Vietnam – Export requirements for fish and seafood

Eligible/ineligible product

Eligible

Live aquatic animals which originate from Canadian waters and which have been authorized for import by Vietnamese authorities:
- Pacific oyster (Crassostrea gigas)
- Dungeness crab (Cancer magister)
- Lobster (Homarus americanus)
- Geoduck clam (Panopea generosa)
All non-live wild and cultured crustacean species
All non-live wild and cultured mollusc species
Non-live wild and cultured finfish of non-susceptible species
Non-live wild and cultured finfish of susceptible species harvested in waters that are declared free from World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) listed diseases of finfish
Non-live wild and cultured eviscerated finfish fillets and steaks from finfish harvested in waters that are declared as infected with WOAH listed diseases to which the species is considered susceptible. Examples include:
- farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
- wild and farmed Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.)
- wild herring (Clupea spp.)
Non-live fish of any species when intended for re-processing in Vietnam and re-export to a third country
Salted and frozen pacific herring roe (Clupea pallasii) (Harmonized System (HS) code 030520)

Note: it is the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)'s current understanding that encapsulated oils derived from aquatic animal species are eligible for export but are classified as a food supplement / nutraceutical product. There is a separate import requirement and the fish and seafood guidance on this page is not applicable to these products. In addition, the importer in Vietnam must register the product brand of food supplements/ nutraceuticals with the Vietnam Food Administration under more stringent dossier requirements. Exporters must work with their importer in Vietnam to verify the export requirements for these products.

Ineligible

Live and non-live aquatic animals/products which do not meet the above-mentioned criteria

Note: there may be impacts on other species of susceptible aquatic animals. For more information on Canada's disease status see the Status of regulated aquatic animal reportable diseases and Status of regulated aquatic animal immediately notifiable diseases

Pre-export approvals by the competent authority of the importing country

Specialised import permit

For consignments containing live Lobster (Homarus americanus), live Dungeness Crab (Cancer magister), or live Geoduck Clam (Panopea generosa), it is the importer's and exporter's responsibility to obtain a valid import licence or permit issued by the Vietnamese Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) prior to import.

For consignments containing live Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas), no specialised import licence or permit is required.

All other live aquatic animal species from Canada are required to undergo a risk assessment approval process through the Vietnamese Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance before an import permit can be issued.

The specialized import permit is issued to the Vietnamese importer and includes information about the foreign exporter, and is typically valid for 1 year.

Import quarantine permit

In addition to a specialised import permit, for consignments of all live species, it is the importer's and exporter's responsibility to obtain a valid import quarantine licence or permit issued by the Vietnamese Department of Animal Health and Production (DAHP) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) prior to export.

The import quarantine permit is issued to the Vietnamese importer and includes information about the foreign exporter, and is typically valid for 3 months.

Establishments

Establishments wishing to export non-live (non-viable) fish and seafood products to Vietnam must be approved and appear on the list of countries eligible to export fishery products to Vietnam (in Vietnamese only) administered by Vietnam's Department of Animal Health and Production (DAHP) prior to export.

The following definitions apply for the purpose of establishment listing with Vietnam:

processed food means food made by the process of preparing preliminarily processed food or fresh and raw food by an industrial or manual method to create food materials or food products
pre-packaged food means a food completely packaged and labelled, ready for sale for further processing or instant consumption

Processing establishments do not need to appear on Vietnam's approved list if the products to be exported are:

processed, such as cooked, blanched, steamed, smoked, dried, marinated, and/or salted and pre-packaged with proper labelling, or
for a declared purpose of further processing and re-export (not for local consumption in Vietnam)

Note: since food products imported to Vietnam (including retail-ready for home consumption and those intended for further processing or food service) are required to be pre-prepacked and labelled according to Vietnam's import requirements, establishments exporting processed products are not required to be listed. This information is unofficial and it is the exporter's responsibility to confirm with their importer and/or the Canadian embassy in Vietnam that their product does not need to appear on the list.

Only the final processing establishment is required to be approved and listed for export to Vietnam.

Establishment exporting authorized live aquatic animals for human consumption and cold storage facilities only storing products for export are not required to be listed.

Procedure to update the Vietnam establishment list

Establishments wishing to be added to Vietnam's list must be in compliance with Canadian regulations and be licensed under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) for a relevant activity and appear on the list of Canadian fish and seafood establishments approved for export. Contact your local CFIA office if your establishment is not on this list.

To request inclusion to Vietnam's list, submit the following information to your local CFIA office:

establishment identification (ID) number
Safe Food for Canadians (SFC) licence number
company name as it should appear on the export list. The options are
- legal name of business as it appears on the SFC licence, or
- legal name of business (operating name), or
- legal name of business (vessel name)
physical site address of the establishment. For vessel's, this should be the primary docking location

Establishments will receive additional application requirements from the local CFIA office after the initial request is received.

It is recommended to verify the eligibility of the product(s) you intend to export to Vietnam with your local CFIA office prior to submitting an application.

Note: approval times by DAHP are often lengthy and unpredictable. The CFIA has no control over application processing times and is unable to expedite the process for any application.

Products imported into Vietnam for further processing and subsequent export to a third market

For products with a declared purpose of further processing and re-export to a third market, establishment approval and listing with DAHP is not required.

However, if the third market is the European Union (EU) or a country which has adopted the certification and import requirements in place for the EU, establishments must appear on the appropriate establishment list administered by Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG-SANTE). See European Union for more information.

Documentation requirements

Certificates

There are different documentation requirements depending on the intended use of the fish and seafood products exported to Vietnam.

For fish and seafood products for human consumption exported to Vietnam and intended for local distribution or consumption in Vietnam
1. for non-live, wild or cultured fish of non-susceptible species, or susceptible species harvested in waters that are declared free from World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) listed diseases of finfish, for human consumption
  - Certificate of Origin and Hygiene (CFIA/ACIA 5003)
  - Sanitary Certificate covering for fish and fishery products (CFIA/ACIA 5633)
  The CFIA/ACIA 5633 certificate is a joint certificate containing both food safety/public health and aquatic animal health attestations. Consult your CFIA inspector for any further instructions at the time of the certificate request submission. Additional information is available on the Aquatic animal export: certification requirements for Vietnam page.
2. For non-live, wild or cultured eviscerated finfish fillets and steaks from finfish harvested in waters that are declared as infected with WOAH listed diseases to which the species is considered susceptible
  - Certificate of Origin and Hygiene (CFIA/ACIA 5003)
  - Aquatic animal health and sanitary certificate covering chilled/ frozen fish fillets and steaks (AQAH-1112)
  The AQAH-1112 certificate is a joint certificate containing both food safety/public health and aquatic animal health attestations. Consult your CFIA inspector for any further instructions at the time of the certificate request submission. Additional information is available on the Aquatic animal export: certification requirements for Vietnam page.
3. for salted and frozen pacific herring roe (Clupea pallasii) (HS code 030520) for human consumption
  - Certificate of Origin and Hygiene (CFIA/ACIA 5003)
4. for live aquatic animals for human consumption
  - Certificate of Origin and Hygiene (CFIA/ACIA 5003)
  - Aquatic Animal Health Certificate (AQAH-1025)
  The exporter shall provide the Inspector with a copy or copies of any and all import licences and/or permits required to import live aquatic animal species, except Pacific Oyster (Crassostrea gigas), into Vietnam prior to CFIA's issuance of the certificate, and provide supporting documentation such as an affidavit indicating that the exporter believes the provided import license and/or permit is valid.
  
  The AQAH-1025 certificate is a joint certificate containing both food safety/public health and aquatic animal health attestations. Consult your CFIA inspector for any further instructions at the time of the certificate request submission. Additional information is available on the Aquatic animal export: certification requirements for Vietnam page.
For fish and seafood products exported to Vietnam for further processing and subsequent export to a third country
1. subsequent export to non-EU countries
  - Certificate of Origin and Hygiene (CFIA/ACIA 5003)
  An additional statement/information must be included on the certificate: "This consignment is intended for further processing and re-export to a third country."
2. subsequent export to countries which follow EU requirements
  - Additional Attestations for Fishery Products for Temporary Admission into Vietnam and Intended for the Processing Industry for Export to European Union Countries (CFIA/ACIA FA1023).

Language selection