HANOI: Vietnam’s seafood exporters are facing mounting headwinds as tighter US enforcement of trade and environmental rules begins to bite, with early 2026 shipments already feeling the strain from new compliance demands and duties.
Vietnam’s seafood exports to the US are coming under increasing pressure from stricter enforcement of regulations, including the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), requirements for Certificates of Admissibility (COA) and anti-dumping duties, weighing on shipments early in 2026.
Seafood exports to the US were estimated at US$96 million in January, down nearly 10 per cent year on year, according to statistics from the Việt Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).
Tuna was the hardest hit, with exports plunging 14 per cent to about $57 million in January.
Le Hang, deputy secretary general of VASEP, said enforcement of the MMPA and delays in issuing COAs continue to affect tuna and other wild-caught seafood exports to the US.
She added that implementation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment’s Circular 74/2025/BNNMT-TSKN on COA certification has exposed procedural bottlenecks in practice, slowing document verification and disrupting exports to the US from the start of this year.
The difficulties come as the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that 240 fisheries from 46 countries failed to obtain comparability recognition under the MMPA, meaning their products have been barred from entering the US since January 1.
Vietnam has 12 fisheries on NOAA's non-equivalent list, including grouper, crab, lobster, tuna and mackerel using gillnets and trawls.
Since Jan 1, delays in issuing COAs for wild-caught seafood in line with MMPA requirements have left shipments stranded at US ports and made exporters hesitant to dispatch new orders, VASEP said.
The COA requirement is a new and technically demanding regulation, but a lack of detailed guidance has led to inconsistent interpretation across local authorities.
VASEP has urged the early issuance of unified guidance and application dossiers nationwide, along with the rollout of an electronic COA system, which it says would ease paperwork, cut costs and help stabilise the seafood export chain to the US during the initial phase of the new rules.
In response, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has called for administrative procedures for handling COA applications to be promptly announced and for internal processing workflows to be published, ensuring timely receipt and settlement of dossiers. All measures are to be completed by Feb 5.
Meanwhile, Vietnamese shrimp exports to the US are also facing rising trade barriers.
Hang said many exporters rushed shrimp shipments in January ahead of the US announcement of anti-dumping duty results due on Feb 17.
Shrimp exports are also subject to countervailing duties, which could raise compliance costs and prices and force exporters to adjust strategies and renegotiate with US buyers. She forecast that shrimp exports would remain under pressure in the first quarter of 2026.
VASEP warned that seafood exports could continue to decline in February due to the impact of US anti-dumping duty results on shrimp, ongoing MMPA and COA implementation issues and softer import demand from China after heavy stockpiling in January.
VASEP’s statistics showed that Vietnam’s seafood exports reached $874 million in January, up 13 per cent year on year, underscoring efforts to diversify markets amid rising technical barriers and tariff measures in major destinations, with exports to China, Japan and Asean posting strong growth.
China became Vietnam’s largest seafood market in January, with export value reaching nearly $250 million, up 28.7 per cent, driven by strong shrimp demand ahead of the Lunar New Year.
Shipments to Asean also surged to $69 million, up 32.2 per cent, while exports to Japan reached $146 million, an increase of 21.3 per cent.
Shrimp was the leading seafood product in January, with shipments worth $331 million, up 6.4 per cent and accounting for nearly 38 per cent of Vietnam’s total seafood exports, mainly driven by China and Japan, while the US market showed signs of slowing due to anti-dumping duties.
Pangasius exports exceeded US$177 million, a sharp rise of 33.2 per cent year on year, buoyed by strong demand from China, Asean and Japan, while exports of squid and octopus rose 30.9 per cent to nearly $69 million thanks to solid consumption in Japan and South Korea.
Against the backdrop of intensified technical barriers and tariff measures, Hang urged seafood exporters to consider investing in production facilities in partner countries, particularly in the Middle East, to secure raw materials, optimise costs and export directly from those markets.
She said the outlook for Vietnam’s seafood exports in the coming period would depend largely on how flexibly domestic enterprises adapt to policy headwinds in the US.
She called for a focus on improving quality, diversifying products and increasing value-added processing, while continuing to strengthen the global reputation of Vietnamese seafood and expand markets.
Support for businesses through trade promotion, market diversification, regulatory guidance, supply-chain connectivity and timely updates on new market requirements is also needed to help exporters enhance their competitiveness, she said. — Vietnam News/ANN
