Vietnam meets with WTO, Swiss customs-finance officials
A delegation of Vietnam's finance, customs and taxation officials has met with officials of the World Trade Organisation and the Swiss Federal Customs Administration and Federal Department of Finance.
Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tuan (Photo: VNA)
Geneva (VNA) – A delegation of Vietnamese finance, customs and taxation ওofficials visited Switzerland and met with officials of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the Swiss Federal Customs Administratio🌊n and Federal Department of Finance from March 5 – 8.
The visiting delegation, led by Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tuan, included representatives of the General Department of Customs and the General Department of Taxation.
At a working session with WTO Director-General Roberto Azevêdo on March 7, the two sides discussed the implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) in Vietnam, which ratified the pact in November 2015.
As the head of the negotiation group on the agreement, the customs general department actively sought technical assistance to prepare for the TFA implementation and engaged in bilateral and international forums on trade facilitation.
Deputy Minister Tuan thanked WTO officials for helping Vietnam during negotiations and carry out post-negotiation works, especially sending experts to help the country gain an insight into and disseminate the deal.
Official WTO membership since 2007 has helped Vietnam gain valuable experience and make use of the organisation as a negotiation and dialogue channel to better protect Vietnamese enterprises’ interests in the global business world, he added.
At a meeting with Deputy Director of the Swiss Federal Customs Administration Robert Lussi the same day, the two sides reviewed the cooperation between the two countries’ customs agencies, noting that they signed a cooperation document in 2012.
Lussi said Vietnam is an important trade partner of Switzerland, and his country has continually paid attention to building a bilateral cooperation programme.
Meeting with State Secretary in the Swiss Federal Department of Finance Jacques de Watteville, Tuan spoke highly of the nations’ cooperation, including technical assistance to Vietnam to promote public financial management and public debt management, fine-tune institutional framework and tax policies, streamline tax procedures, and help with financial solutions for disaster risks and insurance.
The officials also shared experience in tax management and the realisation of the Vietnam – Switzerland agreement on avoidance of double taxation, which took effect in 1997.-VNA
National Assembly deputies on November 5 heard a number of reports relating to the ratification of a protocol amending the WTO Agreement establishing the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Ambassador Nguyen Trung Thanh hoped for successful relations between Vietnamese enterprises in Switzerland and Russia, which will open up new business opportunities.
The World Trade Organisation’s Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) sets forth a series of specific measures to facilitate trade across borders in line with international standards.
Under a draft to amend and supplement the Government's Decree 125/2020/ND-CP on administrative sanctions for violations of tax and invoice regulations, the Ministry of Finance has proposed classifying the failure to issue invoices into five different levels. Infraction levels will correspond to fines of 1 million VND to 80 million VND, depending on the nature and number of invoicing violations.
A new airline developed and invested by Sun Group — has officially announced a strategic partnership with Amadeus IT Group (Amadeus), one of the world’s leading travel technology companies. This agreement not only lays the foundation for a modern digital infrastructure but also marks a pivotal step in SPA’s global expansion strategy, enabling the airline to access international distribution networks and reach customers worldwide.
Of the total, 107,700 were new firms, with combined registered capital of 928.4 trillion VND (35.4 billion USD), up 10.6% in number and 5.5% in capital compared with the same period last year.
Experts agree that a combination of technology, enforcement, education and cross-border cooperation is essential to protect copyrighted content in Vietnam’s growing digital ecosystem.
Poland is Vietnam’s largest export market in Central and Eastern Europe, with key staples including seafood, textiles, footwear, coffee, and cashew nuts.
Cashless payments are growing at an impressive rate, averaging 30–40% annually. Vietnam’s per capita cashless transaction volume now trails only China, with total value of 295.2 quadrillion VND (11.26 trillion USD), or 26 times of its GDP.
A draft resolution on piloting a digital asset and cryptocurrency market is being developed, aiming to create a broad-enough regulatory sandbox that enables investor participation and provides practical grounds for policy refinement in areas such as risk management and anti-money laundering.
Viettel was ranked third for overall mobile performance with a score of 82.56 just behind UEA’s e& (88.05) and Quatar’s Ooredoo (87.05) and ahead of Singapore’s Singtel (82.53). Vinaphone took second in 5G speed with a score of 78.11, trailing only behind e&.
PM Chinh proposed MUFG work closely with the Ministry of Finance to improve legal frameworks and support the establishment and operation of the international financial centre in Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City.
The Prime Minister emphasised the significance of maintaining macroeconomic stability, controlling inflation, promoting growth, and improving the harmony between monetary and fiscal policies.
Petrovietnam will step up the development of new products and the expansion of international markets to reduce reliance on the domestic market. It also plans to optimise capital use, manage cash flow and costs, streamline operations, and enhance workforce quality to achieve its 2025 goals.
Vietnam has so far attracted 43,346 valid FDI projects with a total registered capital of 517.14 billion USD. The accumulated disbursed capital is estimated at nearly 331.46 billion USD, accounting for 64.6% of the total registered capital.
More than a product showcase, Vietfood & Beverage – Propack Vietnam 2025 is designed as a comprehensive ecosystem where businesses, experts, and consumers can share knowledge, explore technologies, and connect for collaboration.
Both sides expressed their hope that the outcomes of the discussion will continue to improve the efficiency of customs clearance activities at the customs clearance points and dedicated transport routes of the Huu Nghi – Youyi Guan international border gate pair.
The maximum retail price of E5 RON92 petrol has increased by 207 VND to 19,608 VND (0.75 USD) per litre while that of RON95-III rose by 234 VND to 20,074 VND per litre.
Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tuan (Photo: VNA)
