The European Union has allocated a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) of nearly 4,792 metric tons (MT) of tuna for Vietnamese exporters during 1 August and 31 December this year as part of the commitments in their free trade agreement, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said in a statement Friday, 31 July.
The free trade agreement between the European Union and Vietnam, known as EVFTA, will come into force on 1 August.
From 2021, Vietnam will be allowed to export 11,500 MT of tuna products, with HS codes of 1604.14.11, 1604.14.18, 1604.14.90, 1604.19.39 and 1604.20.70, to the bloc tax-free, according to a document from Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, per VASEP.
The Southeast Asian nation has also been given an export quota of 208.3 MT of canned fish balls between 1 August and 31 December this year. From next year, the quota for canned fish balls is 500 MT per year.
The Vietnamese ministry said the TRQ is allocated and managed by the E.U.’s Directorate General Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD).
Importers in the E.U. must register with the DG TAXUD to be granted the quota, on the basis of “first-come, first-served.” Meanwhile, exporters from Vietnam are not required to make any registration with the local government. They are advised to work closely with their E.U. partners on the delivery of the shipments.
Exporters from Vietnam, however, must submit the certificates of origin and other required documents for their cargoes to be eligible for the quota.
Exports of tuna from Vietnam to most major markets continued to be affected by the global outbreak of the coronavirus, VASEP said in June.
The European Union was the number-two destination for tuna from Vietnam. The spread of the coronavirus, with lockdowns applied in several countries, has affected tuna demand in the bloc. Moreover, the yellow card imposed by the European Commission in 2017 and high import duties for tuna from Vietnam together led to lower competitiveness of Vietnamese tuna products sent to the E.U.
As a result, the value of tuna sent from Vietnam to the bloc dropped 11 percent year-on-year to USD 48 million (EUR 41 million) in the first five months of 2020.
Photo courtesy of Renata Apanaviciene/Shutterstock
