What is the Steel Billet Import Procedure? HS Codes for Imported Steel Billets

Importing steel has become an important industry due to the increasing demand for this metal. However, before deciding to import steel billets, there is some important information that needs to be understood, including the steel billet import procedure and policies related to steel billet importation. To have a more detailed understanding of this issue, let’s follow the detailed content in the article below.

What are Steel Billets?

Steel Billet Production Process

The steel billet production process may vary depending on the desired product specifications. Steel billets can be produced by casting or hot rolling.

Casting is the process where molten steel is poured into molds to solidify into the desired shape. Molds can be made of metal or sand, and the size and shape of the mold determine the size and shape of the billet. The solidified billet is then removed from the mold and transported for further processing.

Hot rolling is the process where steel billets are heated to high temperatures and passed through a series of rollers to reduce thickness and shape them into rectangular or square billets. The hot rolling process can be carried out in continuous or semi-continuous processes, depending on the required size and shape of the billet.

After steel billets are produced, they need to be properly handled and stored to maintain quality. The steel billet handling process includes transportation, lifting, and stacking. Steel billets are usually transported using cranes, forklifts, or conveyor systems. Lifting billets requires specialized lifting equipment designed to handle the weight and shape of the billet safely. Stacking billets requires careful planning to avoid damage and deformation of the billet.

Steel Billet Import Policies

Based on the current regulations of Vietnam, steel is known as a commodity not included in the list of prohibited export items. Therefore, individuals, businesses, or organizations importing this product can do so normally. However, before use, certain legal documents need to be provided.

Specifically, steel is a product under the management of various ministries such as the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Therefore, the import procedures for steel billets in particular, and steel in general, must meet the requirements of both of these ministries. The regulations on steel importation that units need to comply with are:

• Circular No. 07/2017/TT-BKHCN and Circular No. 27/2012/TT-BKHCN. These two circulars regulate the state inspection procedures to ensure the quality of imported steel.
• Circular No. 14/2017/TT-BCT, which repealed Circular No. 12/2015/TT-BCT on implementing the automatic import licensing regime for some steel items in the Vietnamese market.
• Inter-ministerial Circular No. 58/2015/TTLT-BCT-BKHCN dated December 31, 2015. This circular, also known as Circular No. 58 of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Science and Technology, specifies the regulations on steel importation.

HS Codes for Various Types of Steel Items

When importing steel into the Vietnamese market, each type will have different HS codes. HS codes categorize goods into various types based on characteristics, size, shape, composition, etc. Here are the HS codes for stainless steel and HS codes for all types of steel:

No	Item name	HS Code
1	Pig iron; pig iron in ingots, blocks, or other primary forms	7201
2	Ferro-alloys	7202
3	Products containing iron produced directly from ore, sponge iron, lumps, blocks, or similar shapes; iron with a purity of 99.94% in lumps, blocks, or similar shapes	7203
4	Scrap and scrap iron; scrap iron ingots remelted from iron or steel scrap	7204
5	Granules and powder of pig iron, pig iron, steel, and iron	7205
6	Non-alloy steel and iron in ingots and other primary forms (except iron in group 72.03)	7206
7	Non-alloy steel, flat-rolled products	7207
8	Non-alloy flat-rolled steel, width 600mm and above, hot-rolled, not clad, plated, or coated	7208
9	Non-alloy flat-rolled steel, width 600mm and above, cold-rolled, not clad, plated, or coated	7209
10	Non-alloy flat-rolled steel, width 600mm and above, clad, plated, coated	7210
11	Non-alloy flat-rolled steel, width below 600mm, not clad, plated, coated	7211
12	Non-alloy flat-rolled steel, width below 600mm, clad, plated, coated	7212
13	Non-alloy steel and iron, bars, rods, unevenly wound coils, hot-rolled	7213
14	Non-alloy steel, bars, rods, not excessively worked, hot-rolled, drawn, extruded, hot-rolled, pressed after rolling	7214
15	Non-alloy steel and iron, shaped bars, rods	7215
16	Non-alloy steel and iron, angle, section, mold, shape	7216
17	Non-alloy steel wire	7217
18	Stainless steel in ingots or other primary forms; semi-finished products	7218
19	Stainless steel flat-rolled products, width 600mm and above	7219
20	Stainless steel flat-rolled products, width below 600mm	7220
21	Stainless steel flat-rolled products, width below 600mm	7221
22	Stainless steel bars, rods, angles, molds, and other shapes	7222
23	Stainless steel wire	7223
24	Other alloy steel in ingots, other primary forms, and semi-finished products	7224
25	Alloy steel flat-rolled products, width 600mm and above	7225
26	Alloy steel flat-rolled products, width below 600mm	7226
27	Alloy steel bars, rods, hot-rolled, unevenly wound coils	7227
28	Alloy steel bars, rods, angles, sections, shapes; hollow sections of alloy or non-alloy steel	7228
29	Other alloy steel wire	7229

Within each code will be smaller codes, which will be further divided into various types based on characteristics, size, shape, composition, etc.

Guidelines for Steel Billet and Steel Import Procedures

Given that the steel billet import procedure is quite complex, it will depend on each country and specific regulations. To help you understand more easily, the following content will present some basic steps that are commonly applied:

Step 1: Apply for quality inspection registration at the Standards, Metrology and Quality Department of provinces and cities.

To determine whether the imported steel type needs quality inspection, you need to refer to Annex I, Annex II, and Annex III of Circular No. 58/2015/TTLT-BCT-BKHCN.

Specifically, the annexes use tables to describe the specific characteristics of steel. Units need to compare the characteristics of their imported steel with the table to determine whether the imported steel needs quality inspection. Specifically:

• Annex I will list steel products that do not fall within the scope of regulation.
• Annex II will list steel products that need to be quality inspected based on various standards such as: Basic standards, TCVN, regional, national, as well as international standards.
• Annex III will list products that need to be inspected based on TCVN and standards of the exporting country.

For individuals, organizations, and businesses, they need to submit a state quality inspection dossier for imported steel to the customs authority they have completed the procedure with. The dossier needs to include the following documents:

• State registration certificate for the quality of imported steel. Specifically, it is available in Annex V of Circular No. 58/2015/TTLT-BCT-BKHCN.
• A copy of the conformity certificate or conformity assessment certificate to the standard. This certificate is issued by the certification or inspection organization designated.
• A copy of the standard compliance certificate or standard compliance assessment certificate issued by the designated certification or inspection organization. These documents must be stamped by individuals, organizations, and businesses.
• A copy of the steel import contract, list of goods, invoice, bill of lading, certificate of origin. These documents need to be stamped by individuals, organizations, and businesses.
• For HS steel codes in section 2 of the above-mentioned Annex III, it is necessary to supplement a steel import declaration. This declaration must be confirmed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, as well as a confirmed import demand certificate from the Department of Industry and Trade.

Step 2: Customs procedures

A complete set of documents needs to be prepared and submitted to the Customs authority, including:

• Original “Registration for state quality inspection of imported goods” from the Local Standards, Metrology and Quality Department, which has been confirmed.
• A copy of the Declaration of conformity to standard products imported steel.
• Other related documents such as: Import customs declaration, Contract, Commercial steel invoice, List of goods, Bill of lading, Certificate of origin of goods.

Step 3: Customs clearance

Based on the information in the customs declaration, import units need to declare customs based on current regulations. The declaration process needs to be done through the VNACCS ECUS5 electronic customs software system.

Once the information is provided in the software, the unit will print the declaration form and accompanying documents to submit to the customs office to register the declaration form. Depending on the routing result, whether it is green, pink, or yellow, different follow-up tasks will be carried out. Specifically:

• With a green routing result, the unit only needs to pay taxes to receive the goods.
• For the yellow routing, the unit needs to provide additional paper documents for the customs department to check.
• With the red routing result, the customs will conduct checks on both documents and actual goods. Only when the requirements are met can the goods be taken.

Step 4: Bring the sample for conformity testing

For importing units, samples of imported steel goods need to be brought for conformity testing at one of the following three agencies:

• Authorized agency such as the Telecommunications Authority – Ministry of Information and Communications.
• Directly performing administrative procedures such as Certification and Inspection Centers under the authority of the Telecommunications Authority – Ministry of Information and Communications.
• Coordinating agency with authority such as the Department of Information and Communications or the Standards, Metrology, and Quality Department.

Preparing a certification dossier for steel conformity testing will include the following types of documents:

• Copy of the business registration certificate in compliance with legal regulations.
• Announcement of conformity design according to prescribed form.
• Copy of steel conformity certificate issued by certification organizations.
• Description of steel characteristics such as features, technical factors, characteristics, etc.

Step 5: Provide Conformity Results to the Standards, Metrology, and Quality Department

Once you have prepared a complete dossier, submit it to the Standards, Metrology, and Quality Department.

Import Tax for Steel Billets

In addition to import tax and value-added tax required based on regulations, steel products are also subject to additional taxes as follows:

• Safeguard tax as prescribed in Official Letters No. 10704/BCT-QLCT and 1099/BCT-QLCT,
• Decision No. 2968/QD-BCT for imported long steel and steel billets.
• Anti-dumping duty for imported steel billets as specified by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
• Duty specified in Decision No. 1656/QD-BCT dated April 29, 2016, applied to stainless steel in cold-rolled permeable or rolled form imported from China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia.
• Anti-dumping duty based on regulations of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The duty is specified in Decision No. 1105/QD-BCT dated March 30, 2017, for imported galvanized steel products.
• Temporary anti-dumping duty for some steel products with the letter H originating from China. This tax rate is stipulated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and has been specified in Decision No. 957/QD-BCT dated March 21, 2017.

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Thus, the above article has provided you with useful information about importing steel billets. Hopefully, you will find it easy to follow the procedures and avoid unnecessary mistakes. If you need assistance in the steel industry, feel free to contact Stavian Industrial Metal Joint Stock Company for detailed consultation through: