A declared value below Customs reference data does not automatically authorize Customs to impose another price. Conversely, an importer cannot prove the transaction value merely by presenting a sales contract and invoice. Where Customs has doubts about the truthfulness, accuracy or eligibility of the transaction-value method, it may require an explanation and conduct a customs valuation consultation. This is a professional dialogue in which the declarant explains the pricing structure, sale conditions, payments and relevant adjustments. The declared value may be accepted, or rejected and re-determined under the statutory sequence of valuation methods. The file should therefore be built around the commercial logic of the transaction rather than assembled as disconnected documents at the last minute.

Prepared for B2B logistics reference | Legal update through 17 July 2026

QUICK FACTS

Consultation is not immediate tax assessment

It is an evidentiary step used to resolve doubts before Customs accepts or rejects the declared value.

Eight statutory document groups

Point g, Clause 4 of Article 25 lists eight groups of consultation and valuation records. The actual documents within each group still depend on the stated doubt and transaction structure.

Documents must tell one pricing story

Contract, invoice, payment, negotiation and accounting records must reconcile from the agreed price to the amount actually paid or payable.

Reference prices do not replace valuation methods

Risk data supports comparison; the final conclusion must follow the applicable method, conditions and evidence.

Illustration for What Is a Customs Valuation Consultation? Documents to Prepare — Illustration of the logistics topic, document or operation discussed in the article.

SCOPE OF APPLICATION

This article mainly covers imported goods declared under the transaction-value method where Customs raises doubts about the declared value. It is relevant to trading imports, production materials, machinery, components and consumer goods, including transactions between related or unrelated parties.

For goods without a sale, leased or loaned goods, gifts, processing arrangements, re-imports, software rights, used goods or other special structures, the valuation method and supporting file must be adapted to the actual transaction.

Important boundary: customs valuation consultation is different from HS classification consultation, origin verification, post-clearance audit and domestic transfer-pricing review.

KEY TERMS

Term	Meaning	Operational role
Customs valuation consultation	A process in which the declarant explains and substantiates the declared customs value before Customs.	Resolves doubts before the declared value is accepted or rejected.
Transaction value	The price actually paid or payable for imported goods, subject to statutory conditions and adjustments.	The primary method when all conditions are satisfied.
Price actually paid or payable	The total payment made or to be made for the imported goods.	May include direct or indirect payments beyond the invoice amount.
Adjustment	An addition or deduction required under customs valuation rules.	Captures costs or benefits not fully reflected in the invoice price.
Valuation doubt/risk	An inconsistency or risk indicator identified from documents, databases or transaction conditions.	May trigger explanation or consultation.
Related parties	Buyer and seller connected under the statutory relationship criteria.	The relationship does not automatically invalidate transaction value; its price impact must be assessed.

NATURE AND MECHANISM

For imported goods, customs value is determined from the actual price payable up to the first import border and through the statutory hierarchy of valuation methods. Customs reviews the declaration, valuation declaration, commercial file, risk-management data, comparable imports and any factor that may affect price.

1. Common valuation doubts

A significant gap from comparable identical or similar goods.
Inconsistencies among the contract, invoice, valuation declaration, freight, insurance and payment records.
A large discount without a pre-existing policy or agreement.
Unexplained royalties, licence fees, commissions, assists, tooling, free materials or indirect payments.
Related-party transactions without evidence that the relationship did not influence price.
Generic descriptions that prevent meaningful comparison of model, grade, condition or specifications.

2. Competent authority and consultation form

Under current Clause 4 of Article 25, the head of the Regional Customs Sub-department is responsible for organizing the consultation and determining the appropriate form. Consultation may be direct or indirect. Direct consultation is an in-person working session, with documents and information exchanged through the online public-service system where necessary. Indirect consultation is conducted through the customs electronic data-processing system; where that system does not yet support the function, the online public-service system is used. Declarants rated at high compliance or above may select the form; other declarants undergo direct consultation.

3. Formal conclusions and follow-up

The declarant agrees with Customs’ proposed value and method: Customs issues a Customs Value Notice and the declarant makes a supplementary declaration within the prescribed period.
Customs has sufficient grounds to reject the declared value: the notice must state the rejection basis, value and method determined after consultation, and requires a supplementary declaration.
Customs lacks sufficient grounds to reject: Customs issues the notice and clears the goods based on the declared value.

Post-clearance audit is not a formal consultation conclusion. The file may nevertheless be reviewed later under a separate legal mechanism where grounds arise.

DOUBT–EVIDENCE MATRIX

Risk indicator	Question to resolve	Priority evidence	Control point
Price below comparable data	Is the difference caused by specifications, trade level, quantity, timing or delivery terms?	Catalogues, technical comparison, sales contract, purchase history and pricing policy.	Do not compare goods only by commercial name or HS code.
Large discount	Was it agreed before importation and actually applied?	Discount policy, emails, contract annex, credit note and receivable reconciliation.	Separate genuine commercial discounts from unsupported post-import adjustments.
Related parties	Did the relationship influence the price?	Ownership chart, independent-customer data, pricing policy and relevant transfer-pricing material.	A group-company confirmation alone is rarely sufficient.
Royalty/licence fee	Does the payment relate to the imported goods and constitute a condition of sale?	Licence agreement, calculation formula, invoices, payment trail and IP ownership.	Identify the payee and the time the amount becomes determinable.
Assists	Did the buyer provide tooling, designs or materials free or at reduced cost?	Tooling contract, handover record, export record and allocation schedule.	Use a supportable allocation and avoid omission or double counting.
Payment differs from invoice	Are there set-offs, third-party payments, service fees or payments on behalf?	SWIFT, bank statements, netting agreements, three-party contracts and accounting entries.	Reconcile deposits, bank fees, exchange differences and beneficiary details.

DOCUMENTS AND DATA TO PREPARE

Point g, Clause 4 of Article 25 provides eight groups of consultation and valuation records. This is a legal framework, not eight fixed documents: many items are conditional, while the submission must address the stated doubt, valuation method and actual transaction.

Statutory group	Documents to prepare	Purpose	Data that must reconcile
1. Method-specific valuation file	Declaration, valuation declaration, contract, commercial invoice and records required under Circular 39/2015, as amended by Circular 60/2019.	Eligibility of the method and declared value.	Buyer/seller, goods, quantity, unit price, currency and sale terms.
2. Commercial records and correspondence	Quotations, pro forma invoices, POs, emails/chats, addenda, price policies and records on delivery, transport, insurance, production, packing and other sale conditions.	How the price and transaction conditions were formed.	Timing, approver, discount, quantity and payment conditions.
3. Insurance records	Policy/certificate, invoice or equivalent document and payment evidence, where applicable.	Insurance cost and related adjustments.	Shipment, route, amount, policyholder and beneficiary.
4. Domestic and international transport records	Bill of lading, transport contract, freight invoice, equivalent records and payment evidence, where applicable.	Costs to the first import border and freight scope.	Route, leg, mode, payer, Incoterms and amount.
5. Partner-country clearance file	Customs-clearance records from the exporting country or partner importing country, consularly legalized where available.	Cross-checking declarations and value at the relevant side of the transaction.	Parties, goods, quantity, unit price, document numbers and dates.
6. Payment records	SWIFT, payment orders, bank statements, L/C, collection, bank or credit-institution records, deposits and set-off evidence, where applicable.	Actual price paid or payable and recipient.	Beneficiary, invoice, contract, amount, currency and payments on behalf.
7. Accounting records	Books; foreign accounts payable/receivable entries; sales invoices; revenue ledgers; cash and bank-movement files; other accounting records.	An audit trail from import and payment to accounting and revenue.	Declaration, invoice, payable, posting date, inventory cost and off-invoice amounts.
8. Other valuation evidence	Catalogues, datasheets, images, model comparisons, royalty/licence files, tooling/assist records, related-party evidence, reconciliations and other relevant records.	Resolving the stated doubt not fully addressed above.	Each conclusion must trace to a clause, page, payment or accounting entry.

Evidence-quality rule: one isolated document cannot replace a consistent chain linking the transaction, freight, payment and accounting records.

PROCESS AND TIMELINE

Value review: Customs examines the declaration, valuation declaration, supporting records and risk data.
Authority and form: the head of the Regional Customs Sub-department organizes direct or indirect consultation according to the compliance level and system conditions.
Doubt notice/explanation request: the importer receives the specific issues to substantiate through the applicable electronic channel.
Define the issue: determine whether the doubt concerns invoice price, related parties, adjustments, comparability or method eligibility.
Submit and explain: the declarant, legal representative or authorized person provides the Point-g records. Direct consultation ends with a signed consultation record; indirect consultation produces an electronic result notice.
Control the statutory period: the consultation and handling of its result must be completed within a maximum of 30 days from the date the goods are released or transferred into preservation.
Implement the result: where the declarant accepts the proposed value or Customs rejects the declared value, a supplementary declaration is required within no more than five working days from issuance of the Customs Value Notice. Where there are insufficient grounds for rejection, clearance proceeds on the declared value.

The current 30-day period is not counted from declaration registration. It runs from goods release or transfer into preservation.

COMMON RISKS AND ERRORS

Error	Cause	Impact	Control
Submitting only invoice and contract	Treating consultation as a formality check	Pricing and payment logic remains unproven	Add negotiation, payment, accounting and technical evidence.
Treating reference data as a mandatory price	Confusing risk data with valuation method	Argument or self-adjustment follows the wrong basis	Compare transaction conditions and quantify differences.
Departments hold inconsistent records	Customs, purchasing and finance work separately	Contradictory amounts, dates or beneficiaries	Use one reconciliation controlled by a final reviewer.
Indirect payments omitted	Only supplier remittances are reviewed	Missing additions, potential tax recovery and penalties	Review set-offs, payments on behalf, third-party fees, royalties and assists.
Discount lacks pre-import evidence	Oral agreement or back-filled documentation	Discount may not be accepted	Retain policy, email, PO and qualifying conditions from the transaction date.
Representative does not understand the transaction	Formal authorization without internal preparation	Inconsistent answers and repeated requests	Prepare a Q&A, timeline and evidence owner for each issue.

LEGAL BASIS AND OFFICIAL SOURCES

Instrument/source	Issuer	Status/role	Key point
Customs Law 54/2014/QH13	National Assembly	Effective 1 January 2015	Article 86 sets the customs-value principles.
Decree 08/2015/NĐ-CP, as amended by Decrees 59/2018 and 167/2025	Government	Decree 167 effective 15 August 2025	Framework for value review and handling of results.
Circular 38/2015/TT-BTC, amended by Circulars 39/2018 and 121/2025	Ministry of Finance	Circular 121 effective 1 February 2026	Clause 4 of Article 25 governs authority, forms, period, procedure, records and result handling, including electronic processing.
Circular 39/2015/TT-BTC, amended by Circular 60/2019	Ministry of Finance	Specialized valuation framework	Valuation methods, transaction-value conditions and adjustments.
Vietnam Customs Portal	Customs authority	Operational guidance	Consultation timing and implementation guidance; not a substitute for legislation.

Circular 121/2025 Circular 39/2018 Circular 39/2015 Circular 60/2019 Decree 167/2025

FAQ

1. Is a price below Customs data automatically rejected?

No. The difference is a risk indicator, not the final legal basis. Product, trade level, quantity, timing and delivery conditions must be compared.

2. Must every original document be brought to the consultation?

There is no universal answer. Submission form depends on the document, Customs notice and the electronic process. Originals must be retained and produced when legally requested.

3. Does a related-party relationship automatically invalidate transaction value?

No. The key question is whether the relationship influenced price. Independent transaction data and pricing policy may be needed.

4. Can one consultation result be used for later shipments?

A one-time consultation result may be used repeatedly only when statutory conditions continue to be met. The declarant must be rated at high compliance or above; use is limited to one Regional Customs Sub-department; the result is valid for six months from the Customs Value Notice; declared transaction details must match, the new declared value must be equal to or higher than the notified value, and the legal basis must remain unchanged.

5. Can goods be released while consultation is pending?

Release depends on the shipment, tax security, guarantees and system decision. Consultation does not always require the goods to remain at port until completion.

6. What if the importer disagrees with the determined value?

The importer should obtain the written basis, review the file and use the applicable explanation, complaint or legal-remedy procedure within the statutory period.

APPLICATION NOTE: This English version is for operational reference and is not an official legal translation. The actual file depends on the valuation method, sale terms, party relationship, direct and indirect payments, adjustments and the specific Customs request.

TGIMEX IMPLEMENTATION SUPPORT

TGIMEX helps businesses turn the article into a shipment-ready checklist, covering input-data review, dossier preparation, milestone control, and coordination with the relevant parties.

Convert guidance into checks

Assign an owner and deadline to every operational control point.

Reconcile shipment data

Compare booking, transport, commercial, customs, and delivery evidence.

Manage operational risk

Record discrepancies, actions, and decision evidence to prevent recurrence.

Discuss your shipment dossier

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