To refine the draft law, National Assembly deputies clearly articulated their views, provided in-depth analysis of practical issues, and offered specific recommendations addressing key articles and clauses.
Supporting businesses in disadvantaged areas
Deputy To Ai Vang (Can Tho delegation) noted that Viet Nam’s exports of agricultural and aquatic products have been steadily growing, positioning the country among the world’s leading exporters—particularly for rice, seafood, fruits and vegetables, and durian. However, export operations in this sector face challenges regarding prolonged customs clearance times, which risk damaging the goods.
Therefore, she proposed considering specific regulations for these commodities that allow for a “clearance-first, inspection-later” mechanism, based on electronic risk assessment results and automated quarantine and origin certification via the National Single Window system.
The stipulated 10-working-day timeframe for regional customs offices to respond to dossiers regarding intellectual property inspection and supervision is considered excessively long and unreasonable given the rapid pace of international trade; such delays risk causing cargo congestion and increasing warehousing costs for businesses.
Stipulating a 10-working-day deadline for regional customs authorities to respond to intellectual property inspection and supervision dossiers is excessively long and unreasonable given the rapid pace of international trade; such a delay risks causing cargo congestion and increasing storage costs for businesses.
While agreeing with the implementation of unified electronic customs documentation, delegates—including Trang A Duong (Lao Cai delegation)—noted that a full transition to a digital environment can only be effective if technical infrastructure and accessibility for the public and businesses are synchronised.
Currently, small enterprises, cooperatives, and business households in ethnic minority and mountainous areas face significant challenges regarding digital infrastructure and skills. Priority must be given to support solutions for mountainous, remote, border, and island regions, as well as ethnic minority areas, to prevent widening the digital divide during the implementation of electronic customs procedures.
In the Central Highlands, Southwest, Northwest, and coastal regions, digital customs systems help businesses and cooperatives exporting coffee, durian, agricultural products, and seafood reduce travel time, costs, and compliance burdens. However, most of these enterprises and cooperatives are small, with uneven technological and legal capabilities.
The Law should incorporate mechanisms to assist with declarations, provide error alerts, and offer compliance guidance; it should also ensure that dossiers are not rejected and businesses are not penalised for issues stemming from faults in state information systems.
Risk of “hanging” inspection status
The draft law proposes extending the post-clearance inspection period from 10 working days to a maximum of 20 working days, with the possibility of a single extension of up to another 20 days.
Delegate Nguyen Khanh Vu (Quang Tri Delegation) argued that the actual effectiveness of extending the deadline depends entirely on the customs authority’s capacity to process and analyse data during that period—specifically data regarding customs declarations, taxes, banking, and cross-border e-commerce transaction identifiers.
If the connectivity infrastructure linking these systems remains incomplete, simply adding more time will not improve the quality of inspection findings; instead, it would only prolong the period during which businesses remain in a “pending inspection” status, directly impacting their cash flow and import-export operations.
Feedback suggests that the draft law lacks specific provisions regarding timelines for inspection and the issuance of inspection results, as well as procedures for re-examination or re-assessment when a customs declarant files a complaint or requests a re-evaluation of goods.
Furthermore, the responsibilities of the inspection agency remain unclear in cases of processing delays or discrepancies between initial inspection results and re-assessment findings. These issues directly impact customs clearance times, the legitimate rights and interests of customs declarants, and the transparency and accountability of state management agencies.
Delegate Le Thi Thanh Lam (Can Tho Delegation) proposed adding a principle prohibiting customs authorities from requiring declarants to resubmit information, data, or documents that state agencies already possess or can access via the National Single Window and shared national databases; she also called for limiting redundant inspections of the same shipment content.
Cross-border e-commerce goods are characterised by high transaction volumes, low individual order values, and a need for rapid turnover; applying traditional goods-handling procedures could cause bottlenecks at border crossings. Therefore, it is necessary to develop appropriate management mechanisms based on risk management, information technology applications, and streamlined electronic customs procedures.
Avoiding additional procedural burdens
Incorporating regulations for the management of goods imported and exported via e-commerce platforms is essential, given the rapid growth, high volume, low value, and high frequency associated with this sector. The draft law mandates that organisations and individuals in Viet Nam engaging in cross-border trade via e-commerce platforms must undergo electronic identity verification. This constitutes a new legal obligation with a broad scope of impact, directly affecting citizens, businesses, and e-commerce platform operators.
However, Delegate Nguyen Minh Tam (Quang Tri delegation) and numerous other delegates pointed out that the draft lacks a comprehensive assessment of the regulation's feasibility, particularly regarding the conditions required for practical implementation. Specifically, the draft fails to clarify the capabilities for data connectivity and sharing between the national electronic identification system and cross-border e-commerce platforms—especially those operated by foreign entities.
The legislative dossier also lacks an assessment of technical infrastructure readiness and the compliance costs for businesses and the public; furthermore, it fails to propose a suitable implementation roadmap prior to the regulation taking effect. Moreover, there has been no assessment of the impact on individual consumers; any such regulation must ensure convenience, avoid imposing excessive procedural burdens, and remain consistent with laws governing electronic identification, authentication, and personal data protection.
