In response, Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade launched a pilot programme for self-certification of product origin for companies exporting to ASEAN. This not only paves the way for the formation of a mechanism for self-certification, it also minimizes administrative formalities for Vietnam’s enterprises.
There are four requirements for product origin self-certification. A company needs to be both the manufacturer and exporter of their own products, and it must not violate the product origin rules during the two years before certification. Also, the export turnover of the company must have reached at least 10 million USD in the previous year. Finally, the officials of the company must be trained and certified to ascertain product origin by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
According to the Ministry, few Vietnamese companies meet all of these requirements, particularly the rule regarding a 10 million USD export turnover. Notably, this criterion applies only to products that originate entirely from Vietnam.
The self-certification mechanism allows import-export companies to cut expenses on storage and administrative procedures. However, these companies also anticipate challenges arising from the new regulations.
According to electronic certificate of origin issuance system eCoSys, about 40 enterprises in Vietnam have satisfied the pilot stage for origin self-certification. This result is commendable in relation to other ASEAN member countries, such as Indonesia or the Philippines, which have only about 10 enterprises satisfying pilot stage criteria.
A representative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the criteria for self-certification are necessary to prevent false claims of origin and to enhance the reputation of Vietnam’s exported products.
The pilot implementation of product origin self-certification will run until an ASEAN-wide mechanism replaces it. The establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community will also facilitate negotiations for the completion of a self-certification mechanism.
