A batch of chemicals seized at the border gate has revealed a significant gap in the understanding and application of chemical law in Vietnam: when importing chemical products made up of many single substances, do enterprises have to apply for separate licenses for each component? The answer not only affects one business, but also the entire chemical supply chain in Vietnam.
The customs authority required enterprises to prove the legal conditions for each single substance contained in the imported chemical mixture
Stories from practice
According to the reflection of businesses, they have been granted full papers for chemical business activities and have been importing products for many years. However, in a recent import, the customs authority required enterprises to prove the legal conditions for each single substance contained in the imported chemical mixture[1].
According to this requirement, if a commercial product is composed of five different chemical components, the enterprise may have to prepare documents corresponding to all five components. Even in the case of changing the manufacturer or adjusting the proportion of ingredients in the product, the enterprise may have to re-carry out the relevant procedures.
For many chemical manufacturing and trading businesses, the majority of chemicals used in industries such as textile dyeing, coatings, water treatment, rubber, electronics or cosmetic chemicals exist as commercial mixtures rather than pure monochemicals. If each component in the mix must be considered as a separate licensing object, the cost of compliance can increase significantly.
The question is whether the above interpretation is really in line with the current chemical law?
How does the Law on Chemicals 2025 recognize mixtures of substances?
To answer this question, it is necessary to start from the approach of the 2025 Chemical Law.
By law, chemicals include substances and mixtures of substances. In which, a substance is a homogeneous chemical entity, while a mixture of substances is a combination of two or more substances between which no chemical reaction occurs under normal conditions.
The separation of these two concepts is not merely academic but reflects the management thinking of lawmakers. A mixture of substances is not always seen as the mechanical sum of its constituent monosubstances, but in many cases as an independent product with its own properties, degree of danger and intended use.
This spirit continues to be reflected in Decree No. 24/2026/ND-CP. Notably, the decree has developed separate lists for single substances and mixtures of substances. In the appendices related to chemicals for conditional production and trading as well as chemicals requiring special control, mixtures of substances are classified into separate groups of management objects instead of implicitly applying the management mechanism of each constituent single substance.
This design shows that the law is moving towards management based on the product itself being put into circulation or used on the market, rather than always having to decompose the product into separate chemical components.
Does every single substance in a mixture have to be licensed separately?
From a legal perspective, caution should be exercised with both of these approaches.
On the one hand, it cannot be taken for granted that just as it is a mixture of substances, there is no need to pay attention to the constituent ingredients at all. In practice, many chemical management mechanisms are still based on determining whether certain hazardous ingredients, precursors or chemicals subject to special control are present in products, as well as the concentrations of those ingredients.
On the other hand, it is also not possible to automatically infer that every single substance present in the mixture is compelled to be licensed individually.
The general principle of the law on conditional business management in Vietnam is that no additional conditions are required beyond what is prescribed by law. Article 7 of the Law on Investment 2025 clearly stipulates that only business conditions specified in laws, ordinances or decrees of the Government may be applied. All management requirements arising outside the list of business conditions must have a clear legal basis.
Therefore, when considering a mixed chemical, the question that needs to be asked is not how many single substances the product contains, but rather: (i) Is the product on the list of chemicals subject to conditional production and trading?; (ii) Whether the product is on the list of chemicals requiring special control or not; (iii) In case there are components subject to special management, does the law require the application of management conditions to the entire product or only to certain activities?
Only when answering these questions can the legal obligations of the enterprise be accurately determined.
Source: Investment Newspaper
Why do regulators tend to check chemical composition?
From the perspective of state management, the fact that customs authorities or specialized agencies pay attention to each component in the mixture is not without basis.
Some chemicals, even if they only appear in certain proportions, can still create risks to occupational safety, environment, defense, security or be misused. Therefore, regulatory agencies often tend to check the composition, concentration and purpose of use to accurately determine the applied management mechanism.
However, ingredient testing for the purpose of classification and risk identification is different from requiring enterprises to obtain independent licenses for all substances appearing in mixtures.
The gap between these two approaches is technically small, but it can make a huge difference in the cost of compliance and the ability to operate a business.
Another problem that frequently arises in chemical imports is the change of manufacturer or adjustment of product formulations.
In fact, many international enterprises regularly improve products or adjust ingredient ratios to improve efficiency, meet environmental standards or adapt to input materials. These changes do not always change the nature of the product. Therefore, changing the composition does not mean that you always have to apply for a license from the beginning. It is important to assess the impact of such a change on the applicable regulatory mechanism.
What should businesses do?
First of all, enterprises need to review the products expected to be imported and compare them with the lists of chemicals governed by the Law on Chemicals and guiding documents. Determining exactly which management group the product belongs to before signing an import contract instead of waiting for the customs clearance stage.
In addition, technical documents need to be fully prepared, including chemical safety sheets (SDS/MSDS), manufacturer's technical documents, information on chemical composition, CAS number, hazard classification and documents proving the purpose of use.
Enterprises should also build internal accountability records on product classification bases. In case of disputes or different interpretations between regulatory agencies, this set of documents will help businesses prove the legal and technical basis for their approach.
For complicated cases or no clear precedent, enterprises should proactively request specialized management agencies to provide written guidance before importing. The competent authority's written response is often an important basis to help minimize risks in the process of customs clearance and inspection later.
Finally, if the authorities request the performance of obligations that the enterprise considers that there is no clear legal basis, the enterprise should request the agency to specifically determine the applicable legal basis in writing. This is a necessary measure to ensure transparency in law enforcement as well as protect the legitimate rights and interests of businesses.
Conclusion
The controversy over mixed chemicals is actually more than just the story of a shipment being held at the border. This is a test for the enforcement capacity of the chemical management system under the new regulations. If the law is interpreted differently between enforcement agencies, the biggest cost does not lie in a shipment that is delayed in customs clearance, but in the legal uncertainty that the business suffers. In the context that Vietnam is moving towards a transparent and highly predictable investment environment, unifying the understanding and application of the law is as important as the promulgation of new regulations.
Lawyer Nguyen Van Phuc
readHM&P Law Firm
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