Bao Nguyen Prosecuted for Smuggling 44,000 Tons of Ores

The Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department under the General Department of Vietnam Customs recently decided to prosecute Bao Nguyen Trading Joint Stock Company for smuggling more than 44,000 tons of raw bauxite ores. The prosecution decision was approved by the Supreme People's Procuracy.

On October 17, 2019, Bao Nguyen Company filled in the export registration declaration 302816355501/B11 at the Customs Office of Cam Pha Port, the Quang Ninh Customs Department. The commodity was 42,000 tons “refined bauxite ore”. Customs procedures included Invoice, contract and test sheet 19V02KK4551 dated October 18, 2019 made by Vinacontrol Group, Official Letter 8228/BCT-CNNg dated August 25, 2014 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and Decision 270/QD-UBND dated January 31, 2019 of the Lang Son Provincial People’s Committee.

The shipment completed mandatory customs procedures (the customs office completed procedures for document inspection and physical inspection, the company paid export duty).

However, based on the test by customs authorities and the Institute of Geosciences and Minerals, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (in coordination with the Center for Geological Experiment Analysis (CGEA) of the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam, which has VILAS032 machine to conduct the test), the commodity is “virgin bauxite ore” which is not allowed to be exported under the Prime Minister’s Directive 03/CT-TTg dated March 30, 2015, not a “refined bauxite ore” as declared in the customs form by the company.

According to Appendix I - Export Tariff applied to taxable goods issued together with the Government’s Decree 125/2017/ND-CP dated November 16, 2017 on amendments and supplements to some articles of the Government's Decree 122/2016/ND-CP dated September 1, 2016, virgin ore, carrying HS code 2606.00.00.10, is subject to an export duty of 30% and refined ore, carrying HS code 2606.00.00.90, is levied 20% of export duty.

According to the inspection result, the actual weight of the commodity was 44,123.02 tons (2,123.02 tons more than the declared volume) valued VND10,814,052,800 and the payable tax amount was VND3,244,215,840 (illegally avoiding VND1,203,267,840 of tax).

Test sheet 19V02kk4551 was filed by Bao Nguyen Company after it sent the sample to the inspection agency for testing and there was no witness of customs officers. This action violated Clause 1, Article 5 of Circular 41/2012/TT-BCT dated December 21, 2012 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (as amended and supplemented in Clause 3, Article 1 of Circular 12/2016/TT-BCT) and the sheet was not valid for customs procedures for the above-exported commodity.

Source: Vietnam Business Forum