THE
MINISTRY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
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SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness
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No:
56/2001/TT-BKHCNMT
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Hanoi, October 26, 2001
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CIRCULAR
GUIDING THE
INVESTMENT COOPERATION WITH FOREIGN COUNTRIES IN SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL
ACTIVITIES UNDER DECREE NO. 06/2000/ND-CP
Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 22/CP
of May 22, 1993 on the tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry
of Science, Technology and Environment;
Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 06/2000/ND-CP of March 6, 2000 on
the investment cooperation with foreign countries in the fields of medical
examination and treatment, education and training and scientific research
(hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 06/2000/ND-CP for short);
Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 24/2000/ND-CP of July 31, 2000
detailing the implementation of the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam
(hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 24/2000/ND-CP for short);
The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment hereby guides the
implementation of the contents on investment cooperation with foreign countries
in scientific and technological activities under Decree No. 20/2000/ND-CP as
follows:
I. GENERAL PROVISIONS
1. Scope of application
This Circular guides the investment cooperation
with foreign countries regarding scientific and technological activities.
Scientific and technological activities in cooperation with foreign countries not
for profit purposes shall not be subject to this Circular.
2. Participants in investment cooperation
The following subjects shall be eligible for
participating in investment cooperation in order to establish foreign-invested
scientific and technological organizations:
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b/ Research institutes, research centers and
other organizations conducting scientific, technical and technological
researches, researching into natural sciences, economic administration science
and linguistics, which are of other economic sectors;
c/ Vietnamese enterprises, including enterprises
established under the Law on State Enterprises, the Law on Enterprises and the
Law on Cooperatives;
d/ Vietnamese (including overseas Vietnamese);
e/ Foreign-invested enterprises;
f/ Foreign investors.
3. Interpretation of terms
A number of terms and expressions used in this
Circular shall be construed as follows:
Science means the system of knowledge of
phenomena, things and rules of the nature, society and thinking;
Technology means a combination of methods,
processes, skills, know-hows, tools and means used for converting resources
into products;
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Scientific research means activities of
discovering and inquiring into phenomena, things and rules of the nature,
society and thinking; creating solutions for practical application. Scientific
research includes basic research and applied research.
Technological development is an activity aiming
to create and perfect new technologies and/or new products. Technological
development includes experimental deployment and trial production.
Experimental deployment means activities of
applying scientific research results to experiments, in order to create new
technologies and/or new products.
Trial production means activities of applying
experimental deployment results to small-scale trial production in order to
perfect new technologies and/or new products before introducing them to
production and life.
Scientific and technological services mean
activities in service of scientific research and technological development;
activities related to intellectual property, technology transfer; services of
information, consultancy, training, fostering, popularization, application of
scientific and technological knowledge as well as practical experiences.
Foreign investors means foreign economic
organizations and individuals that invest in Vietnam.
Foreign-invested enterprises include
joint-venture enterprises and enterprises with 100% foreign investment capital,
operating in Vietnam.
Foreign-invested scientific and technological
organizations (FIST organizations) means research institutes, research centers
or establishments (stations, farms, laboratories, etc.) that conduct scientific
and technological activities financed by foreign capital.
4. Preferential regime
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II. CONTENTS OF INVESTMENT COOPERATION WITH
FOREIGN COUNTRIES IN SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES
The investment cooperation with foreign
countries in scientific and technological activities under this Circular shall
cover the following contents:
1. Scientific research or technological
development in one of the following specialized fields:
a/ Natural sciences;
b/ Technical sciences and technologies (including
such fields as agriculture, medicine and pharmacy);
c/ Economic administration science;
d/ Linguistics.
In the above-said fields, it is prohibited to
conduct activities which are detrimental to the national security, defense,
fine traditions and customs, social order and safety, human health,
environment, and other prohibited acts prescribed by the Vietnamese law.
2. Scientific and technological services.
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The investment cooperation with foreign
countries in scientific and technological activities shall be undertaken in one
of the following forms:
1. Joint ventures: Vietnamese parties and
foreign parties jointly establish research institutes, research centers or
other establishments (stations, farms, laboratories, etc.) to conduct
scientific and technological activities in the fields specified in Section II
of this Circular.
2. Business cooperation contracts: Vietnamese
parties and foreign parties enter into business cooperation on a contractual
basis to conduct scientific and technological activities in the fields
specified in Section II of this Circular.
3. Pilot form: The form of enterprises with 100%
foreign capital to conduct scientific and technological activities in the
fields specified in Section II of this Circular.
IV. CONDITIONS FOR ESTABLISHMENT AND
OPERATION OF FIST ORGANIZATIONS
A FIST organization shall be allowed to operate
only after being granted the investment license.
All projects for investment cooperation with
foreign countries in scientific and technological activities are group-A
projects. To be granted an investment license, apart from the conditions
prescribed for ordinary group-A projects, a FIST organization must also satisfy
the following conditions:
1. Contents of scientific and technological
activities are in line with investment objectives and the Vietnamese State’s scientific and technological development orientation.
2. It has at least 5 research cadres of
university, college or higher level working on a full-time basis in the
licensed operation field(s). FIST organization’s head must have attained the
university or higher level in the licensed operation field.
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a/ It is headquartered at the administration
body of the FIST organization.
b/ It has facilities and equipment for
efficiently conducting scientific and technological activities in the licensed
operation field(s).
V. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION
1. Dossiers of application for investment
licenses for scientific and technological activities
A dossier of application for an investment
license filed by a FIST organization shall comprise documents specified in
Article 107 of Decree No.24/2000/ND-CP, in which the investor should clarify
the following contents:
a/ Objectives, scale, field and type of
scientific and technological activities;
b/ Projected number and structure of key
research personnel;
c/ Material and technical foundation, facilities
and equipment;
d/ Decision of the Vietnamese party’s direct
management body (in cases the concerned Vietnamese party is an organization
using State-owned capital) approving the participation in the FIST
organization.
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Basing itself on the dossiers of application for
investment licenses and the conditions for establishment and operation of FIST
organizations prescribed in this Circular, the Ministry of Science, Technology
and Environment shall have to certify such FIST organizations. On the basis of
approval of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, the Ministry
of Planning and Investment shall decide to grant investment licenses together
with decisions on preferential regime to FIST organizations and, within 3
working days, have to send copies of the said decisions to the Ministry of
Science, Technology and Environment, so that the latter shall register
scientific and technological activities for FIST organizations.
VI. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS
This Circular takes effect 15 days after its
signing.
Any problems arising in the course of
implementation should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Science,
Technology and Environment for study, and appropriate amendment and supplement,
or specific settlement guidance.
MINISTER OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY
AND ENVIRONMENT
Chu Tuan Nha