Procedures for importing functional foods (latest)

Functional foods are pharmaceutical products that are strictly managed by state agencies, namely the Ministry of Health. Therefore, when importing functional foods, enterprises should pay attention to comply with the provisions of current laws. In this article, Sumpharma would like to provide readers with an overview of the procedures for importing functional foods into Vietnam.

I - What are functional foods?

According to Article 3 of Decree 15/2018/ND-CP, functional foods are divided into 4 categories, including:

- Health supplements (Health Supplement, Dietary Supplement) are products used to supplement the daily diet in order to maintain, enhance and improve the functions of the human body, reduce risks of diseases. Health foods contain one or more substances or a mixture of the following substances:

a) Vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, enzymes, probiotics and other biologically active substances;

b) Substances of natural origin, including animals, minerals and plants in the form of extracts, isolates, concentrates and transformations;

c) Synthetic sources of the ingredients mentioned at points a and b above.

Health foods are presented in processed form such as capsules, complete tablets, tablets, granular preparations, powders, liquids and other dosage forms and are dosed (for use) into units. small dose.

- Medical nutrition food, also known as nutritional food for special medical purposes (Food for Special Medical Purposes, Medical Food) is a type of food that can be eaten by mouth or by inhalation. to adjust the patient's diet and to be used only under the supervision of medical personnel.

• Food for Special Dietary Uses (Food for Special Dietary Uses) for dieters, the elderly and other special subjects as prescribed by the International Committee for Food Standards (CODEX) are those products that are specially formulated or formulated to meet the specific dietary requirements of the user's body condition or specific medical conditions and disorders. The composition of this food must be markedly different from that of ordinary foods of the same nature, if any.

II - Steps to import functional foods

Here are the steps to import functional foods to Vietnam:

1.Registration for publication of functional foods:

According to regulations, companies and establishments processing functional foods must announce the quality of their products before selling them to the market in order to bring quality and safe products to consumers' health. The process of registration for publication of dietary supplements is done online on the official website of the Food Safety Department: https://nghidinh15.vfa.gov.vn/

Food production and trading organizations and individuals shall self-declare processed and prepackaged foods, food additives, food processing aids, food containers, packaging materials, etc. packages in direct contact with food (hereinafter collectively referred to as products) except for products specified in Clause 2 of this Article and Article 6 of this Decree. Products and raw materials for production or import that are only used for the production or processing of exported goods or for the internal production of organizations and individuals that are not consumed in the domestic market are exempted from carrying out the procedures. self-publish the product.

Food for health protection, food for medical nutrition, food for special diet; Nutritional products for children up to 36 months old; Mixed food additives with new uses, food additives that are not on the list of additives permitted to be used in food or are not for the right users as prescribed by the Ministry of Health, will carry out the procedures for registration of the Food and Drug Administration. product listing.

Announcement of imported products requires enterprises to provide the following documents according to the provisions of the Food Safety Department:

Sample labels circulated on the market.
Secondary labels with full contents as prescribed by Decree No. 111/2021/ND-CP and Chapter VII of Decree 15/2018/ND-CP on labeling regulations for imported goods.
Product standards provided by the manufacturer.
Product test sheet at ISO 17025 testing laboratory.
Certificate of free sale/export certificate/medical certificate of the product in the host country, with consular legalization.
Certificate of food safety qualified establishment meeting Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) or equivalent certification.
Scientific evidence that proves the use of the product or the ingredients that make up the claimed effect.
and related documents.

2. Clearance procedures:

Customs procedures are mandatory procedures that need to be carried out in more than 200 countries and territories when importing/importing goods and means of transport into a country and exporting/exiting goods. goods and vehicles out of the country.

Customs procedures are carried out so that the State has a basis for tax calculation and makes it easier to manage import/export goods. This is a name for products, goods or means of transport and does not apply to people.

Procedures for customs clearance of goods include:

Checking the set of goods documents: During the process of doing customs procedures, enterprises need to prepare a set of documents, basically including the following papers:

- Commercial contract (Sales Contract).

- Bill of Lading (Bill of Landing).

- Packing list (Packing List).

- Certificate of origin of the shipment (C/O).

Commercial Invoice (Commercial Invoice).

Declare and transmit customs declarations: After the carrier sends a notice of arrival, businesses need to make a customs declaration and fill in all information on the declaration. When the declaration is complete and transmitted, the system will automatically issue a number if the information is correct and complete.

Taking delivery orders: Enterprises need to prepare the following documents and bring them to the carrier to get delivery orders:

- Identity card/Citizen ID copy.

- Copy of bill of lading.

- Original stamped bill of lading.

Prepare a set of customs documents: After the declaration is transmitted, the system will divide the goods into a green channel, a yellow channel or a red channel.

- Green stream: Enterprises print declarations and pay taxes.

- Golden stream: The Customs unit checks the paper records of the shipment.

Red stream: Goods are checked.

Pay taxes and complete customs procedures: After the declaration has been transmitted and approved, businesses need to pay 2 main taxes, which are import tax and VAT.

Transfer goods to storage warehouse.

Businesses that have demand for processing and importing services of dietary supplements, please contact Sumpharma by hotline: 024 3212 1820. Sumpharma sincerely thanks!