Recognised priority enterprises benefit from various measures facilitating customs procedures, inspections, tax administration and post-clearance audits, as well as international facilitation under Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs) for priority enterprises. These measures help reduce time and costs while giving businesses greater flexibility in production and operations.
Viet Nam currently has two MRAs with ASEAN and the Republic of Korea. It completed the first phase of the ASEAN MRA on March 31, 2026, and the second phase on June 30, 2026. It is also continuing to implement the Viet Nam-Republic of Korea MRA and exploring bilateral and multilateral cooperation with China and other partners.
Viet Nam now has 74 priority enterprises operating in key import-export sectors, including electronics, high technology, industrial manufacturing, textiles and garments, agriculture, and fisheries. Although they account for a very small proportion of the business community, these enterprises contribute around one-third of the country’s total import-export turnover on average.
From 2022 to 2025, the import-export turnover of priority enterprises consistently exceeded 230 billion USD/year, equivalent to around 28-34% of the country’s total import-export turnover. In 2025 alone, the figure reached approximately 256.63 billion USD, while it stood at around 164.52 billion USD in the first six months of 2026, accounting for approximately 30% of the total import-export turnover of the country.
However, priority status is both recognition of an enterprise’s compliance and management capacity and a responsibility to maintain the required conditions after recognition. In 2025, customs authorities temporarily suspended priority status for four enterprises and suspended or terminated it for three others. This clearly demonstrates that priority status is not a permanent privilege; enterprises can continue to benefit from it only if they genuinely maintain the required conditions and compliance standards.
This requires enterprises to continuously maintain compliance with customs laws, establish effective internal control systems and meet the conditions for priority status throughout their operations. They must also cooperate with customs authorities in inspection, supervision, and risk management. The customs sector, meanwhile, must continue reforming and modernising, adopting data- and risk-based management to facilitate trade while ensuring effective state management.
In the next phase, the Viet Nam Customs needs to orientate to develop the programme in greater depth, linking trade facilitation with compliance management and risk management, digital transformation, and supply chain security. It should also create favourable conditions for high-tech enterprises and businesses with strong management and compliance records to join the programme, while expanding mutual recognition with international partners. Such mechanisms can reduce inspection rates, prioritise customs clearance, and shorten processing times, helping businesses cut costs and improve their competitiveness in international markets.
