Prominent regulations in effect in mid-March 2017

1. Vietnamese granted admission to casino as of March 15, 2017

On January 16, 2017, the government promulgated the Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP on casino business.

The 3-year pilot permission for Vietnamese citizens’ entry into casinos is subject to the following requirements:

- Be at least 21 years of age and possess full capacity for civil acts pursuant to the laws of Vietnam;

- Be financially capable of playing in a casino; in other words, a player has to provide evidences of monthly earning(s) of at least VND 10 million or of his being subject to 3rd-level or higher personal income tax;

- Purchase a casino entry ticket at VND 1 million/24 continuous hours or VND 25 million/month/person;

- Be not obstructed to enter a casino due to request from a family member who has full capacity for civil acts or the player himself to the company operating the casino.

- Pay for chips or cash out, if winning a prize or retaining unused ones, in Vietnamese currency

Decree No. 03/2017/ND-CP takes effect as of March 15, 2017.

2. Limit on financial companies’ consumer loan

On December 30, 2016, the State Bank promulgated the Circular No. 43/2016/TT-NHNN on financial companies’ consumer loan, which defines that:

- The outstanding debt of each borrower, in a financial company, who requires consumer loan for purchasing and using consumer products and services shall not total more than VND 100 million.

- The limit on total outstanding debt mentioned above shall not apply to a consumer loan granted for the purchase of an automobile that is then placed as guarantee for the loan as per legal regulations.

- The interest rate of a financial company’s consumer loans shall be subject to the regulations of the State Bank on customer loans made by credit institutions and foreign banks’ branches.

- Financial companies shall stipulate the unified bracket of consumer loan interest rates for the entire system for each period. Such bracket shall define the highest and lowest interest rates of each consumer loan product.

Circular No. 43/2016/TT-NHNN takes effect as of March 15, 2017.

3. Methods of credit institutions’ loans for living expense

On December 30, 2016, the State Bank promulgated the Circular No. 39/2016/TT-NHNN on customer loans made by credit institutions and foreign banks’ branches.

The methods of loaning for living expense are:

- Demand-based loan: Upon each demand, a credit institution and a customer enter a loan agreement and proceed through loan formalities.

- Limit-based loan: A credit institution defines and negotiates a time-limited maximum loan limit with a customer.

- Cycle-based loan: A credit institution and a customer negotiate a loan for a business cycle of no more than 01 month.

- Other loan methods can be combined with the said methods in line with a credit institution’s business conditions and a loan’s attributes.

Circular No. 39 takes effect as of March 15, 2017.

4. As of March 20, 2017, the importation of peanut, cassia tora seed, cocoa bean and string bean from Indonesia due to a high risk of infestation by Caryedon serratus (Olivier) beetle shall pause pursuant to the 2017’s Decision No. 191/QD-BNN-BVTV .