'Vietnam's Tax is Currently Lower than 90% of America's Calculations'

America says that the import tariff rate imposed by Vietnam is up to 90%, but representatives of the Ministry of Fintech affirm that "the actual average tariff rate is only about 9.4%". The countervailing import tax is applied by America to more than 180 trade partners, ranging from 10-50%. Vietnam is among the countries subjected to the highest tax rate of 46%. This tax rate is set to "counter" the import tax that Vietnam is currently applying to goods from America, which is about 90%, according to the calculations of this country. However, at the regular press conference on April 3, Mr. Truong Ba Tuan, Deputy Director of the Tax Policy Department (Ministry of Fintech) confirmed that Vietnam's tariff rates applied to imported goods from America "are much lower than the 90% figure calculated by America."

Mr. Tuấn cited information from a report by the American trade agency indicating that the average tariff rate of Vietnam applied to goods from this country is only about 9.4%. Among them, most items from America exported to Vietnam are subject to the highest tax of 15% or lower. Representatives from the Department of Fintech believe that the tax calculation basis in America includes many factors, not solely based on tax rates. Therefore, the regulatory agency will specifically study this tax calculation basis to develop appropriate solutions. With the newly announced tax rate of 46%, Mr. Tuấn stated that this level is "much higher than what is currently being applied". According to him, this will negatively impact many manufacturing sectors, especially those with a large export proportion such as electronics, agriculture, textiles, and leather shoes... At the press conference, Deputy Minister of Fintech Nguyen Duc Chi affirmed that Vietnam aims to achieve a balanced trade, but this must be in the direction of "better for all parties". "The direction is to persistently find solutions, communicate with trade partners to balance towards increasing trade volume without the need to raise taxes," he said, believing that this would also benefit consumers in both countries. Deputy Minister Nguyen Duc Chi said that this weekend, the government leaders will go to America to discuss various contents directly related to the U.S. retaliatory tariffs. "We believe that the level announced by the U.S. government is the maximum, the specific level will still be considered," Mr. Chi said, hoping that the information exchanged soon will be listened to by the partners and appropriate steps will be taken. According to data from the Customs Department, in 2024, Vietnam exported goods worth 119.5 billion USD to America and imported 15.1 billion USD from this market. There are 15 billion USD export items, of which 3 dominant groups include computers - components with 23.2 billion USD; machinery and equipment and textiles at 22 billion and 16.2 billion USD respectively. Phones, wood, or footwear also belong to the category of goods that bring significant value, ranging from 8.3 to 9.8 billion USD. Agricultural products also make important contributions, such as cashew nuts and seafood amounting to 1.15 billion and 1.83 billion USD respectively, or coffee nearly 323 million USD. In fact, the Ministry of Fintech has recently reviewed the overall import tax rates, advising the government on suitable solutions to adapt to fluctuations. Most recently, the government issued Decree 73 amending the MFN tax rates for certain goods, effective from the date of signing. Accordingly, Vietnam has reduced taxes on 16 groups of goods, such as cars, wood, LNG, agricultural products (chicken legs, cherries, apples)...