At an online conference reviewing works in 2017 and previewing tasks to be deployed in 2018, Finance Minister Dinh Tien Dung asked the customs sector to collect taxes assigned to the General Department of Vietnam Customs by the National Assembly, the Government and the Ministry of Finance, and exceed the assigned value by 3 - 5 per cent. Vietnam Business Forum has an interview with Ms Phung Thi Bich Huong, Director of Dong Nai Customs Department, on preparatory steps for these tasks. Van Luong reports.
The customs sector strives to collect VND293 trillion (up 4.3 per cent) in 2018. What has the Dong Nai Customs Department prepared to complete its task?
In 2018, the Dong Nai Customs Department was assigned to collect VND16.5 trillion for the State Budget, up 9 per cent over 2017, while Vietnam’s joining many free trade and tariff reduction agreements like ASEAN FTAs significantly affects the overall outcome.
To fulfil the allocated task of budget collection, the Dong Nai Customs Department has deployed following solutions right after receiving it.
One, informing all employees of the spirit of Resolution 35/2016/NQ-CP, raising the awareness, significance and importance of administrative reform and facilitating businesses to boost up export and import, thus earning more for the State Budget.
Two, taking advantage of sustainable sources of income for enterprises that regularly carry out procedures, allocating employees to customs offices to grasp situations of local enterprises to guide them perform necessary procedures right after they deploy their projects.
Three, closing monitoring and administering tax collections at every customs office to perform timely examination, analysis and assessment of factors that affect, proposing solutions to ensure their smooth performance, organising periodical meetings to strengthen solutions to collect taxes and addressing emerging problems.
Four, inspecting and reviewing tax exemptions, reductions and refunds to reduce tax losses; inspecting import settlements and duty-free taxes; examining records to detect and settle violations of value, code, origin and C/O; arranging forces to consult on prices according to Decree 08/2015/ND-CP and Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC.
Five, reviewing outstanding tax debts for recollection; drastically applying measures to press on tax collection to prevent debts; striving to fulfil overdue taxes.
Six, building plans and arranging internal inspector delegations to prevent tax losses; intensifying post-customs clearance inspection and specialised inspection according to the law, thus ensuring right and enough tax collection for the State Budget.
In the context of international integration, what solutions is Dong Nai Customs Department carrying out to provide favourable conditions for enterprises and ensure effective State customs management?
The consistent objectives of the Dong Nai Customs Department are continuously accelerating administrative procedure reform, and supporting businesses to boost export and import activities, even while ensuring strict State customs administration according to the law. The department has been focusing on the following key tasks:
One, the department improves the efficiency of administrative reform and customs modernisation to facilitate both enterprises and customs agencies, with concentration placed on delivery of online public services at the highest level according to the roadmap of the customs sector, settles procedures via the National Single Window (NSW) and the ASEAN Single Window (ASW), and executes the electronic payment and customs clearance system around the clock to provide best services for businesses and reduce customs clearance time. At the same time, in 2018, the Dong Nai Customs Department will actively prepare necessary conditions for the implementation of the automatic customs clearance management system at seaports, airports and border gates to warehouses, inland clearance depots and inland ports as planned by the customs sector in the coming time.
Two, the department informs companies of import and export policies and strengthen dialogues with enterprises in order to promptly remove customs difficulties for them. In addition to carrying out various communication forms, providing information via websites, newspapers and broadcasting stations, answering questions via Online Customs Procedure Consultancy Column on the website, in 2018, the Dong Nai Customs Department set a central task of deeply and broadly communicating on new legal issues to the business community like the Decree on amendments to Decree 08/2015/ND-CP, the Decree on amendments and supplements to Decree 134/2016/ND-CP, the Circular on amendments to Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC, the Circular on amendments to Circular 72/2015/TT-BTC, and the Circular on inspection and determination of origin. Besides, the department will continue to organise business dialogues and meetings with enterprises to learn about their hardships and seek solutions to them and report and propose issues beyond their capacity.
Three, the department attaches much importance to the fight against smuggling and trade fraud and enhances risk management and post-customs clearance inspection in order to detect and strictly handle cases where organisations and individuals violate laws on maritime, customs, smuggling and trade fraud.
In 2018, the customs sector has launched measures to speed up and change resources management to meet development and modernisation requirements. How is the Dong Nai Customs Department implementing this approach?
The Dong Nai Customs Department was assigned by the General Department of Vietnam Customs to pilot to new performance-based human resource management in the 2016 - 2017 period, with the first to be applied being the export and import field. The Dong Nai Customs Department successfully piloted tasks assigned by the General Department of Vietnam Customs like reviewing work positions, job descriptions and capacity frames for performance-based work positions in the export and import tax field, reviewing the competence of civil servants working in the export and import tax field, building norms of main products in the import and export tax field, developing and deploying work performance-based management system in the field.
With its successes in the pilot phase, in 2018, the Dong Nai Customs Department was further trusted by the General Department of Vietnam Customs to carry out performance-based personnel renovation plan in six principal working spheres of the sector.
The Dong Nai Customs Department has carried out action plans for this effect. In particular, the Department Director issued the Decision on Plan for deployment of some position-based personnel management activities in 2018 at the Dong Nai Customs Department where it specifies working contents, responsible and deadlines; the Decision on establishment of action teams and groups. The department is focusing on implementing key activities such as reviewing and standardising the list of all job positions, reviewing and standardising the list of products based on job positions; sending experienced officials to join in construction of the list of general issues of the customs sector and perfection of the list of specific issues of the customs sector of Dong Nai province, write the professional manual for job placement; and assessing civil servants' capabilities in six professional spheres.
The Dong Nai Customs Department is determined to complete its action plans to implement performance-based personnel management in 2018 to contribute to the completion of the sector’s overall plan to enhance the capacity of civil servants, the efficiency and effectiveness of public service delivery, and meet customs reform, development and modernisation requirements.
Thank you very much!
Vietnamese
