What documents should a Vietnamese timber supplier provide?
A checklist of what a genuine supplier should be able to produce, and, just as importantly, what each document does and doesn't prove on its own.
The short answer. A genuine Vietnamese timber or furniture supplier should be able to produce four groups of documents: entity and legal papers, timber origin and harvest records, certification documents, and the information that EU and US rules require. Each document shows only that a paper trail exists. Whether the factory, the stock and the output match the paper has to be checked on site.
How to use this checklist
Ask for these before you order, not after. A supplier who has never been asked may need time to assemble them, and how long that takes is useful to know. None of these substitutes for the others; a complete document set with no physical verification still leaves the gaps a site visit is built to close.
Entity and legal documents
- Business registration certificate. Confirms the entity exists and its registered lines of business: checked against Vietnam's national business registration portal, not just accepted as supplied.
- Relevant export permits or sector-specific approvals, where applicable.
- Tax code registration, matching the entity on your contract and invoices.
What this proves: the entity is real and legally constituted. What it doesn't prove: that this entity, rather than an undisclosed subcontractor, is the one actually producing your goods. See trading company vs. manufacturer.
Timber origin and harvest documents
- Harvest permit or invoice indicating the forest plot or plantation of origin.
- Species and volume records for each input stream: domestic plantation, domestic natural forest, or imported.
- Import documentation for any timber brought into Vietnam before processing, showing country of origin at minimum.
- Transport and intake records connecting harvest to the processing facility.
What this proves: a paper trail exists. What it doesn't prove: that the paper trail is complete, current, or matches what's physically in production. Mixed inputs or incomplete records can make the paper trail difficult to reconcile with the material physically held on site, which is why this needs checking at source, not summarised.
Certification documents
- FSC or PEFC chain-of-custody certificate, if claimed.
Validate every certificate on the issuing body's own public register, under the supplier's exact registered entity name. Not accepted as a PDF. A certificate that doesn't appear on the register under that name is a finding, not a technicality.
EUDR-specific documents (EU-bound buyers)
Article 9 sets out exactly what must be collected and retained: species, quantity, country and geolocation of production, supplier and customer details, and evidence the product is deforestation-free. See the full breakdown in what EUDR Article 9 requires from a Vietnamese supplier.
Lacey Act documents (US-bound buyers)
Since the December 2024 Phase VII expansion, coverage extends to additional furniture HTS classifications beyond those already covered in earlier phases. Whether a specific product is covered depends on its HTS classification, not the product category alone. The declaration needs scientific species names, country of harvest, and quantity/value consistent with the commercial invoice. See what a Lacey Act declaration requires.
What no document can prove
Whether the facility you were shown is the one making your product, whether subcontracted work is disclosed, and whether the volume of documented input actually matches production output. Those are physical questions, and a complete-looking document file is not evidence that they've been answered. Only that someone can produce paperwork on request.
Common questions
Which documents should a Vietnamese timber supplier provide? A business registration certificate and tax code, harvest or origin records for each input stream, import documents for any imported timber, transport and intake records, any FSC or PEFC chain-of-custody certificate, and the details that EUDR Article 9 and a Lacey Act declaration require.
Is an FSC certificate enough? No. Check it on the issuing body's public register under the supplier's exact name. A certificate that does not appear there is a finding. Even a valid certificate does not replace the origin records.
What can documents not prove? Whether the facility you were shown makes your product, whether subcontracted work is disclosed, and whether the documented input matches the production output. Those are physical questions.
Related
Field Diligence validates this document set against what is physically on site, on behalf of the buyer and paid only by the buyer: see current published pricing. Start with a free scoping conversation.