For such, the foreign business will be required to set up a representative office in Vietnam. In addition, foreign businesses are required to appoint a legal representative or set up a representative office in Vietnam if they carry out the following e-commerce activities:.
Under the last bullet point, the Ministry of Industry and Trade MoIT in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Communications , Ministry of Finance and so on, will regulate the threshold for the number of transactions or purchases. Any imported or exported goods are subject to customs procedures and e-commerce providers are required to cooperate with the relevant authorities to prevent the illegal transaction of goods and services.
E-commerce providers must file a report on their business operations and submit to the MoIT by January 15 of every year. Foreign investors are therefore required to carry out investment in e-commerce activities in compliance of the LOI. While how this list is generated is still unclear, exceptions are expected to be given to investors contributing to small and medium-sized startups.
This is also likely to have significant implications for Vietnamese e-commerce companies that raise funds from foreign investors as they would have to meet the new requirements. The Decree, however, does not mention that the regulations are retroactive, therefore the new regulations should not affect foreign investment that has already been approved. The Decree also adds companies providing logistics services and other supportive services that will come under the ambit of the Decree.
Logistic companies will share liability to provide documentation regarding the origin of goods during delivery. Decree 85 also mandates a guaranteed payment system where e-commerce websites are required to allow customers to make payments using this system. This means that payments must be kept in an intermediary account for a certain amount of time to settle any claims between customers and sellers.
Although U. Once a company posts a privacy policy on a site, it must adhere to its terms. The Act contains content and procedural requirements, gives regulatory authority to the Federal Trade Commission FTC , and establishes a timetable for a "do not email" registry to be created, whereby business and individuals may opt out of receiving corporate marketing emails.
Violators may be subject to criminal penalties of up to 5 years in prison for fraud and related activity using email marketing communications. Last reviewed October Small Business Contents. E-commerce essentially consists of the provision of products and services over electronic systems, such as the Internet, computer networks, email or mobile phones, and may be applied to various business functions: Marketing.
The Internet offers companies many avenues to promote their products. Companies can develop a website to build their brand, display a complete inventory of products, provide product literature, or even send out online press releases. Companies may also advertise online and either direct interested buyers to an authorized dealer or sell the product themselves.
Since online stores are not bounded by floor space, they may offer a larger variety of products than a physical store front. This benefits purchasers as well since they now have a larger inventory of products to choose from. Publishers of books, software, music, movies and photos can distribute their products electronically, instead of having to manufacture, store and ship a physical product.
Even for products that must be shipped, e-commerce offers supply chain management solutions, automated inventory management systems, and online tracking for shipped products. Financial Transactions. ATMs are a prime example of an early e-commerce application, where customers can deposit, withdraw or transfer their funds. Other e-commerce applications that impact most businesses include electronic funds transfer and electronic credit card payment processing.
Service and Support. If anything, the Covid pandemic solidified these cultural norms, as Americans were forced to spend more time in isolation and to confront their environments intimately. In response, Americans relied upon e-commerce and remote retail purchases to address perceived deficiencies. Anecdotally, many Americans, having recognised the efficiencies of working from home, have resolved not to return to the workplace, which will place a continuing strain on the e-commerce infrastructure.
There is no single process for online brand enforcement in the United States. Businesses rely upon a suite of tools, laws and regulations. Various third-party providers offer subscriptions to watch notice services, which can alert businesses to potentially infringing activity.
Other service providers offer tools to assist business owners in enforcing their marks. Brand owners can also use procedures set forth in third-party terms of use to request the removal of infringing material. Brand owners can also utilise the complaint mechanism under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy to resolve disputes arising from abusive registration of domain names.
A brand owner can also take pre-emptive steps to protect its brand by registering its trademarks with U. Customs and Border Protection. Finally, businesses can rely upon state and federal laws, including the Lanham Act, as a basis to send infringing third parties cease-and-desist letters or to bring suit. The most common restriction that impacts brand enforcement efforts in the United States is the unavailability of WHOIS data or other contact information for bad actors. Since the passage of the GDPR, domain name registrars have been less forthcoming with providing contact information of registrants, making it difficult to contact or otherwise to locate a third-party malfeasor.
Jurisdictional challenges can also arise in enforcing brands. Trademark rights are largely territorial, making it difficult to enforce these rights against infringing activity occurring outside of the United States, and it can be difficult to find a jurisdictional hook over a foreign defendant. Even if jurisdiction is proper, a foreign defendant may refuse to appear, and enforcing judgment over same may be difficult.
Finally, it can be difficult to enforce brands against secondary or contributory infringers, such as online service providers, who may hide behind their purported lack of knowledge of infringing activity or may purport to lack the ability to control the infringing activity. The relative sophistication of the customer seeking data storage services and the service provider determine the respective bargaining power of the parties.
In many cases, smaller customers do not have much flexibility in negotiating such service contracts. Environmental laws and regulations should be considered; generally, a data centre is subject to no greater or more stringent environmental regulations than any other large building.
Development in some areas, however, may involve national or California Environmental Quality Act review, air quality considerations, and issues that arise from regulations governing protection of wetlands and endangered species. More than 20 states many, coastal have enacted electronic waste legislation. If setting up a data centre involves modification of specific zoning characterisations, relevant city ordinances and council hearing determinations should be observed.
If the data centre supplies its own power by use of solar panels, co-generation, or other means, or merely wants to install uninterruptible power sources, it is wise to consider applicable environmental issues, regulations of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and possible tax incentives.
The Automated Commercial Environment ACE is the system through which the trade community reports imports and exports and the United States government determines admissibility.
Import manifests, entries for consumption, warehousing and bonding, post-entry submissions, such as protests and duty drawbacks, are all examples of transactions and data that must be filed electronically through ACE.
The comprehensive use of ACE has resulted in reduced wait times at cargo points of entry and the faster processing of entries, bonds, and refunds. As currently drafted, the USMCA seeks to ensure that data can be transferred cross-border, that limits on where data can be stored and processed are minimised, and that suppliers are not restricted in their use of electronic authentication or electronic signatures.
Digital technologies, in theory, should lower the cost of trade, thereby providing smaller businesses across the globe access to trading opportunities.
These efforts take time and monetary investment. Issues concerning inclusiveness, privacy protection, and cybersecurity are likely to remain high priority discussion points within the future governance of digital trade. Governments will need to work together to develop a favourable legal framework, address competition issues, standardise intellectual property rules, and address challenges related to incompatible infrastructure for seamless information technology.
Prior to and the U. Wayfair , e-commerce businesses in the United States generally were required to collect state sales tax from customers only in states in which the e-commerce business had a physical presence. For instance, if you want to sell t-shirts with Star Wars characters on them, you will want to obtain the appropriate consents to avoid any legal issues. Also, you may want to consider copyright protection for your ecommerce website. Some of the applicable copyright laws to keep in mind:.
Research with the appropriate copyright, patent and trademark organizations such as the US Patent and Trademark Office. Shipping restrictions. Ecommerce shipping can be mind-boggling at times since logistics companies have different rates, rules and restrictions for shipping different types of products. Most shipping companies clearly note their restricted items. Some commonly-restricted items are:. Also, note that some providers may allow you to ship normally restricted items, but they will require some extra paperwork and fees.
They also have information on the shipping taxes, duties and imports. Takeaway: Not all shippers restrict the same items. Research different providers to determine the costs and requirements for shipping your type of product.
While your determination is alive and well, believe it or not, your business may be too large to legally run out of your home. Even if you plan to run a small online business, some property laws can still apply to you.
Thus, y ou may be surprised to learn that you could benefit from having a brick-and-mortar location or warehouse in the early stages of your online business!
Try leveraging a partnership with a shipping and fulfillment company that specializes in dropshipping or 3PLs. By using a dropshipping or 3PL service, you reduce shipping zones, or the distance packages travel, which will typically reduce the cost of shipping and time in transit. A win-win for both your business and your customers.
Takeaway: Learn about home-based business regulations, applicable to your ecommerce niche. Pay attention to general business licenses, zoning restrictions and health and safety permits. Age restrictions. This act includes quite a few regulations, but one that will likely apply to your site is the inability to collect any personal information from a child under the age of Takeaway: Every country is different as far as their demands on how to run a business.
Things get especially tricky when it comes to age restrictions on products. Do your research and stay on top of legislation to ensure your business is on the up-and-up.
Business insurance. If you operate as a registered business entity such as a limited liability company LLC , your personal assets may already be protected. Remember the story about a burning hoverboard?
Well, the family was allowed to sue Amazon even though the company acted as an intermediary for another seller who sold a faulty gadget. Product liability insurance could protect you against such scenarios. This type of insurance is especially important if you plan on selling products that are considered high-risk, like CBD. Also look into professional liability insurance also known as errors and omissions insurance , which can protect your business against malpractice, error and negligence.
Takeaway: Business insurance can look expensive for new business owners. But it can save you more money if matters go legally awry. Licenses and permits. Depending on which products you decide to offer, you may need a business license to sell them.
As a rule of thumb, most states in the U. However, the requirements are different for online businesses. As LegalZoom writes :. As LegalZoom notes, you should always double-check applicable laws. So be sure to do just that! Separately, you may want to look into a reseller license — a document that lets you purchase inventory in bulk or wholesale without paying local sales taxes. Having one could prevent you from paying double taxation i. With a reseller certificate, you may only need to collect sales tax when customers buy your products.
Similarly, check with local authorities if you plan to partner with wholesalers and suppliers. Finally, international sellers should also check with a local licensing department to verify whether they need any permits.
Takeaway: Apart from a sales tax ID, you may not need any other special business license to operate a small ecommerce store.
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