New regulations on goods labels

Question: What are new regulations on goods labels?

Answer: Decree 43 prescribes the content and method for labeling and state management of goods circulated in Viet Nam and imports; excluding such goods as real estate, goods temporarily imported for re-export, luggage of people on exit or entry, movable property, auctioned confiscations, fresh and raw foods; processed foods, fuel, raw materials, construction materials, scraps unpacked and sold directly to consumers, used goods and so forth.

General regulations on good labeling

Decree 43 supplemented the strict and detailed regulations on position, color, language, size of the goods label:

- In terms of position, any label must be shown on the goods and commercial packages of the goods in easily visible positions with its full contents as regulated and without having to remove a parts of the goods;

- With regard to the mandatory contents, the background color, the color of letters, figures, pictures, images, signs and symbols written on the goods label must be clear and in-contrast with the background color of the good label;

- In terms of language, the mandatory content shown on the goods label must be written in Vietnamese, and in case of any writing in another language, it must not be larger than the front size of the Vietnamese contents.

- In terms of size, the size of the letters and numbers must ensure visibility with the naked eye and if there is a measure of quantity, it must comply with the law on measurement. If the goods are foodstuffs, food additives or pre-packaged food processing aids, the letter height of the compulsory contents on the label must not be smaller than 1.2 mm.

Use of labels on non-exported goods

Decree 43 requires the use of additional labels on the non-exported or returned goods, which are put to the market and, at the same time, must have “Made in Viet Nam” in bold print.

The following goods without additional labels include: components imported to replace damaged components with regard to the goods warranty service by organizations or individuals responsible for such goods that are not allowed to be sold in the market; the raw materials, food additives, food processing aids and components imported for production, which are not allowed to be sold in the market./.