Vietnam eases regulations for importing Korean goods

The Vietnamese government this week is loosening its regulations on imports of Korean home electronics and appliances such as air-conditioners and rice cookers, saving manufacturers money and time.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Vietnam is relaxing its rules on 16 appliances and electronics acquiring energy efficiency tests and certifications.

Currently, the Vietnamese government asks Korean manufacturers to renew energy efficiency tests every six months from their government-run agencies, but will now allow local manufacturers to submit their test results from those taken by the Korean government. The new regulation will take effect starting Friday.

“The new regulations by the Vietnamese government will help local manufacturers exporting such goods to Vietnam save about half the costs for receiving energy efficiency tests and certifications while also saving time,” said Lee Bo-ha, a researcher at the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards. “This will definitely remove some of the burdens for local manufacturers.”

It costs about $2,700 to $3,300, depending on the products, to complete energy efficiency tests in Vietnam and another $2,700 to $3,300 to obtain a certification for six months. Now local manufacturers will save $3,000 on certification costs and can pay just the 2 million won ($1,751) for efficiency tests in Korea and submit the results to the Vietnamese government before exporting.

It took about 10 weeks for Korean manufacturers to receive certifications but the Korean Trade Ministry expects that process to be expedited significantly.

The Korean government filed an official document with the Vietnamese government in September to ask them to ease some of the regulations. The Trade Ministry also said its officials met with Vietnamese counterparts at the World Trade Organizations meeting in Switzerland in November.

BY KIM YOUNG-NAM [kim.youngnam@joongang.co.kr]