1.   Except as otherwise provided for in this Agreement, each Party shall reduce or eliminate its customs duties on goods originating in the other Party in accordance with its respective schedule included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties).

2.   For the calculation of the successive reductions under paragraph 1, the base rate for customs duties of each good shall be the one specified in the schedules included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties). The tariff elimination established under Appendix 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) does not apply to used motor-vehicles under HS headings 87.02, 87.03 and 87.04.

3.   If a Party reduces an applied most-favoured-nation customs duty rate below the rate of customs duty applied in accordance with its respective schedule included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties), the good originating in the other Party shall be eligible for that lower duty rate.

4.   Except as otherwise provided in this Agreement, a Party shall not increase any existing customs duty applied in accordance with its respective schedule included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties), or adopt any new customs duty, on a good originating in the other Party.

5.   A Party may unilaterally accelerate the reduction or elimination of customs duties on originating goods of the other Party applied in accordance with its respective schedule included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties). When a Party considers such an acceleration it shall inform the other Party as early as possible before the new rate of customs duty takes effect. A unilateral acceleration shall not preclude the Party from raising a customs duty to the prevailing rate at each stage of reduction or elimination in accordance with its respective schedule included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties).

6.   Upon request of a Party, the Parties shall consult to consider accelerating or broadening the scope of the reduction or elimination of customs duties applied in accordance with their respective schedules included in Appendices 2-A-1 (Tariff Schedule of the Union) and 2-A-2 (Tariff Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties). If the Parties agree to amend this Agreement in order to accelerate or broaden such scope, any agreed amendment shall supersede any duty rate or staging category for such good determined pursuant to their schedules. Such an amendment shall come into effect in accordance with Article 17.5 (Amendments).

1.   The Parties shall cooperate on combating customs violations relating to the preferential tariff treatment granted under this Chapter.

2.   For the purposes of paragraph 1, each Party shall offer the other Party administrative cooperation and mutual administrative assistance in customs and related matters as part of the implementation and control of the preferential tariff treatment, which shall include the following obligations:

3.   Where, in accordance with the provisions on administrative cooperation or mutual administrative assistance in customs and related matters referred to in paragraph 2, the importing Party establishes that a proof of origin was unduly issued by the exporting Party because the requirements provided for in Protocol 1 (Concerning the Definition of the Concept of "Originating Products" and Methods of Administrative Cooperation) were not fulfilled, that importing Party may deny a preferential tariff treatment to a declarant who claimed it with regard to goods for which the proof of origin was issued.

4.   If the importing Party considers that the denial of preferential tariff treatment for individual consignments referred to in paragraph 3 is insufficient to implement and control the preferential tariff treatment of a given product, that Party may, in accordance with the procedure laid down in paragraph 5, temporarily suspend the relevant preferential tariff treatment of the products concerned in the following cases:

5.   The competent authority of the importing Party shall, without undue delay, notify its finding to the competent authority of the exporting Party, provide verifiable information upon which the finding was based and engage in consultations with the competent authority of the exporting Party with a view to achieving a mutually acceptable solution.

6.   If the competent authorities have not achieved a mutually acceptable solution after 30 days following the notification referred to in paragraph 5, the importing Party shall, without undue delay, refer the matter to the Trade Committee.

7.   If the Trade Committee has failed to agree on an acceptable solution within 60 days following the referral, the importing Party may temporarily suspend the preferential tariff treatment for the products concerned.

The importing Party may apply the temporary suspension of preferential tariff treatment under this paragraph only for a period necessary to protect its financial interests and until the exporting Party provides convincing evidence of its ability to comply with the obligations referred to in paragraph 2 and to provide sufficient control of the fulfilment of those obligations.

The temporary suspension shall not exceed a period of three months. If the conditions that gave rise to the initial suspension persist after the expiry of the three-month period, the importing Party may decide to renew the suspension for another period of three months. Any suspension shall be subject to periodic consultations within the Trade Committee.

8.   The importing Party shall publish, in accordance with its internal procedures, notices to importers of any notification and decision concerning the temporary suspension referred to in paragraph 4. The importing Party shall, without undue delay, notify the exporting Party and the Trade Committee of any such notification or decision.

1.   A Party shall not apply a customs duty to a good, regardless of its origin, that re-enters its territory after the good has been temporarily exported from its territory to the territory of the other Party for repair, regardless of whether such repair could be performed in the territory of the Party from which the good was temporarily exported.

2.   Paragraph 1 does not apply to a good imported in bond, into a free trade zone, or in similar status, that is exported for repair and is not re-imported in bond, into a free trade zone, or in similar status.

3.   A Party shall not apply a customs duty to a good, regardless of its origin, imported temporarily from the territory of the other Party for repair.

4.   For the purposes of this Article, the term "repair" means any processing operation which is undertaken on a good to remedy operating defects or material damage and entailing the re-establishment of a good to its original function, or to ensure its compliance with technical requirements for its use, without which the good could no longer be used in the normal way for the purposes for which it was intended. Repair of a good includes restoring and maintenance. It shall not include an operation or process that:

1.   A Party shall not maintain or adopt any duties, taxes, or other charges of any kind imposed on, or in connection with, the exportation of a good to the territory of the other Party that are in excess of those imposed on like goods destined for domestic consumption, other than in accordance with the schedule included in Appendix 2-A-3 (Export Duty Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties).

2.   If a Party applies a lower rate of duty, tax or other charge on, or in connection with, the exportation of a good, and for as long as it is lower than the rate calculated in accordance with the schedule included in Appendix 2-A-3 (Export Duty Schedule of Viet Nam) to Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties), that lower rate shall apply. This paragraph shall not apply to more favourable treatment granted to any third country pursuant to a preferential trade agreement.

3.   At the request of either Party, the Trade Committee shall review any duties, taxes, or other charges of any kind imposed on, or in connection with, the exportation of goods to the territory of the other Party, when a Party has granted more favourable treatment to any third country pursuant to a preferential trade agreement.

1.   In the multilateral context, the Parties share the objective of the parallel elimination and prevention of the reintroduction of all forms of export subsidies and disciplines on all export measures with equivalent effect for agricultural goods. To that end, they shall work together with the aim of enhancing multilateral disciplines on agricultural exporting state enterprises, international food aid and export financing support.

2.   Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, the exporting Party shall not introduce or maintain any export subsidies or other measures having equivalent effect on any agricultural good which is subject to the elimination or reduction of customs duties by the importing Party in accordance with Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties) and which is destined for the territory of the importing Party.

1.   Except as otherwise provided for in this Agreement, a Party shall not adopt or maintain any prohibition or restriction on the importation of any good of the other Party or on the exportation or sale for export of any good destined for the territory of the other Party, in accordance with Article XI of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions. To that end, Article XI of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

2.   Paragraph 1 prohibits a Party from adopting or maintaining:

3.   Paragraphs 1 and 2 do not apply to the goods listed in Appendix 2-A-4 (Goods to Which Viet Nam May Apply Specific Measures). Any amendment of Viet Nam's laws and regulations that reduces the scope of the goods listed in Appendix 2-A-4 (Goods to Which Viet Nam May Apply Specific Measures) shall automatically apply under this Agreement. Any preference accorded by Viet Nam regarding the scope of the goods listed in Appendix 2-A-4 (Goods to Which Viet Nam May Apply Specific Measures) to any other trading partner shall automatically apply under this Agreement. Viet Nam shall notify the Union of any amendment or preference referred to in this paragraph.

4.   In accordance with the WTO Agreement, a Party may implement any measure authorised by the Dispute Settlement Body of the WTO against the other Party.

5.   When a Party adopts or maintains an import or export prohibition or restriction it shall ensure full transparency thereof.

1.   Viet Nam shall adopt and maintain appropriate legal instruments allowing foreign pharmaceutical companies to establish foreign-invested enterprises for the purposes of importing pharmaceuticals which have obtained a marketing authorisation from Viet Nam's competent authorities. Without prejudice to Viet Nam's schedules included in Annex 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), such foreign-invested enterprises are allowed to sell pharmaceuticals which they have legally imported to distributors or wholesalers who have the right to distribute pharmaceuticals in Viet Nam.

2.   The foreign-invested enterprises referred to in paragraph 1 are allowed to:

1.   The Parties affirm their rights and obligations under the Import Licensing Agreement.

2.   Each Party shall notify the other Party of its existing import licensing procedures, including the legal basis and the relevant official website, within 30 days of the entry into force of this Agreement unless they were already notified or provided under Article 5 or paragraph 3 of Article 7 of the Import Licensing Agreement. The notification shall contain the same information as referred to in Article 5 or paragraph 3 of Article 7 of the Import Licensing Agreement.

3.   Each Party shall notify the other Party of any introduction or modification of any import licensing procedure which it intends to adopt no later than 45 days before the new procedure or modification takes effect. In no case shall a Party provide such notification later than 60 days following the date of the publication of the introduction or modification unless this was already notified in accordance with Article 5 of the Import Licensing Agreement. The notification shall contain the same information as referred to in Article 5 of the Import Licensing Agreement.

4.   Each Party shall publish on an official website any information that it is required to publish pursuant to subparagraph 4(a) of Article 1 of the Import Licensing Agreement.

5.   Upon request of a Party, the other Party shall respond within 60 days to a reasonable enquiry regarding any import licensing procedure which it intends to adopt or has adopted or maintained, as well as the criteria for granting or for allocating import licences, including the eligibility of persons, firms, and institutions to make such an application, the administrative body or bodies to be approached and the list of products subject to the import licensing requirement.

6.   The Parties shall introduce and administer import licensing procedures in accordance with:

To that end, the provisions referred to in subparagraphs (a), (b) and (c) are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

7.   A Party shall only adopt or maintain automatic import licensing procedures as a condition for importation into its territory in order to fulfil legitimate objectives after having conducted an appropriate impact assessment.

8.   A Party shall grant import licences for an appropriate length of time which shall not be shorter than set out in the domestic legislation providing for the import licensing requirements and which shall not preclude imports.

9.   Where a Party has denied an import licence application with respect to a good of the other Party, it shall, upon request of the applicant and promptly after receiving the request, provide the applicant with a written explanation of the reasons for the denial. The applicant shall have the right of appeal or review in accordance with the domestic legislation or procedures of the importing Party.

10.   The Parties shall only adopt or maintain non-automatic import licensing procedures in order to implement a measure that is not inconsistent with this Agreement, including with Article 2.22 (General Exceptions). A Party adopting non-automatic import licensing procedures shall indicate clearly the purpose of such licensing procedures.

1.   Each Party shall notify the other Party of its existing export licensing procedures, including the legal basis and the relevant official website, within 30 days of the entry into force of this Agreement.

2.   Each Party shall notify the other Party of any introduction or modification of any export licensing procedure which it intends to adopt no later than 45 days before the new procedure or modification takes effect. In no case shall a Party provide such notification later than 60 days following the date of the publication of the introduction or modification.

3.   The notification referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall contain the following information:

4.   Each Party shall publish any export licensing procedure, including the legal basis and a reference to the relevant official website. Each Party shall also publish any new export licensing procedure, or any modification to its export licensing procedures, as soon as possible but in any case no later than 45 days after its adoption and at least 25 working days before its entry into force.

5.   Upon request of a Party, the other Party shall respond within 60 days to a reasonable enquiry regarding any export licensing procedures which it intends to adopt or which it has adopted or maintained as well as the criteria for granting or for allocating export licences, including the eligibility of persons, firms, and institutions to make such an application, the administrative body or bodies to be approached, and the list of products subject to the export licensing requirement.

6.   The Parties shall introduce and administer any export licensing procedures in accordance with:

To that end, the provisions of the Import Licensing Agreement referred to in subparagraphs (a), (b) and (c) are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

7.   Each Party shall ensure that all export licensing procedures are neutral in application and administered in a fair, equitable, non-discriminatory and transparent manner.

8.   A Party shall grant export licences for an appropriate length of time which shall not be shorter than set out in the domestic legislation providing for the export licensing requirement and which shall not preclude exports.

9.   When a Party has denied an export licence application with respect to a good of the other Party, it shall, upon request of the applicant and promptly after receiving the request, provide the applicant with a written explanation of the reasons for the denial. The applicant shall have the right of appeal or review in accordance with the domestic legislation or procedures of the exporting Party.

10.   A Party shall only adopt or maintain automatic export licensing procedures as a condition for exportation from its territory in order to fulfil legitimate objectives after having conducted an appropriate impact assessment.

11.   The Parties shall only adopt or maintain non-automatic export licensing procedures in order to implement a measure that is not inconsistent with this Agreement, including with Article 2.22 (General Exceptions). A Party adopting non-automatic export licensing procedures shall indicate clearly the purpose of such licensing procedures.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that fees, charges, formalities and requirements, other than import and export customs duties and measures listed in subparagraphs (d)(i), (ii) and (iii) of Article 2.3 (Definitions), are consistent with the Parties' obligations under Article VIII of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions.

2.   A Party shall only impose fees and charges for services provided in connection with importation and exportation of goods. Fees and charges shall not be levied on an ad valorem basis and shall not exceed the approximate cost of the service provided. Each Party shall publish information on fees and charges it imposes in connection with the importation and exportation of goods in accordance with Article 4.10 (Fees and Charges).

3.   A Party shall not require consular transactions, including related fees and charges, in connection with the importation or exportation of goods. After three years from the date of entry into force of this Agreement, a Party shall not require consular authentication for the importation of goods covered by this Agreement.

1.   The Parties affirm their existing rights and obligations under Article XVII of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, and the WTO Understanding on the Interpretation of Article XVII of GATT 1994, which are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

2.   When a Party requests information from the other Party on individual cases of state trading enterprises and on their operations, including information on their bilateral trade, the requested Party shall ensure transparency subject to subparagraph 4(d) of Article XVII of GATT 1994.

1.   The Parties shall implement their commitments on sector-specific non-tariff measures on goods as set out in Annexes 2-B (Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicles Parts and Equipment) and 2-C (Pharmaceutical/Medicinal Products and Medical Devices).

2.   Except as otherwise provided for in this Agreement, 10 years after the entry into force of this Agreement and upon request of either Party, the Parties shall, in accordance with their internal procedures, enter into negotiations with the aim of broadening the scope of their commitments on sector-specific non-tariff measures on goods.

1.   Nothing in this Chapter prevents either Party from taking measures in accordance with Article XX of GATT 1994, including its Notes and Supplementary Provisions, which are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

2.   The Parties understand that before taking any measures provided for in subparagraphs (i) and (j) of Article XX of GATT 1994, the exporting Party intending to take such measures shall provide the other Party with all relevant information. Upon request of either Party, the Parties shall consult with a view to seeking an acceptable solution. The Parties may agree on any means needed to resolve the difficulties. If prior information or examination is impossible due to exceptional and critical circumstances requiring immediate action, the exporting Party may apply the necessary precautionary measures and shall immediately inform the other Party thereof.

1.   The Committee on Trade in Goods established pursuant to Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees) shall comprise representatives of the Parties.

2.   The Committee on Trade in Goods shall consider any matter arising under this Chapter and Protocol 1 (Concerning the Definition of the Concept of "Originating Products" and Methods of Administrative Cooperation).

3.   The Committee on Trade in Goods shall carry out the following tasks in accordance with Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees):

1.   The Parties affirm their rights and obligations under Article VI of GATT 1994, the Anti-Dumping Agreement, and the SCM Agreement.

2.   The Parties, recognising that anti-dumping and countervailing measures can be abused to obstruct trade, agree that:

3.   For the purposes of this Section, origin shall be determined in accordance with Article 1 of the Agreement on Rules of Origin.

1.   Without prejudice to Article 6.5 of the Anti-Dumping Agreement and Article 12.4 of the SCM Agreement, the Parties shall ensure, immediately after any imposition of provisional measures and in any case before the final determination is made, full and meaningful disclosure to interested parties of all essential facts and considerations which form the basis for the decision to apply measures. Disclosures shall be made in writing and allow interested parties sufficient time to make their comments.

2.   Provided it does not unnecessarily delay the conduct of the investigation, interested parties shall be granted the possibility to be heard in order to express their views during trade remedies investigations.

1.   The Parties affirm their rights and obligations under Article XIX of GATT 1994, the Safeguards Agreement and Article 5 of the Agreement on Agriculture.

2.   A Party shall not apply with respect to the same good at the same time:

3.   For the purposes of this Section, origin shall be determined in accordance with Article 1 of the Agreement on Rules of Origin.

1.   Notwithstanding Article 3.6 (General Provisions), the Party initiating a global safeguard investigation or intending to impose global safeguard measures shall immediately provide, at the request of the other Party and provided that it has a substantial interest, ad hoc written notification of all pertinent information leading to the initiation of a global safeguard investigation and, as the case may be, the proposal to impose the global safeguard measures, including on the provisional findings, where relevant. This is without prejudice to Article 3.2 of the Safeguards Agreement.

2.   When imposing global safeguard measures, the Parties shall endeavour to impose them in a way that least affects bilateral trade.

3.   For the purposes of paragraph 2, if a Party considers that the legal requirements for the imposition of definitive safeguard measures are met, it shall notify the other Party and give the possibility to hold bilateral consultations. If no satisfactory solution has been reached within 30 days of the notification, the Party may adopt the definitive global safeguard measures. The possibility to hold consultations should be offered to the other Party in order to exchange views on the information referred to in paragraph 1.

1.   If, as a result of the reduction or elimination of a customs duty under this Agreement, any good originating in the territory of a Party is being imported into the territory of the other Party in such increased quantities, in absolute terms or relative to domestic production, and under such conditions as to cause or threaten to cause serious injury to a domestic industry producing like or directly competitive goods, the importing Party may adopt measures provided for in paragraph 2 in accordance with the conditions and procedures laid down in this Section during the transition period only, except as otherwise provided for in subparagraph 6(c) of Article 3.11 (Conditions and Limitations).

2.   The importing Party may impose a bilateral safeguard measure which:

1.   A Party shall only apply a bilateral safeguard measure following an investigation by its competent authorities in accordance with Article 3 and subparagraph 2(c) of Article 4 of the Safeguards Agreement. To that end, Article 3 and subparagraph 2(c) of Article 4 of the Safeguards Agreement are incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

2.   A Party shall notify the other Party in writing of the initiation of the investigation referred to in paragraph 1 and consult with the other Party as far as practicable in advance of applying a bilateral safeguard measure, with a view to reviewing the information arising from the investigation and exchanging views on the measure.

3.   In the investigation referred to in paragraph 1, the Party shall comply with the requirements of subparagraph 2(a) of Article 4 of the Safeguards Agreement. To that end, subparagraph 2(a) of Article 4 of the Safeguards Agreement is incorporated into and made part of this Agreement, mutatis mutandis.

4.   The investigation shall also demonstrate, on the basis of objective evidence, the existence of a causal link between increased imports and the serious injury or threat thereof. The investigation shall also take into consideration the existence of any factor other than increased imports which may also cause injury at the same time.

5.   Each Party shall ensure that its competent authorities complete the investigation referred to in paragraph 1 within one year of the date of its initiation.

6.   A Party shall not apply a bilateral safeguard measure:

7.   In order to facilitate adjustment in a situation where the expected duration of a bilateral safeguard measure is more than two years, the Party applying the measure shall progressively liberalise the measure at regular intervals during the period of application.

8.   When a Party terminates a bilateral safeguard measure, the rate of customs duty shall be the rate that, according to its schedule included in Annex 2-A (Reduction or Elimination of Customs Duties), would have been in effect but for the measure.

1.   A Party applying a bilateral safeguard measure shall consult with the other Party in order to mutually agree on appropriate trade-liberalising compensation in the form of concessions having trade effects substantially equivalent to the bilateral safeguard measure or in the form of concessions equivalent to the value of the additional duties expected to result from the safeguard measure. The Party applying a bilateral safeguard measure shall provide an opportunity for such consultations no later than 30 days after the application of the bilateral safeguard measure.

2.   If the consultations under paragraph 1 do not result in an agreement on trade-liberalising compensation within 30 days of the beginning of the consultations, the Party whose goods are subject to the bilateral safeguard measure may suspend the application of concessions, with respect to originating goods of the Party applying the bilateral safeguard measure, which have trade effects substantially equivalent to the bilateral safeguard measure. The obligation to provide compensation, incumbent on the Party applying the bilateral safeguard measure, and the other Party's right to suspend concessions under this paragraph shall terminate on the same date as the bilateral safeguard measure terminates.

3.   The right of suspension referred to in paragraph 2 shall not be exercised for the first 24 months during which a bilateral safeguard measure is in effect, provided that the safeguard measure conforms to the provisions of this Agreement.

1.   The Parties recognise the importance of customs and trade facilitation matters in the evolving global trading environment. The Parties shall reinforce cooperation in this area with a view to ensuring that their respective customs legislation and procedures fulfil the objectives of promoting trade facilitation while ensuring effective customs control.

2.   The Parties agree that their legislation shall be non-discriminatory and that customs procedures shall be based on the use of modern methods and effective controls to combat fraud and to promote legitimate trade.

3.   The Parties recognise that legitimate public policy objectives, including those in relation to security, safety and the fight against fraud, shall not be compromised.

1.   The respective authorities of the Parties shall cooperate on customs matters in order to ensure that the objectives set out in Article 4.1 (Objectives) are attained.

2.   The Parties shall enhance customs cooperation, inter alia, by:

3.   The Parties shall provide each other with mutual administrative assistance in customs matters in accordance with Protocol 2 (On Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters).

1.   The Parties shall base their respective customs legislation and procedures on international instruments and standards applicable in the area of customs and trade, including the substantive elements of the International Convention on the Simplification and Harmonisation of Customs Procedures, as amended (Revised Kyoto Convention), done at Brussels on 26 June 1999, the International Convention on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (hereinafter referred to as "HS Convention"), the Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate Global Trade and the Customs Data Model of the WCO.

2.   The customs legislation and procedures of the Parties shall:

3.   The Parties agree that their respective customs legislation and procedures, including remedies, shall be proportionate and non-discriminatory and that their application shall not unduly delay the release of goods.

4.   In order to improve working methods, as well as to ensure non-discrimination, transparency, efficiency, integrity and accountability of operations, the Parties shall:

1.   Each Party shall ensure that its customs authorities apply requirements and procedures that provide for the release of goods within a period no longer than that required to ensure compliance with its customs and other trade-related laws and formalities. Each Party shall work towards further reducing this period and releasing the goods without undue delay.

2.   The Parties shall allow, inter alia, the release of goods without the payment of customs duties, subject to the provision of a guarantee if required in accordance with their legislation in order to secure the final payment of customs duties.

3.   Each Party shall ensure that its customs authorities provide for advance electronic submission and further processing of information before the physical arrival of goods (pre-arrival processing) to enable the release of goods on arrival.

1.   Each Party shall provide for simplified customs procedures that are transparent and efficient in order to reduce costs and increase predictability for economic operators, including for small and medium-sized enterprises. Easier access to customs simplifications shall also be provided for authorised traders according to objective and non-discriminatory criteria.

2.   A single administrative document or electronic equivalent shall be used for the purposes of completing the formalities required for placing the goods under a customs procedure.

3.   The Parties shall apply modern customs techniques, including risk assessment and post-clearance audit methods, in order to simplify and facilitate the entry and the release of goods.

4.   The Parties shall promote the progressive development and use of systems, including those based on information technology, to facilitate the electronic exchange of data between traders, customs administrations and other related agencies.

1.   Each Party shall ensure the facilitation and effective control of transhipment operations and transit movements through its territory.

2.   To facilitate traffic in transit each Party shall ensure cooperation and coordination between all authorities and agencies concerned in its territory.

1.   Each Party shall base its examination and release procedures and its post-clearance audit procedures on risk assessment principles and audits, rather than examining each shipment in a comprehensive manner for compliance with all import requirements.

2.   The Parties shall adopt and apply their import, export, transit and transhipment control requirements and procedures for goods on the basis of risk management principles which shall be applied to focus compliance measures on transactions that merit attention.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that its customs and other trade-related laws, regulations and general administrative procedures and other requirements, including fees and charges, are readily available to interested parties and, where feasible and possible, on an official website.

2.   Each Party shall designate or maintain one or more inquiry or information points to address, within a reasonable time, inquiries by interested parties concerning customs and other trade-related matters.

1.   Upon written request from traders, the customs authorities of each Party shall issue, in accordance with its laws and regulations, prior to the importation of a good into its territory, written advance rulings on tariff classification or on any other matter that the Parties may agree upon.

2.   Subject to any confidentiality requirements in each Party's laws and regulations, each Party shall publish, for example on an official website, its advance rulings on tariff classification and on any matters that the Parties may agree upon.

3.   With a view to facilitating trade, the Parties shall include in their bilateral dialogue regular updates on changes in their respective laws and regulations on advance rulings.

1.   Each Party shall publish information on fees and charges via an officially designated medium, and where feasible and possible, on an official website. This information shall include the fees and charges that will be applied, the reason for the fees or charges for the service provided, the responsible authority, and when and how payment is to be made.

2.   Each Party shall not impose new or amended fees and charges until the information in accordance with paragraph 1 is published and made readily available.

1.   The Parties shall determine the customs value of goods in accordance with Article VII of GATT 1994 and the Customs Valuation Agreement.

2.   The Parties shall cooperate with a view to reaching a common approach to issues relating to customs valuation.

1.   The Committee on Customs established by Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees) shall be composed of representatives of the Parties.

2.   The Committee on Customs shall ensure the proper functioning of this Chapter, the enforcement of intellectual property rights by customs in accordance with Sub-Section 4 (Border Enforcement) of Section C (Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights) of Chapter 12 (Intellectual Property), Protocol 1 (Concerning the Definition of the Concept of "Originating Products" and Methods of Administrative Cooperation), Protocol 2 (On Mutual Administrative Assistance in Customs Matters) and any additional provisions relating to customs that the Parties may agree upon.

3.   The Committee on Customs shall examine the need for, and adopt, decisions, opinions, proposals or recommendations on all issues arising from the implementation of the provisions referred to in paragraph 2. It shall have the power to adopt decisions on mutual recognition of risk management techniques, risk criteria and standards, security controls and trade partnership programmes, including aspects such as data transmission and mutually agreed benefits.

1.   The objectives of this Chapter are to facilitate and increase bilateral trade in goods by preventing, identifying and eliminating unnecessary obstacles to trade within the scope of the TBT Agreement, and to enhance bilateral cooperation between the Parties.

2.   The Parties shall establish and enhance technical capabilities and institutional infrastructure on matters concerning technical barriers to trade.

1.   This Chapter applies to the preparation, adoption and application of standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures, as defined in Annex 1 to the TBT Agreement, that may affect trade in goods between the Parties, except for:

2.   Each Party has the right to prepare, adopt and apply standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures in accordance with this Chapter and the TBT Agreement.

3.   For the purposes of this Chapter, the definitions of Annex 1 to the TBT Agreement apply.

1.   Each Party shall make best use of good regulatory practice, as provided for in the TBT Agreement and in this Chapter, in particular, by:

2.   In accordance with Article 2.7 of the TBT Agreement, a Party shall give favourable consideration to accepting as equivalent technical regulations of the other Party, even if those regulations differ from its own, provided it is satisfied that those regulations adequately fulfil the objectives of its own regulations.

3.   A Party that has prepared a technical regulation that it considers to be equivalent to a technical regulation of the other Party because it has a compatible objective and product scope may request in writing that the other Party recognise it as equivalent. That request shall be made in writing and set out in detail the reasons why the technical regulations should be considered to be equivalent, including reasons with respect to product scope. A Party which does not agree that the technical regulations are equivalent shall provide to the other Party, upon request, the reasons for its decision.

1.   The Parties affirm their obligations under Article 4.1 of the TBT Agreement to ensure that their standardising bodies accept and comply with the Code of Good Practice for the Preparation, Adoption and Application of Standards in Annex 3 to the TBT Agreement. The Parties further affirm their adherence to the principles set out in Decisions and Recommendations adopted by the WTO Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade since 1 January 1995, G/TBT/1/rev.13 of 8 March 2017, including the Decision of the Committee on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations with relation to Articles 2, 5 and Annex 3 of the Agreement, referred to in the Annexes to Part 1 of the document.

2.   With a view to harmonising standards on as wide a basis as possible, the Parties shall encourage their standardising bodies as well as the regional standardising bodies of which they or their standardising bodies are members to:

3.   The Parties shall exchange information on:

4.   The Parties recognise that in accordance with Annex 1 to the TBT Agreement, compliance with standards is voluntary. When a Party makes compliance with standards mandatory, through incorporation or referencing in technical regulations or conformity assessment procedures, Article 5.7 (Transparency) applies.

1.   In respect of mandatory conformity assessment procedures the Parties shall apply paragraph 1 of Article 5.4 (Technical Regulations), mutatis mutandis, with a view to avoiding unnecessary obstacles to trade and ensuring transparency and non-discrimination.

2.   In line with Article 5.1.2 of the TBT Agreement, when an importing Party requires positive assurance of conformity with its applicable technical regulations or standards, its conformity assessment procedures shall neither be stricter nor applied more strictly than necessary to give that Party adequate confidence that products conform with its applicable technical regulations or standards, taking account of the risks non-conformity would create.

3.   The Parties recognise that a broad range of mechanisms exists to facilitate the acceptance of the results of conformity assessment procedures conducted in the territory of the other Party, including:

4.   Having regard in particular to the considerations referred to in paragraph 3, the Parties shall:

5.   Upon request from a Party, the other Party may decide to enter into consultations with a view to defining sectoral initiatives regarding the use of conformity assessment procedures or the facilitation of acceptance of conformity assessment results that are appropriate for the respective sectors. The Party making the request should provide relevant information on how the sectoral initiative would facilitate trade. If the other Party declines that request it shall, upon request, provide its reasons.

6.   The Parties affirm their obligations under Article 5.2.5 of the TBT Agreement that fees imposed for mandatory conformity assessment of imported products shall be equitable in relation to any fees chargeable for assessing the conformity of like products of domestic origin or originating in any other country, taking into account communication, transportation and other costs arising from differences between location of facilities of the applicant and the conformity assessment body.

1.   The Parties note that a technical regulation may include or deal exclusively with marking or labelling requirements. When a Party's technical regulations contain mandatory marking or labelling requirements, that Party shall observe the principles of Article 2.2 of the TBT Agreement, in particular, that technical regulations shall not be prepared with a view to, or with the effect of, creating unnecessary obstacles to international trade, and that they shall not be more trade restrictive than necessary to fulfil a legitimate objective.

2.   When requiring mandatory marking or labelling of products, a Party shall:

1.   The Parties shall strengthen their cooperation in the field of standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures with a view to increasing the mutual understanding of their respective systems and to facilitating trade between them. To that end, they may establish regulatory dialogues at both horizontal and sectoral levels.

2.   The Parties shall aim to identify, develop and promote bilateral initiatives regarding standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures that are appropriate for particular issues or sectors and which facilitate trade. Those initiatives may include:

3.   Upon request, a Party shall give due consideration to proposals for cooperation from the other Party under this Chapter. This cooperation shall be undertaken, inter alia, through dialogue in appropriate fora, joint projects, technical assistance and capacity-building programmes on standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures in selected industrial areas, as mutually agreed.

1.   A Party shall give prompt and favourable consideration to any request for consultations from the other Party on issues relating to the implementation of this Chapter.

2.   In order to clarify or resolve issues referred to in paragraph 1, the Trade Committee may establish a working group with a view to identifying a workable and practical solution to facilitate trade. The working group shall comprise representatives of the Parties.

1.   Each Party shall designate a contact point in the Ministry of Science and Technology of Viet Nam and in the European Commission, respectively, and provide the other Party with the contact details of the office or official responsible for matters covered under this Chapter, including information on telephone, facsimile, e-mail and other relevant details.

2.   Each Party shall promptly notify the other Party of any change of its contact point and amendments to the information referred to in paragraph 1.

3.   The contact points shall, inter alia:

4.   The enquiry points, established in accordance with Article 10.1 of the TBT Agreement, shall:

1.   This Chapter applies to the preparation, adoption and application of all sanitary and phytosanitary (hereinafter referred to as "SPS") measures of a Party which may, directly or indirectly affect trade between the Parties.

2.   This Chapter does not affect the rights of the Parties under Chapter 5 (Technical Barriers to Trade) with respect to measures not within the scope of this Chapter.

1.   For the purposes of this Chapter:

2.   The Parties may agree on other definitions for the application of this Chapter taking into consideration the glossaries and definitions of the relevant international organisations, such as the Codex Alimentarius Commission (hereinafter referred to as "Codex Alimentarius"), the World Organisation for Animal Health (hereinafter referred to as "OIE"), and the International Plant Protection Convention (hereinafter referred to as "IPPC").

1.   The Parties affirm their existing rights and obligations with respect to each other under the SPS Agreement.

2.   Each Party shall apply the SPS Agreement in the development, application or recognition of any SPS measure with the aim of facilitating trade between the Parties while protecting human, animal or plant life or health in its territory.

1.   To ensure close and effective working relationships between the Parties in achieving the objectives of this Chapter, the competent authorities are the following:

2.   As of the date of entry into force of this Agreement, the competent authorities of each Party shall provide each other with a contact point for communication on all matters arising under this Chapter. The contact points' functions shall include:

3.   The Parties shall ensure that the information provided under paragraphs 1 and 2 is kept up to date.

1.   The general import requirements of a Party shall be applicable to the entire territory of the exporting Party, without prejudice to the ability of the importing Party to take decisions and measures in accordance with the criteria set out in Article 6.9 (Measures Linked to Animal and Plant Health).

2.   Each Party shall adopt only measures that are scientifically justified, consistent with the risk involved and that represent the least restrictive measures available and result in minimum impediment to trade.

3.   The importing Party shall ensure that its import requirements and procedures are applied in a proportional and non-discriminatory manner.

4.   The import procedures shall aim at minimising negative trade effects and expedite the clearance process while complying with the importing Party's requirements and procedures.

5.   The importing Party shall ensure full transparency of its import requirements and procedures.

6.   The exporting Party shall ensure compliance with the import requirements of the importing Party.

7.   Each Party shall establish and update lists of regulated pests, using scientific terminology, and make such lists available to the other Party.

8.   Phytosanitary import requirements shall be restricted to measures ensuring the respect for the appropriate level of protection of the importing Party, and limited to the regulated pests of concern to the importing Party. Without prejudice to Article 6 of the IPPC, a Party shall not impose or maintain phytosanitary measures for non-regulated pests.

9.   A pest risk analysis undertaken by a Party shall be carried out without undue delay after the initial request of the exporting Party. In case of difficulties, the Parties shall agree within the SPS Committee on a time schedule for carrying out the pest risk analysis.

10.   The importing Party shall have the right to carry out import checks based on the SPS risks associated with imports. Those checks shall be carried out without undue delay and with a minimum impediment to trade. If products do not conform to the requirements of the importing Party, any action taken by the importing Party shall be in conformity with the international standards and proportionate to the risk caused by the product.

11.   The importing Party shall make available the information about the frequency of import checks carried out on products. This frequency may be adapted as a consequence of verifications or import checks, or by mutual agreement between the Parties.

12.   Any fees imposed for the procedures related to the import of products under this Chapter shall be equitable in relation to any fees charged on like domestic products and shall not be higher than the actual cost of the service.

1.   In order to obtain or maintain confidence in the effective implementation of this Chapter, the importing Party has the right to carry out verifications, including:

2.   Each Party shall provide the other Party with the results and conclusions of the verification visits carried out in the territory of the other Party.

3.   If the importing Party decides to carry out a verification visit to the exporting Party, it shall notify the exporting Party of this visit at least 60 working days before such verification visit is carried out, unless agreed otherwise. Any modification to this verification visit shall be mutually agreed by the Parties.

4.   The importing Party shall provide a draft verification report to the exporting Party within 45 working days of the completion of the verifications. The exporting Party shall have 30 working days to comment on the draft report. Comments made by the exporting Party shall be attached to and, where appropriate, included in the final verification report which shall be delivered within 30 working days. If, during the verification, the importing Party identifies a significant human, animal or plant health risk, it shall inform the exporting Party as quickly as possible and in any case within 10 working days following the end of the verification.

1.   Upon request of the importing Party, the exporting Party shall inform the importing Party of its list of establishments which comply with the importing Party's requirements for approval and for which satisfactory sanitary guarantees have been provided in accordance with Annex 6 (Requirements and Procedures for Approval of Establishments for Products).

2.   Upon request of the exporting Party, the importing Party shall approve within 45 working days the list of establishments referred to in paragraph 1, without prior inspection of individual establishments.

3.   If the importing Party requests additional information, the time period referred to in paragraph 2 shall be extended by up to 30 working days. Following the approval of the list of establishment, the importing Party shall take necessary measures, in accordance with its applicable legal procedures, to allow the importation of products concerned.

4.   If the importing Party rejects the request for approval, it should inform without delay the exporting Party of the reasons upon which that rejection was based.

1.   The Parties recognise the concepts of disease-free areas, areas of low disease prevalence, and compartmentalisation in accordance with the SPS Agreement and OIE standards, guidelines or recommendations. The Parties also recognise the animal health status as determined by the OIE.

2.   The Parties recognise the concepts of pest-free areas, areas of low pest prevalence, protected zones and pest free production sites in accordance with the SPS Agreement and IPPC standards, guidelines or recommendations.

3.   The Parties shall consider factors such as geographical location, ecosystems, epidemiological surveillance, and the effectiveness of the SPS controls.

4.   The SPS Committee shall define in further detail the procedure for the recognition of the concepts referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 taking into account the SPS Agreement and the OIE and IPPC standards, guidelines or recommendations.

5.   When the importing Party assesses the self-determination of the animal or plant health status made by the exporting Party, it shall, in principle, base its own assessment of the animal or plant health status of the exporting Party or parts thereof on the information provided by the exporting Party in accordance with the SPS Agreement and the OIE and IPPC standards, guidelines or recommendations. The importing Party shall endeavour to provide the exporting Party its decision without undue delay after the request for assessment.

6.   If the importing Party does not accept the self-determination of the animal or plant health status made by the exporting Party, it shall explain the reasons and, upon request by the exporting Party, enter into consultations as soon as possible to reach an alternative solution.

7.   The exporting Party shall provide relevant evidence in order to objectively demonstrate to the importing Party that the animal or plant health status of those areas is likely to remain unchanged. For that purpose, the exporting Party shall, upon request by the importing Party, give the importing Party reasonable access for inspection, testing and other relevant procedures.

1.   The Parties recognise that the application of equivalence in Article 4 of the SPS Agreement is an important tool for trade facilitation and has mutual benefits for both exporting and importing countries.

2.   Equivalence can be accepted for a specific SPS measure or SPS measures related to a certain product or categories of products, or on a systems-wide basis.

3.   The importing Party shall accept the SPS measures and systems of the exporting Party as equivalent if the exporting Party objectively demonstrates that its measures achieve the importing Party's appropriate level of SPS protection. To facilitate a determination of equivalence, the importing Party shall, upon request, explain the objective of any relevant SPS measures to the other Party.

4.   Within three months of the date of receipt by the importing Party of a request from the exporting Party, the Parties shall hold consultations in order to determine the equivalence of SPS measures and systems.

5.   The importing Party shall make a determination of equivalence without undue delay after the exporting Party has demonstrated the equivalence of the proposed SPS measures and systems.

6.   The importing Party shall accelerate the determination of equivalence in particular in respect of those products which it has historically imported from the exporting Party.

7.   In case of multiple requests from the exporting Party, the Parties shall agree within the SPS Committee on a time schedule in accordance with which they shall initiate the process.

8.   In accordance with Article 9 of the SPS Agreement, the importing Party shall give full consideration to the requests by the exporting Party for technical assistance to facilitate the implementation of this Article. This assistance may, inter alia, help to identify and implement measures which can be recognised as equivalent or to otherwise enhance market access.

9.   The consideration by the importing Party of a request from the exporting Party for recognition of equivalence of its SPS measures with regard to a specific product shall not be in itself a reason to disrupt or suspend ongoing imports from that Party of that product. When the importing Party has made an equivalence determination, the Parties shall formally record it and apply it without delay to trade between them in the relevant area.

1.   The SPS Committee established pursuant to Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees) shall include representatives of the competent authorities of the Parties. All decisions made by the SPS Committee shall be by mutual agreement.

2.   The SPS Committee shall meet in person within one year of the entry into force of this Agreement. It shall meet at least annually thereafter or as mutually determined by the Parties. It shall establish its rules of procedure at its first meeting. It shall meet in person, via teleconference, video-conference, or through other means as mutually agreed by the Parties.

3.   The SPS Committee may propose to the Trade Committee to establish working groups which shall identify and address technical and scientific issues arising from this Chapter and explore opportunities for further collaboration on SPS matters of mutual interest.

4.   The SPS Committee may address any matter related to the effective functioning of this Chapter, including facilitating communication and strengthening cooperation between the Parties. In particular it shall have the following responsibilities and functions:

5.   The Parties may, by decision in the SPS Committee, adopt recommendations and decisions related to the authorisation of imports, exchange of information, transparency, recognition of regionalisation, equivalence and alternative measures, and any other matter referred to under this Article.

1.   The Parties shall:

2.   When a Party has made the information available either by notification to the WTO in accordance with the relevant rules and procedures, or by publication on its official publicly and free of charge accessible websites, the exchange of information pursuant to subparagraphs 1(c) to 1(e) shall not be required.

3.   All notifications under this Chapter shall be made to the contact points referred to under Article 6.5 (Competent Authorities and Contact Points).

1.   When a Party considers that an SPS measure affecting bilateral trade warrants further discussion, it may, through the contact points referred to under Article 6.5 (Competent Authorities and Contact Points), request full explanation and, if necessary, request consultations on that SPS measure. The other Party shall respond promptly to such requests.

2.   The Parties shall make every effort to reach, within an agreed timeframe, a mutually acceptable solution through consultations. Should the consultations fail to resolve the matter, it shall be considered by the SPS Committee.

1.   Each Party shall notify the other Party in writing within two working days of the detection of any serious or significant risk to human, animal or plant life or health, including any food emergencies, affecting products for which trade between the Parties takes place.

2.   Where a Party has serious concerns regarding a risk to human, animal or plant life or health affecting products for which trade between the Parties takes place, it may request consultations in accordance with Article 6.13 (Consultations). The consultations shall take place as soon as possible. Each Party shall endeavour to provide in due time all necessary information to avoid disruption in trade.

3.   The importing Party may take, without previous notification, measures necessary to protect human, animal or plant life or health. For consignments in transport between the Parties, the importing Party shall consider the most suitable and proportional solution in order to avoid unnecessary disruptions to trade.

4.   The Party taking the measures shall inform the other Party as soon as possible and in any case no later than 24 hours after the adoption of the measure. Either Party may request any information related to the SPS situation and any measures adopted. The other Party shall reply as soon as the requested information is available.

5.   Upon request of either Party and in accordance with Article 6.13 (Consultations) the Parties shall hold consultations regarding the situation within 10 working days of the notification referred to in paragraph 1. The consultations shall be held with a view to avoiding unnecessary disruptions to trade. The Parties may consider options for the facilitation of the implementation or the replacement of the SPS measures.

1.   The Union should provide technical assistance to address specific needs of Viet Nam to comply with the Union's SPS measures, including food safety, animal and plant health, and the use of international standards.

2.   In accordance with Article 10 of the SPS Agreement, in the case of new SPS measures, the Union shall take into account the special needs of Viet Nam so as to maintain the export opportunities of Viet Nam while continuing to achieve the Union's level of protection. The SPS Committee shall be consulted upon request by either Party to reflect on and decide about:

1.   This Chapter applies to measures which affect trade and investment between the Parties related to the generation of energy from renewable and sustainable sources.

2.   This Chapter does not apply to research and development projects and to demonstration projects carried out on a non-commercial scale.

3.   This Chapter does not apply to projects funded and governed by agreements with international organisations or foreign governments to which the procedures or conditions of those donors apply.

4.   Subject to paragraph 5, this Chapter is without prejudice to the application of any other relevant provisions of this Agreement, including any exceptions, reservations or restrictions to those provisions, to the measures mentioned in paragraph 1, mutatis mutandis. For greater certainty, in the event of an inconsistency between this Chapter and other provisions of this Agreement, those provisions shall prevail to the extent of the inconsistency.

5.   Subparagraphs (a) and (b) of Article 7.4 (Principles) apply as from five years after the date of entry into force of this Agreement.

1.   This Article applies to the products covered by the tariff headings listed in Annex 7 (List of Tariff Headings). The Parties may agree to include other products in this list by exchange of letters.

2.   If relevant international standards established by the International Organization for Standardization or the International Electrotechnical Commission exist, the Parties shall use those international standards, or their relevant parts, as a basis for any standard, technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure, except when those international standards or relevant parts would be an ineffective or inappropriate means for the fulfilment of the legitimate objectives pursued. In those cases, a Party shall, upon request of the other Party, identify the part of the respective standard, technical regulation or conformity assessment procedure which substantially deviates from the relevant international standard and provide justification as to the reasons for the deviation.

3.   If appropriate, the Parties shall specify technical regulations based on product requirements in terms of performance, including safety and environmental performance, rather than design or descriptive characteristics.

4.   A Party accepting a supplier's declaration of conformity as a positive assurance of conformity shall endeavour not to require the submission of test results.

5.   If a Party requires test reports, whether alone, as the basis of, or in conjunction with other assurances of conformity, or as positive assurance that a product is in conformity with its relevant standards or technical regulations, it shall endeavour to accept test reports in form of the International Electrotechnical Commission System of Conformity Assessment Schemes for Electrotechnical Equipment and Components (IECEE CB Scheme) Test Reports without requiring any further testing.

6.   If a Party requires third party's certification for product, it shall endeavour to accept a valid CB Test Certificate under the IECEE CB Scheme as sufficient assurance of conformity without requiring any further conformity assessment or administrative procedures or approvals.

7.   This Article is without prejudice to the Parties applying requirements not related to the products in question, such as zoning laws or building codes.

1.   This Chapter is subject to Articles 2.22 (General Exceptions), 8.53 (General Exceptions) and 9.3 (Security and General Exceptions).

2.   Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as preventing a Party from adopting or enforcing measures necessary for the safe operation of the energy networks concerned, or the safety of the energy supply, subject to the requirement that those measures are not applied in a manner which would constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination between the Parties' products, service suppliers or investors under like circumstances, or a disguised restriction on trade and investment between the Parties.

1.   The Parties shall cooperate and exchange information on any issues relating to the implementation of this Chapter in the relevant specialised committees established pursuant to Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees). The Trade Committee may decide to adopt appropriate implementing measures to this effect.

2.   The Parties shall exchange information, regulatory experiences and best practices in areas such as:

3.   The Parties shall promote cooperation, with respect to domestic or regional technical regulations, regulatory concepts, standards, requirements and conformity assessment procedures which comply with international standards, in relevant regional fora.

1.   The Parties, affirming their respective commitments under the WTO Agreement and their commitment to create a better climate for the development of trade and investment between the Parties, hereby lay down the necessary arrangements for the progressive liberalisation of investment and trade in services and for cooperation on electronic commerce.

2.   Consistent with the provisions of this Chapter, each Party retains the right to adopt, maintain and enforce measures necessary to pursue legitimate policy objectives such as the protection of the environment and public health, social policy, the integrity and stability of the financial system, the promotion of security and safety, and the promotion and protection of cultural diversity.

3.   This Chapter does not apply to measures affecting natural persons seeking access to the employment market of a Party, nor does it apply to measures regarding citizenship, residence or employment on a permanent basis.

4.   Nothing in this Chapter shall prevent a Party from applying measures to regulate the entry of natural persons into, or their temporary stay in, its territory, including those measures necessary to protect the integrity of, and to ensure the orderly movement of natural persons across, its borders, provided that such measures are not applied in such a manner as to nullify or impair the benefits (5) accruing to any Party under the terms of a specific commitment in this Chapter and its Annexes.

5.   Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as limiting the obligations of the Parties under Chapter 9 (Government Procurement) or to impose any additional obligation relating to government procurement.

6.   This Chapter does not apply to subsidies granted by the Parties (6), except for Article 8.8 (Performance Requirements).

7.   A Party's decision not to issue, renew or maintain a subsidy or grant shall not constitute a breach of Article 8.8 (Performance Requirements) in the following circumstances:

8.   This Chapter does not apply to the Parties' respective social security systems or to activities in the territory of each Party, which are connected, even occasionally, with the exercise of official authority.

1.   For the purposes of this Chapter:

2.   A juridical person is:

3.   Notwithstanding the definition of a "juridical person of a Party" in subparagraph 1(j), shipping companies established outside the Union or Viet Nam and controlled by nationals of a Member State of the Union or of Viet Nam, respectively, shall also be covered by this Chapter if their vessels are registered in accordance with the respective domestic laws and regulations in a Member State or in Viet Nam and fly the flag of that Member State or of Viet Nam, respectively.

1.   This Section applies to measures adopted or maintained by a Party affecting the establishment or the operation of an enterprise by an investor of the other Party in the territory of the Party that adopts or maintains those measures.

2.   This Section does not apply to:

1.   With respect to market access through establishment and maintenance of an enterprise, each Party shall accord treatment no less favourable than that provided for under the terms, limitations and conditions agreed and specified in its respective Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments).

2.   In sectors where market access commitments are undertaken, the measures which a Party shall not adopt or maintain either on the basis of a regional subdivision or on the basis of its entire territory, unless otherwise specified in its Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), respectively, are defined as:

1.   In the sectors inscribed in its respective Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annexes 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments) and subject to any conditions and qualifications set out therein, each Party shall accord to investors of the other Party and to their enterprises, with respect to establishment in its territory, treatment no less favourable than that accorded, in like situations, to its own investors and to their enterprises.

2.   A Party shall accord to investors of the other Party and to their enterprises (15), with respect to the operation of those enterprises, treatment no less favourable than that accorded, in like situations, to its own investors and to their enterprises.

3.   Notwithstanding paragraph 2 and, in the case of Viet Nam subject to Annex 8-C (Exemption for Viet Nam on National Treatment), a Party may adopt or maintain any measure with respect to the operation of an enterprise provided that such measure is not inconsistent with the commitments set out in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), respectively, where such measure is:

1.   Each Party shall accord to investors of the other Party and to their enterprises as regards their operation in its territory, treatment no less favourable than the treatment it accords, in like situations, to investors of a third country and their enterprises.

2.   Paragraph 1 does not apply to the following sectors:

3.   Paragraph 1 shall not be construed as obliging a Party to extend to the investors of the other Party or their enterprises the benefit of any treatment granted pursuant to any bilateral, regional or multilateral agreement that entered into force before the date of entry into force of this Agreement.

4.   Paragraph 1 shall not be construed as obliging a Party to extend to the investors of the other Party or their enterprises the benefit of:

5.   For greater certainty, the "treatment" referred to in paragraph 1 does not include dispute resolution procedures or mechanisms, such as resolution of investment disputes between investors and states, provided for in any other bilateral, regional or multilateral agreements. Substantive obligations in such agreements do not in themselves constitute "treatment" and thus cannot be taken into account when assessing a breach of this Article. Measures by a Party pursuant to those substantive obligations shall be considered "treatment".

6.   This Article shall be interpreted in accordance with the principle of ejusdem generis (18).

1.   In the sectors inscribed in its Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), respectively, and subject to any conditions and qualifications set out therein, a Party shall not impose or enforce any of the following requirements which are mandatory or enforceable under domestic law or under administrative rulings, in connection with the establishment or operation of any enterprise of investors of a Party or of a third country in its territory:

2.   In the sectors inscribed in its Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), respectively, and subject to any conditions and qualifications set out therein, a Party shall not condition the receipt or continued receipt of an advantage, in connection with the establishment or operation of an enterprise of an investor of a Party or of a third country in its territory, on compliance with any of the following requirements:

3.   Paragraph 2 shall not be construed as preventing a Party from conditioning the receipt or continued receipt of an advantage in connection with any enterprise in its territory on compliance with a requirement to locate production, provide a service, train or employ workers, construct or expand particular facilities, or carry out research and development in its territory.

4.   Subparagraph 1(f) shall not be construed as preventing the application of a requirement imposed or a commitment or undertaking enforced by a court, administrative tribunal or competition authority, in order to remedy an alleged violation of competition laws.

5.   Subparagraphs 1(a) to 1(c), 2(a) and 2(b) do not apply to qualification requirements for goods or services with respect to participation in export promotion and foreign aid programmes.

6.   For greater certainty, subparagraphs 2(a) and 2(b) do not apply to requirements imposed by an importing Party relating to the content of goods necessary to qualify for preferential tariffs or preferential quotas.

7.   For greater certainty, paragraphs 1 and 2 do not apply to any requirement other than the requirements set out in those paragraphs.

8.   This Article does not apply to measures adopted or maintained by a Party in accordance with subparagraph 8(b) of Article III of GATT 1994.

1.   With respect to market access through the cross-border supply of services, each Party shall accord services and service suppliers of the other Party treatment not less favourable than that provided for under the terms, limitations and conditions agreed and specified in its respective Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments).

2.   In sectors where market access commitments are undertaken, the measures which a Party shall not adopt or maintain either on the basis of a regional subdivision or on the basis of its entire territory, unless otherwise specified in its Schedule of Specific Commitments, are defined as:

1.   In the sectors inscribed in its respective Schedule of Specific Commitments in Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) or 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments) and subject to any conditions and qualifications set out therein, each Party shall accord to services and service suppliers of the other Party, in respect of all measures affecting the cross-border supply of services, treatment no less favourable than that it accords to its own like services and service suppliers.

2.   A Party may meet the requirement of paragraph 1 by according to services and service suppliers of the other Party either formally identical treatment or formally different treatment to that it accords to its own like services and service suppliers.

3.   Formally identical or formally different treatment shall be considered to be less favourable if it modifies the conditions of competition in favour of services or service suppliers of the Party compared to like services or service suppliers of the other Party.

4.   Specific commitments assumed under this Article shall not be construed as requiring any Party to compensate for inherent competitive disadvantages which result from the foreign character of the relevant services or service suppliers.

1.   This Section applies to measures of a Party concerning the entry and temporary stay in its territory of business visitors, intra-corporate-transferees, business sellers, contractual service suppliers and independent professionals.

2.   For the purposes of this Section:

1.   For the sectors liberalised in accordance with Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), each Party shall allow investors of the other Party to employ in their enterprises natural persons of that other Party provided that such employees are business visitors or intra-corporate transferees (24).

2.   The entry and temporary stay shall be:

3.   For every sector liberalised in accordance with Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), a Party shall not adopt or maintain, either on the basis of a regional subdivision or on the basis of its entire territory, limitations on the total number of natural persons that an investor may employ as business visitors for establishment purposes and intra-corporate transferees in a specific sector in the form of numerical quotas or a requirement of an economic needs test and as discriminatory limitations, unless otherwise specified in Appendix 8-A-3 to Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) and Appendix 8-B-2 to Annex 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments, respectively.

1.   The Parties affirm their respective obligations arising from their commitments under GATS with respect to the entry and temporary stay of contractual services suppliers.

2.   Each Party shall allow the supply of services into its territory by contractual services suppliers of the other Party, subject to the conditions specified in paragraph 3 and any reservations listed in Appendix 8-A-3 to Annex 8-A (The Union's Schedule of Specific Commitments) and Appendix 8-B-2 to Annex 8-B (Viet Nam's Schedule of Specific Commitments), respectively, for the following sectors or sub-sectors:

3.   The commitments undertaken by the Parties are subject to the following conditions:

1.   This Sub-Section applies to measures by the Parties relating to licensing requirements and procedures, qualification requirements and procedures that affect:

2.   This Sub-Section only applies to sectors for which a Party has undertaken specific commitments and to the extent that those specific commitments apply.

3.   This Sub-Section does not apply to measures to the extent that they constitute limitations as scheduled under Article 8.4 (Market Access), 8.5 (National Treatment), 8.10 (Market Access) or 8.11 (National Treatment).

4.   For the purposes of this Section:

1.   Each Party shall ensure that measures relating to licensing requirements and procedures, as well as qualification requirements and procedures, are based on criteria which are:

2.   An authorisation or a licence shall, subject to availability, be granted as soon as it is established, on the basis of an appropriate examination, that the conditions for obtaining an authorisation or licence have been met.

3.   Each Party shall maintain or institute judicial, arbitral or administrative tribunals or procedures which provide, at the request of an affected investor or service supplier, for a prompt review of, and where justified, appropriate remedies for, administrative decisions affecting establishment, cross-border supply of services or temporary presence of natural persons for business purposes. Where such procedures are not independent of the authority entrusted with the administrative decision concerned, each Party shall ensure that the procedures provide for an objective and impartial review.

This paragraph shall not be construed as requiring a Party to institute such tribunals or procedures where this would be inconsistent with its constitutional structure or the nature of its legal system.

1.   Licensing and qualification procedures and formalities shall not in themselves constitute a restriction on the supply of a service or the pursuit of any other economic activity. Each Party shall endeavour to make such procedures and formalities as simple as possible and shall ensure that such procedures and formalities do not unduly complicate or delay the provision of the service. Any licensing fees (30) which the applicants may incur from their applications should be reasonable and shall not in themselves restrict the supply of the relevant service.

2.   Each Party shall ensure that the procedures used by, and the decisions of, the competent authority in the licensing or authorisation process are impartial with respect to all applicants. The competent authority should reach its decisions in an independent manner and not be accountable to any person supplying the services or carrying out the economic activities for which the licence or authorisation is required.

3.   In case specific time periods for applications exist in each Party's laws and regulations, an applicant shall be allowed a reasonable period of time for the submission of an application. The competent authority shall initiate the processing of an application without undue delay. Where possible, applications should be accepted in electronic format under the same conditions of authenticity as paper submissions.

4.   Each Party shall ensure that the processing of an application, including the reaching of a final decision, is completed within a reasonable timeframe after the date of the submission of a complete application. Each Party shall endeavour to establish the normal timeframe for processing an application.

5.   The competent authority shall inform the applicant within a reasonable period of time after the receipt of an application which it considers incomplete, identify, to the extent feasible, the additional information required to complete the application, and provide the opportunity to correct deficiencies.

6.   Authenticated copies should be accepted, whenever possible, in place of original documents.

7.   If an application is rejected by the competent authority, the applicant shall be informed in writing and without undue delay. In principle, the applicant shall, upon formal request, also be informed of the reasons for rejection of the application. An applicant should be permitted, within reasonable time limits, to resubmit an application.

8.   Each Party shall ensure that a licence or an authorisation, once granted, enters into effect without undue delay in accordance with the terms and conditions specified therein.

1.   Nothing in this Article shall prevent a Party from requiring that natural persons possess the necessary qualifications and professional experience specified in the territory where the service is supplied, for the sector of activity concerned.

2.   The Parties shall encourage the relevant professional bodies or respective authorities, as appropriate, in their respective territories to develop and provide a joint recommendation on mutual recognition of professional qualifications to the Committee on Investment, Trade in Services, Electronic Commerce and Government Procurement established pursuant to Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees). Such a joint recommendation shall be supported by evidence of:

3.   Upon receipt of a joint recommendation, the Committee on Investment, Trade in Services, Electronic Commerce and Government Procurement shall, within a reasonable period of time, review the joint recommendation with a view to determining whether it is consistent with this Agreement.

4.   Where, on the basis of the information provided for in paragraph 2, the joint recommendation has been found to be consistent with this Agreement, the Parties shall take necessary steps to negotiate, through their competent authorities or designees authorised by a Party, a Mutual Recognition Agreement.

1.   To the extent that trade in computer services is liberalised in accordance with Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), Section C (Cross-Border Supply of Services) and Section D (Temporary Presence of Natural Persons for Business Purposes), the Parties shall comply with paragraphs 2 to 4.

2.   The Parties understand that CPC (31) 84, which is the United Nations code used for describing computer and related services, covers the basic functions used to provide all computer and related services. Technological developments have led to the increased offering of these services as a bundle or package of related services that can include some or all of these basic functions. For example, services such as web or domain hosting, data mining services and grid computing each consist of a combination of basic computer services functions.

3.   Computer and related services, regardless of whether they are delivered via a network, including the Internet, include all services that provide:

4.   The Parties understand that, in many cases, computer and related services enable the provision of other services (32) by both electronic and other means. In these cases, it is important to distinguish between the computer and related services, such as web-hosting or application hosting, and the other service enabled by the computer and related service. The other service, regardless of whether it is enabled by a computer and related service, is not covered by CPC 84.

1.   Where a Party requires a licence for providing postal services, it shall make publicly available:

2.   The reasons for the denial of a licence shall be made known to the applicant upon request and an appeal procedure through a relevant regulatory body shall be established by each Party. The appeal procedure shall be transparent, non-discriminatory and based on objective criteria.

1.   This Sub-Section sets out principles of the regulatory framework for the provision of public telecommunications networks and services, liberalised pursuant to Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), Section C (Cross-Border Supply of Services) and Section D (Temporary Presence of Natural Persons for Business Purposes).

2.   This Sub-Section does not apply to any measure adopted or maintained by a Party relating to broadcasting (34) or cable distribution of radio or television programming.

1.   The regulatory authority shall be separate from, and not accountable to, any supplier of public telecommunications networks or services.

2.   The decisions of and the procedures used by regulatory authorities shall be impartial with respect to all market participants. To that end, a Party that retains ownership or control of providers of telecommunications networks or services shall ensure that regulatory actions, decisions or measures taken by the regulatory authority with respect to such providers do not discriminate against and, as a result, materially disadvantage any of their competitors.

3.   The regulatory authority shall be sufficiently empowered to regulate the sector, and have adequate financial and human resources to carry out the tasks assigned to it.

4.   The tasks to be undertaken by a regulatory authority shall be made public in an easily accessible and clear form, in particular when those tasks are assigned to more than one body.

5.   The powers of the regulatory authority shall be exercised transparently and in a timely manner.

6.   Regulatory authorities shall have the power to ensure that suppliers of telecommunications networks and services provide them, promptly upon request, with all the information, including financial information, which is necessary to enable the regulatory authorities to carry out their tasks in accordance with this Sub-Section. The information requested shall be no more than is necessary to allow the performance of the regulatory authorities' tasks and treated in accordance with the requirements of confidentiality.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that licensing procedures should be publicly available, including:

2.   Each Party shall ensure that an applicant receives in writing, upon request, the reasons for the denial of a licence.

3.   The applicant for a licence shall be able to seek recourse before an appeal body in case a licence has been denied.

4.   Any licensing fees (35) which the applicants may incur from their application to get a licence shall be reasonable and shall not in themselves restrict the supply of the service.

1.   Any procedures for the allocation and use of scarce resources, including frequencies, numbers and rights of way, shall be carried out in an objective, timely, transparent and non-discriminatory manner.

2.   The current state of allocated frequency bands shall be made publicly available but detailed identification of radio spectrum allocated for specific government uses shall not be required.

3.   Decisions on allocating and assigning spectrum and frequency management are not measures that are per se inconsistent with Article 8.4 (Market Access), Article 8.8 (Performance Requirements) and 8.10 (Market Access). Accordingly, each Party retains the right to exercise its spectrum and frequency management policies, which may affect the number of suppliers of public telecommunications services, provided that this is done in a manner that is consistent with this Chapter. The Parties also retain the right to allocate frequency bands in a manner that takes into account existing and future needs.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that all service suppliers of the other Party have access to, and use of, any public telecommunications network and service of a major supplier (36), including private leased circuits, offered within or across the borders of that Party on reasonable, non-discriminatory and transparent terms and conditions, including as set out in paragraphs 2 and 3.

2.   Each Party shall ensure that suppliers of public telecommunications services requesting to have access to the network of a major supplier are permitted to:

3.   Each Party shall ensure that all service suppliers of the other Party may use public telecommunications networks and services for the movement of information in its territory or across its borders, including for intra-corporate communications of such service suppliers and for access to information contained in databases or otherwise stored in machine-readable form in the territory of either Party. Any new or amended measures of a Party significantly affecting such use shall be notified to the other Party and shall be subject to consultations.

4.   Each Party shall ensure that suppliers that acquire information from another supplier in the process of negotiating access use that information solely for the purpose for which it was supplied and at all times respect the confidentiality of information transmitted or stored.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that any suppliers of public telecommunications services shall have the right, and when requested by another supplier, the obligation, to negotiate interconnection with each other for the purposes of providing public telecommunications networks and services.

2.   Each Party shall ensure that suppliers that acquire information from another supplier in the process of negotiating interconnection arrangements use that information solely for the purpose for which it was supplied and at all times respect the confidentiality of information transmitted or stored.

3.   For public telecommunications services, each Party shall ensure interconnection with a major (37) supplier at any technically feasible point in the network. Such interconnection shall be provided:

4.   The procedures applicable for interconnection to a major supplier shall be made publicly available.

5.   Major suppliers shall make publicly available either their interconnection agreements or their reference interconnection offers where appropriate.

1.   Each Party shall have the right to define the kind of universal service obligation it wishes to maintain. Each Party shall administer any universal service obligation that it maintains in a transparent, non-discriminatory and competitively neutral manner and shall ensure that its universal service obligation is not more burdensome than necessary for the kind of universal service that it has defined.

2.   The designation of universal service suppliers shall be made through an efficient, transparent and non-discriminatory mechanism.

1.   In the event of a dispute arising between suppliers of telecommunications networks or services in connection with rights and obligations that arise from this Sub-Section, the regulatory authority concerned shall, at the request of either party concerned, issue a binding decision to resolve the dispute in the shortest possible timeframe and in any case within a reasonable period of time, except in exceptional circumstances.

2.   Where a dispute referred to in paragraph 1 concerns the cross-border provision of services, the regulatory authorities concerned shall coordinate their efforts in order to induce a resolution of the dispute.

3.   The decision of the regulatory authority shall be made available to the public, having regard to the requirements of business confidentiality. The parties concerned shall be given a full statement of the reasons on which it is based and shall have the right to appeal that decision in accordance with paragraph 5.

4.   The procedure referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not preclude either party concerned from bringing an action before the courts.

5.   Any user or supplier affected by the decision of a regulatory authority shall have a right to appeal against that decision to an appeal body that is independent of the party involved. This body, which may be a court, shall have the appropriate expertise to carry out its functions effectively. The merits of the case shall be duly taken into account and the appeal mechanism shall be effective. Where the appeal body is not judicial in character, written reasons for its decision shall always be given and its decisions shall also be subject to review by an impartial and independent judicial authority. Decisions taken by appeal bodies shall be effectively enforced. Pending the outcome of the appeal, the decision of the regulatory authority shall stand, unless interim measures are granted in accordance with the domestic laws and regulations.

1.   Each Party shall ensure that major suppliers in its territory:

2.   Each Party shall ensure that major suppliers in its territory provide to suppliers of public telecommunications networks or services the physical co-location or practical and commercially viable alternative solution referred to in paragraph 1 in a timely manner and on terms and conditions, including technical standards and specifications, and at rates that are reasonable, having regard to economic feasibility, non-discriminatory and transparent.

3.   Each Party may determine, in accordance with its domestic laws and regulations, the locations at which it requires major suppliers in its territory to provide the physical co-location or the practical and commercially viable alternative solution referred to in paragraph 1.

1.   This Sub-Section sets out the principles of the regulatory framework for all financial services liberalised pursuant to Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), Section C (Cross-Border Supply of Services) and Section D (Temporary Presence of Natural Persons for Business Purposes).

2.   For the purposes of this Sub-Section:

1.   Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as preventing a Party from adopting or maintaining measures for prudential reasons, such as:

2.   The measures referred to in paragraph 1 shall not be more burdensome than necessary to achieve their aim.

3.   Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as requiring a Party to disclose information relating to the affairs and accounts of individual consumers or any confidential or proprietary information in the possession of public entities.

4.   Each Party shall endeavour to ensure that internationally agreed standards for regulation and supervision in financial services and for the fight against tax evasion and avoidance are implemented and applied in its territory. Such internationally agreed standards are, inter alia, the Core Principle for Effective Banking Supervision of the Basel Committee, the Insurance Core Principles of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, the Objectives and Principles of Securities Regulation of the International Organization of Securities Commissions, the Agreement on Exchange of Information on Tax Matters of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Statement on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes of the G20 and the Forty Recommendations on Money Laundering and the Nine Special recommendations on Terrorist Financing of the Financial Action Task Force.

5.   The Parties take note of the Ten Key Principles for Information Exchange promulgated by the Finance Ministers of the G7 Nations.

6.   Without prejudice to other means of prudential regulation of cross-border trade in financial services, a Party may require the registration or authorisation of cross-border financial service suppliers of the other Party and of financial instruments.

1.   Each Party shall adopt or maintain appropriate safeguards to protect personal data and privacy, including individual records and accounts.

2.   No later than two years from the date of entry into force of this Agreement, each Party shall permit financial service suppliers (38) of the other Party to transfer information in electronic or other form, into and out of its territory, for data processing where such processing is required in the ordinary course of business of such financial service suppliers.

3.   Nothing in this Article restricts the right of a Party to protect personal data and privacy, so long as such right is not used to circumvent this Agreement.

1.   Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as preventing a Party, including its public entities, from exclusively conducting or providing in its territory activities or services forming part of a public retirement plan or statutory system of social security, except when those activities may be carried out, as provided by the Party's domestic laws and regulations, by financial service suppliers in competition with public entities or private institutions.

2.   Nothing in this Agreement, except for Section B (Liberalisation of Investment) which is subject to paragraph 3, shall apply to activities conducted by a central bank or monetary authority or by any other public entity in pursuit of monetary policy or exchange rate policies.

3.   Nothing in Section B (Liberalisation of Investment) shall apply to non-discriminatory measures of general application taken by any public entity in pursuit of monetary policy or exchange rate policy.

4.   Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as preventing a Party, including its public entities, from exclusively conducting or providing in its territory activities or services for the account, or with the guarantee or using the financial resources of the Party, or its public entities, except when those activities may be carried out, as provided by the Party's domestic laws and regulations, by financial service suppliers in competition with public entities or private institutions.

5.   For greater certainty, the Parties understand that paragraphs 1 and 4 shall not be construed as permitting the Parties to apply, without protecting the rights of affected investors or investments, measures referred to in those paragraphs when the activities or services mentioned therein have been liberalised or may be carried out, as provided by the Party's domestic laws and regulations, by financial services suppliers in competition with public entities or private institutions.

1.   This Sub-Section sets out the principles regarding the liberalisation of international maritime transport services pursuant to Section B (Liberalisation of Investment), Section C (Cross-Border Supply of Services) and Section D (Temporary Presence of Natural Persons for Business Purposes).

2.   For the purposes of this Sub-Section:

3.   In view of the existing levels of liberalisation between the Parties in international maritime transport the following principles apply:

4.   In applying the principles referred to in subparagraphs 3(a) and 3(b), the Parties shall:

1.   The Parties shall maintain a dialogue on regulatory issues raised by electronic commerce, which shall, inter alia, address the following issues:

2.   This dialogue may take the form of exchange of information on the Parties' respective laws and regulations on the issues referred to in paragraph 1 as well as on the implementation of such laws and regulations.

1.   The Committee on Investment, Trade in Services, Electronic Commerce and Government Procurement established pursuant to Article 17.2 (Specialised Committees) shall be composed of representatives of the Parties.

2.   The Committee on Investment, Trade in Services, Electronic Commerce and Government Procurement shall be responsible for the implementation of this Chapter. To that end it shall monitor and regularly review the implementation by the Parties and consider any matter in relation to this Chapter that is referred to it by a Party.

3.   The responsibility for Chapter 9 (Government Procurement) is set out in Article 9.23 (Committee on Investment, Services, Electronic Commerce and Government Procurement).

1.   This Chapter applies to any measure regarding covered procurement, whether or not it is conducted exclusively or partially by electronic means.

2.   For the purposes of this Chapter, "covered procurement" means government procurement:

3.   Except where provided otherwise in Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam), this Chapter does not apply to:

4.   Annex 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and Annex 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam) specify in its Sections the following information for each Party:

5.   Transitional measures for Viet Nam for the application of this Chapter are set out in Section I (Transitional Measures) of Annex 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam).

6.   If the domestic legislation of a Party allows a covered procurement to be carried out on behalf of the procuring entity by other entities or persons whose procurement is not covered with respect to the goods and services concerned, the provisions of this Chapter equally apply.

Valuation

7.   In estimating the value of a procurement for the purpose of ascertaining whether it is a covered procurement, a procuring entity shall:

8.   For recurring contracts that consist, due to an individual requirement of the procurement, in awarding more than one contract, or in awarding contracts in separate parts, the calculation of the estimated maximum total value shall be based on:

1.   Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as preventing a Party from taking any action or not disclosing any information that it considers necessary for the protection of its essential security interests relating to the procurement of arms, ammunition or war materials, or to procurement indispensable for national security or for national defence purposes.

2.   Subject to the requirement that such measures are not applied in a manner which would constitute a disguised restriction on international trade, nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as preventing a Party from imposing or enforcing measures:

1.   With respect to any measure regarding covered procurement, each Party, including its procuring entities, shall accord immediately and unconditionally to the goods and services of the other Party and to the suppliers of the other Party offering the goods or services of both Parties, treatment no less favourable than the treatment the Party, including its procuring entities, accords to domestic goods, services and suppliers.

2.   With respect to any measure regarding covered procurement, a Party, including its procuring entities, shall not:

3.   Each Party shall ensure that its procuring entities comply with this Chapter in conducting covered procurements.

4.   A procuring entity shall conduct covered procurement in a transparent and impartial manner that:

5.   Nothing in this Chapter shall prevent a Party, including its procuring entities, from developing new procurement policies, procedures, or contractual means, provided that they are not inconsistent with this Chapter.

6.   The Parties shall endeavour to conduct covered procurement by electronic means. This includes the publication of procurement information, notices and tender documentation, the reception of tenders and, where appropriate, the use of electronic auctions.

7.   When conducting covered procurement by electronic means, a procuring entity shall:

8.   A Party shall not apply to covered procurement of goods or services imported or supplied from the other Party rules of origin that are different compared to the rules of origin it applies at the same time in the normal course of trade to imports or supplies of the same goods or services from the same Party.

9.   With regard to covered procurement and subject to Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam), a Party, including its procuring entities, shall not seek, take account of, impose or enforce any offset.

10.   Paragraphs 1 and 2 do not apply to:

1.   Each Party shall:

2.   Section H (Publication of Procurement Information) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam) lists the paper or electronic medium through which the Party publishes the information described in paragraph 1 and the notices required by Article 9.6 (Notices), paragraph 7 of Article 9.8 (Qualification of Suppliers) and paragraph 3 of Article 9.17 (Post-Award Information).

1.   For each covered procurement, except in the circumstances referred to in Article 9.14 (Limited Tendering), a procuring entity shall publish a notice of intended procurement in the appropriate paper or electronic medium listed in Section H (Publication of Procurement Information) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam). A notice published in an electronic medium shall remain available at least until expiration of the time period indicated in the notice. The notices shall:

The Parties, including their procuring entities covered by Section B (Sub-Central Government Entities) or C (Other Covered Entities), are encouraged to publish their notices by electronic means free of charge through a single point of access.

2.   Except as otherwise provided for in this Chapter, each notice of intended procurement shall include:

3.   For each case of intended procurement, a procuring entity shall publish a summary notice in English that is readily accessible free of charge through an electronic medium listed in Section H (Publication of Procurement Information) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam), at the same time as the publication of the notice of intended procurement. The summary notice shall contain at least the following information:

4.   The Union shall provide technical and financial assistance to Viet Nam in order to develop, establish and maintain an automatic system for the translation and publication of summary notices in English. This cooperation is addressed in Article 9.21 (Cooperation). The implementation of this paragraph is subject to the realisation of the initiative on technical and financial assistance for the development, establishment and maintenance of an automatic system for the translation and publication of summary notices in English in Viet Nam.

5.   Procuring entities are encouraged to publish as early as possible in each fiscal year a notice regarding their future procurement plans (hereinafter referred to as "notice of planned procurement"), which should include the subject-matter of the procurement and the planned date of the publication of the notice of intended procurement.

6.   A procuring entity covered by Section B (Sub-Central Government Entities) or C (Other Covered Entities) may use a notice of planned procurement as a notice of intended procurement provided that the notice of planned procurement includes as much of the information referred to in paragraph 2 as is available to the procuring entity, and a statement that interested suppliers should express their interest in the procurement to the procuring entity.

1.   A procuring entity shall limit any conditions for participation in a covered procurement to those that ensure that a supplier has the legal and financial capacities and the commercial and technical abilities to undertake that procurement.

2.   In establishing the conditions for participation, a procuring entity:

3.   In assessing whether a supplier satisfies the conditions for participation, the procuring entity:

4.   Where there is supporting evidence, a Party, including its procuring entities, may exclude a supplier on grounds such as:

1.   A Party may maintain a supplier registration system under which interested suppliers are required to register and provide certain information.

2.   Each Party shall ensure that:

3.   A Party shall not adopt or apply any registration system or qualification procedure:

4.   Where a procuring entity intends to use selective tendering, the procuring entity shall:

5.   The procuring entity shall:

6.   Where the tender documentation is not made publicly available from the date of publication of the notice referred to in paragraph 4, a procuring entity shall ensure that those documents are made available at the same time to all the qualified suppliers selected in accordance with paragraph 5.

7.   A procuring entity may maintain a multi-use list of suppliers, provided that a notice inviting interested suppliers to apply for inclusion on the list is:

in the appropriate medium listed in Section H (Publication of Procurement Information) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam).

8.   The notice provided for in paragraph 7 shall include:

9.   Notwithstanding paragraph 7, where a multi-use list is valid for three years or less, a procuring entity may publish the notice referred to in paragraph 7 only once, at the beginning of the period of validity of the list, provided that the notice:

10.   A procuring entity shall allow all suppliers included in a multi-use list to submit tenders for a relevant procurement.

11.   A procuring entity shall allow suppliers to apply at any time for inclusion on a multi-use list and shall include on the list all qualified suppliers within a reasonably short time.

12.   Where a supplier that is not included on a multi-use list submits a request for participation in a procurement based on a multi-use list and all required documents within the time period provided for in paragraph 2 of Article 9.12 (Time Periods), a procuring entity shall examine the request. The procuring entity shall not exclude the supplier from consideration in respect of the procurement on the grounds that the procuring entity has insufficient time to examine the request, unless, in exceptional cases, due to the complexity of the procurement, the procuring entity is not able to complete the examination of the request within the time period allowed for the submission of tenders.

13.   A procuring entity covered by Section B (Sub-Central Government Entities) or C (Other Covered Entities) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam) may use a notice inviting suppliers to apply for inclusion on a multi-use list as a notice of intended procurement, provided that:

14.   A procuring entity covered by Section B (Sub-Central Government Entities) or C (Other Covered Entities) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam) may allow a supplier that has applied for inclusion on a multi-use list in accordance with paragraph 11 to tender in a given procurement where there is sufficient time for the procuring entity to examine whether the supplier satisfies the conditions for participation.

15.   A procuring entity shall promptly inform any supplier that submits a request for participation in a procurement or application for inclusion on a multi-use list of the procuring entity's decision with respect to the request or application.

16.   Where a procuring entity rejects a supplier's request for participation in a procurement or application for inclusion on a multi-use list, ceases to recognise a supplier as qualified, or removes a supplier from a multi-use list, the procuring entity shall promptly inform the supplier and, on request of the supplier, promptly provide the supplier with a written explanation of the reasons for its decision.

1.   A procuring entity shall not prepare, adopt or apply any technical specification or prescribe any conformity assessment procedure with the purpose or the effect of creating an unnecessary obstacle to trade between the Parties.

2.   In prescribing the technical specifications for the goods or services being procured, a procuring entity shall, where appropriate:

3.   Where design or descriptive characteristics are used in the technical specifications, a procuring entity shall indicate that it will consider tenders of equivalent goods or services that demonstrably fulfil the requirements of the procurement by including words such as "or equivalent" in the tender documentation.

4.   A procuring entity shall not prescribe technical specifications that require or refer to a particular trademark or trade name, patent, copyright, design, type, specific origin, producer or supplier, unless there is no other sufficiently precise or intelligible way of describing the procurement requirements and provided that, in such cases, the procuring entity includes words such as "or equivalent" in the tender documentation.

5.   A procuring entity shall not seek or accept, in a manner that would have the effect of precluding competition, advice that may be used in the preparation or adoption of any technical specification for a specific procurement from a person that may have a commercial interest in the procurement.

6.   For greater certainty, a Party, including its procuring entities, may, in accordance with this Article, prepare, adopt or apply technical specifications to promote the conservation of natural resources or protect the environment.

1.   Before launching a procurement, procuring entities may conduct market consultations with a view to preparing the procurement, notably for the development of technical specifications, provided that, where market research is performed by a supplier in the context of covered procurement, such procurement is subject to the provisions of this Chapter.

2.   For that purpose, procuring entities may seek or accept advice from independent experts or authorities or from market participants. That advice may be used in the planning and conduct of the procurement procedure, provided that it does not have the effect of distorting competition and does not result in a violation of the principles of non-discrimination and transparency.

1.   A procuring entity shall promptly make available or provide upon request to suppliers tender documentation that includes all information necessary to permit suppliers to prepare and submit responsive tenders. Unless already provided in the notice of intended procurement, such documentation shall include a complete description of:

2.   In establishing any date for the delivery of goods or the supply of services being procured, a procuring entity shall take into account, where appropriate, such factors as the complexity of the procurement, the extent of subcontracting anticipated and the realistic time required for production, de-stocking and transport of goods from the point of supply or for supply of services.

3.   The evaluation criteria set out in the notice of intended procurement or tender documentation may include, inter alia, price and other cost factors, quality, technical merit, environmental characteristics and terms of delivery.

4.   A procuring entity shall promptly reply to any reasonable request for relevant information by any interested or participating supplier, provided that such information does not give that supplier an advantage over other suppliers.

5.   If, prior to the award of a contract, a procuring entity modifies the evaluation criteria or requirements set out in the notice of intended procurement or tender documentation provided to participating suppliers, or amends or reissues a notice or tender documentation, it shall transmit in writing all such modifications or amended or re-issued notice or tender documentation:

1.   A procuring entity shall, consistent with its own reasonable needs, provide sufficient time for suppliers to obtain the tender documentation and to prepare and submit requests for participation and responsive tenders, taking into account such factors as:

Such time periods, including any extension thereof, shall be the same for all interested or participating suppliers.

2.   A procuring entity that uses selective tendering shall establish that the final date for the submission of requests for participation shall not, in principle, be less than 25 days from the date of publication of the notice of intended procurement. In case of a state of urgency, duly substantiated by the procuring entity, that renders this time period impracticable, the time period may be reduced to not less than 10 days.

3.   Except as provided for in paragraphs 4, 5 and 7, a procuring entity shall establish that the final date for the submission of tenders shall not be less than 40 days from the date on which:

4.   A procuring entity may reduce the time period for tendering established in accordance with paragraph 3 to not less than 10 days if:

5.   A procuring entity may reduce the time period for tendering established in accordance with paragraph 3 by five days for each one of the following circumstances:

6.   The application of paragraph 5, in conjunction with paragraph 4, shall in no case result in a reduced time period for tendering established in accordance with paragraph 3 of less than 10 days from the date on which the notice of intended procurement is published.

7.   If a procuring entity covered by Section B (Sub-Central Government Entities) or C (Other Covered Entities) of Annexes 9-A (Coverage of Government Procurement for the Union) and 9-B (Coverage of Government Procurement for Viet Nam) has selected all or a limited number of qualified suppliers, the time period for tendering may be fixed by mutual agreement between the procuring entity and the selected suppliers. In the absence of agreement, the period shall not be less than 10 days.

1.   With regard to covered procurement, a Party may provide for its procuring entities to conduct negotiations:

2.   A procuring entity shall:

1.   Provided a procuring entity does not use limited tendering for the purpose of avoiding competition among suppliers or in a manner that discriminates against suppliers of the other Party or protects domestic suppliers, a procuring entity may use limited tendering and may choose not to apply Articles 9.6 (Notices), 9.7 (Conditions for Participation), 9.8 (Qualification of Suppliers), 9.10 (Market Consultations), 9.11 (Tender Documentation), 9.12 (Time Periods), 9.13 (Negotiations) and 9.15 (Electronic Auctions) only under any of the following circumstances: