Goods have arrived at the port but the declaration was not filed in time, duties were paid late, or a shipment has been “stuck” at the port for weeks — what happens when customs deadlines are missed? The first thing to remember: the current regime from 1 July 2026 is Decree 169/2026/ND-CP — any citation of Decree 128/2020/ND-CP for customs penalties from 1 July 2026 is wrong. This article summarises the regulations in force as of 14 October 2026.
How long is the deadline for filing a customs declaration?
Under Article 25 of the Customs Law 54/2014/QH13 (note: Article 24 covers “Customs dossiers”; Article 25 is “Time limits for submitting customs dossiers”):
- Exports: filed after goods are gathered at the location notified by the declarant and no later than 04 hours before the means of transport exits (02 hours for express-delivery goods);
- Imports: filed before the goods arrive at the border gate or within 30 days from the date the goods arrive at the border gate;
- Means of transport: under Clause 2, Article 69 of the Customs Law (transit vehicles declared immediately upon arrival at the first entry gate and before passing the last exit gate).
How long is a customs declaration valid?
A customs declaration is valid for customs procedures within 15 days from the date of registration (Clause 2, Article 25 of the Customs Law). A registered declaration with no further procedures within 15 days expires — a new declaration must be registered.
Import/export duty payment deadlines and late-payment amounts
Dutiable imports and exports must have duties paid before clearance or release of goods. Where a credit institution guarantees the payable duties, goods may be cleared/released but late-payment amounts must be paid; the guarantee period is at most 30 days from the declaration registration date. Taxpayers under the priority regime may pay duties for declarations cleared/released during the month no later than the tenth day of the following month; after the deadline, all outstanding duties and late-payment amounts must be paid. Legal basis: Article 9 of the Import/Export Duty Law 107/2016/QH13 (in force).
What are the penalties for missing the deadlines?
The current sanctioning regime is Decree 169/2026/ND-CP (issued 15 May 2026, effective 1 July 2026) — which fully replaced Decree 128/2020/ND-CP and Article 2 of Decree 102/2021/ND-CP. Violations of customs-procedure and tax-dossier time limits are governed by Article 8 of Decree 169/2026/ND-CP:
- Clause 1 — fine of VND 500,000–1,000,000: missing deadlines for declaring/submitting/presenting/providing customs dossier information; amended declarations when changing container numbers/loading ports/exit gates/means of transport for exports; re-export of cross-border vehicles; late supplementary customs-value declarations;
- Clause 2 — fine of VND 1,000,000–2,000,000: time-limit violations on reports by priority-regime enterprises, export-processing enterprises, transit-goods reports, postal reports;
- Clause 3 — fine of VND 2,000,000–5,000,000: late finalisation reports and reports on the use of duty-free goods;
- The maximum under Article 8 reaches VND 50,000,000 (e.g. failure to re-export a temporarily imported passenger vehicle under 24 seats within the re-export deadline by less than 30 days: VND 20–50 million).
Note: these fines apply to organisations; individuals pay one half (general principle of the Decree). All fine amounts should be re-verified against the original text of Decree 169/2026/ND-CP before application.
Statute of limitations for customs administrative penalties
Under Article 5 of Decree 169/2026/ND-CP:
- For tax-administration violations: 05 years for tax evasion not yet subject to criminal prosecution and false declarations causing tax shortfalls/increases in exempted, reduced, refunded or uncollected tax; after the limitation period, all outstanding/evaded/late tax for the 10 preceding years from the discovery date must still be paid;
- For other customs violations: 02 years;
- Where transferred by procedural authorities under Article 63 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations, the limitation is extended by 01 year.
On favourable retroactivity (transitional provisions of Decree 169/2026): acts occurring and ending before 1 July 2026 but discovered/penalised after 1 July 2026 → the new regulation applies if it is lighter or imposes no liability.
Goods stored at ports/warehouses for 30–90 days without procedures
For goods stored at ports/warehouses for 30 to 90 days without customs procedures, the local Customs Sub-department analyses risks and applies scanning/controls to suspicious consignments; when the enterprise registers a declaration, physical inspection is conducted, violations handled (if any), then procedures are processed. Over 30 days (imports) → a time-limit violation (fined under Article 8 of Decree 169/2026) but procedures may still be completed — “over 30 days means losing the goods” is wrong.
Over 90 days: unclaimed goods and handling procedures
Under Article 58 of the Customs Law 54/2014/QH13 (not Article 96), unclaimed goods stored in port/warehouse areas under customs operation include: (a) goods the owner declares abandoned; (b) imported goods over 90 days from arrival at the border gate with no one claiming them; (c) goods collected by port/warehouse operators during loading/unloading; (d) imports outside the bill of lading/manifest with no claimant.
Handling process: for (b), (c) and (d) with no claimant → the customs authority publicly notifies via mass media (published in Customs Newspaper for 03 consecutive issues, posted on the customs e-portal, and publicly posted at the Customs Department/Sub-department office — Clause 2, Article 8 of Circular 203/2014/TT-BTC); within 60 days from the notification date, if the owner claims the goods, customs procedures may be completed with administrative penalties; if no one claims them → handled under Clause 6, Article 58: sale of unclaimed goods, with proceeds paid to the state budget after deducting sale costs and port/warehouse storage costs; environmentally polluting goods → forced removal from the territory or destruction.
Remedies when the deadline has passed
When a missed deadline is discovered: (1) urgently file the declaration/supplementary declaration and pay the administrative fine; (2) pay all duties and late-payment amounts (under Tax Administration Law 108/2025/QH15, effective 1 July 2026, replacing Law 38/2019/QH14) to obtain clearance/release; (3) note container/warehouse storage costs (DEM/DET, storage) charged by shipping lines/ports — the longer the delay, the more these usually exceed the administrative fine, an economic factor in deciding whether to claim the goods at all.
Frequently asked questions
Do I lose my goods if no declaration is filed within 30 days?
No. Over 30 days (imports) is a time-limit violation, fined under Article 8 of Decree 169/2026, but procedures may still be completed. Only after 90 days unclaimed do goods become unclaimed goods, and only after public notification plus another 60 days are they sold.
How do the fines apply to individuals?
Article 8 fines are for organisations; individuals pay one half.
A registered declaration sat idle for over 15 days — what now?
The declaration has expired (Clause 2, Article 25 of the Customs Law) — a new declaration must be registered.
This information is for reference only and does not constitute legal advice.
For reference only, not legal advice. Content quality-checked by the AI Legal Council; not yet reviewed by a human lawyer.