Strict control and supervision of goods and vehicles crossing An Giang border gate

Tinh Bien Customs officers check imported goods at places for centralized inspection. Photo: T.H

Regarding customs inspection and supervision procedures for exported and imported goods and means of transport on entry and exit through land border gates in An Giang province, the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) requested An Giang Customs Department comply with the provisions of the Customs Law, Decree No. 08/2015/ND-CP dated January 21, 2015 as amended in Decree No. 59/2018/ND-CP dated April 20, 2018; Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC dated March 25, 2015 amended and supplemented in Circular No. 39/2018/TT-BTC dated April 20, 2018 of the Ministry of Finance.

The receipt, inspection and confirmation of information declared in advance for imported goods and means of transport of goods in the manifest in accordance with the instructions in Official Dispatch No. 119/TCHQ-GSQL dated January 11, 2021 and Official Letter No. 330/TCHQ-GSQL dated January 22, 2021 of GDVC until the launch of the system to receive, process and confirm the electronic manifest (e-manifest) of imported goods.

Regarding the determination of the scope of the border gate area, to ensure the management of customs authorities and competent forces at the border gate, An Giang Customs Department is requested to urgently report to the People’s Committee of An Giang province on carrying out procedures for determining the scope of the sub-border gate area and opening roads following its competence and prepared a dossier to submit to the Government to determine the scope of the main border gate area and international border gate in the province under the Decree No. 112/2014/ND-CP dated November 21, 2014 of the Government.

Regarding customs supervision, management, inspection and control for exported and imported goods, means of transport on exit and entry and means of transport across the border to deliver and receive export and import goods, the GDVC requires:

At Vinh Xuong international border gate, at present, the land border gate area and the river border gate area do not have a wharf, yard or place for gathering and inspecting imported and exported goods. Thus, the implementation of customs inspection and supervision must be carried out on rivers or along roads in border-gate areas which potentially pose many risks to occupational safety, make it difficult to inspect, supervise, and easy to be taken advantage of by subjects to smuggling and transporting illegal goods across the border.

From the above fact, GDVC requested An Giang Customs Department to report to the People’s Committee of An Giang province on the planning, arrangement of areas and premises at the border gate, investment in the construction of a port to serve import and export activities or notify enterprises operating warehouses about the socialization of investment in the construction of ports and places for inspection at the border, ensuring the management by the Customs and competent forces at the border gate.

At Tinh Bien international border gate, imported goods are brought to a gathering place to carry out customs procedures, customs inspection and supervision, it is required to comply with the above supervision regulations. At the same time, carrying out the following contents:

Imported goods classified in the red channel must be brought to the gathering place for inspection which is recognized by GDVC to carry out physical inspection of goods and transshipment in accordance with the regulations. Agricultural products which are classified in the green and yellow channels will carry out clearance procedures and goods released at the border gate.

Imported goods transported on foreign vehicles, after completing customs procedures, clearance and goods release, may only be brought to places located in border-gate areas or in customs operation areas which must have electricity for lighting and a camera connected to the Customs office in order to carry out loading and unloading goods. Tinh Bien Customs Branch must closely monitor the means of transport entering the border gate area to deliver goods in accordance with regulations.

At Khanh Binh border gate, the gathering of goods waiting for customs procedures for exported and imported goods at land border gates and river border areas must be carried out in the gathering locations that have been recognized by GDVC or places of gathering goods built by the Economic Zone Authority of An Giang province at the area of integrated control station of border gate with the condition that there is a surveillance camera system connected to the Customs office.

For the inspection and supervision of loading, and unloading of exported and imported goods from vehicles with foreign license plates to Vietnamese vehicles and vice versa at land border gates and river border areas must be carried out at places of gathering, inspection and supervision that have been recognized by GDVC. They are not allowed to carry out inspection and supervision at gathering places of individuals and businesses which have not been recognized by GDVC at the land border gate area and river border area.