A rejected C/O does more than cost one shipment its tariff preference — it questions the trader’s entire origin supply chain. Saving the shipment, and protecting later ones, means proving origin with real production records, not with the same formal documents that were rejected.
Legal basis
- Law on Customs 54/2014/QH13 (amended by Law 90/2025/QH15)
- Decree 31/2018/ND-CP (detailing the Law on Foreign Trade Management on rules of origin)
- Decree 169/2026/ND-CP on administrative penalties in the customs sector (in force from 1 July 2026, replacing Decree 128/2020/ND-CP)
- Law on Complaints 02/2011/QH13
Why C/Os get rejected: three groups of causes
Group one — origin criteria not met: the goods fail the change-in-tariff-classification (CTC) rule, the regional value content (RVC) threshold, or a product-specific process rule of the applicable agreement. Group two — document mismatches: quantity, weight or invoice numbers differing between the C/O, the declaration and the transport document; a C/O issued retrospectively without the notation the agreement requires. Group three — suspected origin fraud: goods merely transited/transshipped through the issuing country, or the exporter is not the real producer. Each group needs a different cure file — reading the rejection decision correctly is step one.
Proving origin with production records
A persuasive file contains: the input-materials schedule and their own origins (purchase invoices, materials’ C/Os where available), the factory production process (norms, production logs, energy records matching output), and a detailed RVC/CTC computation in the agreement’s exact formula. Where the C/O was issued abroad, the trader must work through the exporter to have the issuing authority abroad clarify/re-verify with Vietnamese customs under the agreement’s cooperation mechanism. In this dispute, the partner’s file matters as much as your own.
Complaint, and keeping penalties separate
The C/O rejection and the recovery of preferential duty are complained of under the Law on Complaints 02/2011/QH13. On penalties: from 1 July 2026, Decree 169/2026/ND-CP applies (replacing Decree 128/2020/ND-CP); note the non-penalty tier at point a, clause 2, Article 7 of that decree for supplementary declarations within the statutory windows, and clause 6 of Article 10, under which penalty application under clauses 1, 2 and 3 of Article 10 turns on the duty difference reaching from VND 500,000 per declaration (individuals) or from VND 2,000,000 per declaration (organisations) — a threshold for applying penalties, not an exemption threshold. Origin rules are applied under Decree 31/2018/ND-CP together with the applicable trade agreement.
Related reading on flaw.vn: article EXP-6028 covers the general framework of this topic — this article deals only with the specific angle in its title.
Frequently asked questions
If C/O is rejected, will tax preferences be lost?
Four evidence groups: production records (material norms, production logs, energy documents), origins of input materials (contracts, invoices, materials’ origin documents), the origin-criterion computation (CTC/RVC) in the agreement’s exact formula, and consistency across C/O – invoice – transport document – declaration. If the C/O was issued abroad, add the foreign issuing authority’s verification letter.
What can prove origin?
Complain against the C/O rejection (and the attached duty recovery) to the issuing customs office, then to its immediate superior if dissatisfied, under the Law on Complaints 02/2011/QH13; after the complaint route, or if it fails, sue administratively. During the dispute, the trader usually pays the duty difference or posts a guarantee to clear the shipment.
Where to appeal?
Not automatically. A C/O rejected for unmet criteria/documents differs from origin fraud. From 1 July 2026, customs penalties follow Decree 169/2026/ND-CP: point a, clause 2, Article 7 sets cases of non-penalty for supplementary declarations within statutory windows; clause 6, Article 10 ties penalty application to a duty difference reaching from VND 500,000 per declaration (individuals) or from VND 2,000,000 per declaration (organisations) — the level at which penalties apply, not a “no-penalty threshold”.
Reissue C/O?
Re-audit the whole origin chain against the agreement’s criteria (tariff shift, RVC, product-specific rules), standardise production documentation before shipping, cross-check C/O – invoice – transport document before lodging declarations, and consider an advance ruling on origin for repeat products. Transition note: the amended Law on Customs taking effect on 1 March 2027 is not yet in force at the time of writing (October 2026), so the current framework governs.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council