What International Laws in International Trade Vietnam is a Signing Party to?

International trade is important for each country to grow economically and influence through exchanging products and services, utilizing resources that create competitive advantage over others.  In order to enable international trade, Vietnam has been a signing party to a number of international laws, international conventions, free trade agreements.

International Trade Lawyers in Vietnam

Up to present, Vietnam is a signing party to the:

·         UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods 1980 (CISG);

·         The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP);

·         The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 1967;

Vietnam is also the signing party to a number of the Free Trade Agreements:

·         ASEAN Free Trade Area 1992;

·         ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA);

·         ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS);

·         ASEAN Protocol on Enhanced Dispute Settlement Mechanism;

·         ASEAN-China Free Trade Area 2002;

·         ASEAN-India Free Trade Area 2003;

·         ASEAN-Japan Free Trade Area 2003;

·         ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Area 2005;

·         Vietnam – Japan economic Partnership Agreement 2008;

·         ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement 2009;

·         Vietnam – Chile Free Trade Area 2011;

·         Vietnam – Korea Free Trade Area 2015;

·         Eurasian Economic Union 2015

·         ASEAN – Hong Kong free Trade Area 2017 (signed on 12/11/2017, Scheduled to be effective from 1 January 2019)

·         Agreements in WTO accession:

Annex 1A    Multilateral agreements on trade in goods

·         General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994

·         Agreement on agriculture

·         Agreement on the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures

·         Agreement on textiles and clothing

·         Agreement on technical barriers to trade

·         Agreement on trade-related investment measures

·         Agreement on implementation of Article VI of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994

·         Agreement on implementation of Article VII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994

·         Agreement on pre-shipment inspection

·         Agreement on rules of origin

·         Agreement on import licensing procedures

·         Agreement on subsidies and countervailing measures

·         Agreement on safeguards

·         Trade Facilitation Agreement

Annex 1B   General Agreement on Trade in Services

Annex 1C   Agreement on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights

Until Sep 2018, Vietnam has been accelerating preparations for meeting commitments in EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).  It has been expected the EVFTA to be passed in the year of 2019, promoting Vietnam’s sustainable development through removing 99% of tariffs on goods traded between the two economies, expanding Vietnam’s textile, apparel export to the EU market.  In return, the EVFTA will open Vietnamese market for EU companies and strengthen the protection of its investment into Vietnam.

ANT Lawyers law firm is a member of legal secretary of EuroCham in Hanoi, Vietnam, and has been a contribution to the legal review that support the investment into Vietnam.  ANT Lawyers will be sending Mr Tuan Nguyen, the Managing Partner to take part in the EuroCham delegation visit in Brussels Mission in October 2018, with the main goal is to promote the fast conclusion of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement process, raise awareness as to the potential of Vietnam as a strategic partner for Europe, and deliver the views of the European business community in the country.