Vietnam importer registration: tax code, VNACCS, agent, C/O

The buyer's enterprise registration and tax code

In a Vietnamese import, the party that files the customs declaration is the importer or an agent it authorises. So the first check is not your own registration but the buyer's. Ask for a copy of the buyer's business registration certificate before you promise a delivery date. It should show the company's legal name, address, enterprise code and registered business lines.

Under Decree 168/2025/ND-CP on enterprise registration, in force from 1 July 2025, each enterprise receives one unique code, the enterprise code (mã số doanh nghiệp). The Government's policy portal quotes Article 8: this code is also the enterprise's tax code (mã số thuế, MST). Ask the buyer's customs agent which company identifiers the customs system needs for your shipment.

Business lines matter too. The US International Trade Administration's Country Commercial Guide for Vietnam says that businesses import goods according to the business lines stated in their business registration certificates. If the certificate does not cover your product category, ask the buyer to solve this before the order is confirmed, not when the goods reach the port. If the buyer is not yet registered, do not assume the goods can clear: company registration comes first, then the ability to file in the customs system or to appoint an agent that can. Ask for written confirmation of each step before you ship.

• Copy of the business registration certificate
• Exact legal name and address as registered, to be used on every shipping document
• Enterprise code, which is also the tax code (MST)
• Registered business lines, checked against your products
• Whether the company files its own declarations or uses a customs agent, with the agent's contact details
• Confirmation that its customs system account and digital signature are active

Customs system access: VNACCS/VCIS account and digital signature

Vietnam Customs clears goods through the VNACCS/VCIS electronic system. A 2022 assessment by UNESCAP (the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific) reported that by December 2021 the system operated in 100% of provincial and municipal customs divisions, that users register for an account and a user ID through a "registration for VNACCS" link, and that the system accepts digital signatures from licensed service providers. The report covers information to the end of 2021, so treat it as background and not as the current procedure.

Electronic filing is the rule. Article 29(2) of the Customs Law says that customs declarations are made electronically, except where the Government allows the declarant to use a paper declaration. So the buyer must either have its own electronic set-up and digital signature, or authorise an agent that has them.

The detailed steps for registering a company and its digital signature certificate with Vietnam Customs are set by the customs rules and the customs portal, and they change. Do not rely on a general description: ask the buyer or its agent to confirm that the account and the digital signature are active, and not expired, before the goods ship.

Who files the import declaration: importer or customs agent

Article 4(14) of the Customs Law defines the declarant (người khai hải quan) as the goods owner, the vehicle owner, the person operating the vehicle, a customs agent, or another person authorised by the owner to carry out customs procedures. The goods owner is itself listed, so the importer can file its own declarations. The text does not make an agent compulsory.

Article 20(1) sets the conditions for a customs agent: a business or enterprise registration certificate with freight forwarding or customs agency among its business lines, customs agent staff, and information technology infrastructure able to support electronic declarations, plus other conditions in the rules. If the buyer uses an agent, ask for its name and contact, and send your documents to the buyer and the agent as the buyer instructs. The declaration is prepared from your documents, so a mistake in them becomes a mistake in the filing.

The Customs Law is being amended. Law No. 11/2026/QH16, adopted on 23 August 2026, amends a number of articles of the Customs Law and applies from 1 March 2027. Recheck the articles quoted in this note, including the agent conditions in Article 20, after that date.

National Single Window: licences and specialised inspection

Some products need a licence, a registration or a specialised inspection before or at import, for example for quarantine, food safety or quality. The Country Commercial Guide says imports must comply with the relevant regulations and be inspected by the competent agencies before customs clearance. Article 24(1) of the Customs Law lists import licences and notices of the result of specialised inspection, or of an exemption from it, among the documents that can form part of the customs dossier.

Article 4(3) of the Customs Law defines the National Single Window (NSW) as a mechanism that lets the declarant send electronic information and documents, for customs procedures and for the procedures of other state agencies on imports and exports, through one integrated information system. The aim is that approvals and customs clearance run through the same system.

Decree 336/2026/ND-CP, signed on 22 August 2026 and in force from 15 October 2026, covers the procedures for exported, imported and transit goods, and for transport means, under the NSW and the ASEAN Single Window. A Government news report on the decree says that declarants register an account and a digital signature on the NSW portal, or can use a VNeID electronic identity account to register and log in, and that the portal operator checks the registration data within 1 working day of receiving it. Ask the buyer's agent which Single Window procedures apply to your shipment.

Legal basis, and what changed from 2025 to 2027

Vietnam's import customs rules sit in several layers. The list shows the main texts and their dates as published on the Government's legal database and in the Official Gazette.

A reply from the Customs Department on the Ministry of Finance's Q&A portal (to a question dated 21 January 2026) still points to Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC, as amended by Circulars 39/2018/TT-BTC and 121/2025/TT-BTC, for detailed procedures and documents. Circular 86/2026/TT-BTC then set rules on tax management for export and import goods from 1 July 2026. Because these texts have been amended several times in 2025 and 2026, ask the buyer's customs agent which provisions it applies, and treat any guide that cites only Circulars 38/2015 and 39/2018 as possibly out of date.

Vietnam Customs is part of the Ministry of Finance, and the customs authority publishes its guidance as the Customs Department (Cục Hải quan), for example its handbook on origin checks under free trade agreements (issued with Decision 2088/QD-CHQ, dated 25 December 2025).

• Customs Law No. 54/2014/QH13 of 23 June 2014, in force from 1 January 2015, with later amendments (laws of 2014, 2018, 2022 and 2025 appear in the consolidated text)
• Decree 08/2015/ND-CP of 21 January 2015 on customs procedures, inspection, supervision and control, amended by Decree 167/2025/ND-CP of 30 June 2025, in force from 15 August 2025
• Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC of 25 March 2015 on customs procedures, amended by Circular 39/2018/TT-BTC and by Circular 121/2025/TT-BTC (issued 18 December 2025, in force from 1 February 2026)
• Circular 86/2026/TT-BTC on tax management of export and import goods, issued 30 June 2026, in force from 1 July 2026
• Decree 336/2026/ND-CP on procedures under the National Single Window and the ASEAN Single Window, signed 22 August 2026, in force from 15 October 2026
• Law No. 11/2026/QH16 amending the Customs Law, adopted 23 August 2026, in force from 1 March 2027

What the exporter sends, and how the certificate of origin is used

Article 24(1) of the Customs Law says the customs dossier is the customs declaration, or a document that replaces it, plus related documents. Depending on the case, the declarant must submit or present the sales contract, the commercial invoice, the transport document, the certificate of origin (C/O), the import licence, the notice of the result of specialised inspection or exemption, and other documents related to the goods under the relevant law. The article does not name the packing list, but it is a standard part of the shipping set and lets the agent check quantities and packages against the invoice. The importer or its agent files these documents. You supply the commercial and transport documents and the origin proof.

Timing. Under Article 25, an import declaration is filed before the goods reach the border gate or within 30 days of arrival, and a declaration is valid for customs procedures for 15 days from registration. Because filing can start before arrival, send the invoice, packing list and a draft or copy of the transport document to the buyer and its agent early, and the final set as soon as it is issued.

Certificate of origin. To claim a special preferential rate under a free trade agreement, the importer needs the origin proof that the agreement requires, and the form depends on the agreement. The Customs Department's handbook on origin checks has separate sections for the agreements it covers, including ATIGA (ASEAN), ACFTA (ASEAN-China), AKFTA (ASEAN-Korea), VKFTA (Vietnam-Korea), UKVFTA (UK-Vietnam), RCEP and VIFTA (Vietnam-Israel). Its contents list shows headings on submitting the origin proof for several of them and, for RCEP, a further heading on submitting additional proof to obtain the preference. Rules for submitting the origin proof, including any late submission, differ by agreement, so do not assume a deadline. For electronic exchange, UNESCAP reported that Vietnam is connected to the ASEAN Single Window to exchange electronic Form D certificates with other ASEAN members, and the handbook's contents list has sections on handling electronic Form D and on checking Form AK and KV certificates sent through the NSW's electronic C/O management system. Ask the importer whether it expects a paper original or an electronic exchange for your agreement, and make sure the C/O shows the same product description and quantity as your invoice.