HÀ NỘI — The customs authority is moving from widespread automation of individual procedures toward a more integrated digital customs system, with a revised Customs Law placing greater emphasis on electronic data, information sharing, risk management and the use of artificial intelligence and big data.

By July 2026, the Customs Department said 111 of 186 administrative procedures in the customs sector were available as fully online public services. Nearly all basic customs procedures had also been automated, with green-channel clearance taking only seconds, while the proportion of shipments subject to physical inspection had fallen to about 2.65 per cent.

The revised Law amending and supplementing several articles of the Customs Law, passed by the National Assembly on August 23 and scheduled to take effect on March 1, 2027, will provide a new legal framework for the next stage of digitalisation.

The law focuses on administrative reform, digital transformation, customs documentation, the National Single Window, risk management, compliance management and the application of information technology, artificial intelligence and big data in customs operations.

This is in line with the national digital transformation direction set out in Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW on breakthroughs in science and technology, innovation and national digital transformation.

A key change is the clearer definition of customs procedures conducted through a data-based environment.

Under the revised provisions on the National Single Window, customs declarants will submit information and documents as data messages through the National Single Window information system, while the customs authority will make decisions on customs clearance or cargo release through the system.

The law also introduces the principle that individuals and businesses should not be required to resubmit paper documents where the relevant data have already been shared through the National Single Window.

Nguyễn Thành Hưng, deputy director of the Customs Department, said the core reform under the revised law was to simplify documentation and procedures by converting paper documents into electronic data messages.

According to Hưng, automated processes will accelerate the handling of 192 administrative procedures in the customs sector while eliminating the submission of paper documents for routine procedures.

The approach is aligned with the Customs Department's roadmap for building a digital customs system. The department has set a target of basically completing the information technology system for digital customs in 2026 and officially putting it into operation from 2027.

The system is designed to support paperless procedures and provide integrated management across export, import and transit activities, while connecting and sharing information with other State agencies through the National Single Window.

From the business perspective, the reforms build on more than a decade of customs automation.

Đậu Anh Tuấn, vice secretary general and head of the Legal Department at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said the sector had moved from paper declarations and direct waiting to a system in which almost all basic customs procedures had been automated.

Green-channel clearance now takes only seconds, while the proportion of goods subject to physical inspection has declined from nearly 10 per cent to about 2.65 per cent, even as the number of customs declarations has risen significantly, Tuấn said.

The changes are particularly relevant as digital customs places greater reliance on data and risk-based management. The revised law further develops provisions on risk management, compliance management and the National Single Window, while establishing legal principles for the inspection and supervision of imports and exports conducted through e-commerce platforms.

Cross-border e-commerce presents a particular challenge for customs authorities because of the large number of transactions, rapid processing requirements and data generated across multiple platforms.

Incorporating principles governing goods traded through e-commerce into the law provides a basis for the customs authority to develop corresponding procedures and technology systems. — BIZHUB/VNS