Used electronic components or waste?

Operations at the Investment Management Customs Branch. Photo: ZT.H

Used components or waste?

According to the Investment Management Customs Branch (Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department), a foreign-invested enterprise, opened a declaration to export used electronic equipment and components, phone screens, boards, phone headsets, and watches. The customs suspected these goods as waste electronic devices, components or devices with electronic components listed in waste code No. 16.01.13 belonging to household waste and domestic waste from other sources specified in section 16. Appendix III issued with Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT dated January 10, 2022, of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment. Thus, the customs guided the enterprise to make additional declarations of goods names through the VNACCS per the provisions in Appendix II of Circular No. 38/2015/TT-BTC (amended in Circular No. 39/2018/TT-BTC).

On July 5, 2023, the enterprise provided a transportation certificate (according to the form Appendix III of paragraph 31b of the Basel Convention) issued by an authorized service provider that confirms the goods are "not waste" according to technical instructions on cross-border transportation of used components and equipment; this transportation certificate is attached to the customs dossier submitted to the Customs authority when the enterprise make each export declaration. They are linked to the goods information shown on the customs declaration through each shipment's Airway Bill (AWB) number.

On July 27, 2023, the enterprise sent an unnumbered Letter of Commitment dated July 24, 2023, on the products and appointing warranty units: Authorized service providers for the service providers throughout Vietnam to support, repair, replace defective products and export these defective products to Singapore under a sales contract between Vietnamese businesses and businesses in Singapore. It is committed that the used components are not wasted; on August 10, 2023, the enterprise submitted Airway Bills for each shipment through the centralized electronic customs clearance system.

There are no specific regulations

During the customs clearance, the Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department encountered difficulties determining the nature of goods because current regulations do not have specific provisions for the above case.

Based on the Law on Environmental Protection No. 72/2020/QH14 dated November 17, 2020, according to Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP dated January 10, 2022, of the Government, detailing the implementation of several articles of the Law on Environmental Protection; Under Circular No. 02/2022/T.T. -BTNMT dated January 10, 2022 of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment detailing the implementation of several articles of the Law on Environmental Protection, Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department said that, There are no specific criteria to determine whether used electronic components do not belong to waste electronic equipment, components or electrical equipment with electronic components listed in waste code 16.01.13 - Section 16, Appendix III or the cases mentioned in Article 40 of Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT.

At the same time, there is currently no inspection organization that inspects used electrical components that are still recoverable, have not expired, and still have the value of use according to the original purpose and determine that they are not waste. However, currently, the determination of an enterprise's exported goods as waste or used electronic components that still have use value can be made by the enterprise's own written commitment and a transportation certificate certifying that the goods are not waste according to the technical guidance on cross-border transportation of used components and equipment according to the Basel Convention, certified by an authorized service provider.

If a transportation certificate, according to Annex III of paragraph 31b of the Basel Convention, issued by an authorized service provider is considered a legal document to confirm that the goods are not waste or not, Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department asked.

To facilitate and avoid damage to businesses while waiting for instructions from the General Department of Customs, the Investment Management Customs Branch proposes to carry out procedures for 10 uncleaned shipments based on documents provided by the enterprise. Accordingly, each shipment should have an invoice, a written commitment stating that the exported goods are not waster together with the AASP list in Vietnam, a transportation certificate described by Annex III of paragraph 31b of the Basel Convention named by an authorized service provider matching an airway bill.

According to the Investment Management Customs Branch, through checking documents, the customs found that the declared value of used electric components is not the value of waste; for example, a camera is 3.06 USD/piece; a phone screen 11.58 USD/piece; front camera 28.57 USD/piece; watch 58.43 USD/piece; headphones with over-the-head frame 2.94 USD/piece. Along with that, the packaging image of the shipment is very careful. Each device is packed into a carton box with labels and inserted with a protective lining to avoid damage during transportation.