Vietnamese goods are gaining greater access to the EU market as the tariff commitments under the EVFTA reach an important milestone, creating new opportunities for exporters while placing greater demands on product quality, origin and sustainability.In the seventh year of implementing the agreement, the EU has completed its tariff liberalisation schedule, bringing import duties on approximately 99% of tariff lines for Vietnamese goods to zero. The development is expected to strengthen the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses in the European market requires them to improve their ability to meet increasingly strict market standards.Data for the first 6 months of 2026 showed that bilateral trade reached $41.4 bln, with Vietnam's exports standing at $31.8 bln and imports at $9.7 bln. Vietnam recorded a trade surplus of approximately $22 billion, exceeding the $21.7 bln surplus for the whole of 2019, before the EVFTA took effect.According to data from the Customs Department, total trade between Vietnam and the EU exceeded US$900 bln between Jan 1995 and Jun 2026. Of this figure, $383.8 bln, or 42.6%, was generated during the six years since the EVFTA came into force, highlighting the growing importance of the agreement to bilateral trade.The proportion of Vietnamese exports benefiting from preferential C/Os under the EVFTA increased from 14.8% in 2020 to approximately 35.1% in 2025. The value of goods issued with C/Os rose to around $18.13 billion.The figures reflect progress in businesses' use of the agreement's tariff preferences, while also showing that considerable room remains for improvement.Jean-Jacques Bouflet, EuroCham's vice chairman and a former member of the EU's EVFTA negotiating team, said the agreement had helped create a complementary economic ecosystem in which both sides could build on their respective strengths. European products, including high-tech goods, advanced machinery, equipment, pharmaceuticals, contribute to improving Vietnam's industrial productivity. Meanwhile, Vietnamese electronics, mechanical engineering, textiles, footwear, wooden products and agricultural goods are playing an increasingly important role in European supply chains and consumer markets, he said.According to EuroCham's Business Confidence Index for the second quarter of 2026, 55% of surveyed European businesses considered Vietnam a core operational hub or a key growth market, while 22% regarded the country as an important part of their regional networks.These figures indicate that Vietnam is becoming an increasingly important base for European companies' long-term expansion strategies in Asia.Tariff preferences come with higher standardsThe EVFTA is entering an important implementation phase, especially regarding the tariff incentives. The EU has officially completed its trade liberalisation roadmap, opening the duty-free door for 99% of Vietnam's export goods.Vietnam will continue reducing tariffs on EU goods under its own schedule, with the process expected to be completed by 2030.Bouflet noted that the EVFTA covered much more than tariffs, extending to customs procedures, technical standards, intellectual property, sustainable development. Environmental and supply-chain regulations, including the EU's CBAM, EUDR requirements linked to the European Green Deal, are placing greater demands on exporters. Simplifying customs procedures, speeding up tax refunds, digitising documents, clarifying rules of origin would help businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, make better use of EVFTA preferences. In March, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Circular No.14/2026/TT-BCT on rules of origin for goods under the EVFTA, aiming to further improve the legal framework, origin certification mechanisms. Businesses must do more than understand the regulations to qualify for preferential tariffs. They need to closely monitor their sources of raw materials, ensure supply-chain traceability and maintain adequate documentation to prove the origin of their products. As Vietnamese goods gain a stronger foothold in the EU market, the risk of trade defence investigations may increase. Anti-dumping, countervailing, safeguard measures could create additional challenges for exporters.Businesses therefore need to develop transparent accounting systems and maintain reliable records of production costs, prices, product origins to respond effectively to potential investigations. (ICE HO CHI MINH CITY)

Fonte notizia: VOV - Voice of Vietnam