Fostering Legal Communications and Support for Businesses

The General Department of Vietnam Customs recently issued Regulations on propagation, dissemination and support of legal matters related to customs to declarants and businesses.

The Regulation is aimed to provide adequate and timely legal information, especially legal documents to customs officers, customs declarants, taxpayers, organizations and individuals with rights and obligations related to import and export, cargo transit, entry and exit, and transit of means of transport to capture and enforce laws effectively; and associate law dissemination with development and completion of legal documents on customs.

This move is to help customs declarants and enterprises understand customs laws, tax laws and other relevant laws; help raise self-discipline and fully exercise their rights and obligations.

The Regulation also unifies and standardizes legal communications, dissemination and support for customs declarants and companies to gradually improve customs quality and performance across the customs sector.

The customs sector will inform, communicate and provide information on customs laws, tax laws and relevant laws for organizations and individuals with rights and obligations related to import and export, cargo transit, entry and exit, and transit of means of transport.

To achieve high results, the General Department of Vietnam Customs required all customs agencies to actively, regularly inform, disseminate and support legal affairs for customs declarants and companies.

In addition, legal communications, dissemination and support for customs declarants and companies must meet publicity and transparency requirements and provide full customs, tax and relevant laws for customs officers, declarants and companies to follow key tasks of the customs sector. Equipment for communications must be adequate and synchronous at all customs levels to facilitate this work.

At the same time, public servants responsible for communications must have broad knowledge of customs laws, tax laws, customs procedures, import and export operations, cargo transit, vehicle entry and exit, and other relevant regulations; and have good communication skills, presentation skills and a high sense of responsibility for their work. In particular, when dealing with customs declarants and enterprises, customs officers must wear uniforms, show polite, respectful attitudes and readily support customs declarants and businesses.

The General Department of Customs also required its subordinates to publicize its telephone hotlines on their websites and at customs clearance sites.

According to regulations, the customs sector will conduct communications in various forms: in writing; at customs offices; by phone; at working offices of customs declarants/enterprises; via conferences, seminars, training courses and consultations, via dialogue conferences; on websites of customs authorities; in the press; on leaflets and publications; and via surveys.

In particular, customs agencies need to step up communications on Vietnam Law Day, Vietnam Finance Law Day and Vietnam Customs Law Day. They will responsibly organize Vietnam Law Day and Vietnam Finance Law Day annually.

Particularly for Vietnam Customs Law Day, they need to take traditional Customs Day (September 10) every year as Customs Law Day with various important activities on law dissemination and communication.

By Le Hien, Vietnam Business Forum