Hoang Viet Cuong, deputy head of the General Department of Vietnam Customs, made the statement at a workshop releasing a report on the business satisfaction of customs administrative procedures throughout 2018, held in Hanoi on January 8.

The decree was submitted to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc for approval, Cuong revealed.

More than 3,000 businesses were asked to rate their satisfaction of customs administrative procedures. Of these, 33% were foreign-invested enterprises.

Dau Anh Tuan, head of the Legal Department under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said the implementation of customs procedures in 2018 was leveraged significantly in comparison with 2015.

The access of businesses to customs procedures enjoyed an increase in 2018. Up to 76% of the surveyed businesses were satisfied with their access to the portal of Vietnam Customs while 62% were content with the portal of provincial customs departments.

The survey indicated that customs facilitation in 2018 had improved against 2015. Around 50% of the surveyed companies in 2018 confirmed that check points and customs stations had created favourable conditions for paying taxes when clearing customs whilst the figure stood at only 26% in 2015.

As many as 25% of the businesses queried found it simple to carry out the customs clearance procedures while the ratio in 2015 was at a low of 10%.

At the workshop, representatives from associations of milk, seafood, and textile production pointed out a number of barriers that are currently hindering imports and exports. Calls were made upon the customs sector as well as other stakeholders to improve current inadequacies for the sake of trade facilitation.

Cuong from the General Department of Vietnam Customs asserted, the customs sector would continue to hasten its administrative reforms aimed at slashing the time for customs clearance and relevant costs.

He noted the sector would scrutinize the criteria for assessing businesses’ adherence to customs regulations and the relocation of check posts and land custom stations with a proximity to manufacturing firms.