Customs Procedures and Import Taxes for Food in 2024
Imported food and related business activities in Vietnam are subject to the regulations of the Food Safety Law. In this article, HP Global discusses common aspects of importing food items falling under the jurisdiction of the Food Safety Law, while also providing references to customs procedures and import taxes for specific food products.
The definition of food
The definition of food according to Article 2, Point 20, of the Food Safety Law is as follows: “Food is a product that humans consume in its raw or processed, prepared, and preserved forms. Food does not include cosmetics, tobacco, and substances used as pharmaceuticals.”
Here are some detailed definitions:
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- Fresh Food: Food that has not undergone processing, including meat, eggs, fish, aquatic products, vegetables, tubers, fresh fruits, and other unprocessed foods. (Article 2, Point 21, Food Safety Law)
- Nutrient-Enhanced Food: Food supplemented with vitamins, minerals, and trace elements to prevent and remedy deficiencies in those substances for the health of the community or specific groups within the community. (Article 2, Point 22, Food Safety Law)
- Functional Food: Food used to support the body’s functions, promote comfort, enhance immunity, and reduce the risk of disease, including nutritional supplements, health-protecting foods, and medical nutritional foods. (Article 2, Point 23, Food Safety Law)
- Genetically Modified Food: Food with one or more components altered by genetic technology. (Article 2, Point 24, Food Safety Law)
- Irradiated Food: Food that has been irradiated with a radiation source to process and prevent the deterioration of the food. (Article 2, Point 25, Food Safety Law)
- Street Food: Food prepared for immediate consumption, typically sold through street vendors, street markets, public places, or similar venues. (Article 2, Point 26, Food Safety Law)
- Packaged Food: Food that is fully packaged and labeled, ready for direct sale for further processing or immediate consumption. (Article 2, Point 27, Food Safety Law)
Food Classification by Specialized Regulatory Authorities
The classification of products and product groups in the food sector, as well as related commodities, is carried out according to the regulatory authorities responsible for food safety as follows:
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Note | Management Team (*) | |
Under the management of the Ministry of Industry and Trade |
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I | Beer |
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|
II | Alcohol, Spirits, and Alcoholic Beverages | Excluding fortified wine products managed by the Ministry of Health | Ministry of Industry and Trade |
III | Beverages |
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Ministry of Industry and Trade |
IV | Processed Milk | Excluding nutrient-enhanced products and functional foods managed by the Ministry of Health | Ministry of Industry and Trade |
V | Vegetable Oil | Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
VI | Flour, Starch | Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
VII | Cakes, Preserves, Candy | Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
VIII | Utensils, Packaging Materials, and Containers for food during the production, processing, and business processes are within the assigned management scope. | Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
Under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development |
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I | Cereals | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
II | Meat and meat products | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
III | Aquatic products and aquatic product derivatives (including amphibians) | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
IV | Vegetables, tubers, fruits, and products made from vegetables, tubers, and fruits | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
V | Eggs and egg products | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
VI | Raw fresh milk | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
VII | Honey and honey products | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
VIII | Genetically modified foods | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
IX | Salt | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
X | Spices | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XI | Sugar | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XII | Tea | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XIII | Coffee | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XIV | Cocoa | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XV | Pepper | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XVI | Cashews | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XVII | Other agricultural food products | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XVIII | Utensils, packaging materials, and containers for food during production, processing, and business processes fall under the assigned management scope. | Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
XIX |
|
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | |
Under the management of the Ministry of Health |
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1 | Bottled beverages, natural mineral water, food ice (ready-to-use ice and ice used for food processing) | Excluding ice used for preserving and processing products under the assigned management scope of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. | The management of the Ministry of Health |
2 | Functional foods | The management of the Ministry of Health | |
3 | Micronutrients added to food | The management of the Ministry of Health | |
4 | Additives, flavorings, food processing aids | The management of the Ministry of Health | |
5 | Tools, packaging materials, and containers in direct contact with food | Except for tools and packaging materials that come into direct contact with food under the management authority of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Industry and Trade that are produced in the same facility and are only for use by consumers. food products of that establishment | The management of the Ministry of Health |
6 | Other products are not regulated in the lists of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development | The management of the Ministry of Health |
HS Code Food
LOOK FOR FOOD HS HAS IDENTIFIED IN THE ARTICLE: HS code and updated food import duty into Vietnam
Food import policies and procedures in 2024
What license is required to import Food?
Imported food is governed by the Food Safety Law, importers are responsible for ensuring food safety for imported food.
General regulations on this content are stipulated in Article 38: Conditions to ensure safety for imported food in the Law on Food Safety, as follows:
Article 38. Conditions to ensure safety for imported food – Law on Food Safety
1. Imported food, food additives, food processing aids, tools, packaging materials, and food containers must comply with the corresponding conditions specified in Chapter III of this Law and other regulations. following conditions:
a) Must have a declaration of conformity registered with a competent state agency before importing;
b) Must be issued “Notification of results confirming food meets import requirements” for each shipment by the designated inspection agency according to regulations of the Minister of Industry Management.
2. In addition to the conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article, functional foods, foods fortified with micronutrients, genetically modified foods, and irradiated foods must have a certificate of free circulation or Medical certificate according to Government regulations.
3. In case Vietnam does not have corresponding technical regulations for food, food additives, food processing aids, tools, packaging materials, and containers for imported food, the application shall apply. according to international agreements and treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member.
In addition, terrestrial animal products, aquatic animal products, and plant products used as food under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also need to meet the requirements in Article 14 of Decree No. 15/2018/ND-CP dated February 2, 2018 as follows:
Article 14. Requirements for terrestrial animal products, aquatic animal products, and plant products used as imported food
1. Terrestrial animal products, aquatic animal products, plant products used as imported food, except processed, pre-packaged foods, foods made by Vietnamese organizations and individuals exported to foreign countries but returned and the cases specified in Article 13 of this Decree must meet the following requirements:
a) Originates from a country or territory with a food safety control system that meets Vietnamese regulations and is included in the list of registered countries and territories by a competent Vietnamese agency. Sign the export of foods of animal, plant and aquatic origin to Vietnam;
b) For terrestrial animal products used as food, aquatic animal products used as food: Must be produced by production and business establishments recognized by competent Vietnamese agencies to meet the requirements. fully meets the requirements for ensuring food safety according to Vietnamese regulations;
c) Each batch of imported goods originating from animals or imported aquatic products must be accompanied by a certificate of compliance with food safety regulations issued by the competent authority of the exporting country (except for aquatic products). caught and processed by foreign fishing vessels at sea and sold directly to Vietnam).
2. Procedures for registering countries, territories and production and business establishments mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article on the list of exports to Vietnam shall comply with the provisions of Article 22 of this Decree.
3. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is responsible for providing customs authorities with a list of countries, territories, organizations and individuals allowed to export the above products to Vietnam.
Because the list of foods is large and falls under the specialized management of 03 ministries: the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Health, detailed licenses/regulations may be different for each item. . You can understand more by visiting each detailed article or contact HP Global’s consulting department for answers.
Customs procedures for importing food
What documents are needed to import Food? What procedures are needed to import Food?
Customs documents for importing common foods include electronically submitted scanned copies or originals of the following documents:
- Commercial Invoice – Copy of the business, with some branches, the original needs to be submitted when the shipment applies special preferential tax with some C/O forms (eg: Form E)
- Bill of lading – Copy of the business
- Letter of introduction – Original copy
- Certificate of origin – Original or electronic copy in case the importer wants to enjoy special preferential import taxes
- In some cases, add: Packing List – Copy of the business
- For some branches: add the Customs – Business Partnership Development Agreement – Original copy
- Depending on the food item, additional documents need to be submitted (see details for each item). For normal food items, it will be a Self-Declaration when registering the customs declaration to bring the goods to the warehouse for storage and storage. Quality inspection of the shipment for customs clearance
Food labels when imported
Imported goods must have full labels according to current regulations.
a) Name of goods;
b) Name and address of the organization or individual responsible for the goods;
c) Origin of goods;
d) Expiry date
d) Other contents according to the nature of each type of goods
In particular, imported food labels are required to show the following contents:
a) Quantity;
b) Date of manufacture;
c) Expiry date;
d) Ingredients or ingredient quantities; nutritional ingredients, nutritional value (if any);
The content, method of recording nutritional ingredients, nutritional value and implementation roadmap follow the instructions of the Minister of Health;
d) Warning information;
e) Instructions for use and storage instructions.
Select HP Global as the freight forwarder/customs broker for your shipments import food into Vietnam
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You may concern:
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