Import Seafood from Vietnam to USA | Shrimp & Basa

Vietnam is one of the largest seafood suppliers to the US: farmed shrimp from the Mekong Delta, pangasius (basa, swai or tra) fillets, tuna, crab and a long list of value-added products. It is also one of the most regulated imports on any lane. Shrimp carries antidumping and countervailing duty orders; pangasius is inspected by the USDA, not only the FDA; and since 1 January 2026 the US has banned fish from some Vietnamese wild fisheries under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

None of that makes Vietnamese seafood hard to import — it makes it a paperwork business, where the importer, the packer and the forwarder all need the same facts before the reefer is booked. We work through WCA partner agents in Vietnam (AGF has no office there), entries are filed by our licensed customs brokers, and we coordinate FDA, NOAA and FSIS requirements with the entry.

Last reviewed: October 2026

Shipping Seafood from Vietnam to USA

Frozen seafood ships in reefer containers set to the shipper's specification — commonly -18°C or colder — with the temperature logged throughout. Glazed frozen product is dense, so a 40ft reefer often reaches its weight limit before it is full; we plan from the packer's load plan. Pre-cooling, an unbroken cold chain at the terminal and a full set of temperature records protect the claim if anything goes wrong.

Direct sailings from Cai Mep–Thi Vai reach Los Angeles and Long Beach in about 21–23 days, or about 28–32 days via Cat Lai and Singapore. Plan on about 35 days to New York and about 40 to Savannah. Reefer space tightens before Tết (6 February in 2027) and ahead of US holiday demand, and typhoons between June and November can disrupt schedules.

40ft reefer, commonly -18°C or colder, with continuous temperature records
Weight-limited loading for glazed frozen product
Direct Cai Mep–Thi Vai to Los Angeles/Long Beach: about 21–23 days
Permits and FSIS paperwork confirmed before the reefer is booked

What Drives the Cost

AD/CVD deposits on shrimp and pangasius — company-specific, revised in annual reviews
The 12.5% Section 301 layer on most lines
Reefer equipment, power at the terminal and any cold-storage time
FDA or FSIS examination, sampling and the cold storage while they happen
Routing and the destination port
Cold-chain delivery from the port to your freezer

HS Codes and Duty Notes

Classification guidance only — duty rates change and depend on your exact product. Our licensed customs brokers verify every code before you commit to an order.

HS Code	Products	Notes
0306.17	Frozen shrimp and prawns (shell-on, peeled, deveined)	Inside the AD and CVD orders on frozen warmwater shrimp from Vietnam; scope depends on the product form, and some processed forms are excluded. Covered by SIMP.
1605.21 / 1605.29	Prepared or preserved shrimp — cooked, breaded, marinated	Some prepared forms fall outside the shrimp orders and some do not; check scope per product. SIMP applies to shrimp products.
0304.62	Frozen catfish fillets, including pangasius (basa, swai, tra)	Inside the AD order on frozen fish fillets from Vietnam and under USDA FSIS inspection, not only FDA.
0303 / 0304 (tuna, swordfish, grouper)	Frozen whole fish and fillets of wild-caught species	MMPA import bans apply to some Vietnamese fisheries by species and gear; SIMP covers tuna, swordfish and grouper.
0306.33 / 1605.10	Crab — frozen and prepared, including swimming crab meat	Vietnam's swimming crab fisheries were granted MMPA comparability findings in May 2026; other crab fisheries are checked against NOAA's list.

Regulations and Compliance

Shrimp: antidumping and countervailing duties, SIMP

Frozen warmwater shrimp from Vietnam has been under an antidumping order since 2005 and a countervailing duty order since 2024. Rates are company-specific and revised in annual reviews, so the packer you buy from decides the deposit. Shrimp is also covered by the Seafood Import Monitoring Program: the importer of record needs a NOAA International Fisheries Trade Permit and must report harvest and landing data, with the supporting records kept on file.

Pangasius: antidumping order and USDA FSIS inspection

Frozen pangasius fillets are under an antidumping order with a Vietnam-wide rate of $2.39 per kilogram for exporters without their own rate; exporters' individual rates are set in annual reviews and changed sharply in August 2026. Since 2017, pangasius has also been regulated by USDA FSIS as Siluriformes fish: it may only come from Vietnamese establishments FSIS lists as eligible, must travel with the official certificate, and is reinspected at an FSIS official import inspection establishment before release.

Marine Mammal Protection Act import bans

From 1 January 2026, the US bans fish and fish products from foreign fisheries that NOAA has denied comparability findings. For Vietnam these include certain gillnet, purse-seine and handline fisheries for tuna, swordfish, grouper, mackerel, mullet, squid and cuttlefish. Vietnam's swimming crab fisheries were granted comparability findings in May 2026 after a court-ordered stay. Some HS codes need a Certificate of Admissibility showing the product came from an allowed fishery. Farmed shrimp and pangasius are not among the denied fisheries. NOAA's list is set by species and gear, so we check it per product.

FDA: registration, prior notice and seafood HACCP

The processing plant must be registered with the FDA, prior notice must be filed before arrival, and the importer must have seafood HACCP verification procedures for each supplier under 21 CFR 123. FDA import alerts for drug residues in aquaculture products can put a supplier on detention without physical examination, so we check the supplier against them first. Retail packs need US-compliant labeling, including country of origin and wild or farmed.

Country of origin and transshipment

Seafood's origin is where it was farmed or caught; processing imported fish or shrimp in Vietnam does not by itself make it Vietnamese. Chinese or other third-country seafood declared as Vietnamese to avoid an AD order is exactly what CBP's EAPA investigations target, alongside penalties under 19 USC 1592. A Vietnamese certificate of origin (Form B, issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade since 5 May 2025) supports the declaration but does not bind CBP. AGF will not ship cargo whose origin documents we cannot stand behind.

Door-to-Door Import Service

We start with the product, the packer and the paperwork: AD/CVD scope and the packer's rate, SIMP or FSIS requirements, the MMPA status of any wild-caught species, and the importer's FDA verification records. Our WCA partner agent in Vietnam books the reefer, coordinates collection from the packer's cold store and handles export customs and certificates.

Ocean to Los Angeles and Long Beach takes about 21–23 days on a direct sailing. Prior notice and the entry are filed by our licensed customs brokers, pangasius goes to an FSIS import inspection establishment, and we deliver by reefer truck to your cold storage. Quotes are door to door, with exclusions listed up front.

Ocean Freight Customs Drayage Ground Transport Warehousing

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there an antidumping duty on shrimp from Vietnam?

Yes. Frozen warmwater shrimp from Vietnam is under an antidumping order and, since 2024, a countervailing duty order. The deposit depends on which company exported the shrimp, and rates are revised in annual reviews, so check your packer's current rate before you buy. The 12.5% Section 301 layer applies on top of the normal duty on most lines.

Can I import pangasius (basa or swai) from Vietnam?

Yes, from Vietnamese establishments that USDA FSIS lists as eligible, with the official certificate and FSIS reinspection at a US import inspection establishment. Pangasius fillets are also under an antidumping order — $2.39 per kilogram for exporters without their own rate, and company-specific rates otherwise.

Which Vietnamese seafood is banned under the Marine Mammal Protection Act?

Since 1 January 2026, fish from Vietnamese fisheries that NOAA denied comparability findings — including certain gillnet, purse-seine and handline fisheries for tuna, swordfish, grouper, mackerel, mullet, squid and cuttlefish. Swimming crab was granted comparability in May 2026, and farmed shrimp and pangasius are not affected. The ban is set by species and gear, so we check each product against NOAA's list.

How long does a reefer container from Vietnam to the USA take?

About 21–23 days on the water from Cai Mep–Thi Vai to Los Angeles or Long Beach on a direct sailing, or about 28–32 days via Cat Lai and Singapore. Plan on about 35 days to New York and about 40 to Savannah, plus port clearance — FDA or FSIS examination can add days.

Seafood is just one example. AGF ships whatever your business moves — on this lane and beyond. If your commodity isn't covered by one of our guides, tell us what you ship and we'll build the logistics around it.