Vietnam implements GHS (Good Supply Practices) Pure Substances Standards, effective March 30, 2014
Vietnam's Global Harmony Labelling (GHS) is about to be implemented. For individuals and organizations, pure substances manufactured or imported into Vietnam must comply with Vietnam's GHS regulations for use and marketability starting March 30, 2014. However, this does not apply to substances imported briefly and then immediately re-exported, or to research materials. The implementation date for mixtures is postponed to March 20, 2016. Vietnam's GHS regulations adopt the third revision of the United Nations Global Harmony Labelling (GHS) (2009), and were issued by the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade on February 13, 2012 (Circular 04/2012/TT-BCT), taking effect on March 30 of the same year.
Vietnam's hazard classification system covers 17 physical hazards, 7 health hazards, and 2 environmental hazards. Regulations stipulate that labeling must be in Vietnamese, with foreign languages permitted if necessary, and the font size must be smaller than Vietnamese characters. Labeling content includes:
1. Chemical name 物質名稱
2. Code for chemical identity 化學物質辨識碼
3. Warnings image , warning words 警示圖像、警示語
4. Precautions 危害防範措施
5. Quantification 數量
6. Component or component quantity 成分與成分比重
7. Date of manufacture. 製造日期
8. Expiry date (if applicable). 有效期限（具有效期限者應填）
9. Information on manufacturers, importers, distributors 製造商、進口商、經銷商資訊
10. Origin 產地
11. Guides for using and preserving 使用與保存指引
The 16 items of the Vietnamese SDS are consistent with the UN GHS, but it should be noted that the second item of the Vietnamese SDS is Material Identification Data and the third item is Hazard Identification Data, which are in a different order than the UN GHS.
For substances being marketed in Vietnam for the first time, manufacturers and importers should notify the Vietnam Chemicals Agency (Vinachemia) of the substance classification and labeling information 15 days prior to market launch. Furthermore, trade secrets must be disclosed to the Vietnam Ministry of Chemicals before the product is launched.
Under the framework of Vietnam's Law on Chemicals (Law 06/2007/QH12), the Vietnam Chemicals Agency stated that it will refer to the regulations of Japan, the United States, and the European Union to establish a national list of existing chemical substances. Therefore, manufacturers should pay close attention to the information from the Vietnam Chemicals Agency.
Please refer to the attachment for details: Vietnam Circular 04.12 (English)
Sources: International Chemicals Policy Promotion Network(2014-02-27) Attachment file:Vietnam Circular 04.12_ENG.pdf
