CERTIFICATE OF FREE SALE (CFS) FOR EXPORTED FOOD PRODUCTS

The free sale certificate serves as a link between your goods and the global market. As a result, it is critical for enterprises to follow the processes for requesting a certificate of free sale. A Certificate of Free Sale is required for businesses who want to export food.

Legal basis:

- Decree 69/2018/ND-CP guiding the Law on Foreign Trade Management;

- Circular 52/2015/TT-BYT stipulating the state inspection of food safety for imported food and dossiers and procedures for issuance of certificates for exported food under the management of the Ministry of Health economy.

1. Application dossier for CFS

- A formal request for CFS issuance, explicitly detailing the goods' name, HS code, product standard certification or registration number, standard number (if applicable), composition and concentration of compounds (if any), 1 original, written in Vietnamese and English, from the importing country.

- 1 copy of an investment certificate or a business registration certificate with the trader's stamp.

- A copy of the applicable published standards for products and goods, coupled with the phrase: 1 businessman's copy with the manufacturer's seal (on the goods label, packaging, or paperwork related to the products or goods).

- A list of manufacturing facilities (if any), containing the establishment's name and address, as well as the products created for export.

2. The circumstances of the performance

- A formal request for CFS issuance, explicitly detailing the goods' name, HS code, product standard certification or registration number, standard number (if applicable), composition and concentration of compounds (if any), 1 original, written in Vietnamese and English, from the importing country.

- At the very least, the CFS must include the following information:

+ The name of the agency or organization that is issuing the CFS.

+ CFS number and date of issuance

+ The names of the products and goods that have been granted CFS.

+ The type of product or collection of items and goods that have been granted CFS.

Manufacturer's name and address.

+ The CFS must indicate unequivocally that the products and goods are manufactured and sold freely in the producing country's or CFS issuing country's market.

+ The individual signing the CFS's full name and signature, as well as the seal of the agency or organization providing the CFS.

3. Procedures for obtaining a CFS

Step 1: Traders transmit dossiers to the Ministry of Health directly, by mail, or online (if applicable) (Food Safety Department)

Step 2: If the dossier is incomplete and in compliance with regulations, the Food Safety Department will contact the trader within 3 (three) working days of receiving the dossier to complete it.

Step 3: The issuing of CFS takes no longer than three business days from the time the trader submits a complete and accurate application. If the Food Safety Department refuses to grant a CFS, it must respond in writing, explicitly indicating why. If the Food Safety Authority determines that the inspection on the dossier is insufficient to issue a CFS or detects indicators of violations of regulations for a previously issued CFS, it may undertake an inspection at the manufacturing site.

The above information is about the “Certificate of free sale (CFS) for exported food products". For more information and advice on this issue, please contact Doanh Tri Law Firm directly via:

Hotline: (+84) 911.233.955 - (024) 6293 8326

Email: [email protected]

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