Beware of the "invasion" of unofficial e-commerce platforms

New, cheap floor fever

Temu has been newly appeared in Vietnam, but many experts are concerned about its legality as users can go to the app stores on their phones to download the app, buy and pay on this platform with the Vietnamese version.

Using social media platforms, Nguyen Ha (Bac Tu Liem, Hanoi) was attracted by many social media users sharing affiliate links, calling on relatives and friends to download the Temu application to receive commissions, along with super discount programs of up to 90 percent.

Accessing the Temu application, customers only need to type in the product they want to buy and a list of promotional discounts and policies will appear.

However, when comparing product prices on Temu with e-commerce platforms that have been operating for a long time in Vietnam, Ms. Ha found that even with discounts, some products are still more expensive than platforms that have been operating for a long time in Vietnam.

Another issue that makes Ha worried is that when buying goods, payment must be made by bank transfer in advance. If the goods are wrong or defective, it will take longer to complain. With current e-commerce platforms, payment must be made upon receipt of the goods and if the product does not match the order, it can be returned immediately.

According to the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy (Ministry of Industry and Trade), Vietnam is one of the countries with the fastest e-commerce growth rate in Southeast Asia, reaching an average of 25 percent per year.

Vietnam's e-commerce retail market is estimated to reach US$20.5 billion in 2023 and continue to increase in the coming years. The number of online shoppers has exceeded 61 million, with a shopping value of about US$336 per person. This is the reason why Vietnam has become a new destination for many cross-border e-commerce platforms.

Mr. Pham Dinh Thuong, member of the senior advisory board of the Vietnam E-commerce Association, said that managing cross-border e-commerce platforms is a concern of many countries, not just Vietnam.

Faced with the massive emergence of cross-border e-commerce platforms, Mr. Pham Dinh Thuong said that Vietnam needs to evaluate the operations of cross-border e-commerce platforms because it affects many aspects.

The first is the impact on the operations of e-commerce platforms operating legally in Vietnam.

Next are cheap foreign goods, especially Chinese goods, competing with domestically produced goods through the e-commerce environment.

Thirdly, there may be tax losses from business activities on cross-border e-commerce platforms.

“We can download the Temu app and order products from Temu, which means they are already operating in the Vietnamese market. However, as far as I know, they are not licensed. In terms of state management, we need to review why unlicensed cross-border e-commerce platforms are still operating in Vietnam,” Mr. Pham Dinh Thuong emphasized.

Need appropriate legal corridor

Current regulations are quite liberal with cross-border e-commerce platforms, which do not require the establishment of a foreign-invested enterprise in Vietnam. According to Mr. Pham Dinh Thuong, this is an issue that needs to be studied and revised.

“On the downside, if they do not register as foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam, they will be subject to lower taxes than foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam. Secondly, the management requirements for these e-commerce platforms will be more difficult.

Currently, there are many opportunities for e-commerce platforms to enter Vietnam, thereby making the e-commerce environment in Vietnam fiercely competitive on a large scale. The consequence is that many businesses that have operated well and contributed a lot to Vietnam are at risk of leaving.

At the recent regular press conference, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan said that according to the provisions of Decree 85/2021/ND-CP amending Decree 52/2013/ND-CP on e-commerce, e-commerce platforms operating in Vietnam are required to register with the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

The Ministry has also assigned the General Department of Market Management to closely monitor this issue. At the same time, the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy has been assigned to review and assess the impact.

Faced with concerns about the pressure of cheap Chinese goods through e-commerce, as well as traditional channels that could threaten domestic production, Deputy Minister Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan said that goods in general when entering Vietnam must have an impact assessment to have a plan to protect domestically produced goods.

“E-commerce channels are emerging and have more advantages, so they need more specific solutions to handle them. Currently, goods on e-commerce are very inexpensive.

However, along with price, issues such as design, specifications, brand, and quality also need to be carefully considered and evaluated in the same segment. From there, it is determined whether the goods are fraudulent, counterfeit, or undervalued in order to have management measures," said the Deputy Minister.

In response to the fact that cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Temu, Shein, 1688... have conducted business activities in Vietnam but have not registered their operations with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, recently, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien directed units under the ministry to strengthen state management of e-commerce.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade requested the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy to coordinate with relevant agencies and units to strengthen communication and guide consumers to be cautious when shopping online on cross-border e-commerce platforms in general and platforms such as Temu, Shein, 1688... in particular.

The Legal Department coordinated with the Department of E-commerce and Digital Economy to review legal factors and propose solutions to handle cross-border e-commerce platforms operating illegally...