Vietnam Proposes Cutting Import Tax Exemption Threshold for Cheap Goods

Vietnam’s customs authority is proposing a sharp cut in the import-tax exemption threshold for low-value goods, reducing the main limit for postal and express-delivery shipments from 1 million dong to 100,000 dong.

Under the proposal, a shipment would remain exempt if its total customs value did not exceed 100,000 dong, or if the import and export tax due amounted to no more than 10,000 dong for that shipment. The same thresholds would apply across all import methods.

Current rules exempt postal and express-delivery imports valued at up to 1 million dong, or shipments with tax due of no more than 100,000 dong. Other forms of import are exempt up to 500,000 dong, or when the tax payable is no more than 50,000 dong.

Authorities introduced those thresholds to reduce administrative costs and facilitate trade. But the rapid growth of cross-border e-commerce has brought a sharp increase in the number and frequency of low-value shipments. The customs authority says the existing policy can give imported goods an advantage over domestic products, create incentives to split orders and weaken management efficiency.

The Finance Ministry’s draft would retain an exemption mechanism while narrowing the benefit and applying it uniformly. Customs officials said the proposal has a legal basis and is intended to comply with international commitments and Vietnam’s Law on Export and Import Tax.

The 10,000-dong tax threshold corresponds to customs processing costs, according to the authority. With an average preferential tariff of about 10%, that tax amount corresponds to a shipment valued at roughly 100,000 dong.

The proposed rule would not apply to gifts, donated goods or goods bought, sold or exchanged by border residents. The draft is currently open for comments from ministries, agencies and associations.