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THE GOVERNMENT
OF VIETNAM
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THE SOCIALIST
REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Independence – Freedom – Happiness
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No: 91/2024/ND-CP
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Hanoi, July 18,
2024
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DECREE
AMENDING
SOME ARTICLES OF DECREE 156/2018/ND-CP DATED NOVEMBER 16, 2018 OF THE
GOVERNMENT ELABORATING LAW ON FORESTRY
Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization
dated June 19, 2015; Law on amending Law on Government Organization and Law on
Local Government Organization dated November 22, 2019;
Pursuant to the Law on Forestry dated November
15, 2017;
Pursuant to Article 248 of the Land Law dated
January 18, 2024;
At the request of the Minister of Agriculture
and Rural Development;
The Government issues a Decree amending some
articles of Decree 156/2018/ND-CP dated November 16, 2018 of the Government
elaborating Law on Forestry.
Article 1. Amendments to some
articles of Decree 156/2018/ND-CP dated November 16, 2018 of the Government
elaborating Law on Forestry
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“6. “Secondary harvesting” means felling of trees
during the implementation of silvicultural measure adoption and scientific
research; clearing land for projects for repurpose of forests, temporary forest
use for the construction of temporary works for the construction of power grid
projects; liquidation of planted forests; constructing infrastructure serving
forest protection and development specified in clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of
Article 51 of the Law on Forestry Law.
7. “Salvage harvesting" means practices of
collecting timber and non-timber forest plants that have fallen or died due to
natural causes or disasters; burnt, dry, rotten timber and non-timber forest
plants, branches and tops that remain in the forest areas.
8. “Forest environment” means a part of forest
ecology, created from natural elements, including organisms, soil, water, air, sound,
light and other physical elements affect forest biodiversity and natural
landscape.
10. “Ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
projects in special-use forests, protection forests and production forests”
mean investment projects that use the forest environment to provide ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment services.
11. “Forest repurposing” means repurposing of
special-use forest land, protective forest land, and production forest land
with decision from competent state authorities.”.
2. Amendment to point a of clause 3 of Article 4:
“a) Natural forests on hills, mountains and
plains: average height of forest trees is 5,0 m or more; dry deciduous
dipterocarp forests have an average height of forest trees of 3,0 m or more.”.
3. Amendment to point a of clause 3 of Article 5:
“a) Planted forests on hills, mountains and plains:
average height of forest trees is 5,0 m or more; Planted forests on acid
sulfate soil, planted forests at altitudes above 1.000 m, multi-purpose
forestry trees and forests planted in other special ecological conditions:
average height of forest trees is from 3.0 m or more.”.
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“6. The adjustment made to increase the area of a
special-use forest by conversion of a specific area of protection forest or
production forest or a forest outside the forestry planning into special-use
forest shall be carried out in accordance with Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this
Article.
7. The adjustment made to reduce the area of a
special-use forest by converting special-use forest to protection forest or
production forest or forest repurposing shall be carried out in accordance with
Article 39, 40,and 42 hereof.
Within 30 days, after the competent authority makes
the decision on forest conversion or forest repurposing, the forest owner must
complete updating the forest management dossiers.
8. National parks, nature reserves, species-habitat
conservation areas and landscape protection areas may be converted into one
another in accordance with Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article when
meeting the criteria specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4, Article 6 hereof.
9. Criteria for functional subdivisions of national
parks, nature reserves and species-habitat conservation areas
a) Strictly protected subdivisions must meet one of
the following criteria:
There is a natural ecosystem that is still intact
or there is a natural ecosystem that ensures the natural development laws of
the forest ecosystem.
They have a natural distribution and are home to
endemic, endangered, rare wild animal and plant species.
For special-use forests with components of wetland
and coastal ecosystems, the location, scope and scale of the strictly protected
subdivision are determined based on the status of the natural ecosystem and
conditions of terrain, hydrology, and flooding regime; they are habitats for
endemic, endangered, rare wild animal and plant species.
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There is a forest ecosystem that needs to be
restored by silvicultural techniques to achieve the natural state of the forest
ecosystem.
There is a natural ecosystem and habitat that
maintains food sources and movement for wild animal species.
For special-use forests with components of wetland
and coastal ecosystems, the location, scope and scale of the ecological
restoration subdivision are determined based on the status of the natural
ecosystem and conditions of terrain, hydrology, and flooding regime; they are
habitats that maintains food sources and movement for wild animal species.
c) Service and administrative subdivisions must
meet one of the following criteria:
They are established mainly to build technical
infrastructure, including: facilities for working, living, researching,
scientific experimenting, rescue and biological development of the special-use
forest management board; facilities serving ecotourism, recreation,
entertainment, and other functions as stipulated by law;
The area of service and administrative subdivisions
shall be concentrated, limiting dispersed areas, in accordance with the scale
of the special-use forest management board, the forest status, and the total
natural area of the special-use forest.
10. Adjustment to functional subdivisions of national
parks, nature reserves and species-habitat conservation areas
a) The forest owners shall prepare a plan for
adjusting functional subdivions with the following main contents:
Legal, scientific and practical basis;
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Determination of the scope and boundaries of
functional subdivisions after adjustment on the map and location points in the
field;
Determination of solutions for implementation and
organization of management after the adjustment.
b) Application for appraisal of functional
subdivision adjustment, including:
Application for functional subdivision adjustment
of the forest owner (original copy);
Functional subdivision adjustment plan for
special-use forest in accordance with point a of this Clause (original copy);
The forest status map before adjustment and the
expected forest status map after adjustment of the special-use forest clearly
showing the scope, boundaries, and functional subdivisions (original copy).
Depending on the area scale of the special-use forest, the forest owner shall
select appropriate maps, agreeing on the same scale of 1/5,000 or 1/10,000 or
1/25,000 according to the VN2000 reference system.
c) Procedures for appraisal of functional
subdivision adjustment of special-use forest managed by the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development.
The forest owner shall submit 01 application
directly or by post or online to the Department of Forestry of the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development (hereinafter referred to as “receiving
agency”);
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the receiving agency
shall send a written notice to the forest owner for them to complete their
application and clearly state the reasons;
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Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
written request for opinions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development, ministries, central and local authorities shall send a written
response to the receiving agency as prescribed in this Clause;
Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
documents from ministries, central and local authorities, the receiving agency
shall complete the appraisal;
If the adjustment is qualified, within 20 days, the
receiving agency shall report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development, and submit to the Prime Minister for decision on the guideline for
functional subdivision adjustment of the special-use forest managed by the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;
If the adjustment is not qualified, the receiving
agency shall send a written notice to the forest owner stating the reasons;
Within 20 days from the date the Prime Minister
issues a decision on the adjustment guideline, the Ministry of Agriculture and
Rural Development shall make a decision on the functional subdivision
adjustment of the special-use forest managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and
Rural Development.
d) Procedures for appraisal and approval of
functional subdivision adjustment of special-use forests under local management
The forest owner shall submit 01 application
directly or by post or online to the Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development (hereinafter referred to as the receiving agency);
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice to the forest
owner for them to complete their application and clearly state the reasons;
Within 05 days from the date of receiving an
adequate application, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
submit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for organizing the
collection of written appraisal opinions from relevant departments, central and
local authorities in accordance with the functions and tasks of the consulted
agency and the law on applications for functional subdivision adjustment of
special-use forest and the contents of the plan for functional subdivision
adjustment of the special-use forest as prescribed in Point a of this Clause;
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Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
documents from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a
written response to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development;
In case the adjustment is qualified, within 20
days, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall submit it to
the President of Provincial People's Committee for making decision on
functional subdivision adjustment of the special-use forest;
If the adjustment is not qualified, the Department
of Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice to the forest
owner stating the reasons.”.
5. Addition of clause 5 after clause 4 of Article
12:
“5. Secondary harvesting in cases where forest
areas are used to build infrastructure works for forest protection and
development or to construct temporary works for the construction of power grid
projects in accordance with applicable regulations.
a) Subject:
Forest products in forest areas are used to build
infrastructure works for forest protection and development or to construct
temporary works for the construction of power grid projects in accordance with
applicable regulations.
b) Conditions:
Secondary harvesting in forest areas used to build
infrastructure works for forest protection and development must have a decision
on approval of the project or works by a competent state authority.
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6. Amendment to Article 14:
“Article 14. Procedures for formulation, appraisal,
approval and implementation of Scheme for ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment in special-use forests
1. Forest owners shall prepare ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment schemes in accordance with the sustainable forest
management plan approved by competent state authorities. Contents of the scheme
include:
a) Preliminary assessment of the status of the
forest, the implementation ability and types of ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment products and services;
b) Preliminary explanation of the development plan
for routes and locations for organizing ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment, including: location, area, status, purpose, time and expected
implementation method;
c) Expected location, scale, materials, height,
density, ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment depending on the status of the forest in each
area, ensuring the function of the forest and complying with the principles
specified in Article 15 hereof;
d) Solutions for implementing the scheme include:
solutions on capital, investment resources; solutions on forest protection,
development, nature and biodiversity conservation and environmental protection;
fire prevention and fighting; methods of organizing ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment; forest environment rents in accordance with Clause 6 of this
Article;
dd) Organizing supervision of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment activities;
e) Forest status map of the special-use forest at a
scale of 1/10,000 or 1/25,000 in accordance with the VN2000 reference system;
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h) Maps at a scale of 1/10,000 or 1/25,000
according to the VN2000 reference system and explanation of the technical
infrastructure system orientation: planned connection points and traffic
network; above-ground cable lines including cable routes, stations, and support
towers; connection system and capabilities for electricity supply, water
supply, drainage, communication, fire safety.
2. Funds for formulation of ecotourism, hospitality
and entertainment schemes shall be balanced in the annual financial plan, from
forest environmental service proceeds of forest owners or from other lawful
financial sources in accordance with law.
3. The ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
scheme dossier includes:
a) Application form from forest owner (original
copy);
b) The ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
scheme specified in clause 1 of this Article (original copy):
4. Procedures for appraisal, approval of
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment schemes:
a) The forest owner shall send 01 application
specified in Clause 3 of this Article directly or by post or online to the
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for special-use forests under
local management or the Department of Forestry for special-use forests managed
by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the receiving agency
shall send a written notice to the forest owner for them to complete their
application and clearly state the reasons;
b) Within 05 days from the date of receiving an
adequate application, the receiving agency specified in point a of this Clause
shall organize the collection of written appraisal opinions from relevant
agencies, organizations, and individuals on the dossiers and contents of the
schemes as prescribed in Clause 3 and Clause 5 of this Article;
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d) Within 15 days from the date of receiving
written opinions from agencies, organizations and individuals, the receiving
agency specified in Point a of this Clause shall complete the appraisal;
dd) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
complete dossier submitted by the receiving agency at Point a of this Clause,
the President of the Provincial People's Committee (for special-use forests
under local management) or the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
(for special-use forests under its management) shall approve the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme;
The decision on approval of the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme of the forest is the basis for the
competent authority to receive the dossier and organize the appraisal of the
environmental impact assessment report at the request of the owner of the
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment project that requires preparation of
an environmental impact assessment report in accordance with law on
environmental protection.
e) The decision on approval of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme must include the following main contents:
Total area for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
activities;
Routes and locations for organizing ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment, including: location, area, current condition,
purpose, time and expected implementation method;
Expected location, scale, materials, height,
density, ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment;
Solutions for implementing the scheme include:
solutions on capital, investment resources; solutions on forest protection,
development, nature and biodiversity conservation and environmental protection;
fire prevention and fighting; methods of organizing ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment; forest environment rents in accordance with Clause 6 of this
Article;
Responsibility for organizing supervision of
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment activities;
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5. The main contents of the appraisal of the
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment scheme shall include:
a) The forest status, the implementation capability
and types of tourism products and services;
b) Expected location, scale, materials, height,
density, ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment depending on the current condition of the forest
in each area, ensuring the function of the forest and complying with the
principles specified in Article 15 hereof;
c) Time and method of implementation;
d) Solutions on capital, investment resources;
forest protection, development, nature and biodiversity conservation and
environmental protection; fire prevention and fighting; methods of organizing
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment; forest environment rents in
accordance with Clause 6 of this Article;
dd) Conformity with the requirements of ensuring
sustainable forest management of the construction site use quotas, structure
height for each route, point; location, scale of underground works; feasibility
planned connection points and traffic network; above-ground cable lines
including cable routes, stations, and support towers; connection system and
capabilities for electricity supply, water supply, drainage, communication,
fire safety;
e) Organization of supervision of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment activities;
g) Other contents as prescribed in Points e, g and
h of Clause 1 of this Article.
6. Lease of forest environment for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment service provision
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b) Public announcement of the selection of
organizations and individuals to rent forest environments for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment service provision shall include the following
main contents:
General information about the forest owner;
Expected location, area of leased forest
environments and method of organizing ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
services;
Summary of the ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment scheme approved by the competent state authority;
Technical dossier for selecting organizations and
individuals to rent forest environment as prescribed in Point c of this Clause;
Time and address for submitting registration
dossiers.
c) Forest owners shall organize the development of
technical dossiers for selecting organizations and individuals to rent forest
environment. Technical dossiers must be approved by forest owners before being
publicly announced, including the following basic criteria:
Requirements of capacity and experience of
organizations and individuals in ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
activities;
Business organization plan in accordance with the
approved Scheme for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment of the
special-use forest;
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Property disposal plan after the contract expires;
Commitment to time of project implementation, time
of harvesting and revenue generation;
Priority is given to organizations and individuals
who have been delegated to protect forests and are assessed to have performed
well in forest protection and development, nature conservation, and
biodiversity;
Professional conditions on sustainable forest
management and other criteria decided by the forest owner that are not contrary
to the law.
The criteria of the technical dossier are converted
into points to serve as a basis for assessment and selection in accordance with
the regulation on the minimum score to be qualified for each criterion; the
total score of the assessment criteria of the technical dossier is 100, in
which the minimum total score is stipulated; organizations and individuals are
qualified when they achieve the minimum score of all criteria and the minimum
total score to be qualified.
d) Organizations and individuals want to rent
forest environment for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service
provision must prepare an submit a registration dossier in accordance with the
requirements of the forest owner as prescribed in Point b of this Clause to the
forest owner.
dd) Forest owners shall based on the registration
dossiers of organizations and individuals organize assessments to select organizations
and individuals to rent forest environments in accordance with criteria for the
technical dossiers and shall be accountable for their selection. If there is
only one qualified organization or individual, the forest owner shall negotiate
and sign a forest environment lease contract, ensuring that the forest
environment rent is not lower than 1% of the total revenue realized in the
year, within the scope of the leased forest environment area. If there are
multiple qualified organizations or individuals, the forest owner shall select
the organization or individual with the highest score in the dossier assessment
in which, the price is considered a criterion, ensuring that the rent is not
lower than 1% of the total revenue realized in the year, within the scope of
the leased forest environment area.
e) After selecting organizations and individuals to
rent forest environments, the forest owner shall report the results to their
direct superior management authority for instruction, monitoring and
supervision.
g) The forest environment rent in the registration
dossier of an organization or individual shall be calculated based on the
percentage of the total revenue and must be converted to an absolute value for the
forest owner to assess, clearly stated in the forest environment lease
contract.
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Organizations and individuals renting the forest
environment for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service provision in
special-use forests are not required to pay for forest environmental service
charges for the leased area in accordance with herewith.
h) The lease term shall not exceed 30 years, and
contract execution shall be assessed every 5 years. At the end of the lease
term, if the lessee properly executes the contract and wishes to extend it, the
forest owner shall consider extending the lease term by no more than two-thirds
of the initial lease term.
i) Before signing a forest environment lease
contract made using the form in Appendix IA attached hereto, the forest owner
must conduct an inventory and statistics of the forest status of the leased
area as grounds for handing over boundary markers, status, and managing,
monitoring, and assessing the contract execution.
7. Ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
projects in special-use forests:
a) The forest owner or the organization or
individual that has been selected and signed a forest environment lease
contract shall prepare a feasibility study report for the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment project, ensuring compliance with: the national
forestry planning or provincial planning approved by a competent state
authority; the sustainable forest management plan and the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme approved by a competent state authority.
b) For the ecotourism, hospitality, and
entertainment projects with construction components, the preparation,
appraisal, approval, and management of the tasks in the preparation phase,
implementation phase, and construction completion phase of such projects must
comply with the law on construction. The contents specified in Point a of this
Clause are grounds for the state authority with competence to appraise the
feasibility study report to assess the contents on the conformity of the basic
design with the planning and the conformity of the project with the investment
guideline as prescribed in Point b and Point c of Clause 2 of Article 58 of the
Law on Construction 2014 (amended in 2020).
For projects without construction components, the
preparation, appraisal, approval and management of the project shall comply
with the law on public investment, the law on investment and other relevant
laws.
c) Forest owners shall provide guidance, inspecting
and supervising organizations and individuals renting the forest environment,
or cooperate and associate in the construction and implementation of
ecotourism, hospitality, and entertainment projects in accordance with the law.
After 24 months from the date of signing the cooperation, association or forest
environment lease contract, if the organization or individual fails to execute
the project, the forest owner shall consider terminating the contract, except
in cases of natural disasters, epidemics, objective obstacles during the
process of implementing legal procedures and other force majeure events agreed
upon by the two parties.
d) Funding for preparation of an ecotourism, resort
or entertainment project
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For the cooperation and association method, the
project funding is agreed upon by the parties;
For the forest environment lease method, the
project funding is covered by the organization or individual leasing the forest
environment.
8. 8. Forest owners who are residential communities
are allowed to organize ecotourism, sightseeing, study, and scientific research
activities in accordance with sustainable forest management plans approved by
competent state authorities.”.
7. Amendment to Article 15:
“Article 15. Management of construction of works
used for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment services in special-use
forests
1. Works used for ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment services in special-use forests are commercial and
service-oriented works in accordance with law on construction, must be
appropriated with the ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment projects
approved by competent authorities in accordance with Article 14 hereof and
ensure the following rules:
a) Causing no harm to the nature and biodiversity
preservation objectives, forest trees; construction works must be dependent on
nature and associated to the forest landscape, encourage the use of
environmentally friendly materials;
b) Not causing loss of State ownership of forests
and natural resources on Earth’s surface and underground natural resources
c) Not affecting national defense, security,
landscape and historical and cultural heritage;
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2. In strictly protected subdivisions, it is
allowed to establish forest protection patrol routes, combine the organization
of eco-tourism tours and forest environmental education, take advantage of
trails, build support pillars for overhead cables, underground cables,
landscape observation stations, shelters, pedestrian bridges, and signs for
forest protection combined with eco-tourism.
3. In ecological restoration subdivisions
a) It is allowed to establish suitable road routes
but not exceeding the scale of Class IV mountainous automobile roads, landscape
observation stations, shelters, signposts, to build support pillars for
overhead cables, underground cables, and pedestrian bridges;
b) It is allowed to build and install hospitality
and accommodation works using prefabricated materials and components that are
easy to disassemble, floating on water, on grasslands, on land with bushes, or
in vacant land calculated according to the canopy cover of forest trees,
ensuring no harm on the growth, development, and natural recovery of forest
trees, in harmony with the natural landscape;
c) The scale, materials, height, duration of
existence, density and ratio of the works are determined in the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme appraised and approved by the competent
state authority in accordance with Article 14 hereof, but the total area of
the works shall not exceed 2% of the area in the cooperation, association or
lease contract for the forest environment in this subdivision;
If the total construction area of works for
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment exceeds the regulations of this
point, the Provincial People's Committee shall, based on the practical
situation and the nature and scale of the specific project, send a written
request to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to report to the
Prime Minister for review and approval.
4. In the service and administrative subdivisions
of national parks, nature reserves, habitat conservation areas; landscape
protection areas; research and scientific experimental forests
a) It is allowed to build works used for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment services on grasslands, land with bushes, in
vacant land calculated according to the canopy of forest trees;
b) It is allowed to build and install hospitality
and accommodation works using prefabricated materials and components that are
easy to disassemble, floating on water, ensuring no harm on the growth,
development, and natural recovery of forest trees, in harmony with the natural
landscape;
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If the total construction area of works for
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment exceeds the regulations of this
point, the Provincial People's Committee shall, based on the practical situation
and the nature and scale of the specific project, send a written request to the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to report to the Prime Minister
for review and approval.
5. The issuance of construction permits and
management of construction order of works for ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment under ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment projects shall
comply with the law on construction and this Decree.
National forestry planning or provincial planning
approved by competent state authorities; The sustainable forest management plan
and the ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment scheme approved by a
competent state agency shall be grounds for the competent state authority to
assess the conformity with the construction planning as prescribed in Clause 1,
Article 91 or the location and total area of the project approved in writing
by a competent state authority as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 92 of the
Law on Construction 2014 (amended in 2020).
For ecotourism, hospitality, and entertainment
projects executed in the form of forest environment leasing, one of the
legitimate documents regarding land in the application for issuance of a
construction permit of the project owner, who is the organization or individual
renting the forest environment, in accordance with Government's regulations on
legitimate documents regarding land for the issuance of a construction permit,
includes legitimate documents regarding land of the forest owner and the forest
environment lease contract between the forest owner and the organization or
individual.”.
8. Addition of clauses 6 and 7 after clause 5 of
Article 17:
“6. The adjustment made to increase the area of a
protection forest by conversion of a specific area of special-use forest or
production forest or a forest outside the forestry planning into protection
forest shall be carried out in accordance with Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this
Article.
7. The adjustment made to reduce the area of a
protection forest by converting production forest special-use forest to
protection forest or forest repurposing shall be carried out in accordance with
Article 39, 40,and 42 hereof
After the competent authority makes the decision on
forest conversion or forest repurposing in sync with the land repurposing, the
forest owner must complete updating the forest management dossiers.”.
9. Amendments to point c of Clause 2, Point c of
Clause 3, Clause 4 of Article 20 and addition of Clause 5 to Article 20:
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The harvesting method shall be decided by the
forest owner: bamboo forests shall not be harvested for more than 30% of the
reserve on the harvested area and shall be evenly distributed in the lot; for
endangered and rare species, Government's regulations on the management of endangered
and rare species and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) shall apply.
b) Amendment to point c of clause 3:
“c) Harvesting methods
Pruning of main planted trees shall be carried out
in accordance with regulations of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural
Development on silvicultural measures. The selective felling of main planted
trees shall apply provided that the harvesting intensity does not exceed 20% of
the reserve in the plot each time, ensuring a minimum canopy cover of 0.6 which
is evenly distributed in the plot after harvesting; for mangrove and acid
sulfate forests, the density of main planted trees left after harvesting shall
be at least 1,500 trees/ha which is evenly distributed in the plot. Strip clear
cut shall apply provided that the strip’s length does not exceed 30 m; in case
of patch clear cut, the area of each patch shall not exceed 3 ha and total
annual harvesting area shall not exceed 20% of total forest area eligible to
perform protection function.”.
c) Amendment to clause 4:
“4. Secondary harvesting of timbers from natural
and planted forests
a) Subject: Timber trees in forest areas subject to
forest repurposing decision from the competent authority as prescribed; felled
timber trees during implementation of silvicultural technical measures, serving
training and scientific research tasks; timber trees on liquidated forest
areas; timber trees on forest areas used for construction of infrastructure
works serving forest protection and development and forest areas temporarily
used to construct temporary works serving the construction of power grid
projects as prescribed.
b) Conditions: having a decision of a competent
authority approving forest repurposing; decision approving silvicultural
schemes, programs, scientific research topics, decision on liquidation of
planted forests; decision approving infrastructure projects, works serving
forest protection and development; decision approving the plan for temporary
use of forests to construct temporary works serving the construction of power
grid projects by a competent state authority.”.
d) Addition of clause 5 after clause 4:
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a) Subject: fallen or dead trees due to natural
causes or natural disasters; burned dead trees, dry and rotten timber, branches
and tops remaining in the forest.
b) Conditions: forest owners must prepare a salvage
harvesting plan in accordance with the regulations of the Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Development.”.
10. Amendment to Article 23:
“Article 23. Procedures for formulation,
appraisal, approval and implementation of Scheme for ecotourism, hospitality
and entertainment in protection forests
1. Forest owners shall prepare ecotourism, hospitality
and entertainment schemes in accordance with the sustainable forest management
plan approved by competent state authorities. Contents of the scheme include:
a) Preliminary assessment of the current condition
of the forest, the implementation ability and types of ecotourism, hospitality
and entertainment products and services;
b) Preliminary explanation of the development plan
for routes and locations for organizing ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment,
including: location, area, current condition, purpose, time and expected
implementation method;
c) Expected location, scale, materials, height,
density, ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment depending on the current condition of the forest
in each area, ensuring the function of the forest and complying with the
principles specified in Article 24 hereof;
d) Solutions for implementing the scheme include:
solutions on capital, investment resources; solutions on forest protection,
development, nature conservation, biodiversity and environmental protection;
fire prevention and fighting; methods of organizing ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment; forest environment rents in accordance with Clause 6 of this
Article;
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e) Forest status map of the protection forest at a
scale of 1/10,000 or 1/25,000 in accordance with the VN2000 reference system;
g) The master plan drawings of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment routes and points, organization of tourism
architectural space and infrastructure of the protection forest area at a scale
of 1/10,000 or 1/25,000: determining the construction site quotas, structure height
for each route, point; location, scale of underground works; other requirements
to ensure sustainable forest harvesting and management (if any);
h) Maps at a scale of 1/10,000 or 1/25,000
according to the VN2000 reference system and explanation of the technical
infrastructure system orientation: planned connection points and traffic
network; above-ground cable lines including cable routes, stations, and support
towers; connection system and capabilities for electricity supply, water
supply, drainage, communication, fire safety.
2. Funds for formulation of ecotourism, hospitality
and entertainment schemes shall be balanced in the annual financial plan, from
forest environmental service proceeds of forest owners or from other lawful
financial sources in accordance with law.
3. The ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
scheme dossier includes:
a) Application form from forest owner (original
copy);
b) The ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
scheme specified in clause 1 of this Article (original copy):
4. Procedures for appraisal, approval of
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment schemes:
a) The forest owner shall send 01 application
specified in Clause 3 of this Article directly or by post or online to the
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for protection forests under
local management or the Department of Forestry for protection forests managed
by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;
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b) Within 05 days from the date of receiving an
adequate application, the receiving agency specified in point a of this Clause
shall organize the collection of written appraisal opinions from relevant
agencies, organizations, and individuals on the dossiers and contents of the
schemes as prescribed in Clause 3 and Clause 5 of this Article;
c) Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
written request for opinions, agencies, organizations, or individuals shall
send a response in writing regarding the dossier specified in point a of this
clause to the receiving agency if they have any opinions;
d) Within 15 days from the date of receiving
written opinions from agencies, organizations and individuals, the receiving
agency specified in Point a of this Clause shall complete the appraisal;
dd) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
complete dossier submitted by the receiving agency at Point a of this Clause,
the President of the Provincial People's Committee (for protection forests
under local management) or the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
(for protection forests under its management) shall approve the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme;
The decision on approval of the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme of the forest is the basis for the
competent authority to receive the dossier and organize the appraisal of the
environmental impact assessment report at the request of the owner of the
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment project that requires preparation of
an environmental impact assessment report in accordance with law on
environmental protection;
e) The decision on approval of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme must include the following main contents:
Total area for ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment activities;
Routes and locations for organizing ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment, including: location, area, current condition,
purpose, time and expected implementation method;
Expected location, scale, materials, height,
density, ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment;
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Responsibility for organizing supervision of
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment activities.
g) The authority with competence to approve ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment schemes shall approve adjustments to such
schemes. The content, budget, dossier, procedures for adjusting the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme shall comply with Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5
of this Article.
5. The main contents of the appraisal of the
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment scheme shall include:
a) The forest status, the implementation capability
and types of tourism products and services;
b) Expected location, scale, materials, height, density,
ratio and duration of existence of works serving ecotourism, relaxation,
entertainment depending on the current condition of the forest in each area,
ensuring the function of the forest and complying with the principles specified
in Article 24 hereof;
c) Time and method of implementation;
d) Solutions on capital, investment resources;
forest protection, development, nature conservation, biodiversity and
environmental protection; fire prevention and fighting; methods of organizing ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment; forest environment rents in accordance with
Clause 6 of this Article;
dd) Conformity with the requirements of ensuring
sustainable forest management of the construction site use quotas, structure
height for each route, point; location, scale of underground works; feasibility
planned connection points and traffic network; above-ground cable lines
including cable routes, stations, and support towers; connection system and
capabilities for electricity supply, water supply, drainage, communication,
fire safety;
e) Organization of supervision of ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment activities;
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6. Lease of forest environment for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment service provision
a) Forest owners are allowed to lease protection
forest environments to organizations and individuals through forest environment
lease contracts for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service provision.
The lease of forest environments must be publicly and widely announced for a
minimum period of 30 days in the following forms: posted at the office; posted
on the unit's website (if any); posted on the information portal or website of
the direct superior competent authority of the forest owner.
b) Public announcement of the selection of
organizations and individuals to rent forest environments for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment service provision shall include the following
primary contents:
General information about the forest owner;
Expected location, area of leased forest
environments and method of organizing ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
services;
Summary of the ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment scheme approved by the competent state authority;
Technical dossier for selecting organizations and
individuals to rent forest environment as prescribed in Point c of this Clause;
Time and address for submitting registration
dossiers.
c) Forest owners shall organize the development of
technical dossiers for selecting organizations and individuals to rent forest
environment. Technical dossiers must be approved by forest owners before being
publicly announced, including the following basic criteria:
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Business organization plan in accordance with the
approved Scheme for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment of the protection
forest;
Financial investment plan; expected proceeds and
forest environment rent scheme;
Property disposal plan after the contract expires;
Commitment to time of project implementation, time
of harvesting and revenue generation;
Priority is given to organizations and individuals
who have been delegated to protect forests and are assessed to have performed
well in forest protection and development, nature conservation, and
biodiversity;
Professional conditions on sustainable forest
management and other criteria decided by the forest owner that are not contrary
to the law.
The criteria of the technical dossier are converted
into points to serve as a basis for assessment and selection in accordance with
the regulation on the minimum score to be qualified for each criterion; the
total score of the assessment criteria of the technical dossier is 100, in
which the minimum total score is stipulated; organizations and individuals are
qualified when they achieve the minimum score of all criteria and the minimum
total score to be qualified.
d) Organizations and individuals want to rent
forest environment for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service
provision must prepare an submit a registration dossier in accordance with the
requirements of the forest owner as prescribed in Point b of this Clause to the
forest owner.
dd) Forest owners shall based on the registration
dossiers of organizations and individuals organize assessments to select
organizations and individuals to rent forest environments in accordance with
criteria for the technical dossiers and shall be accountable for their
selection. If there is only one qualified organization or individual, the
forest owner shall negotiate and sign a forest environment lease contract,
ensuring that the forest environment rent is not lower than 1% of the total
revenue realized in the year, within the scope of the leased forest environment
area. If there are multiple qualified organizations or individuals, the forest
owner shall select the organization or individual with the highest score in the
dossier assessment in which, the price is considered a criterion, ensuring that
the rent is not lower than 1% of the total revenue realized in the year, within
the scope of the leased forest environment area.
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g) The forest environment rent in the registration
dossier of an organization or individual shall be calculated based on the
percentage of the total revenue and must be converted to an absolute value for
the forest owner to assess, clearly stated in the forest environment lease
contract.
If, after contract conclusion, the percentage of
the total revenue converted to an absolute value is lower than the absolute
value stated in the signed contract, the amount of money that the organization
or individual renting the forest environment must pay to the forest owner is at
least equal to the amount stated in the contract.
Organizations and individuals renting the forest
environment for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service provision in
protection forests are not required to pay for forest environmental service
charges for the leased area in accordance with herewith.
h) The lease term shall not exceed 30 years, and
contract execution shall be assessed every 5 years. At the end of the lease
term, if the lessee properly executes the contract and wishes to extend it, the
forest owner shall consider extending the lease term by no more than two-thirds
of the initial lease term.
i) Before signing a forest environment lease
contract made using the form in Appendix IA attached hereto, the forest owner must
conduct an inventory and statistics of the forest status of the leased area as
grounds for handing over boundary markers, status, and managing, monitoring,
and assessing the contract execution.
7. Ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
projects in protection forests:
a) The forest owner or the organization or
individual that has been selected and signed a forest environment lease
contract shall prepare a feasibility study report for the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment project, ensuring compliance with: the national
forestry planning or provincial planning approved by a competent state
authority; the sustainable forest management plan and the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme approved by a competent state authority.
b) For the ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment projects with construction components, the preparation,
appraisal, approval, and management of the tasks in the preparation phase,
implementation phase, and construction completion phase of such projects must
comply with the law on construction. The contents specified in Point a of this
Clause are grounds for the state authority with competence to appraise the
feasibility study report to assess the contents on the conformity of the basic
design with the planning and the conformity of the project with the investment
guideline as prescribed in Point b and Point c of Clause 2 of Article 58 of the
2014 Law on Construction (amended in 2020).
For projects without construction components, the
preparation, appraisal, approval and management of the project shall comply
with the law on public investment, the law on investment and other relevant
laws.
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d) Funding for preparation of an ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment project
For the self-organization method, the project
funding is balanced in the annual financial plan, from the proceeds from forest
environment services of the forest owner or from other lawful financial sources
according to the law;
For the cooperation and association method, the
project funding is agreed upon by the parties;
For the forest environment lease method, the
project funding is covered by the organization or individual leasing the forest
environment.
8. 8. Forest owners who are residential
communities, households, individuals are allowed to organize ecotourism,
sightseeing, study, and scientific research activities in accordance with
sustainable forest management plans approved by competent state authorities.”.
11. Amendment to Article 24:
“Article 24. Management of construction of works
used for ecotourism, relaxation, entertainment services in protection forests
1. Construction works used for ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment services in protection forests are commercial and
service-oriented works in accordance with construction laws, must be in line
with the ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment scheme approved by the
competent authority in accordance with Article 23 hereof, including:
a) It is allowed to construct works on grasslands,
on land with bushes, or in vacant land calculated according to the canopy cover
of forest trees;
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c) The scale, materials, height, duration of
existence, density and ratio of the works are determined in the ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment scheme appraised and approved by the competent
state authority in accordance with Article 23 hereof, but the total area of
the works shall not exceed 5% of the area in the cooperation, association or
forest environment lease contract.
If the total construction area of works for
ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment exceeds the regulations of this
point, the Provincial People's Committee shall, based on the practical
situation and the nature and scale of the specific project, send a written
request to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to report to the
Prime Minister for review and approval.
2. Construction of works used for ecotourism,
relaxation, and entertainment services in protection forests must comply with
the following rules:
a) Causing no harm to the protection of landscape,
environment; carrying out nature and biodiversity preservation, causing to harm
to forest trees; construction works must be dependent on nature and associated
to the forest landscape, encourage the use of environmentally friendly
materials;
b) Not causing loss of State ownership of forests
and natural resources on Earth’s surface and underground natural resources
c) Not affecting national defense, security,
landscape and historical and cultural heritage;
d) The project owner is responsible for protecting,
preserving and developing forest resources in the area where ecotourism,
hospitality and entertainment activities are organized or area under scope of
guidance, inspection and supervision of the forest owner.
3. The issuance of construction permits and
management of construction order of works used for ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment under ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment projects shall
comply with the law on construction and this Decree.
National forestry planning or provincial planning
approved by competent state authorities; The sustainable forest management plan
and the ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment scheme approved by a
competent state agency shall be grounds for the competent state authority to
assess the conformity with the construction planning as prescribed in Clause 1,
Article 91 or the location and total area of the project approved in writing
by a competent state authority as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 92 of the
Law on Construction 2014 (amended in 2020).
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12. Amendment to clause 2 of Article 25:
“For forested land area
a) The forest owner and households, individuals or
residential communities whose land is allocated under lump-sum contracts is
allowed to plant alternately agricultural plants and non-timber forest
products, raise and plant aquatic products under forest canopies provided that
forest area, forest quality and capability of forest regeneration, protection
capability are not affected.
b) Combined forestry-agriculture-fishing production
under forest canopies
For planted forest decided by forest owner.
For natural forests planted in strips, the maximum
width of the strip is 12 m; the minimum area of the strips ranges must be
equal to twice the area of the planted strip. In case of concentrated
planting in pits, the area of each pit must be a maximum of 3,000 m2
and must be evenly distributed; the total area of the planted pits in the
forest plot must not exceed one-third of the plot area.”.
13. Amendment to point b of clause 2 of Article 27:
“b) Forest owners shall invest or cooperate or
associate in executing forest development projects and organizing production on
forest areas and production forest land allocated or leased by the State in
accordance with law. For forest owners that are public service providers to
which the State allocates forests and forestry land without collecting use
fees, during the cooperation or association process, they are not allowed to
use forest land as capital contribution to execute forest development projects
and organize production on the allocated forest areas and production forest
land.”.
14. Amendment to clause 2 of Article 28:
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a) Subject: Timber trees in forest areas subject to
forest repurposing decision from the competent authority as prescribed; felled
timber trees during implementation of silvicultural technical measures, serving
training and scientific research tasks; timber trees on liquidated forest
areas; timber trees on forest areas used for construction of infrastructure
works serving forest protection and development and forest areas temporarily
used to construct temporary works serving the construction of power grid
projects as prescribed.
b) Conditions: having a decision of a competent
authority approving forest repurposing; decision approving silvicultural
schemes, programs, scientific research topics, decision on liquidation of
planted forests; decision approving infrastructure projects, works serving
forest protection and development; decision approving the plan for temporary
use of forests to construct temporary works serving the construction of power
grid projects by a competent state authority.”.
15. Amendment to clause 2 of Article 29:
“2. Secondary harvesting of timbers from planted
forests
a) Subject: Timber trees in forest areas subject to
forest repurposing decision from the competent authority as prescribed; felled
timber trees during implementation of silvicultural technical measures, serving
training and scientific research tasks; timber trees on liquidated forest
areas; timber trees on forest areas used for construction of infrastructure
works serving forest protection and development and forest areas temporarily
used to construct temporary works serving the construction of power grid
projects as prescribed.
b) Conditions: planted forest with the State being
the representative owner subject to a decision on approving forest repurposing;
decision approving silvicultural schemes, programs, scientific research topics,
decision on liquidation of planted forests; decision approving infrastructure
projects, works serving forest protection and development; decision approving
the plan for temporary use of forests to construct temporary works serving the
construction of power grid projects by a competent state authority.”.
16. Amendment to Article 32:
“Article 32. Ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment activities in production forests
1. Forest owners who are (i) special-use forest
management boards and protection forest management boards allocated or leased
by the State with production forests, or (ii) economic organizations assigned
or leased by the State with production forests, or (iii) scientific and
technological organizations, training and vocational education organizations on
forestry currently managing production forests, are allowed to organize or
cooperate, associate or lease forest environments to organizations and
individuals for ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment service provision in
accordance with sustainable forest management plans approved by competent state
agencies and stipulated in Articles 23 and 24 hereof.
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17. Amendment to Article 35:
“Article 35. Plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing
1. Developing a plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing
a) Every year, the district-level People's
Committee shall develop a plan for forest allocation, forest lease, and forest
repurposing; and issue a written notice of the application for registration for
forest allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing to the district-level
relevant authority and the commune-level People's Committee. The time for
issuing a written notice of the formulation, appraisal, and approval of the
plan for forest allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing shall be
carried out concurrently with the time for development, appraisal, and approval
of the annual land use plan at the district level;
b) Within 20 days from the date of receiving the
application for registration for forest allocation, forest lease, or forest
repurposing, the district-level relevant authority and the commune-level
People's Committee shall consolidate and submit applications for forest
allocation, forest lease, and proposed schemes for forest repurposing to the
district-level People's Committee for reviewing the applications from
organizations, households, individuals, and residential communities. These
applications shall be consolidated according to Form No. 01 in Appendix II
attached hereto;
c) Based on applications for forest allocation,
forest lease, and forest repurposing from the district-level relevant authority
and the commune-level People's Committee, the People's Committee at the
district level shall consolidate the forest area not yet allocated or leased,
determine the targets of forest allocation, forest lease, and projects
proposing forest repurposing for each administrative division at the commune
level; consolidate the applications and estimate the targets of forest
allocation, forest lease, and projects proposing forest repurposing at the
district level for each commune-level administrative unit.
2. Contents of plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing
a) Area of all types of forests in districts and
communes, including: total forest area; forest area that has been allocated or
leased; forest area that has not been allocated or leased; results of forest
repurposing from the beginning of the planning period to the time of planning
according to Form No. 02 of Appendix II attached hereto;
b) Detailed plan for forest allocation and lease in
the district to each commune, in which sub-divisions, plots, lots, forest
areas, forest types, allocated forest areas, and leased forest areas according
to Form No. 03, Appendix II attached hereto;
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d) Limits for forest allocation to households,
individuals, and residential communities in line with land allocation limits;
dd) Assess the effectiveness of the plan for forest
allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing on the socio-economy,
environment, national defense, and security; proceeds from forest allocation,
forest lease, and forest repurposing; employment, labor attraction, poverty
eradication; the ability to reasonably harvest forest resources; requirements
for conservation, development of forest area and coverage rate associated with
conservation of landscape, ethnic cultures, and factors affecting national
defense and security;
e) Determine resources (financial, labor, and
technical), solutions, and progress in implementing the plan for forest
allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing.
3. Approval of plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing
a) In the third quarter of each year, the
district-level People's Committee shall submit the dossier on plan for forest
allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing to the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development;
The dossier includes: Application form in
accordance with Form No. 05 specified in Appendix II attached hereto; plan for
forest allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing; map of the plan for
forest allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing;
b) Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
complete dossier, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
organize the appraisal of the dossier on the plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing at the district level and submit it to the
Provincial People's Committee for approval. The content of the Application of
the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall be in accordance with
Form No. 06 specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
In case the application is inadequate or
inaccurate, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a
written notice clearly state the reasons to the District-level People's
Committee for them to complete their application within 15 days;
c) Within 05 days from the date of receiving the
dossier submitted by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the
Provincial People's Committee shall review and approve the plan for forest
allocation, forest lease, and forest repurposing at the district level
according to Form No. 07 specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
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4. The district-level People's Committee shall
publicize the approved plan for forest allocation, forest lease, and forest
repurposing at the offices of the district-level People's Committee and the commune-level
People's Committee with forests allocated, leased, or repurposed within 30 days
from the date the plan is approved.
5. Revision of plan for forest allocation, forest
lease, and forest repurposing
a) Plans for forest allocation, forest lease, and
forest repurposing shall only be revised due to adjustments to the planning and
plans of the direct superior authority that change the forest type (special-use
forests, protection forests, production forests) of the district level; due to
the establishment, merger, division, separation, or adjustment of
administrative boundaries of local areas; due to the impact of natural
disasters or response to environmental incidents that change the forest use
purpose; due to changes in resources to implement the plan, forming key
projects to serve national interests and public interests, which change the
direction of forest use.
b) The revision of the plan for forest allocation,
forest leasing, and forest repurposing is part of the approved plan for forest
allocation, forest leasing, and forest repurposing.
The revision of the plan for forest allocation,
forest lease, and forest repurposing shall comply with clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of
this Article.
c) Provincial People's Committees shall approve the
revision of the plan for forest allocation, forest leasing, and forest
repurposing.”.
18. Amendment to Article 36:
“Article 36. Procedures for allocating, leasing
forests
1. Procedures for allocating, leasing forests to
households, individuals, and residential communities
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b) Households, individuals, and residential
communities shall submit 01 application directly or by post or by electronic
media to commune-level People's Committees. Case of submission by electronic
media: the application components must be declared and signed with valid
digital signatures on the electronic forms provided in accordance with Clause
1, Clause 2 of Article 9 of Decree No. 45/2020/ND-CP dated April 8, 2020 of the
Government on performing administrative procedures by electronic media;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the commune-level
People's Committees shall send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
c) Within 05 days from the date of receiving
adequate applications, the commune-level People's Committees shall forward the
forest allocation application of households, individuals and residential
communities to the district-level Forest Protection Department or the forestry
authority of the district-level People's Committee in places where there is no
Forest Protection Department (hereinafter referred to as the district-level
forestry authority);
d) Within 30 days from the district-level forestry
authority receiving application for allocating forest to households,
individuals and residential communities sent by the commune-level People's
Committee, shall: cooperate with the Department of Natural Resources and
Environment in inspecting the forest allocation content according to the
provisions of Articles 14, 15 and 16 of the Forestry Law; cooperate with the
Commune-level People’s Committee in organizing the inspection of the current
status of the forest in the field (location, boundary, dispute); prepare a
report attached with the application for forest allocation to households,
individuals and residential communities which shall be submitted to the
district-level People's Committee for review and approval;
If the application is not qualified, the
district-level forestry authority shall send a written notice clearly stating
the reasons;
dd) Within 05 days from the date of receipt of the application
submitted by the district-level forestry authority, the district-level People's
Committee shall review and make decision on allocating forests to households,
individuals and residential communities according to Form No. 10 of Appendix II
attached hereto. If the application is not qualified, the district-level
forestry authority shall send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
e) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
forest allocation decision of the district-level People's Committee, the
district-level forestry authority shall cooperate with the commune-level
People's Committee in organizing the handover of forests on-site to households,
individuals and residential communities. The handover must clearly define the
location, boundary, area, current status, reserves, site conditions, tree
species, planting year for the planted forest, map of the allocated forest and
make a record signed by the representative of the commune-level People's
Committee, representative of adjacent forest owners according to Form No. 11
Appendix II attached hereto.
2. Procedures for allocating forests to
organizations
a) The application includes: Application form for
forest allocation using Form No. 13 specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
Investment project for the forest area to be allocated (original copy).
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Case of submission by electronic media: the
application components must be declared and signed with digital signatures on
the electronic forms provided in accordance with Clause 1, Clause 2 of Article
9 of Decree No. 45/2020/ND-CP dated April 8, 2020 of the Government on
performing administrative procedures by electronic media;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice clearly stating
the reasons;
c) Within 30 days from the date of receiving the
organization's complete and accurate application, the Department of Agriculture
and Rural Development shall: take charge and cooperate with the Department of
Natural Resources and Environment in inspecting the forest allocation
application and its content according to Articles 14, 15 and 16 of the Forestry
Law; take charge and cooperate with the Commune-level People’s Committee in
organizing the inspection of the current status of the forest in the field to be
allocated; prepare and submit an application form attached with the dossier to
the district-level People's Committee for review and decision on allocation; In
cases of refusal, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
d) Within 05 days from the date of receiving the
dossier and the application form submitted by the Department of Agriculture and
Rural Development, the Provincial People's Committee shall review and sign the
decision on forest allocation to organization in accordance with Form No. 14
specified in Appendix II attached hereto. In cases of refusal, the Department
of Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice clearly
stating the reasons;
dd) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
forest allocation decision of the provincial People's Committee, the Department
of Agriculture and Rural Development shall notify the organization to fulfill
its financial obligations (if any); cooperate with the District People's
Committee and the Commune People's Committee in organizing the handover of
forests in the field to the organization. The handover must clearly define the
location, boundary, area, current status, reserves, site conditions, tree
species, planting year for the planted forest, map of the allocated forest and
make a record with the participation and signature of representatives the
representative of the commune-level People's Committee, representative of
adjacent forest owners according to Form No. 15 Appendix II attached hereto.
3. Procedures for leasing forests
a) Develop plan for forest lease auction: Within 30
days from the date the forest lease plan is approved by the competent
authority, the district-level forestry authority (in case of forest rented by
households or individuals) or the Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development (in case of forest rented by organizations) shall develop a forest
lease auction plan and submit it to the district-level or provincial People's
Committee for approval according to Form No. 16 specified in Appendix II
attached hereto;
b) Determine the starting rent: Within 20 days from
the date the forest lease auction plan is approved, the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall determine the starting rent and submit
it to the Provincial People's Committee for approval in accordance with the law
on forestry and relevant laws;
c) Approve the starting rent: within 10 days from
the date of receiving the application form from the Department of Agriculture
and Rural Development, the Provincial People's Committee shall review and
approve the starting rent (the approved starting rent shall be the ground for
conducting the forest lease auction). In cases of refusal, the provincial
People's Committee shall send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
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Within 10 days from the date the starting rent is
approved by the provincial People's Committee, the district-level forestry
authority (for forest rented by households or individuals) or the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest rented by organizations) shall
sign a contract for property auction services with the property auction
organization according to the approved forest lease auction plan. The property
auction service contract must be made in writing and implemented in accordance
with the civil law and the Law on Property Auction;
dd) Within 30 days from the date of signing the
forest lease auction contract, the property auction organization that has
signed the property auction service contract shall carry out the procedures for
forest lease auctions in accordance with the law on auctions and relevant laws.
e) Approve forest lease bid winning results:
Within 05 days from the date of receiving the bid
winning results, the auction minutes, and the list of successful bidders, the
competent People’s Committee shall issue a decision recognizing the results of
the forest lease auction and send it to the district-level forestry authority
(for forests rented by households or individuals), the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development (for forests rented by organizations), the
unit organizing the forest lease auction, the renting agency, and successful
bidders.
g) Pay forest rent upon having decision on
recognizing the results of the forest lease auction:
Within 30 days from the date of the decision to
recognize the results of the forest lease auction, the successful bidder shall
transfer the rent to the State Treasury and payment documents to the district-level
forestry authority (for forests rented by households or individuals), the
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (for forests rented by
organizations) which shall then be reported to the People's Committee at the
same level for making forest lease decision.
h) Decide to lease forest:
Within 10 days from the date the successful bidder
fulfilled their financial obligations, the district-level People's Committee
shall review and sign the decision to lease the forest to the household or individual
according to Form No. 10 specified in Appendix II attached hereto; sign the
forest lease contract according to Form No. 12 specified in Appendix II
attached hereto; direct the district-level forestry authority to organize the
handover of forests in accordance with Point e of Clause 1 of this Article. The
provincial People's Committee shall review and sign the decision to lease
forests to organizations according to Form No. 14 specified in Appendix II
hereto; direct the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to sign the
forest lease contract according to Form No. 12 specified in Appendix II
attached hereto and organize the handover of forests in accordance with Point d
of Clause 2 of this Article.
In case the time limit prescribed in Point g of
this Clause has passed and the successful bidder has not paid the full amount
according to the hammer price, the district-level forestry authority (for
forests rented by households or individuals) or the Department of Agriculture
and Rural Development (for forests rented by organizations) shall submit to the
People's Committee of the same level to make a decision to cancel the
recognition of the bid winning results.
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a) Survey and assess the forest status and draw up
forest status maps as grounds for forest allocation and lease. The content of
survey and assessment of the forest status shall comply with Point b of this
Clause;
b) Contents of survey and assessment of the forest
status include: location (including: location coordinates, subdivision, plot,
lot), forest boundaries, administrative division of the forest; forest area
classified by: forest type (special-use, protection, production), origin of
forest(natural, planted), manager; forest reserves, tree species and year of
planting (for planted forests); identification of endangered, rare species of
forest flora and fauna (if any); construction of a map of survey, assessment of
the forest status;
Methods for surveying and assessing forest status
shall comply with regulations of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural
Development
c) The forestry authority shall inspect and confirm
the results of the survey and assessment of forest status, the maps of survey
and assessment of forest status in cases of allocating, leasing out forests to
households, individuals and residential communities. The Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall inspect and confirm the results of the
survey and assessment of forest status, the maps of survey and assessment of
forest status in cases of allocating, leasing out forests to organizations.
d) Funding for conducting the survey and assessment
of forest status
The funding for survey and assessment of forest
status in cases of forest allocation to households, individuals and residential
communities shall be covered by the state budget and other lawful sources as
prescribed. For cases of allocating and leasing out forests to organizations,
such organizations shall cover such funds.”.
19. Amendment to clause 1 of Article 39:
“1. The district-level People's Committee shall
develop a forest conversion plan for forest areas managed by households,
individuals, residential communities, and commune-level People's Committees;
the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall develop a forest
conversion plan for forest areas with organizations being the owner and forest
areas established by the Prime Minister under the management of
provincial-level People's Committees; National parks managed by the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall develop a forest conversion plan for
those that they manage.”.
20. Amendment to Article 40:
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1. The application for forest converting includes: Application
form of the agency developing the forest conversion plan; explanation of the
forest conversion plan.
2. Procedures for forest conversion for forest
established by the Prime Minister
a) The organization specified in Clause 1 of
Article 39 hereof shall develop and send a forest conversion plan directly or
by post or by electronic media 01 application as prescribed in Clause 1 of this
Article to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice clearly stating
the reasons;
b) Within 30 days from the date of receipt of the
adequate application, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
appraise and submit it to the Prime Minister for review and decision on forest
conversion;
c) Within 20 days from the date of receipt of the
application submitted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the
Prime Minister shall consider and decide on forest conversion.
3. Procedures for forest conversion for forests not
specified in Clause 2 of this Article
a) The agency specified in Clause 1 of Article 39
hereof shall develop and send a forest conversion plan directly or by post or
by electronic media 01 application as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to
the Provincial People's Committee;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the provincial
People's Committees shall send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
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c) The Provincial People's Council shall review and
decide on the forest conversion guideline as prescribed;
d) Within 15 days from the date having forest
conversion decision of the Provincial People's Council, the Provincial People's
Committee shall decide on forest conversion.
4. Pursuant to the forest conversion decision of
the competent authority, the Provincial People's Committee shall update the
forestry and land management records in accordance with the law on forestry and
land.”.
21. Amendment to Article 41:
“Article 41. Authority, procedures for deciding
on forest repurposing guidelines
1. Authority to decide on forest repurposing
guidelines shall comply with Article 20 of the Forestry Law which is amended in
Clause 5 of Article 248 of the Land Law 2024.
2. Application for deciding on forest repurposing
guidelines under the authority of the Provincial People's Council
a) Application form for deciding on forest
repurposing guidelines according to Form No. 17 (for organizations), Form No.
18 (for individuals) specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
b) A copy of the document approving the investment
guideline or the decision on the investment guideline or the decision approving
the investment project according to the law on investment, the law on public
investment, the PPP law, the law on petroleum, and other relevant laws; a
report proposing an urgent public investment project or a decision approving a
national program or target or a decision on the investment guideline of a
project including a component project proposing forest repurposing for the
project in accordance with Clause 6 of Article 18 of the Law on Public
Investment 2019;
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d) Report explaining the forest status and the
forest status map in the area proposed for forest repurposing, prepared by the
project owner within 6 months before the date of submission of the application.
The explanatory report must clearly indicate the location (forest plot, and
subdivision; administrative division), forest area by type of forest (reserve
forest, protective forest and production forest), origin of the forest (natural
forest or cultivated forest); forest status map of the scale of 1/5.000 for
projects with an area subject to forest repurposing of less than 500 hectares,
or the scale of 1/10,000 for projects with an area subject to forest
repurposing of hectares or more and linear projects;
dd) Written commitment to perform the obligation to
plant replacement forests for the area proposed for forest repurposing.
3. Procedures for deciding on forest repurposing
guidelines under the authority of the Provincial People's Council
a) Organizations and individuals with projects
requesting decision on forest repurposing guidelines shall submit directly or
by post or by electronic media 01 application as regulated in clause 2 of this
Article to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall send a written notice clearly stating
the reasons;
b) Within 15 days from the date of receiving an
adequate application, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
inspect and verify the forest status report and forest status map of the area
proposed for deciding on forest repurposing guidelines and organize the
appraisal. The contents of the appraisal include: legal basis; application
components; project investment necessity; subdivision, plot, lot location,
administrative division, forest area by origin of forest (natural forest,
planted forest), forest type (special-use forest, protection forest, production
forest); natural forest reserves, tree species, and planted forest reserves
according to the report and map of the forest status; compliance with the
principles, grounds for forest repurposing as stipulated in Articles 14 and 15
of the Forestry Law. For projects repurposing natural forest: Appraise whether
the project to meet the criteria for repurposing natural forest as prescribed
in Article 41a hereof;
In case result is not qualified, within 05 working
days from the date of appraisal organization, the Department of Agriculture and
Rural Development shall reply in writing and clearly state the reasons;
c) Within 10 days from the date having the
qualified results, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall
report to the Provincial People's Committee the appraisal results which shall
then be submitted to the Provincial People's Council for review and decision on
the forest repurposing guidelines;
d) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
appraisal results report and application from the Department of Agriculture and
Rural Development, the Provincial People's Committee shall submit to the
Provincial People's Council for review and decision on the forest repurposing
guidelines;
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d) If the forest area subject to repurposing is
managed by forest owner that is an affiliated unit of ministries and central
authorities, within 03 working days from the date of receipt of the appraisal
report from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the President
of the Provincial People's Committee shall issue a document to obtain the
consensus of the ministries and central authorities. The written request for
opinions includes: Application form of the Provincial People's Committee,
appraisal report of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and
documents specified in Clause 2 of this Article;
Within 15 days from the date of receiving the
request from the Provincial People's Committee, the ministries, central
authorities shall send their written opinions to the Provincial People's
Committee. In case of disagreement, reason must be clearly stated;
Within 05 days from the date of receiving the
consensus of the ministries and central authorities, the Provincial People's
Committee shall submit to the Provincial People's Council for review and
decision on the forest repurposing guideline.
The application to be submitted to the Provincial
People's Council includes: documents as prescribed in Point d of this Clause
and written opinions from ministries and central authorities.
e) The Provincial People's Council considers and
decides on the forest repurposing guideline as prescribed.
g) The Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development shall be accountable for the validity of the dossier, the results
of inspection and verification of the report explaining the forest status, the
forest status map of the area proposed for the forest repurposing guideline,
the appraisal results and the content of the report to the Provincial People's
Committee; The Provincial People's Committee shall be accountable for the
contents and application for deciding on the forest repurposing guideline; The
Provincial People's Council shall be accountable for their decision on
approving forest repurposing guideline, inspect and supervise the
implementation of the forest repurposing guideline.
4. For investment projects proposing forest
repurposing with investment guideline decided, approved by the National
Assembly, the Prime Minister, and the Provincial People's Councils in
accordance with the Investment Law, the Law on Public Investment, the Law on
Investment under the Public-Private Partnership, and the Law on Petroleum
a) The document approving or deciding on the project
investment guideline is also the forest repurposing guideline; the content of
the document approving or deciding on the project investment guideline must
state the expected scale of forest area to be repurposed to implement the
project.
b) The components of the forest repurposing
application in accordance with Point d of Clause 2 of Article 41 hereof are
components of the application submitted to the competent authority for approval
or decision on the project investment guideline.
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Opinions of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development regarding
the following contents are collected: Forest status (natural forests, planted
forests; special-use forests, protection forests and production forests);
criteria for projects eligible for forest repurposing (for projects repurposing
natural forests); the project's conformity with the planning as prescribed in
Clause 1 of Article 14 and Clause 1 of Article 19 of the Forestry Law, which is
amended Clause 1 and Clause 4, Article 248 of the Land Law 2024; confirming
whether or not the conditions are met to decide on the forest repurposing
guideline.
5. For projects with investment guideline decided,
approved by the Provincial People's Council that propose repurposing of forest
area managed by forest owners that are affiliated units of ministries and
central authorities, before submitting to the Provincial People's Council for
approval and decision thereon, the President of the Provincial People's
Committee shall issue a document to obtain the consensus of the ministries and
central authorities and shall only submit to the competent authority for
approval and deciding on the project investment guideline when the ministries
and central authorities agree on forest repurposing to implement the project.
6. For forest areas that have been planned for
repurposing but have not been decided by competent authorities, the regulations
on repurposing for the corresponding forest type shall apply before approving
the plan to change the use purpose of that forest are to a non-forestry
purpose.
7. Project investors must re-implement the
procedures for deciding on forest repurposing guidelines when competent
authorities have not decided on forest repurposing after 24 months from the
time the project is eligible to have its forest repurposing guideline
decided.”.
22. Addition of Article 41a after Article 41:
“Article 41a. Criteria for determining projects
eligible for forest repurposing
1. Projects with investment guidelines decided,
approved by the National Assembly in accordance with Article 7 of the Law on
Public Investment 2019, Article 30 of the Law on Investment 2020, Article 12 of
the Law on PPP 2020.
2. Projects serving national defense and security
confirmed in writing by the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of
Public Security.
3. Urgent projects that require natural forest
repurposing
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b) Urgent projects on construction of essential
socio – economic infrastructure (traffic, irrigation projects; freshwater lake
projects, waste treatment projects on islands); power source projects, power
grid projects to ensure national energy security and socio-economic
development; projects renovation of revolutionary sites/monuments, national historic
– cultural sites/monuments, and special national sites/monuments; projects on
mineral exploration and mining licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources
and Environment in accordance with law on mineral; projects on mineral mining
for conventional construction materials; ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment projects.
c) Projects that the Prime Minister has approved or
decided on investment guidelines or decided on approval of investment projects.
d) Projects specified in Points b and c of this Clause
shall be ineligible for repurposing forest area is such area is in the strictly
protected subdivision of special-use forests; shall be ineligible for
repurposing natural forest area if such area is under the planning of
special-use forests and protective forests for mineral mining.
d) In other cases not falling Points a, b and c of
this Clause, the Provincial People's Committee shall issue and send a written
request to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to report to the
Prime Minister for review and approval.”.
23. Addition of Article 41b after Article 41a:
“Article 41b. Revision of forest repurposing
guidelines
1. For projects with forest repurposing guidelines
decided by the Provincial People's Council
a) Projects that change the location and area of
forest but do not change the type of forest, or do not increase the area of
forest compared to the total area of forest decided by the Provincial
People's Council, do not have to revise the forest repurposing guideline.
b) In cases not covered by Point a of this Clause,
it is necessary to revise the forest repurposing guideline. The application and
procedures for deciding on revision of forest repurposing guideline shall
comply with Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 41 hereof.
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a) For projects changing the scale of the forest
area subject to repurposing that do not have to revise its project investment
guideline in accordance with the Investment Law, the Public Investment Law, the
PPP Law, the Petroleum Law, the Provincial People's Committee or the District
People's Committee shall decide on the repurposing of the forest area that has
changed; the procedures shall follow Article 42 hereof.
a) For projects changing the scale of the forest
area subject to repurposing that have to revise its project investment
guideline, the revision shall be carried out in accordance with the law on
investment, public investment, PPP, petroleum and relevant laws.
c) Projects that revise the investment guideline,
including changes in the scale of forest area subject to repurposing, and have
forest repurposing guideline decided, the appraisal authority shall seek
opinions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the provincial
People's Committee or the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the
district-level People's Committee where the project is executed in accordance
with Point c of Clause 4 of Article 41 hereof.”.
24. Amendment to Article 42:
“Article 42. Procedures for deciding on forest
repurposing
1. Authority to decide on forest repurposing shall
comply with Article 23 of the Forestry Law.
2. The application includes:
a) Application form for deciding on forest
repurposing according to Form No. 20 (for organizations), Form No. 21 (for
individuals) specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
b) A copy of the forest repurposing guideline
decision of the competent authority or a copy of the written approval or
decision on investment guideline for the project with investment guideline
decided, approved by the National Assembly, the Prime Minister, or the
Provincial People's Council in accordance with the Investment Law, the Public
Investment Law, the Law on PPP, and the Law on Petroleum;
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d) Report explaining the forest status and forest
status map as prescribed in Point d of Clause 2 of Article 41 hereof.
3. Procedures
a) Organizations and individuals with projects
requesting decision on forest repurposing shall submit directly or by post or
by electronic media 01 application as regulated in clause 2 of this Article to
the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (for organizations) or the
district-level forestry authorities (for individuals);
b) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
application for deciding on forest repurposing from the organization or
individual: The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall request
the Provincial People's Committee to decide on forest repurposing (for
organization) according to Form No. 22 of Appendix II attached hereto, together
with the documents as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article. The
district-level forestry authority shall prepare and submit an application form
to the Provincial People's Committee for deciding ọ forest repurposing (for
individual) according to Form No. 23 of Appendix II attached hereto, together
with the documents as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article;
In case the application is inadequate, within 03
working days from the date of receipt of the application, the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development or district-level forestry authority shall
send a written notice clearly stating the reasons;
c) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of the
application form and documentation, the provincial-level People's Committee
shall issue a decision on forest repurposing (for organizations) according to
Form No. 24 of Appendix II attached hereto, the district-level People's
Committee shall issue a decision on forest repurposing (for individuals)
according to Form No. 25 of Appendix II attached hereto. If the forest repurposing
is not approved, within 05 working days from the date of receipt of the
application form and documentation, the Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development or district-level forestry authority, the Provincial People's
Committee or the District-level People's Committee shall send a written notice
clearly stating the reasons.
4. For infrastructure works serving forest
protection and development as prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Article 51
of the Forestry Law, the provisions in Articles 41 and 42 hereof shall not be
applied. The construction of infrastructure works serving forest protection and
development must be appropriate with the sustainable forest management plan
approved by the competent authority. Forest owners shall develop a Forest Use
Plan according to Form No. 28 specified in Appendix II attached hereto and
submit it to the Provincial People's Committee or the Ministry or central
authority for approval according to the following procedures:
a) The application for approval of the Forest Use
Plan includes: Forest Use Plan according to Form No. 28 specified in Appendix
II attached hereto; the application form for approval of the Forest Use Plan
according to Form No. 29 specified in Appendix II attached hereto;
b) The forest owner shall send 01 application
specified in Clause 3 of this Article directly or by post or by electronic
media to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for forests under
local management or to the relevant authority affiliated with the ministry or
central authority in charge of receiving applications for forests managed by
such ministry or central authority;
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c) Within 10 days from the date of receipt of
adequate application, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development or
the relevant authority affiliated with the ministry or central authority shall
inspect, verify and consolidate documents which shall be submitted to the
Provincial People's Committee or the ministry or central authority for review
and approval. The approval application includes: documentation specified
in point a of this clause, application form, report on the results of the
inspection and verification;
d) Within 05 days from the date of receipt of the application
form and documentation of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development
or the relevant authority affiliated with the ministry or central authority,
the Provincial People's Committee or the ministry or central authority shall
review and approve the Forest Use Plan according to Form No. 30 specified in
Appendix II attached hereto. In cases of refusal, the provincial People's
Committee or ministry or central authority shall send a written notice clearly
stating the reasons.
5. For forest areas that have repurposing
guidelines decided by competent authority or have decision on forest
repurposing for project execution but such project has no need to use or uses
less than the decided forest area, the provincial People's Committee or the
district-level People's Committee must put such forest area under management in
accordance with the law on forestry.
6. The provincial People's Committee or the
district People's Committee shall be responsible for deciding on forest
repurposing.".
25. Amendment to Article 43:
“Article 43. Procedures for reclaiming forests
1. Procedures for reclaiming forests for cases
specified in point a, b and dd of clause 1 of Article 22 of Forestry Law
a) Within 10 days from the date of having inspection
conclusion of the competent state authority; the inspection agency shall send
the inspection results to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development,
the district-level People's Committee, the district-level forestry authority
and the forest owner;
b) Within 30 days from the date of receiving the
inspection conclusion of the competent authorities, district-level forestry
authorities for forest owners who are households, individuals, residential
communities, or the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development for forest
owners who are organizations shall inspect and verify the characteristics of
the forest and submit it to the People's Committees of the same level for a
decision on forest reclamation;
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2. Procedures for reclaiming forests for cases
specified in point c of clause 1 of Article 22 of Forestry Law
a) The forest owner shall send a document to return
the forest to the district-level forestry authority for forest owners being
households, individuals, and residential communities; to the Department of
Agriculture and Rural Development for forest owners being organizations;
b) Within 15 days from the date of receipt of the
request from the forest owner, the district-level forestry authority (for
forest owners being households, individuals, and residential communities) or
the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest owners being
organizations) shall submit to the district-level People's Committee or the
provincial-level People's Committee for issuance of a forest reclamation
decision;
c) Within 05 days from the date of receipt of the
application form submitted by the district-level forestry authority (for forest
owners who are households, individuals, residential communities) Departments of
Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest owners who are organizations),
the district-level People's Committee or provincial People's Committee shall
review and make decision on forest reclamation according to Form No. 26 or 27
of Appendix II attached hereto.
3. Procedures for reclaiming forests for cases
specified in point d of clause 1 of Article 22 of Forestry Law
a) Within 90 days before the end of the forest
allocation or lease period, the district-level forestry authority (for forest
owners being households, individuals, or residential communities), or the Department
of Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest owners being organizations),
shall notify the forest owners to whom the forest is allocated or leased of the
end of the forest allocation or lease period without extension;
b) Within 30 days before the end of the forest
allocation or lease period, the district-level forestry authority (for forest
owners being households, individuals, or residential communities), or the
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest owners being
organizations), shall submit to the district-level People's Committee or the
provincial People's Committee for review and issuance of a forest reclamation
decision;
c) Within 05 days from the date of receipt of the
application form submitted by the district-level forestry authority (for forest
owners who are households, individuals, residential communities) Departments of
Agriculture and Rural Development (for forest owners who are organizations),
the district-level People's Committee or provincial People's Committee shall
review and make decision on forest reclamation according to Form No. 26 or 27
of Appendix II attached hereto.
4. Procedures for reclaiming forests for cases
specified in point e of clause 1 of Article 22 of Forestry Law
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b) Within 15 days from the date of receipt of the
report from the Commune People's Committee, the district-level People's
Committee shall carry out the procedures for forest reclamation as prescribed
in Point b and Point c of Clause 2 of this Article.
5. Pursuant to forest reclamation decision issued
by competent authority, the Provincial People's Committee and the
District-level People's Committee shall carry out forest management in
accordance with the law on forestry.”.
26. Amendments to clauses 3, 4 and 6 of Article 57:
3. Industrial producers specified in Point c Clause
2 Article 63 of the Forestry Law that use water from water sources for
industrial production of all business lines in accordance with Appendix VIII
attached hereto. The Provincial People's Committee shall determine the list of,
water sources derived for forest environmental services and the minimum water
use level for industrial producers who are payers of forest environmental
services in the province.
4. For providers of ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment services specified in Point d of Clause 2 of Article 63 of the
Forestry Law, including travel services, tourist transport and accommodation
service, food, shopping, sports, recreation, healthcare, sightseeing and advertisement
services within or located adjacent to the forest providing forest environment
services, the Provincial People's Committee shall decide on the list of payers
of forest environmental services.
6. For aquaculture establishments specified in
Point e of Clause 2 of Article 63 of the Forestry Law that are aquaculture
organizations or organizations associated with aquaculture households and
individuals, the Provincial People's Committee shall decide on the list of
payers of forest environmental services.”.
27. Amendment to clause 4 and clause 5 of Article
59:
“4. The rate for forest environmental service
charge payable by providers of ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
services specified in Point d of Clause 2 of Article 63 of the Forestry Law shall
be at least 1% of their total realized revenue in a payment period; In case of
entrusted payment through the Provincial Forest Protection and Development
Fund, the specific charge rate shall be decided by the Provincial People's
Committee.
5. “4. The rate for forest environmental service
charge payable by aquaculture organizations or organizations associated with
aquaculture households and individuals specified in Point e of Clause 2 of
Article 63 of the Forestry Law shall be at least 1% of their total realized
revenue in a payment period; In case of entrusted payment through the
Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund, the specific charge rate
shall be decided by the Provincial People's Committee.
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“1. Forest environmental service providers shall
enter into contracts with the service users which specify the service type,
payment amount, and payment time and payment method. The rate for service
charges shall not be under the rate prescribed in Article 59 hereof; the
contract of payment for forest environmental services shall be made into 4
copies, each will be kept by the service provider, user, provincial forest
protection and development fund and Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development. Annually, the forest environmental service provider shall submit a
report on implementation results to the provincial Forest Protection and
Development Fund or the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for
provinces that have not yet established a Forest Protection and Development
Fund according to Form No. 01 of Appendix IX attached hereto.”.
29. Amendment to clause 1 of Article 69:
“1. The Vietnam forest protection and development
fund shall:
a) Determine the money amount distributed to
provincial forest protection and development funds and conduct distribution
thereof according to the forest environmental service charge amount collected
in reality and forest area on the drainage basin announced by the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development before December 31 every year.
a) Determine the money amount distributed to
provincial forest protection and development funds and conduct distribution
thereof before December 31 of the following year.”.
30. Amendments to some points and clauses of
Article 70:
a) Amendment to point a of clause 1:
a) Maximum 0.5% of total forest environmental
service charge amount collected in a year shall be deducted as management
funding for expenditure on operations of the Fund. The particular deducted
amount shall be specified in annual service charge collection and use plan of
the fund approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Expenditures on operations of the fund include:
Recurrent expenditures, including payment of salary
and contributions to members of the Fund Operation Board, payment of
remunerations for management to members of the Fund Management Board and Fund
Control Board; payment of wages, payment for public services, stationery,
information and communications; expenditures on meetings and conferences;
payment of allowances for business trip and rent; payment for repair and
maintenance of assets serving professional activities and infrastructure;
payment for appraisal of programs/projects or appraisal in bidding; expenditure
on money receipt and payment and expenditure on surveillance and other
expenditures (if any);
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b) Amendment to point a of clause 2:
a) Maximum 10% of total forest environmental
service charge amount collected in a year shall be deducted as management
funding for expenditure on operations of the Fund. The particular deducted
amount shall be specified in annual service charge collection and use plan of
the fund approved by the provincial People’s Committee. Expenditures on
operations of the fund include:
Recurrent expenditures, including payment of
salary and contributions to members of the Fund Operation Board, payment
of remunerations for management to members of the Fund Management Board and
Fund Control Board; payment of wages, payment for public services, stationery,
information and communications; expenditures on meetings and conferences;
payment of allowances for business trip and rent; payment for repair and
maintenance of assets serving professional activities and infrastructure;
payment for appraisal of programs/projects or appraisal in bidding; expenditure
on money receipt and payment and expenditure on surveillance and other
expenditures (if any);
Non-recurrent expenditures, expenditure for review
and determination of forest area provided under forest environmental service
contracts; expenditure for technical activities to monitor and assess the
quality of forest environmental services; expenditure for support related to
payment for forest environmental services at district and commune levels;
expenditure for conferences and training for improvement of professional
skills; expenditure for purchase and repair of a massive quantity of assets for
the fund operations and purchase of other specific equipment serving payment
services; expenditure for payment for dissemination and audit services;
expenditure for supporting the preparation of sustainable management plans and
issuance of forest certificates; expenditure for support for scattered tree
planting activities; expenditure for support for activities of updating and
monitoring forest developments; expenditure for activities to increase proceeds
from forest environmental services; other expenditures decided by the
provincial People's Committee. The guaranteed expenditures that do not overlap
with the expenditures of the state budget.”.
c) Amendments to points b, c and d of clause 3:
“b) Forest owners who are enterprises may
manage and use forest environmental service charges which are considered their
revenue as per law provisions on finance applied to enterprises after deducting
costs for forest protection and development activities.
c) Forest owners that are organizations not
specified in Point b Clause 3 this Article and do not enter into lump-sum
contracts for forest protection or only have a part of forest area protected
under lump-sum contracts may wholly use the forest environmental service
charges for forest management, protection and development purpose, including:
preparation and implementation of plans for sustainable forest management and
forest certificate issuance; ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment schemes;
construction of items of silvicultural works and technical works serving forest
protection and development; patrol and eradication of hot spots and action
against violations related to forest protection and development; purchase of
property and instruments and maintenance and repair of property, equipments and
devices used for forest protection; recording and mapping of payment for forest
environmental services, inspection, supervision, assessment, commissioning,
dissemination, encouragement, training, practice, conferences and other
activities serving payment for forest environmental services; payment of salary
and other salary-related payments (to persons not getting paid from state
budget and subject receiving salaries from the state budget in cases where the
state budget does not guarantee payment of salaries and other salary-related
payments); other activities serving forest management, protection and
development.
Charges for provision of forest area that is
protected by forest owners themselves shall be considered a source of their
revenue and managed by them as per financial law applicable to each
organization type;
d) Forest owners that are organizations specified
in Point c Clause 3 this Article and enter into lump-sum contracts for forest
protection with family households, individuals or communities may deduct 10% of
forest environmental service charges for forest area under the protection
contracts mentioned above for the purpose of forest management, protection and
development, including: preparation and implementation of plans for sustainable
forest management and forest certificate issuance, ecotourism, hospitality and
entertainment schemes, construction of items of silvicultural works and
technical works serving forest protection and development; patrol and
eradication of hot spots and action against violations related to forest
protection and development; purchase of property and instruments and
maintenance and repair of property, equipments and devices used for forest
protection; recording and mapping of payment for forest environmental services,
inspection, supervision, assessment, commissioning, dissemination,
encouragement, training, practice, conferences and other activities serving
payment for forest environmental services; payment of salary and other
salary-related payments (to persons not getting paid from state budget and
subject receiving salaries from the state budget in cases where the state
budget does not guarantee payment of salaries and other salary-related
payments); other activities serving forest management, protection and
development.
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After deducting the money amount used for
management purpose, forest owners shall pay the remaining forest environmental
service charge amount to the contractors in compliance with Clause 3 Article 69
hereof.”.
d) Amendments to point a and b of clause 4:
“a) Payment to forest guards, including: wages,
travel expenses, insurance, protective equipment and other expenditures;
b) Purchase of vehicles, tools, equipment, gasoline
and oil for forest patrol and inspection.”.
31. Amendment to point b of clause 4 of Article 71:
“b) The forest owners that are organizations shall
close the accounting books, prepare and submit the final settlement report in
accordance with regulations on financial management for each type of
organization.”.
32. Amendments to some points and clauses of
Article 76:
a) Amendments to point g and i of clause 1:
g) Comply with law regulations on finance,
statistics, accounting and audit; send reports on management and use of the
Fund's financial resources of the competent authority according to Form No. 03
specified in Appendix IX attached hereto;
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b) Amendment to point h of clause 2:
“h) Comply with law regulations on finance,
statistics, accounting and audit; send reports on management and use of the
Fund's financial resources of the competent authority according to Form No. 03
specified in Appendix IX attached hereto;
33. Amendments to some points and clauses of
Article 87:
a) Amendments to point b, c and g of clause 1:
“b) Forestation, forest care, forest protection,
forest regeneration zoning and promotion, forest nursing and forest enrichment;
c) Inventory and supervision of development of
forest resources and biodiversity; forest investigation, statistics and
inventory and announcement of forest status;
g) Dissemination and education of laws on forest
protection and development; improvement of the capacity of forest protection
forces;”.
b) Amendment to point c of clause 4:
c) Study and application of remote sensing
technology, information technology, digital transformation and bio-technology
in management and protection of forest resources;”.
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“5. Purchase, repair of means, equipment,
devices, tools supporting: forest protection; forest fire safety; monitoring
and warning of forest fire risks; prevention and elimination of organisms
harmful to forests.”.
d) Change of the name of clause 6:
“6. Constructing, maintaining, servicing,
upgrading, and renovating infrastructure for the protection and development of
special-use forests and protection forests.”.
dd) Amendment to clause 8:
"8. Forest status investigation, inventory,
statistics, supervision, establishment and management of forest databases;
management, investigation, assessment and supervision of forest resources;
inspection, supervision, and assessment of the results of implementing forestry
sector strategies, programs, and schemes.".
34. Amendments to point b and dd of and addition of
point e to clause 3 of Article 88:
“b) Support for forest protection contracts in
ethnic minority areas, mountainous areas, border areas, islands, and extremely
socio-economically disadvantageous areas; forest protection and forest
regeneration zoning and promotion with additional forestation for natural
production forests for households and residential communities in mountainous
areas, border areas, islands, and extremely socio-economically disadvantageous
areas;
dd) Giving rice to poor households and ethnic
minority households living in extremely socio-economically disadvantageous
areas for purposes forest protection and forest regeneration zoning and
promotion with additional forestation, forestation of production forest and
development of non-timber forest products, forestation of protection forest,
and forestation as a substitute for paddy land to change shifting cultivation
customs.
e) Support for the development and replication of
effective and sustainable forestry economic development models.”.
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1. The phrase "using state budget
capital" is replaced with the phrase "with the State as the Owner's
representative” at Point a of Clause 1 and Point b of Clause 3 of Article 29.
2. The phrase "invested by the state
budget" is replaced with the phrase "with the State as the Owner's
representative " at point b of clause 5 of Article 29.
3. The phrase "General Department of
Forestry" is replaced with the phrase "Department of Forestry"
at Clause 1 of Article 75 and Point d of Clause 1 of Article 76.
4. Appendix IA is added after Appendix I and
Appendix VIII, IX are added after Appendix VII.
5. Appendix II, Appendix VII are replaced.
6. Clause 5 of Article 57 is replaced.
Article 3. Responsibility for
implementation
1. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development shall provide guidance and inspect the state management of forestry
nationwide within its jurisdiction; supervise and consolidate difficulties and
requests of administrative divisions; and propose amendments to the Decree if
necessary.
2. The Ministry of Construction shall take charge
and cooperate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in
providing guidance and inspecting the management of construction of works
serving ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment in forests with construction
components.
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4. Ministries, ministerial agencies, government
agencies and relevant agencies shall perform state management responsibilities
within their jurisdiction.
Article 4. Implementation
clauses
1. This Decree comes into force from July 18, 2024.
2. Decree No. 83/2020/ND-CP dated July 15, 2020 of
the Government amending number of articles of Decree No. 156/2018/ND-CP dated
November 16, 2018 of the Government elaborating Forestry Law shall cease to be
effective from the effective date of this Decree.
3. Transitional provisions
a) For projects proposed for forest repurposing
that already has forest repurposing guidelines decided by the National Assembly
or the Prime Minister before the effective date of this Decree but need to
revise such guidelines, the Provincial People's Council shall decide on the
revision of forest repurposing guidelines; the procedures therefor shall comply
with Article 41b hereof.
b) For projects proposed for forest repurposing
that already have investment guidelines approved, decided by the National
Assembly or the Prime Minister before the effective date of this Decree but
have not had forest repurposing guidelines decided by competent authority, the
project owner shall prepare and submit an application for deciding on forest
repurposing guidelines to the Provincial People's Council; the procedures shall
be carried out in accordance with Article 41 hereof.
c) For valid application for deciding on forest
repurposing guidelines, which have been received by the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development but have not been submitted or have been submitted and
not yet approved by competent authorities before April 1, 2024: within 30 days
from the effective date of this Decree, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development shall complete the appraisal of such application in accordance with
Decree No. 83/2020/ND-CP dated July 15, 2020:
For qualified applications: The Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development shall submit them to competent authorities
for review and approval:
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d) Applications for deciding on forest repurposing
guidelines under the authority of the Provincial People's Council that have
been appraised by the Provincial People's Committee and submitted to the
Provincial People's Council or valid application that have been received and
appraised by competent authorities before April 1, 2024, shall continue to be
processed in accordance with the procedures prescribed in Decree No.
83/2020/ND-CP dated July 15, 2020.
dd) Organizations and individuals that have been
selected and signed a forest environment lease contract in accordance with
their authority and law to provide ecotourism, hospitality and entertainment
services before the effective date of this Decree shall continue to comply with
the time of the signed contract and the content prescribed in this Decree.
e) For valid application for forest allocation,
forest lease, forest recovery, forest conversion, deciding on forest
repurposing, which have been received, appraised and submitted to competent
authorities before the effective date of this Decree, they shall continue to be
processed and completed within 60 days from the effective date of this Decree.
In case of failure to complete after this period, the regulations of this
Decree shall apply./.
ON BEHALF OF
THE GOVERNMENT
PP. PRIME MINISTER
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER
Tran Luu Quang