Tiếng Việt
中文Short answer: Not mandatory. Decree 09/2018/ND-CP does not require foreign-invested economic organizations to declare goods by HS code on the Business License. Stating the HS code, the name, or by chapter is the investor’s right based on its needs, capacity, and business plan (Official Letter 6219/BCT-KH of 2018 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade).
Legal basis
- Decree 09/2018/ND-CP detailing the Law on Commerce and the Law on Foreign Trade Management regarding goods trading activities of foreign-invested economic organizations in Vietnam (Article 5);
- Decree 69/2018/ND-CP detailing the Law on Foreign Trade Management (Article 3 — freedom of export and import business);
- Official Letter 6219/BCT-KH of 2018 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade guiding the implementation of Decree 09/2018/ND-CP.
Which activities are covered by an FDI enterprise’s Business License?
Under Clause 1, Article 5 of Decree 09/2018/ND-CP, the Business License is granted to foreign-invested economic organizations to carry out: retail and wholesale distribution of goods; import; logistics; goods leasing; trade promotion; trade intermediation; e-commerce; organizing bidding for goods and services — within the scope of the granted rights.
Related services
Business Licenses and Conditional Business Sectors
If your business is preparing an application, amendment, business line registration or licensing review, ANT Legal can help check the file and execution path.
Vietnamese traders that are not foreign-invested economic organizations are free to conduct export and import business regardless of their registered business lines, except for goods prohibited or suspended from export or import (Article 3 of Decree 69/2018/ND-CP).
Must HS codes be shown when adjusting the Business License?
Under Official Letter 6219/BCT-KH of 2018:
- Not mandatory to declare goods by HS code. The investor may choose to declare by HS code, by name, or by chapter, based on its own assessment of needs, capacity, business plan, financial plan, retail facility scale, and convenience for customs clearance and tax declaration;
- The licensing authority (Department of Industry and Trade) records the goods content on the basis of the economic organization’s application dossier, in line with the review and assessment of licensing conditions, business plan, financial plan, and the characteristics of the intended goods;
- When adjusting the Business License, the goods content is recorded under the same principles — no mandatory obligation to show HS codes arises.
Note: enterprises may only exercise import and distribution rights for items within the licensed scope; declaring detailed HS codes may facilitate later customs and tax procedures.
Frequently asked questions
Is there any risk in declaring goods by name instead of HS code?
The law permits the choice. However, declaring by HS code helps precisely define the scope of goods and limits disputes during customs procedures. Enterprises should consider their goods’ characteristics.
Does adjusting the Business License require re-applying from scratch?
No. Adjustment of the Business License is carried out under Decree 09/2018/ND-CP for the changed contents; the entire license is not re-issued.
To adjust your Business License within the licensed rights scope and avoid risks at customs clearance, please contact ANT Legal’s lawyers to have your dossier reviewed and for advice before proceeding.
