Starting from September 15, 2026, Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC officially enters into force, replacing old regulations aiming to step up digitalization, cut administrative procedures, and create maximum facilitation for enterprises.

Amending scope and classification bases

Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC promulgated by the Ministry of Finance on June 30, 2026 regulates goods classification, analysis for goods classification, and the construction and utilization of databases on the Vietnam Import and Export Commodity Classification.

Applicable subjects encompass customs declarants, Customs agencies, customs officers along with organizations and individuals related to goods classification and analysis activities and database exploitation of the commodity classification. This Circular replaces Circular No. 14/2015/TT-BTC dated January 30, 2015 and Circular No. 17/2021/TT-BTC dated February 26, 2021.

The legal corridor at Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC records fundamental shifts aiming to concentrate properly on operational expertise and untie obstacles arising from practice. Notably, Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC completely eliminates the utilization of analysis results for quality inspection or food safety inspection out of the regulatory scope, helping verification activities concentrate deeply on goods classification purposes.

Clearly determining this regulatory scope helps the content of Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC concentrate on classification and analysis activities serving goods classification.

Against commodity items possessing complex technical natures not yet having sufficient bases for identification under the current Classification, Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC opens a flexible handling mechanism when permitting the utilization of standards, technical regulations, and technical criteria promulgated by competent agencies as bases to determine designations, descriptions, and commodity codes.

Concurrently, classification guiding documents are also standardized in the direction of merely applying to documents promulgated by the Director General of the Customs Department, guaranteeing the highest uniformity across the entire system.

Against cases where goods lack sufficient bases to determine designations and descriptions under the Vietnam Import and Export Commodity Classification (especially against a backdrop of emerging many new commodity items carrying complex structures and technical natures), Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC supplements a new handling basis: Permitting the utilization of criteria, standards, and technical regulations promulgated by competent agencies, organizations, and units under regulations to serve as bases to determine designations, descriptions, and commodity codes.

Besides, classification guiding documents are amended in the direction of merely applying to amending and classification guiding documents promulgated by the Director General of the Customs Department to guarantee uniformity.

Cutting procedures and decentralizing management

Stretching throughout Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC is the requirement to step up information technology applications, connecting and sharing data between Customs agencies, specialized management agencies, and customs declarants to reduce paper dossiers and shorten processing times.

Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC concrete-ises by cutting and adjusting operational processes.

Specifically, against combination machines, machine complexes belonging to Chapters 84, 85, and 90 imported in the same shipment, registering Classifications and Deduction Tracking Slips is not required.

Accordingly, against combination machines, machine complexes, or machinery and equipment in unassembled or disassembled forms, customs declarants are permitted to submit Classification registration dossiers prior to the timing of registering the import customs declaration of the first shipment, instead of prior to the first commodity import timing as previously regulated. Customs agencies also clearly regulate processing deadlines after receiving Classifications and Deduction Tracking Slips.

Against commodity sampling activities, in cases where customs declarants are absent, sampling serving analysis and classification merely requires the witness of one of the parties encompassing port operating enterprises, state agencies in the area, or transport enterprise representatives, instead of having to possess all parties as previously, aiming to limit sampling delays at border gates.

In cases where customs declarants disagree with analysis and classification results or technical criteria inspection and evaluation results, commodity samples will be retained within a 120-day timeframe since the notification promulgation date to serve complaint resolution work.

Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC repeals regulations regarding notifications of analysis results attached with commodity codes. Authority is decentralized to Team Leaders of Customs Verification Teams to promulgate notifications of analysis and classification results and notifications of technical criteria inspection and evaluation results. Against difficult, complex commodity items having to consult specialized managing ministries and ministry-level agencies, the Harmonized System (HS) Committee, AHTN, or having to verify at manufacturing facilities, Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC supplements separate regulations regarding classification result promulgation deadlines, helping parties proactively monitor progress and limiting prolonged dossiers.

Evaluating the significance of promulgating Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC, a leadership representative of the Customs Tax Operational Division (Customs Department) stated that promulgating Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC aims to perfect the legal basis regarding import-export goods analysis and classification; step up information technology applications, connecting and sharing data between Customs agencies, specialized management agencies, and customs declarants; reduce paper dossiers and shorten processing times; while concurrently elevating transparency, stepping up risk control, and preventing fraud in goods analysis and classification work.

Alongside facilitation mechanisms and administrative procedure simplifications, Circular No. 85/2026/TT-BTC assigns the Customs agency where Classifications are registered to organize classification and risk evaluation against Classifications not yet completing imports according to registered deadlines to serve post-clearance inspection work, stepping up risk management and preventing the exploitation of goods classification policies, the Customs Tax Operational Division representative emphasized.

Source: Tap chi Kinh te - Tai chinh