Controlling procedures on paper
After 15 years of implementing Decree No. 63/2010/NĐ-CP (dated June 8, 2010) on the control of administrative procedures, the Ministry of Justice reported significant progress—both in scale and depth of impact—regarding the reduction and simplification of administrative procedures and business conditions.
However, the prevailing approach remains focused on “formality and compliance” rather than “risk management and efficiency”.
A sufficiently robust control mechanism has yet to be established to address the issuance of “pre-check” procedures, licensing requirements, and “ask-and-give” (discretionary approval) mechanisms; these factors drive up compliance costs and limit the flexibility of the investment and business environment.
According to the Ministry of Justice, current mechanisms for reviewing and evaluating administrative procedures remain fragmented and are not designed around the event lifecycles or the actual experiences of citizens and businesses.
Evaluations primarily focus on the necessity, legality, and reasonableness of regulations, without being closely linked to practical data regarding processing times, incurred costs, convenience levels, or interoperability during procedure execution.
Consequently, many procedures are designed for the convenience of regulatory agencies rather than being centred on the needs of citizens and businesses. In this new context, there is an urgent need to shift from “paper-based procedure control” to “electronic-based procedure control”—an approach grounded in data and the interoperability of information systems used to process administrative procedures.
Feedback from localities indicates that a significant limitation of Decree No. 63 is its failure to fully adopt a modern data governance approach regarding the control and execution of administrative procedures.
Due to the lack of a comprehensive legal framework for data reuse, administrative systems continue to operate based on the logic of paper-based or isolated electronic dossiers rather than shifting to a data-driven processing model. Consequently, citizens and businesses are forced to repeatedly provide the same information across various procedures, thereby increasing compliance costs and processing times.
Do Thi Hue, a specialist at a logistics company in Hai Phong, noted that businesses face considerable difficulties with tax and customs-related administrative procedures. Issues such as conflicting or inconsistent guidelines and slow processing times create obstacles and even financial losses for enterprises.
Recently, the Viet Nam Leather, Footwear and Handbag Association (LEFASO) submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Industry and Trade seeking to resolve difficulties regarding the issuance of Certificates of Origin (C/O) for businesses in the leather, footwear, and garment sectors.
According to LEFASO, the primary issue stems from the transition of the C/O issuing authority from the Agency of Foreign Trade to local Departments of Industry and Trade. This shift requires businesses to re-register their trader profiles, a process that can take up to 10 days. While awaiting approval, businesses are unable to submit C/O applications, disrupting the preparation of export documentation.
In particular, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade has had to handle a massive volume of applications from various industries. During the initial transition phase, unstable processes and staffing issues have led to prolonged review and approval times for C/O applications.
For businesses handling multiple export shipments, Certificates of Origin (C/Os) directly impact taxes, customs clearance, cash flow, and delivery schedules at the destination.
To resolve bottlenecks, LEFASO has proposed that the Ministry of Industry and Trade consider urgent measures—specifically, leveraging existing trader profile data from the eCoSys system—to avoid requiring businesses to restart the process from scratch.
Citizens are not required to resubmit information or documents
Under the draft Decree replacing Decree 63/2010/NĐ-CP on the control of administrative procedures, for administrative procedures serving state management purposes of an informational or technical nature, competent authorities must proactively collect and utilise information from databases, management records, and relevant individuals or organisations.
The responsibility to resubmit information or documents must not be shifted onto individuals or organisations through administrative procedures. Procedures for information verification or provision must not be distorted into administrative licensing procedures based on a “request-approval” mechanism.
Administrative procedure outcomes must be provided in electronic format; paper copies may be provided additionally upon the request of individuals or organisations.
Competent authorities and officials must not arbitrarily require individuals or organisations to carry out administrative procedures if such regulations or procedures have not yet been announced and registered in the National Database on Administrative Procedures.
The receipt and processing of administrative procedures must be integrated with the “single-window” and “inter-agency single-window” mechanisms, implemented in an electronic environment, and ensure data connectivity, integration, and sharing.
Agencies implementing administrative procedures are responsible for assigning officials and civil servants who possess good ethical character, maintain proper communication standards, and have the necessary professional qualifications and competence.
They must provide guidance, explanations, and accurate, complete, and timely information regarding administrative procedures to relevant individuals and organisations, pregnant women, orphans, and other social welfare beneficiaries when undergoing administrative procedures...
The Ministry of Justice proposed that the review and assessment of administrative procedures must identify difficulties, obstacles, and inadequacies that are no longer suited to practical realities; it also calls for evaluating the impact of these procedures on citizens, businesses, investment, production, and business activities, the competitive environment, and the effectiveness and efficiency of state management...
Citizens and businesses view these proposals as highly practical for actual implementation. According to Le Tri (Dinh Cong Ward, Ha Noi), when data is available for use, the agencies handling procedures should proactively utilise it; poor system connectivity or a failure by officials to access existing data should not become reasons for requiring applicants to resubmit documents—a practice that runs counter to the current spirit of the Party and the State.
