New policies taking effect in June of 2016

1. Guiding collection, payment and management of environmental protection charge for mineral exploitation.

The Ministry of Finance issued Circular No. 66/2016/TT-BTC on 29 April 2016 on guiding collection, payment and management of environmental protection charge for mineral exploitation

Accordingly, mineral exploiters shall submit declaration on environmental protection charge to the tax offices at which they declare and pay royalties. In case no environmental protection charge for mineral exploitation arises in a month, charge payers shall still fill in and submit charge declaration forms to tax offices.

Environmental protection charges for mineral exploitation is made on a monthly and annual settlement. Claim settlement of environmental protection charges for mineral exploitation including finalization year and finalized by the time of termination of mining activities, termination of operations and purchasing minerals collection, termination of operation business, contract termination transformation of corporate ownership or corporate reorganization.

Environmental protection charge for mineral exploitation shall be declared on a monthly basis and finalized on an annual basis. Finalization declaration includes annual finalization declaration and finalization declaration upon the termination of mineral exploitation, mineral purchase, business activities or enterprise ownership transformation contracts or the re-organization of enterprises.

This Circular takes effect as from 13 June 2016

2. The application and procedures for enjoyment of social insurance regimes

As from 01 June 2016, Decision No. 636/QD-BHXH issued on 22 April 2016 regulating the application and procedures for enjoyment of social insurance regimes takes effect. Whereby:

– The application and procedures stipulated in this Decision apply to the employees and the employers covered by compulsory social insurance, individuals covered by voluntary social insurance and the family members of the individuals covered by compulsory or voluntary social insurance social insurance aacording to Law on Social Insurance 2014.

– The application for enjoying the maternity regime by male employees whose wives give birth to children or the husbands of the female employees who are surogate mothers:

+ One of the followings: birth certificate, certified copy of birth certificate, or proof of birth, except for the children died shortly after birth without any proof of birth.

+ In case of child death: death certificate or certified copy of death certificate or certified copy  of medical records of the mother or hospital discharge of the mother  in case of death shortly after birth without any proof of birth.

+ Certificate for the case of surgical birth or giving birth before 32 weeks of pregnancy issued by health facilities (if any)

Decision No. 636/QD-BHXH replaces Decision No. 01/QD-BHXH dated 03 Jan 2014, Article 2 of Decision 1018/QD-BHXH dated 10 Oct 2014, Article 1 of Decision 919/QD-BHXH dated 26 Aug 2015, and repeals Official Letter No. 5435/BHXH-CSXH dated 31 Dec 2015.

3. List of pesticides permitted or prohibited in Vietnam

On 21 April 2016, the Ministry of Agricutural and Rural Development issued the Circular No. 03/2016/TT-BNNPTNT introducing the list of pesticides permitted or prohibited in Vietnam and declaring HS codes for pesticides permitted or prohibited in Vietnam. In which:

1. The list of pesticides permitted in Vietnam given in the Appendix I enclosed herewith, including:

a) Pesticides used in agriculture:

– Pest control products: 775 active ingredients and với 1678 commercial names.

– Disease control products: 608 active ingredients and 1297 commercial names.

– Herbicide: 227 active ingredients and 694 commercial names.…

b) Termiticides: 14 active ingredients and 20 commercial names.

c) Forestry product preservatives: 8 active ingredients and 9 commercial names.

d) Warehouse disinfectants: 4 active ingredients and 8 commercial names.

dd) Pesticides used on gold courses:

– Pest control products: 1 active ingredient and 1 commercial name.

– Disease control products: 3 active ingredients and 3 commercial names.

– Herbicide: 1 active ingredient and 1 commercial name.

– Growth regulators: 1 active ingredient and 1 commercial name.

e) Seed treatments.

– Pest control products: 12 active ingredients and 16 commercial names.

– Disease control product: 10 active ingredients and 11 commercial names.

2. The list of pesticides prohibited in Vietnam given in the Appendix II enclosed herewith, including:

a) Pest control products, forestry product preservatives: 21 active ingredients.

b) Disease control products: 6 active ingredients.

c) Raticide: 1 active ingredient.

d) Herbicides: 1 active ingredient.

This Circular shall come into force from 06 June 2016.

4. Appraisal of radiation safety assessment in exploration and exploitation of radioactive ores

The Ministry of Science and Technology issued Circular No. 04/2016/TT-BKHCN dated 04 April 2016 on appraisal of radiation safety assessment in exploration and exploitation of radioactive ores which regulate that:

The application dossier for appraisal of radiation safety assessment in exploration and exploitation of radioactive ores include the following documents:

– An application for appraisal of radiation safety assessment in the standard form of Appendix I attached with this Circular;

– A report of radiation safety assessment in exploration and exploitation of radioactive ores for each classified facility (the facility classification is stipulated in Article 4 of this Circular) in the corresponding form given by the Appendix II attached with this Circular.

– The electronic documents must be in Portable Document Format (.pdf) and Vietnamese unicode fonts (Times New Roman) in accordance with Vietnam standards (TCVN 6909: 2001), in the same with hard copies and recorded on optical disc without password.

This Circular takes effect from 01 June 2016.