own regime; from 1 February 2026 Circular 121/2025 moved transactions between EPEs, and between EPEs and non-EPEs, onto standard declaration procedures. Our foreign trade zones versus bonded warehouses guide explains the general concept.
Import checklist before the container sails
- Confirm the HS code and check the MFN and any FTA rate for that code.
- Check whether the product needs a permit, certificate or quality inspection, and who issues it.
- Ask the supplier which proof of origin applies and that it will be valid and in time for the consignment.
- Agree who files the declaration and that the invoice, packing list and bill of lading match each other and the declared value.
- Estimate duty, SCT and VAT on the CIF-style value, using 8% VAT only if the goods qualify and the clearance date is before 1 January 2027.
- Check storage and demurrage terms at the port if an inspection could hold the cargo.
What to do next
- Classify your product and write the HS code down. Use it to check duty, VAT and permit requirements together.
- Ask two or three customs agents or forwarders what they would file and what they expect to be inspected, and compare the answers.
- If you ship from the US, read our Vietnam to USA shipping guide for the other direction, and our list of logistics companies in Vietnam for local contacts.
- Re-check the VAT rate and any permit regime in the week before you ship, because both were in flux in 2026.
To find a local customs agent or forwarder for Vietnam, search the CargoLinked directory: more than 29,300 logistics companies are searchable by country and service. If you would rather have forwarders come to you, post the shipment on the public requests board, which lists freight that shippers have posted for forwarders to quote on directly.
This article is general information as of November 2026, not legal, tax or customs advice. Vietnamese customs law, tax rates and permit regimes change often. Confirm current requirements with Vietnam Customs, the Ministry of Finance, the relevant specialised ministry or a licensed customs agent before you ship.
