4,959 TARIFF LINES ON IMPORTS FROM EAEU BROUGHT TO ZERO

[21-10-2016] The Government’s Decree No. 137/2016/ND-CP on Vietnam’s preferential import tariff nomenclature has been issued to implement the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and member countries for 2016-2018.

Vietnam’s import tariff nomenclature is constructed on the basis of the list of exports and imports of Vietnam, including 9,471 tariff lines with HS 8-digit level (excluding 87 CKD tariff lines) with preferential import tariff provided in the agreements on cutting import tariff of Vietnam. Accordingly, in 2016, import tariffs of 4,959 tariff lines, accounting for 52.4 per cent, have been reduced to 0 per cent from October 5, 2016.
 
The tariff lines reduced to 0 per cent are mainly inputs for production (raw materials for garment-textile and leather-footwear production, and plastic materials, etc) and commodity groups that Vietnam has advantages in export (such as footwear, clothing, seafood, components and electronic products, tea, coffee, and vegetables); rubber products, milk, some types of steel and steel products, chemicals, machinery and equipment.
 
By 2017, the number of tariff lines with 0 per cent tax rate will not change from 2016. By 2018, there will be an addition of 144 tariff lines reduced to 0 per cent, an increase in the number of tariff lines with 0 per cent to 5,103 tariff lines, accounting for 54 per cent in the nomenclature. The roadmap for reducing import tariffs in the Vietnam-EAEU FTA nomenclature is applied in 3 periods: From October 5, 2016 to the end of December 31, 2016; from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017 and from January 1, 2018 to the end of December 31, 2018. In order to enjoy the preferential import tariffs in the framework of this agreement, imports must meet the conditions of the origin of goods which is defined in Circular No. 21/2016/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance on the implementation of the rules of origin of goods on the basis of the free trade agreement between Vietnam and EAEU.

Source: VCCI