Decree No. 48/2026/ND-CP on amending and supplementing Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP on elaboration of the Law on Environmental Protection amended and supplemented by the Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP

 

DECREE

AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING CERTAIN ARTICLES OF THE GOVERNMENT’S DECREE NO. 08/2022/ND-CP DATED JANUARY 10, 2022 ON ELABORATION OF SEVERAL ARTICLES OF THE LAW ON ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AMENDED AND SUPPLEMENTED BY THE DECREE NO. 05/2025/ND-CP DATED JANUARY 06, 2025

Pursuant to the Law on Government Organization No. 63/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Local Government Organization No. 72/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Environmental Protection No. 72/2020/QH14 amended and supplemented by the Law No. 11/2022/QH15, Law No. 16/2023/QH15, Law No. 18/2023/QH15, Law No. 47/2024/QH15, Law No. 54/2024/QH15 and Law No. 146/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Public Investment No. 58/2024/QH15 amended and supplemented by the Law No. 90/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Investment No. 61/2020/QH14 amended and supplemented by the Law No. 03/2022/QH15, Law No. 57/2024/QH15 and Law No. 143/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on State Budget No. 89/2025/QH15;

At the request of the Minister of Agriculture and Environment;

The Government hereby promulgates a Decree amending and supplementing certain Articles of the Government’s Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP dated January 10, 2022 on elaboration of several Articles of the Law on Environmental Protection amended and supplemented by the Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP dated January 06, 2025.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing Article 1

“Article 1. Scope

This Decree elaborates on clause 4 Article 9; clause 5 Article 13; clause 4 Article 14; clause 4 Article 15; clause 3 Article 20; clause 4 Article 21; clause 4 Article 23; clause 2 Article 24; clause 3 Article 25; clause 7 Article 28; clause 2 Article 31; clause 7 Article 33; clause 4 Article 35; clause 7 Article 37; point a clause 1 Article 39; clause 4 Article 41; clause 6 Article 44; clause 5 Article 46; clause 8 Article 49; clause 6 Article 51; clauses 1 and 4 Article 52; clause 4 Article 53; clause 5 Article 54; clause 5 Article 55; clause 7 Article 56; clause 3 Article 59; clause 5 Article 61; clause 1 Article 63; clause 7 Article 65; clause 7 Article 67; point d clause 2 Article 69; clause 2 Article 70; clause 3 Article 71; clause 8 Article 72; clause 7 Article 73; clause 4 Article 78; clauses 3 and 4 Article 79; clause 3 Article 80; clause 3 Article 84; clause 1 Article 86; clause 1 Article 105; clause 4 Article 110; clause 7 Article 111; clause 7 Article 112; clause 4 Article 114; clause 3 Article 115; point a clause 2 Article 116; clause 7 Article 121; clause 4 Article 131; clause 4 Article 132; clause 4 Article 135; clause 5 Article 137; clause 5 Article 138; clause 2 Article 140; clause 5 Article 141; clause 4 Article 142; clause 3 Article 143; clause 5 Article 144; clause 4 Article 145; clause 2 Article 146; clause 7 Article 148; clause 5 Article 149; clause 5 Article 150; clause 3 Article 151; clause 4 Article 158; clause 6 Article 160; clause 4 Article 167; clause 6 Article 171 of the Law on Environmental Protection amended and supplemented by the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment.”.

Article 2. Amending and supplementing clause 1 of Article 18

“1. The provincial People’s Committee shall formulate, promulgate and organize the implementation of the extremely serious soil pollution area remediation and improvement plan specified in point b clause 3 Article 19 of the LEP; the implementation of the plan must be explicitly stated in a provincial-level environmental protection report, which will be submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment for consolidation.”.

Article 3. Amending and supplementing point b clause 5 of Article 19

“b) For a provincial natural heritage site specified in point b clause 4 Article 21 of this Decree:

The agency or unit assigned by the Chairperson of the provincial People’s Committee to set up a project on establishment of natural heritage site in the area under its management and submit it to the provincial People’s Committee. The Chairperson of the provincial People’s Committee shall assign an agency to appraise, consider and decide to recognize the natural heritage site;

The agency or unit assigned by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment to set up a project on establishment of natural heritage site located in at least 02 provinces or central-affiliated cities or within the territorial waters to which responsibility of the provincial People’s Committee for administrative management are yet to be assigned shall submit the project to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. The Minister of Agriculture and Environment shall assign an agency to appraise, consider and decide to recognize the natural heritage site.”.

Article 4. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 20

1. Point a of clause 2 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) For a natural heritage site located in 01 province or central-affiliated city: the application shall be submitted to the provincial People’s Committee for consideration and submission to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment for appraisal.

If the natural heritage site is managed by a Ministry or central agency or located within the territorial waters to which responsibility of the provincial People’s Committee for administrative management are yet to be assigned, the management board or organization assigned to manage natural heritage sites shall submit the application to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment after obtaining written consent from the People’s Committee of the province sharing its boundary with the natural heritage site to be recognized;”.

2. Point d of clause 2 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“d) The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall cooperate with the provincial People’s Committee in completing the application after holding an appraisal council meeting and submitting to the Prime Minister the guidelines for applying for recognition of international title given by the international organization to the natural heritage site.”.

3. Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. After the Minister of Agriculture and Environment grants approval for the guidelines, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall submit, or cooperate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in, submitting an application for title recognition in accordance with regulations of the international organization.”.

Article 5. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 25

1. Point b of clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) Regarding the area of land used and land with water surface of the project, the scale of the project shall be classified into 03 types: large (300 ha or more), medium (from 50 ha to less than 300 ha) and small (less than 50 ha);”.

2. Some points of clause 4 are amended and supplemented as follows:

a) Point a is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) The project which is involved in a type of production, business or service that is likely to cause environmental pollution specified in the Appendix II hereto is located in a ward of an urban area in accordance with regulations of law on urban area classification, except the project that connects wastewater to the centralized wastewater treatment system of a dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster as prescribed without discharging dusts or emissions to be treated into the environment;”;

b) Point c is amended and supplemented as follows:

“c) The project uses land or land with water surface of any wildlife sanctuary as prescribed by regulations of law on biodiversity, forestry and fisheries, special-use forest, protection forest or land covered by natural forest as prescribed by regulations of law on forestry, protected area of aquatic resources as prescribed by regulations of law on fisheries, significant wetland, biosphere reserve or world natural heritage site and falls into one of the cases specified in points a, b, c and d column (3).7a in the Appendix III or points a, b, c and d column (3).5a in the Appendix IV to this Decree (except for work construction investment projects approved by competent authorities having only one or more objectives: serving management and protection of forests; nature and biodiversity conservation; forest fire prevention and fighting; silviculture);”;

c) Point dd is amended and supplemented as follows:

“dd) The project requests repurposing of land or land with water surface of a wildlife sanctuary, world natural heritage site, biosphere reserve, significant wetland, special-use forest, protection forest or land covered by natural forest and falls into one of the cases specified in points a, b, c and d column (3).7b in the Appendix III or points a, b, c and d column (3).5b in the Appendix IV to this Decree (except for work construction investment projects approved by competent authorities having only one or more objectives: serving management and protection of forests; nature and biodiversity conservation; forest fire prevention and fighting; silviculture);”.

Article 6. Supplementing point l after point k clause 4 of Article 26

“l) The owner of a special public investment project in accordance with the law on public investment shall only hold a consultation by publishing its contents on website as prescribed in point a clause 3 of this Article.”.

Article 7. Amending and supplementing clause 1 of Article 26a

“1. Decentralize to provincial People’s Committees the authority to appraise EIARs and applications for issuance of environmental licenses (if required to obtain environmental licenses) with regard to the following investment projects under the EIAR appraisal authority of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment as specified in clause 1 Article 35 of the Law on Environmental Protection:

a) Public investment projects not under the authority of the National Assembly and the Prime Minister to decide and approve investment policies, except for projects providing waste recycling and treatment services;

b) Projects classified according to the criterion “requesting repurposing of land or land with water surface of a wildlife sanctuary, natural heritage site, biosphere reserve, significant wetland, special-use forest, protection forest or land covered by natural forest and not subject to the authority of the National Assembly and Prime Minister to decide and approve investment policies;

c) Hydropower projects not under the authority of the National Assembly and the Prime Minister to decide and approve investment policies;

d) Projects on exploitation of crude oil and natural gas.”.

Article 8. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 27

1. Point a of clause 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) Increase in the total wastewater flow or total dust and emission flow discharged into the environment when a project comes into official operation. The total wastewater flow or total dust and emission flow discharged into the existing environment of the project shall be determined on the basis of the maximum discharge flow and the discharge method specified in the decision on approval of EIAR appraisal result or the environmental license of the project;”.

2. Some points of clause 6 are amended and supplemented as follows:

a) Point b is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) Increase in mineral reserves or mining capacity, changes or additions to the mineral mining method to the extent that the mineral mining license has to be adjusted as per the law on minerals; any addition of a mineral mining site leading to mandatory implementation of procedures for issuance of the mineral mining license according to the law on geology and minerals; any change to the environmental improvement and remediation content leading to a decrease in the deposits on environmental remediation and improvement calculated at the time the environmental remediation and improvement scheme was approved, except where the deposits on environmental remediation and improvement are decreased due to a decrease in the mineral mining area or reserves;”.

b) Point c is amended and supplemented as follows:

“c) Increase in the scale of exploitation and use of water resources, change of water sources and aquifers exploited and used to the extent that a new water resource license has to be issued according to regulations of law on water resources;”.

c) Point e is amended and supplemented as follows:

“e) Failure to build and install at least one treatment stage of an approved waste treatment work or replacement of the approved waste treatment technology with another technology in the following cases: Wastewater treatment system with a capacity of 50 m³/day or more (except where the investment project’s wastewater is connected to the centralized wastewater collection and treatment system of a dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster or the centralized wastewater collection and treatment system of an urban area or residential area) or emissions treatment system with a capacity of 20,000 m³/hour or more;”.

3. Clause 12 is supplemented after clause 11 as follows:

“12. In case the project owner adjusts contents of the project as in the case specified in clause 2 of this Article in the course of perfecting the EIAR as requested by the competent authority or competent person stated in the document notifying that the EIAR has been approved but has to be adjusted and supplemented, the EIAR appraisal shall be conducted in accordance with Article 34 of the Law on Environmental Protection.”.

Article 9. Supplementing Article 27a and Article 27b after Article 27

1. Article 27a is supplemented after Article 27 as follows:

 “Article 27a. Preparation of EIAR for project divided into investment phases or divided into constituent projects

1. Where an investment project is permitted by a competent authority to be divided into constituent projects, an EIAR shall be prepared for each constituent project that satisfies the environmental criteria subject to EIA.

2. Where an investment project satisfies the environmental criteria subject to EIA and is divided into investment phases in accordance with law, the project owner may choose to prepare an EIAR for each investment phase or an EIAR for the overall project.

Where the project owner chooses to prepare an EIAR for each investment phase, the EIAR for the subsequent phase shall inherit and update contents of the EIAR already carried out for the previous phases of the project. The decision to approve result of appraisal of EIAR for the subsequent phase shall replace the effective decision to approve result of appraisal of EIAR for the previous phase.

3. The environmental criteria for classifying an investment project as prescribed in clause 2 of this Article shall be determined according to the overall project.”.

2. Article 27b is supplemented after Article 27a as follows:

 “Article 27b. Appraisal of EIARs, issuance of environmental license for certain specific projects

1. In case an investment project is located in at least 02 provincial-level administrative divisions or within the territorial waters to which responsibility of the provincial People’s Committee for administrative management are yet to be assigned and at the same time is under the authority to appraise EIAR of the Chairperson of the provincial People’s Committee as specified in clause 3 Article 35 of the Law on Environmental Protection and clause 1 Article 26a of this Decree, the appraisal authority shall be determined as follows:

a) Where the investment project located in at least 02 provincial-level administrative divisions has its investment policy decided or approved by the National Assembly or the Prime Minister, and 01 provincial People’s Committee acting as a competent authority in accordance with the law on public – private partnership investment or 01 Chairperson of a provincial People’s Committee is assigned to decide investment in accordance with the law on public investment or where the project has been divided into constituent projects and each component project is implemented within only one provincial-level administrative division, the authority to appraise the EIAR shall lie with the Chairperson of the provincial People’s Committee vested with the authority or the Chairperson of the People’s Committee of the province where the constituent project is implemented;

b) Where the investment project is located in 02 provincial-level administrative divisions and does not fall under point a of this clause, the Chairperson of the People’s Committee of one of the provinces where the project is implemented shall carry out appraisal of the EIAR at the request of the investment project owner;

c) Where the investment project is located within the territorial waters to which responsibility of the provincial People’s Committee for administrative management are yet to be assigned, the Chairperson of the People’s Committee of one of the locations of receiving waste transported ashore of the investment project shall carry out appraisal of the EIAR at the request of the investment project owner.

2. The Chairperson of the provincial People’s Committee who has approved the result of appraisal of the project’s EIAR as prescribed in clause 1 of this Article is the person who has the authority to issue the environmental license to the project if the project is required to have the environmental license.

3. The Chairperson of the People’s Committee of the province where the appraisal of the EIAR and the issuance of the environmental license are carried out shall cooperate with the Chairperson of the People’s Committee of the other province where the project is implemented during the appraisal and licensing process in order to reach agreement on resolving environmental issues in the provinces.

4. The issuance of an environmental license in certain cases involving the split-up, split-off, merger or consolidation of environmental dossiers of projects and/or businesses at the same location shall be carried out as follows:

a) In case projects and/or businesses are located at the same site and have the same owner, they may be consolidated into a single environmental license; documents equivalent to decisions on approval of EIAR appraisal result or other environmental documents approved by different competent agencies shall serve as the bases for issuance of the environmental license to such consolidated projects and/or businesses. The authority to issue the environmental license in this case shall belong to the agency or person competent to issue the environmental license as prescribed in Article 41 of the Law on Environmental Protection (amended and supplemented under clause 11 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment) for the consolidated projects and/or businesses satisfying the environmental criteria equivalent to the investment projects prescribed in Article 25 of this Decree, unless the authority to issue the environmental license is decentralized to such agency or person as prescribed in Article 26a of this Decree;

b) In case investment projects and/or businesses are located at adjacent sites, the same investor, have the same wastewater and share a wastewater or emission treatment system, they may be consolidated into a single environmental license; documents equivalent to decisions on approval of EIAR appraisal result or other environmental documents approved by different competent authorities shall serve as the bases for issuance of the environmental license to such consolidated investment projects and/or businesses. The authority to issue the environmental license in this case shall belong to the agency or person competent to issue the environmental license as prescribed in Article 41 of the Law on Environmental Protection (amended and supplemented under clause 11 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment) for the consolidated projects and/or businesses satisfying the environmental criteria equivalent to the investment projects prescribed in Article 25 of this Decree, unless the authority to issue the environmental license is decentralized to such agency or person as prescribed in Article 26a of this Decree;

c) Regarding an investment project for which the EIAR appraisal result has been approved, the project owner wishing to split up or split off the project must comply with the provisions enshrined in clause 8 Article 27 of this Decree before submitting an application for issuance of environmental license;

d) In case an investment project or business that has been granted an environmental license or a component environmental license as prescribed is split up or split off into multiple projects or businesses, the owner of the project or the business is entitled to inherit the contents of the granted environmental license or component environmental license within the validity period of the license; within 06 months from the date of split-up or split-off as prescribed by law, the owner of the project or the business after split-up or split-off must prepare an application to follow procedures for issuance, replacement or re-issuance of the environmental license by the initial deadline as prescribed or carry out environmental registration as prescribed.”.

Article 10. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 30

1. Title of Clause 30 is amended as follows:

“Article 30. Adjustment, re-issuance and revocation of environmental licenses”.

2. Clauses 2 and 3 are amended and supplemented as follows:

“2. An investment project owner or business owner shall adjust the environmental license within its remaining effective period in the following cases:

a) There is a change as prescribed in point a clause 2 Article 44 of the LEP other than that specified in clause 3 or clause 4 of this Article, except for removal of items to be licensed or change to weight or type of hazardous waste generated. In case of removal of an item to be licensed, the adjustment of the environmental license shall only be made when requested by the investment project owner or business owner. In case of a change to weight or type of hazardous waste generated, the investment project owner or business owner shall specify the change in the periodic environmental protection report of the project or business;

b) An investment project, business or dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision increases its scale or production capacity or changes its production technology as specified in clauses 3 and 4 Article 27 of this Decree resulting in a change to the item to be licensed, except the case specified in point b clause 5 of this Article;

c) A wastewater transfer plan or plan to receive wastewater for treatment specified in clause 4 Article 74 of this Decree is supplemented; a wastewater reuse plan specified in clause 6 Article 74 of this Decree is supplemented;

d) There is any change as specified in clause 2 Article 27 of this Decree, except the case specified in clause 5 of this Article.

The adjustment of environmental license shall be made online via the wholly online public service system of the licensing authority or authority authorized to issue environmental licenses as prescribed. The investment project owner or business owner which applies for adjustment of the environmental license shall submit an application for adjustment of environmental license before making any change and any change may only be made after the replaced license is issued.

3. The investment project owner or business owner may choose to send the application for adjustment of environmental license as prescribed in clause 2 of this Article online via the wholly online public service system of the licensing authority or in person or by post.”.

3. Point a of clause 13 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) If the environmental license is issued ultra vires, within the time limit for taking remedial measures, the investment project owner or business owner shall follow procedures for applying for issuance of environmental license as prescribed;”.

4. Clause 14 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“14. If it is found that the environmental license has to be revoked as prescribed in clause 5 Article 44 of the LEP but does not fall into the case specified in clause 13 of this Article, the revocation and issuance of the environmental license shall be carried out as follows:

a) The regulatory body which finds that the environmental license has to be revoked shall send a notification that the environmental license is issued ultra vires or contains a content against regulations of law on environmental protection;

b) The competent agency or competent person issuing the environmental license that has to be revoked shall consider and review the procedures for and contents of appraisal of the application for issuance of environmental license after receiving the notification specified in point a of this clause.

If the environmental license is issued ultra vires as prescribed, the competent agency or competent person issuing such environmental license shall instruct the investment project owner or business owner to prepare an application for issuance of environmental license to the licensing authority to obtain a new environmental license as prescribed. The agency issuing the environmental license shall revoke the environmental license after the investment project or business has been issued with a new environmental license as prescribed by law.

If the issued environmental license contains any content against regulations of law, the agency issuing the environmental license shall issue a new environmental license to the investment project or business in conformity with regulations of law. The unconformable environmental license will be revoked when the new license is issued to the investment project or business.”.

5. Clause 16 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“16. The Minister of Agriculture and Environment shall elaborate on applications and procedures for adjustment and re-issuance of environmental licenses; promulgate forms related to the process for replacement, adjustment, re-issuance or revocation of environmental licenses.”.

Article 11. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 31

1. Points k and l are supplemented after point i of clause 1 as follows:

“k) A project’s or business’s wastewater treatment works whose treated wastewater is connected to the centralized wastewater collection and treatment system of a dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision, industrial cluster, urban area or high density residential area;

l) Dust and emission treatment works with a capacity of less than 5,000 m³/hour.”.

2. Clause 6 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“6. The duration of trial operation of a wastewater treatment work (including the period of time over which waste is monitored and the trial operation report is prepared) shall be decided by the investment project owner provided that the provisions on time and frequency of waste monitoring laid down by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment are complied with. The trial operation must end within 06 months from the date of commencing trial operation and the ending date shall be written in the environmental license. If it is required to extend the duration of trial operation, the investment project owner shall send a notification specifying reasons for extension and the duration of extension which must not exceed 06 months; in case of failure to satisfy the requirements, the owner shall renovate or upgrade the waste treatment work and conduct trial operation as prescribed. For large scale investment projects divided into each investment phase, the duration of trial operation may be extended as decided by the regulatory body or person competent to issue environmental licenses.”.

3. Point a of clause 7 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) Cooperate with the specialized environmental protection authority in the province (if the licensing authority is the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment) or in the commune (if the licensing authority is the provincial People’s Committee) where the project is executed in order to undergo inspection during the trial operation. If the project is required to undergo automatic wastewater, dust or emission monitoring, carry out monitoring and supervision of result of automatic and continuous wastewater, dust or emission monitoring using cameras which connect and transmit data to the specialized environmental protection authority in the province where the project is executed;”.

4. Point c of clause 8 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“c) In case of causing an environmental emergency or environmental pollution, the investment project owner shall immediately suspend the trial operation and promptly report it to the People’s Committee of the commune where the emergency occurs, regulatory body or person competent to issue environmental licenses for instructions for resolution; if the licensing authority is the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, report it to the provincial specialized environmental protection authority for cooperation in handling environmental issues; take responsibility for remediating the environmental emergency and providing compensation, and incur penalties as prescribed by law;”.

5. Some points of clause 10 are amended and supplemented as follows:

a) Point b is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) Assign cadres and civil servants and invite experts (where necessary) to carry out a site inspection of trial operation of waste treatment works of investment projects; measure, collect and analyze samples of waste released into the environment. If the waste of the work required to undergo trial operation for discharge of waste into the environment fails to satisfy the environmental technical regulation on waste, request the investment project owner to adopt the measures mentioned in clause 8 of this Article; continue to measure, collect and analyze samples of waste released into the environment during resumption of trial operation by the investment project owner.

The waste monitoring by the licensing authority shall be subject to the regulations set out under clause 10a of this Article.

After the inspection ends, the licensing authority shall send a notification of result of trial operation inspection, explicitly stating the conformity of the environmental license and other related issues so as for the investment project owner to continue trial operation as prescribed by law;”;

b) Point d is amended and supplemented as follows:

“d) Receive and handle propositions put forward by the investment project owner about the trial operation of waste treatment works;”.

6. Clause 10a is supplemented after clause 10 as follows:

“10a. During the inspection of the trial operation of a waste treatment work, the licensing authority and inspectorate (in the case specified in point b clause 2 Article 44 and clause 4 Article 46 of the LEP) shall carry out monitoring at least once (single sampling). In case the project or business has many dust and emission treatment works that are similar in terms of typical pollution parameters treated, treatment technology and equipment, the inspectorate shall select 01 work with the largest treatment capacity to monitor and evaluate the treatment efficiency of these similar dust and emission treatment works. The costs of waste sample collection and analysis by the inspectorate shall be sourced from funding for environmental services.”.

7. Clauses 11 and 12 are amended and supplemented as follows:

“11. Investment project owners and business owners shall report results of trial operation of their waste treatment works of the projects and businesses specified in clause 4 Article 46 of the LEP and other projects according to the form stipulated by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment.

12. The Minister of Agriculture and Environment Receive shall promulgate forms of documents relating to trial operation of waste treatment works.”.

Article 12. Amending and supplementing title and certain clauses of Article 32

1. Title of Article 32 is amended as follows:

“Article 32. Subjects not required to undergo environmental registration”.

2. Clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Investment projects and businesses specified in points a and c clause 2 Article 49 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 14 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment.”.

3. Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. The subjects specified in point d clause 2 Article 49 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 14 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment, which are elaborated in the Appendix XVI to this Decree.”.

Article 13. Amending and supplementing point c clause 5 of Article 35

“c) Commune-level People’s Committees shall formulate and submit to provincial People’s Committees for consideration and approval plans for conversion of industries and business lines not recommended in craft villages and relocation of businesses and households from craft villages, ensuring their suitability for the actual local conditions.”.

Article 14. Amending and supplementing certain clauses of Article 36

1. Clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“3. The time limit for appraising the environmental remediation and improvement scheme in the case specified in clause 2 of this Article shall not exceed 20 days from the receipt of a sufficient and valid application. Within the time limit specified in this clause, the appraising authority shall notify the facility owner in writing of the appraisal result. The period of time over which the facility owner modifies the environmental remediation and improvement scheme at the appraising authority’s request and over which the environmental remediation and improvement scheme is considered and an approval decision is approved as specified in clause 6 of this Article shall not be included in the time limit for appraisal.

2. Clause 6 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“6. Result of appraisal of an environmental remediation and improvement scheme shall be included in a decision on approval of appraisal result. Within 10 days from the receipt of the dossier on the modified environmental remediation and improvement scheme modified (if any), the appraising authority shall issue a decision on approval of appraisal result; in case of failure to grant approval, give a written response specifying reasons therefor to the facility owner. The dossier on the modified environmental remediation and improvement scheme (if any) includes:

a) 01 document providing explanation for appraisal opinions;

b) 01 modified environmental remediation and improvement scheme.”.

Article 15. Amending and supplementing certain clauses of Article 37

1. Clause 7 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“7. The deposit refund shall be made depending on the completion of details of environmental remediation and improvement by an organization or individual. The authority competent to close mine of the mineral mining project shall inspect the completion of the environmental remediation and improvement scheme during the mine closure period. The details of completion of the environmental remediation and improvement scheme shall constitute part of a mine closure decision in the case where a mine closure decision is required in accordance with the law on geology and minerals.”.

2. Clause 8a is supplemented after clause 8 as follows:

“8a. In the case where the mine closure is not required because the mineral mining license has expired or where an organization or individual applies for the return of the mineral mining license but has not commenced mineral mining activities, within 90 days from the date on which the mineral mining license expires or a decision on revocation of the mineral mining license is issued, the deposit receiving authority shall refund the deposit to such organization or individual.”.

Article 16. Amending and supplementing point d clause 3 of Article 38

“d) Within 35 days from the receipt of an adequate and valid application, according to the inspection result, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall send a notification of approval for registration of specific exemptions for POPs to the organization or individual according to the form in the Appendix XX hereto; in case of failure to grant approval for registration of specific exemptions for POPs, provide a written explanation to the organization or individual.”.

Article 17. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 43

1. Point b of clause 2 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) There is an area for storage of materials and equipment after breaking with a foundation high enough to avoid flooding. If a storage yard is used, an overflow rainwater collection and treatment system satisfying environmental technical regulations on environment must be provided;”.

2. Point a of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) Collect fuel, oil, bilge water, ballast water, other liquids and other flammable or explosive materials;”.

3. Point b of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) Abate asbestos and PCBs: Before cutting the ship into parts, it is required to abate, collect and transport asbestos and PCBs out of the cutting positions. After the parts of the ship are brought ashore, it is required to keep collecting all of remaining asbestos and PCBs which are more easily accessible. Asbestos abatement and collection areas should be tightly covered to reduce the spread of asbestos fibers to the ambient environment and prevent unauthorized entry. Asbestos must be moistened before and during the abatement process. The onshore asbestos abatement area must be located in a separate area with the same process;”.

4. Point d of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“d) The storage area of waste containing PCBs (in solid or liquid form) must be isolated from other waste and safety is assured before being transferred for treatment as prescribed;”.

Article 18. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 45

1. Point a of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“a) Regarding an imported scrap warehouse:

Have a system for collecting and treating types of wastewater generated during the storage meeting technical regulations on environment as prescribed.

Have a foundation which is high enough to avoid flooding; build floors which must be airtight, waterproof and durable enough to tolerate the maximum amount of scrap as properly calculated.

Build sun-proof and rain-proof roofs for the entire area of storage which are made of fire-resistant materials;”.

2. Point b of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) Regarding an imported scrap storage yard:

Have a system for collecting and treating overflowing the storage yard of imported scrap and types of wastewater generated during the storage of scrap meeting environmental technical regulations as prescribed.

Build floors which must be airtight, waterproof and durable enough to tolerate the maximum amount of scrap as properly calculated.”.

3. Clause 4a is supplemented after clause 4 as follows:

“4a. Scrap may only be imported as raw materials for production for the importer’s own project or business to manufacture products and goods. Scrap must not be imported solely for preliminary processing and resale. The quantity of scrap imported as raw materials for production by a project or business using imported scrap as raw materials for production must not exceed 80% of the design capacity. The plastic scrap must not be imported as of December 31, 2033.”.

Article 19. Supplementing clause 6 and clause 7 after clause 5 of Article 48

1. Clause 6 is supplemented after clause 5 as follows:

“6. A dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision and industrial cluster which share a centralized wastewater treatment system must satisfy the following requirements:

a) There must be leak-proof wastewater collection and conveyance pipelines which are designed and installed in compliance with technical regulations;

b) There must be wastewater flow meters used to measure the flow of wastewater transferred for treatment;

c) The plan to share a centralized wastewater treatment system must be stated in the decision on approval of EIAR appraisal result or in the environmental license or in the environmental registration;

d) In case the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision and industrial cluster have different investors, there must be a written agreement or contract which clearly specifies the responsibilities of each party for transferring and receiving wastewater for treatment; the wastewater receiving unit must ensure that the capacity of the wastewater treatment system is sufficient to treat the entire volume of wastewater received; the wastewater transferring unit must have a plan and commitment to complete the construction of a centralized wastewater collection and treatment system to collect and treat all wastewater generated from secondary investment projects and businesses in the event that the wastewater receiving unit ceases to operate or is no longer capable of receiving additional wastewater;

dd) Where the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster subject to environmental registration which adds an industry or business line attracting investment is on the list of types of business, production and services likely to cause environmental pollution as specified in the Appendix II to this Decree, it must carry out environmental registration again in accordance with regulations and must notify the wastewater receiving unit in order to apply for the issuance or re-issuance of the environmental license as per regulations.”.

2. Clause 7 is supplemented after clause 6 as follows:

“7. In special cases specified in clause 1 Article 52 of the LEP amended and supplemented under point a clause 16 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment, it is not required to construct a centralized wastewater collection and treatment system when the secondary projects and business have their own wastewater collection and treatment systems meeting statutory requirements prior to discharge into receiving bodies and fall into one of the following cases:

a) The industrial cluster commenced operation before January 01, 2022 and has had an occupancy rate of more than 80%;

b) The project on investment in construction of infrastructure of industrial cluster discharges wastewater into receiving bodies with a total wastewater flow (including wastewater from secondary projects and businesses) of less than 100 m³ per day.”.

Article 20. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 49

1. Point b of clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“b) It is not permitted to accept a new project or project on investment in expansion of the operating project that generates wastewater in the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster in the following cases: the new project is on the list of types of business, production and services likely to cause environmental pollution as specified in the Appendix II to this Decree but is not on the list of industries and business lines permitted for investment attraction of the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster; the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster fails to have or fails to satisfy one of the requirements for environmental protection infrastructure as prescribed in Article 48 of this Decree, unless a new investment project or project on investment in expansion of the operating business does not generate additional wastewater into the environment or is not required to invest in increasing capacity of its wastewater treatment work or the project owner undertakes to connect wastewater to the centralized wastewater collection and treatment system, a project is exempted from connection according to regulations of law on environmental protection before the effective date of the LEP, additional generated industrial wastewater is connected to the centralized wastewater treatment system of the dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster as prescribed in point a of this clause;”.

2. Clause 1a is supplemented after clause 1 as follows:

“1a. The provisions enshrined under points a, b and d clause 1 of this Article shall not apply in cases where an industrial cluster is not required to have a centralized wastewater collection and treatment system as prescribed in clause 7 Article 48 of this Decree, or in cases in which a centralized wastewater collection, drainage, and treatment system is not mandatory pursuant to a decision of the provincial People’s Committee as provided for in clause 4a Article 51 and point b clause 6 Article 52 of the LEP amended and supplemented by point b clause 15 and point d clause 16 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment.”.

3. Clause 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“5. Provincial People’s Committees shall comply with the regulations set out in clause 5 and clause 4a Article 51, point a clause 2 and clause 6 Article 52 of the LEP amended and supplemented under point b clause 15, point b, point d and point dd clause 16 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment and fulfill the following responsibilities:”.

Article 21. Amending and supplementing some points and clauses of Article 63

1. Point d of clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“d) Direct and organize the performance of domestic solid waste management contents specified in relevant planning schemes, strategies, programs, plans and tasks within their power; prepare an annual plan for domestic solid waste collection, transport and treatment and provide funding for implementation thereof in conformity with the local socio-economic development plan;”.

2. Point e is supplemented after point dd of clause 1 as follows:

“e) Stipulate techno-economic norms for public sanitation and for collection, transport and treatment of domestic solid waste within provinces as prescribed in clause 4 Article 59 and clause 5 Article 79 of the LEP (amended and supplemented respectively in clause 19 and clause 24 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment).”.

3. Point c of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“c) Organize the classification of domestic solid waste at source as prescribed; collection, transport and treatment of domestic solid waste and public sanitation within communes;”.

4. Point d of clause 3 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“d) Fulfill other responsibilities as assigned by provincial People’s Committees;”.

5. Point dd is supplemented after point d of clause 3 as follows:

“dd) Invest in the construction and organize the operation of models for the collection, transport and treatment of domestic solid waste and for public sanitation within communes.”.

Article 22. Supplementing clause 1a after clause 1 of Article 70

“1a. A project or business that provides hazardous waste treatment services must conform to the environmental protection planning scheme or planning scheme containing details of hazardous waste treatment, except the following cases:

a) The project or business co-processes hazardous waste;

b) The project or business recycling hazardous waste which is located in an industrial park or industrial cluster meets regulatory requirements for technical infrastructure and only provides hazardous waste recycling services falling into one or more categories as follows: Recycling of electrical and electronic waste; recycling of discarded photovoltaic panels; recycling of discarded electric-vehicle batteries; recycling and production of metals, except recycling of lead and waste lead-acid batteries, or recycling and recovery of metals from sludge; recycling of spent catalysts; recycling of spent activated carbon; recycling of waste for fulfillment of the recycling responsibility of organizations or individuals carrying out manufacturing activities at their own manufacturing establishments.”.

Article 23. Amending and supplementing Article 73

“Article 73. Requirements for cooperation, and transfer of hazardous waste not covered by in environmental license

1. An organization or individual that has been granted an environmental license or component environmental license that covers the provision of hazardous waste treatment services may cooperate with the owner of the facility providing hazardous waste treatment services with appropriate functions in the transport and treatment of hazardous waste not covered by the former’s environmental license or component environmental license.

2. When 02 organizations or individuals have an environmental license or component environmental license granted under clause 1 Article 70 of this Decree wish to establish cooperation, it is required to have a written agreement or contract for association (collectively referred to as “cooperation contract”).

3. The party receiving hazardous waste for treatment under the cooperation contract specified in clause 2 of this Article shall directly treat hazardous waste, shall not transfer hazardous waste to a third party for treatment and shall ensure that the weight of hazardous waste received under the cooperation contract does not exceed the weight permitted to be treated by the licensed treatment system and equipment as specified in its environmental license or component environmental license. The party receiving hazardous waste from the waste generator in the case where a cooperation contract for hazardous waste treatment is signed as prescribed in clause 1 of this Article shall treat at least one type of waste received and obtain written consent from the waste generator or enter into a tripartite contract for cooperation in collection, transport and treatment of hazardous waste.

4. Organizations or individuals engaging in the cooperation in transport and treatment of hazardous waste as prescribed in this Article shall report the type and weight of hazardous waste transported and treated under the cooperation contract in the project’s or business’s periodic environmental protection report.

Article 24. Amending and supplementing point c clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 74

1. Point c of clause 4 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“c) A project or business located outside a dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision or industrial cluster that receives wastewater for treatment or reuse shall satisfy the following requirements: Have a plan to transfer wastewater for treatment or reuse which is clearly stated in the decision on approval of EIAR appraisal result or environmental license; build a wastewater treatment system with technologies and capacity suitable for treating received wastewater or technology line suitable for reuse of received wastewater; have a treated wastewater flow meter; do not transfer received untreated wastewater to a third party, except transfer of liquid waste generated from means of transport”.

2. Clause 5 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“5. For the investment project specified in point a clause 1 Article 39 of the LEP amended and supplemented under point a clause 9 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment, it is required to prepare an application for issuance of environmental license when falling into any of the following circumstances:

a) It generates domestic wastewater that has to be treated into the environment with a total flow rate of 50 m³/day or more;

b) It discharges industrial wastewater that has to be treated into the environment regarding projects involved in a type likely to cause environmental pollution as prescribed in Appendix II to this Decree. With respect to the type of animal husbandry or slaughtering of livestock or poultry, comply with the provisions in point c of this clause;

c) It discharges industrial wastewater that has to be treated into the environment regarding projects not involved in a type likely to cause environmental pollution as prescribed in Appendix II to this Decree with a total flow rate of 10 m³/day or more (except rainwater overflowing sites for mining of minerals used as ordinary building materials or limestones);

d) It generates domestic wastewater and discharges industrial wastewater that has to be treated into the environment at a flow rate below that specified in point a or c of this clause with a total flow rate of 50 m³/day or more;

dd) It generates dusts or emissions that has to be treated into the environment with a total rate of 5,000 m³/day or more.

The wastewater and emission flow rates specified in points a, b, c, d and dd of this clause shall be determined based on the overall project and shall not be applied separately to each investment phase of the project.”.

Article 25. Amending and supplementing clause 1 and clause 4 of Article 92

1. Clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. The certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services shall be issued to the organizations which satisfy the conditions set out in clauses 2, 3 and 4 Article 91 of this Decree.”.

2. Clause 4 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“4. The certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services shall be valid for 60 months from the date of issue, may be extended repeatedly and each extension lasts for no more than 60 months.”.

Article 26. Amending and supplementing point c clause 3 of Article 93

“c) Within 30 days from the receipt of the appraisal fee, the issuing authority shall carry out an appraisal and issue the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services to the applicant (excluding the duration of supplementing the application). The appraisal of environmental monitoring conditions in service of issuance of the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services shall be carried out by an appraisal council prescribed in clause 4 of this Article on the basis of the application assessment result; result of assessment and site inspection of the applicant and result of the appraisal council meeting.

In case of rejection of the application for issuance of the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services, the issuing authority shall send a written notification specifying the reasons therefor to the applicant.”.

Article 27. Amending and supplementing point c clause 4 of Article 94

“c) Within 20 days from the receipt of the appraisal fee, the issuing authority shall carry out an appraisal and adjust contents of the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services for the applicant (excluding the duration of supplementing the application). The appraisal of environmental monitoring conditions in service of adjustment of the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services shall be carried out by an appraisal council prescribed in clause 5 of this Article on the basis of the application assessment result; result of assessment and site inspection of the applicant and result of the appraisal council meeting.

In case of rejection of the application for adjustment of the certificate of eligibility to provide environmental monitoring services, the issuing authority shall send a written notification specifying the reasons therefor to the applicant.”.

Article 28. Amending and supplementing point a clause 1 of Article 97

“a) The average wastewater discharge rate of a dedicated area for production, business operation and service provision, industrial cluster project or business involved in a type of production, business or service likely to cause environmental pollution ranges from 200 m³/day (24 hours) to less than 500 m³/day (24 hours); the high wastewater discharge rate is 500 m³/day (24 hours) or more;”.

Article 29. Amending and supplementing clause 1 and clause 2 of Article 147

1. Clause 1 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“1. Within 04 days from the receipt of the application, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall consider its adequacy and validity; if the application is not sufficient and valid, request the applicant in writing to complete it. Within 26 days from the receipt of a sufficient and valid application, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall carry out an assessment according to the procedures for certification of Vietnam Ecolabel as prescribed in clause 2 of this Article.”.

2. Clause 2 is amended and supplemented as follows:

“2. Procedures for certification of Vietnam Ecolabel include the following activities: establishing an assessment council; holding an assessment council’s meeting; where necessary, carrying out a site survey or an expert assessment. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall promulgate a decision on certification of Vietnam Ecolabel for product/service. If the assessment result shows that the product or service fails to satisfy the Vietnam Ecolabel criteria, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall send the applicant a written notification specifying the reasons for such failure.”.

Article 30. Amending and supplementing point b clause 1 of Article 148

“b) Within 10 from the receipt of the application form for adjustment of the decision on certification of Vietnam Ecolabel, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment shall replace the decision on certification of Vietnam Ecolabel for product/service in case of agreeing to the application form.”.

Article 31. Amending and supplementing clause 2 of Article 154

“2. The Minister of Agriculture and Environment preside over and cooperate with other Ministries and ministerial agencies concerned in establishing and promulgate of environmental criteria and confirming projects eligible for green credit extension and green bond issuance (hereinafter referred to as “the green list”) before December 31, 2022

Article 32. Amending and supplementing Article 162

“Article 162. Specialized inspection of environmental protection

1. The specialized inspection of environmental protection shall be carried out under regulations of law on inspection, except unscheduled inspection of environmental protection which, where necessary, may be conducted without prior announcement as per specific regulations on environmental protection specified in clause 2 of this Article.

2. The unscheduled inspection of environmental protection shall be carried out under regulations of law on inspection; if a decision on inspectorate establishment is not announced in advance as prescribed in clause 2 Article 160 of the LEP amended by clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment, comply with the following regulations:

a) The preannouncement of a decision on inspectorate establishment will not be made if there are grounds for presuming that the preannouncement results in the inspected entity hiding their documents or evidence in relation to their illegal acts, thereby reducing the operational efficiency of the inspectorate, or it is so requested by the inspection decision maker;

b) After presenting the inspection decision, the inspectorate’s chief is entitled to immediately reach the area where waste is generated, the area where the work or equipment for collecting and treating wastewater or emissions is available, discharge points and other areas within the scope of the inspection decision to carry out inspection activities within his/her power;

c) Where the inspected entity fails to facilitate or obstructs the unscheduled inspection, the inspectorate’s chief shall cooperate with the People’s Public Security force or the communal People’s Committee to use professional methods, means and equipment for detection of administrative violations as prescribed to reach the scene for inspection purpose and make a record of the case as per regulations;

d) The legal representative of the organization or individual shall sign the case record, working record and environmental sampling record; if the legal representative is absent, the representative of the inspected organization or individual present at the scene shall sign the records. If there is no representative of the inspected organization or individual or their representative does not sign the records, the representative of the communal People’s Committee or the communal police authority is requested to sign the records as an eyewitness;

dd) After taking actions to ensure that the inspected entity does not hide their documents or evidence in relation to their illegal acts, thereby reducing the operational efficiency of the inspectorate, within 03 days, the inspectorate’s chief shall announce the inspection decision, except where the legal representative of the inspected entity is not present as requested. Procedures for announcing the inspection decision shall comply with regulations of law on inspection;

e) The organization or individual shall facilitate the inspection after the inspectorate presents the inspection decision; depending the seriousness of their violation, the organization or individual shall be handled when committing acts of obstructing the operation of the inspectorate;

g) Members of the inspectorate, civil servants, public officials concerned are not permitted to disclose and provide any information relating to the process of proposing and issuing the unscheduled inspection decision, formulating and approving the inspection plan, making preparations for issuing the inspection decision to the inspected entity in the case specified in clause.”.

Article 33. Amending and supplementing Article 163

“Article 163. Specialized examination of environmental protection

1. The specialized examination of environmental protection shall be carried out under regulations of law on inspection and examination and specific regulations on environmental protection specified in clauses 2 through 6 of this Article.

2. Responsibilities for and forms of specialized examination of environmental protection are prescribed as follows:

a) The competent authority specified in clause 1 Article 160 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment shall organize and direct the examination of compliance with the law on environmental protection by organizations, households and individuals;

b) Forms of specialized examination of compliance with law on environmental protection: examination under a plan approve by a competent authority; examination under the direction of a head of a state management agency, at the request of a competent authority or competent person or unscheduled examination.

The unscheduled examination by an environmental protection authority shall be conducted as specified in point a clause 3 Article 160 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment. The preannouncement of a decision on examination team establishment will not be made if there are grounds for presuming that the preannouncement results in the examined entity hiding their documents or evidence in relation to their illegal acts, thereby reducing the operational efficiency of the examination team, or it is so requested by the decision maker.

The Environmental Crime Prevention and Control Police Force shall carry out an unscheduled examination when there are grounds specified in point b clause 3 Article 160 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment.

3. A plan for specialized or thematic examination of environmental protection shall be integrated into the process of formulating and approving the environmental protection inspection plan (if any); shall be such that it does not overlap with the inspection or examination plan of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment or the inspection plan of a provincial People’s Committee, except for unscheduled examination and inspection as provided for in clause 2 Article 162 of this Decree and point b clause 2 of this Article.

4. Sequence and procedures for specialized examination of environmental protection are provided for as follows:

a) Ministers and Chairpersons of People’s Committees at all levels specified in clause 1 Article 160 of the LEP amended and supplemented under clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment or heads of competent agencies and competent persons prescribed by law shall issue decisions on specialized examination of environmental protection;

b) A decision on specialized examination of environmental protection shall mainly contain date of issue; legal references; form of examination; full name of the individual, name of the organization, representative of the household; place of examination; full names and position of the chief and members of the examination team; full name and position of the person issuing the examination decision; examination contents; duration of the examination. The form of the decision on examination team establishment shall be decided by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.

If it is deemed necessary to assess professional and technical issues to form a basis for giving a conclusion, the examination team’s chief shall request the decision maker to solicit a licensed organization for assessment, inspection, monitoring, measurement and analysis of environmental samples. Expertise shall be solicited in writing, specifying requirements, contents, duration and expertise-soliciting organization or such requirements, contents, duration and expertise-soliciting organization may be written on the examination decision specified in this clause. The organization assessing, inspecting, monitoring, measuring and analyzing environmental samples shall take legal responsibility for the accuracy, objectiveness and promptness of their assessment results;

c) Composition of a team for specialized examination of environmental protection:

An examination team of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment or provincial People’s Committee is composed of cadres, public officials, civil servants and public employees of the authority issuing the examination decision; experts where necessary and other members decided by the person competent to establish the examination team; representative of the cooperating authority in the place of examination, representative of the Environmental Crime Prevention and Control Police, representative of specialized agencies at the same level in the industries and fields related to the examination contents and inspected entities, except where an unscheduled examination is carried out or these agencies have a document stating that they do not send a representative to participate in the examination team. Specialized agencies at the same level in the related industries and fields shall appoint their representatives to join the examination team at the request of the competent authority. In case of failure to appoint any official, within 03 days from the receipt of the written request, a written response shall be given.

An examination team of a communal People’s Committee is composed of cadres, civil servants and public employees of the authority issuing the examination decision, representative of the superior specialized environmental protection authority and other members decided by the Chairperson of the communal People’s Committee.

Composition of an examination team of the Environmental Crime Prevention and Control Police Force shall be decided by the head of the police authority or unit tasked with environmental crime prevention and control which establishes and organizes the examination team according to regulations of this Decree and law on environmental crime prevention and control police; representative of the specialized environmental protection authority at the same level shall be invited to join the examination team. The specialized environmental protection authority shall appoint its officials to join the examination team upon receiving an Environmental Crime Prevention and Control Police Force’s written request for deployment of the examination team. In case of failure to appoint any official, give a timely written response to the Environmental Crime Prevention And Control Police Force. Members attending the first working session of the examination team shall be decided by its chief.

Members of the examination team specified in this clause who do not join the team shall send a written report to the chief of the examination team;

d) Contents of specialized examination of environmental protection:

Examining the compliance with law on environmental protection in support of state management of environmental protection; examining activities in relation to signs of criminal activities or violations against the law in relation to environmental crimes; activities in relation to crime reports or petitions for prosecution or reports on violations against the law in relation to environmental crimes;

dd) Duration of specialized examination of environmental protection:

The duration of a specialized examination by a unit affiliated to a Ministry or a ministerial agency shall not exceed 15 days, in complicated cases or areas where travel is difficult, it may be extended once for up to 07 more days.

The duration of a specialized examination by a specialized agency affiliated to a provincial People’s Committee shall not exceed 10 days, in complicated cases or areas where travel is difficult, it may be extended once for up to 05 more days.

The duration of a specialized examination by a specialized agency affiliated to a communal People’s Committee shall not exceed 07 days, in complicated cases or areas where travel is difficult, it may be extended once for up to 03 more days.

The duration of a specialized examination of environmental protection shall be reckoned from the date of announcement of the examination decision to the ending date of the examination directly conducted at the place of examination. The duration of examination shall not include the time of analysis, assessment and inspection of environmental samples (if any);

e) The examination decision shall be sent to the examined entity as prescribed, except unscheduled examination without prior notice as specified in point a clause 3 Article 160 of the LEP amended and supplemented by clause 34 Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment, law on environmental crime prevention and control police and other relevant laws;

g) In the case of unscheduled examination without prior notice, after presenting the examination decision, the examination team’s chief is entitled to immediately reach the area where waste is generated, the area where the work or equipment for collecting and treating wastewater or emissions is available, discharge points and other areas within the scope of the examination decision to carry out examination activities within his/her power. The organization, household or individual that is required to undergo the examination must appoint a representative to be present immediately to work with the examination team and comply with the requests put in by the examination team to ensure that the examination is carried out in accordance with the requirements, contents and procedures specified in legislative documents and the examination decision.

Where the examined entity fails to facilitate or obstructs the unscheduled examination, the examination team’s chief shall cooperate with the People’s Public Security force or the communal People’s Committee to use professional methods, means or equipment for detection of administrative violations which are equipped as prescribed to reach the scene for inspection purpose and make a record of the case as per regulations.

The legal representative of the examined organization, household or individual shall sign the case record, working record and environmental sampling record; if the legal representative is absent, the representative of the examined organization, household or individual present at the scene shall sign the records. If there is no representative of the organization, household or individual or their representative does not sign the records, the representative of the communal People’s Committee or the communal police authority is requested to sign the records as an eyewitness;

h) The examination shall be made into a record bearing the signatures and seals of the chief or authorized deputy chief of the examination team and legal representative of the organization (if any) as prescribed by law, and signature and full name of the examined household’s or individual’s representative.

i) During the examination, according to the actual situation, the chief of the examination team shall propose the head of the authority or person competent to issue the examination decision to issue an examination decision within his/her power or propose a competent person to organize an unscheduled inspection of the examined organization, household or individual as prescribed in clause 2 Article 162 of this Decree;

k) Before the unscheduled examination without prior notice, members of the examination team, civil servants, public employees, organizations and individuals concerned are not permitted to disclose and provide any information relating to the process of proposing and issuing the unscheduled examination decision to the examined entity.

5. Processing of results of environmental protection examination:

a) During the examination, if detecting any violation against the law on environmental protection committed by an organization, household or individual, the competent person in the performance of his/her duty shall make an administrative violation record and transfer it to a competent person for handling in accordance with regulations of law on handling of administrative violations;

b) The examination result must be notified in writing by the head of the authority or person competent to issue the examination decision and sent to the examined organization, household or individual and relevant agencies and units. The maximum time limit for notification of the examination result is 15 days from the date on which the examination ends and the environmental sample analysis result (if any) is available in the case not specified in point a of this clause or 15 days from the date the person competent to impose penalties for administrative violations decide to handle the violation in accordance with regulations of law on handling of administrative violations in the case specified in point a of this clause;

c) The notification of examination result shall be sent to the specialized environmental protection authority at the same level, except for the result of examination of compliance with law on environmental protection by projects and businesses involving state secrets concerning national defense or security.

6. The Minister of National Defense and Minister of Public Security shall promulgate some specific regulations on sequence and procedures for deployment of environmental protection examination teams for investment projects and businesses involving state secrets concerning national defense or security.”.

Article 34. Amending and supplementing point d clause 14 of Article 168

“d) For the operating business or investment project that has gone through construction process but has not yet been put into operation which satisfies the environmental criteria equivalent to a subject required to obtain the environmental license and not required to prepare an EIAR but fails to have a component environmental license or environmental license, the project owner or business owner shall prepare an application for issuance of the environmental license for the project or business and submit it to the authority competent to issue environmental licenses as per regulations.

The report on proposal for issuance of environmental license shall be made using the form stipulated by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment.”.

Article 35. Replacing Appendices II, III, IV, XXV, XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII and XXXIII.

Article 36. Replacing and repealing several regulations of the Government’s Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP dated January 10, 2022 on elaboration of several Articles of the Law on Environmental Protection amended and supplemented by the Government’s Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP dated January 06, 2025 on amendments to certain Articles of the Government’s Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP dated January 10, 2022 on elaboration of several Articles of the Law on Environmental Protection

1. The following points, clauses, articles, words and phrases are repealed:

a) Point b clause 2 of Article 20; Article 28; Article 29; clause 1, clause 8, clause 12 and clause 15 of Article 30; point b clause 5 of Article 35; point c, point h clause 3 and clause 4 of Article 43; point a and point d clause 8, point a and point c clause 9 of Article 45; clause 4 of Article 49; clause 2 of Article 63; clause 3, clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 69; clause 2 of Article 71; clause 4 of Article 89; point h clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 91; clause 5 of Article 102; point dd clause 2 of Article 114; point e clause 14 of Article 168 are repealed;

b) The phrase “Bộ Kế hoạch và Đầu tư” (“Ministry of Planning and Investment”) in clause 2 of Article 156 is repealed;

c) The phrases “Fax”, “Giấy chứng nhận đăng ký mã số thuế số…ngày…tháng…năm…tại…” (“Tax identification number registration certificate No. … dated … (day) … (month) … (year) at …”), “Họ tên người đại diện pháp luật…Chức danh…” (“Full name of the legal representative … Title …”) in the Appendix XVIII are repealed;

d) The phrase “(kèm theo hợp đồng xử lý chất thải)” ((“(enclosed with the waste treatment contract)”) in the Appendix XIX is repealed.

2. The Appendices VIII, IX, X, XI, XIII, XIV, XV and XXI are repealed.

3. The following words and phrases are repealed:

a) The phrase “Ủy ban nhân dân cấp huyện” (“district-level People’s Committee”) in point a and point b clause 2 of Article 5; point a and point b clause 1 of Article 9; point a clause 5 of Article 19; point e clause 4 of Article 26 is replaced with the phrase “Ủy ban nhân dân cấp xã” (“communal People’s Committee”);

b) The phrase “liên huyện” (“inter-district”) in point e clause 4 of Article 26 is replaced with the phrase “liên xã” (“inter-communal”);

c) The phrase “cấp huyện” (“district-level”) in clause 2 of Article 5; clause 1 of Article 9; point e clause 4 of Article 26; clause 9 of Article 31; clause 3 of Article 108; clause 2 of Article 109; clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 110; point a clause 1 of Article 111; point d clause 2 of Article 114 is replaced with the phrase “cấp xã” (“commune-level”);

d) The phrase “huyện” (“district”) in clause 2 of Article 110; point a clause 3 of Article 164 is replaced with the phrase “xã” (“commune”);

dd) The phrase “huyện” (“district”) in clause 2 of Article 33; point a clause 5 of Article 35; clause 2 of Article 113 is replaced with the phrase “tỉnh” (“province”);

e) The phrases “Bộ Tài nguyên và Môi trường” (“Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment”) and “Bộ Nông nghiệp và Phát triển nông thôn” (“Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development”) in clause 1 of Article 5; clause 1 of Article 7; clause 8 of Article 8; clause 3 of Article 10; clause 4 of Article 14; point d clause 2 of Article 15; point d clause 2 and clause 4 of Article 16; clause 5 and clause 6 of Article 17; clause 3 of Article 18; point c clause 4 and clause 7 of Article 19; clause 4 of Article 20; clause 2 point a (amended and supplemented under clause 4 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP), point c and point d clause 6, point dd and point e clause 7 and point a, point c clause 8 of Article 21; point b, point c and point d clause 3 and clause 4 of Article 26a (supplemented under clause 7 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); point b clause 3 of Article 26 (amended and supplemented under clause 8 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 5, point b and point dd clause 7 of Article 31 (amended and supplemented under clause 13 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); point a clause 8 and clause 9 of Article 36; point a clause 3 and clause 12 (amended and supplemented under point d clause 16 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 37; clause 1, clause 2, point a, point b and point c clause 3, clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 38; clause 3 of Article 39; clause 1, clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 40; clause 2 and point a clause 3 of Article 41; clause 1 (amended and supplemented under clause 17 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) and point a clause 2 of Article 42; point c clause 2 of Article 44; clause 10 and clause 11 of Article 45 (amended and supplemented under point b clause 18 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 4 of Article 51 (amended and supplemented under point a clause 21 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 4 of Article 52; point b clause 2 and point b clause 3 of Article 54; point dd clause 2 of Article 58; clause 4 and clause 6 of Article 65; clause 1 and clause 3 of Article 66; clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 67; point b clause 1 and clause 2 (amended and supplemented under clause 29 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 69; clause 5 of Article 70; point b clause 1 (amended and supplemented under point a clause 30 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) and clause 4 (amended and supplemented under point b clause 30 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 71; clause 4 and clause 5 of Article 72; point a and point b (amended and supplemented under point b clause 31 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) clause 3 of Article 74; clause 2 of Article 75; point c clause 2, point d clause 5 and clause 8 (amended and supplemented under point c clause 32 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 76; point c clause 4 (amended and supplemented under point d clause 33 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 77; clause 2 of Article 78 (amended and supplemented under clause 34 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 6 (amended and supplemented under point c clause 35 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 79; clause 1, clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 80 (amended and supplemented under clause 36 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 2 and point a clause 3 of Article 81 (amended and supplemented under clause 37 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 82 (amended and supplemented under clause 38 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 5 (amended and supplemented under point c clause 39 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 83; clause 1 of Article 84; clause 1 and clause 3 of Article 85 (amended and supplemented under clause 41 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 2 of Article 86; clause 3 of Article 87 (amended and supplemented under clause 43 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); clause 1, clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 88 (amended and supplemented under clause 44 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP); point d clause 3 and point d clause 4 of Article 91; clause 2 and clause 3 of Article 92; clause 5 of Article 93; clause 6 of Article 94; clause 1 and clause 2 of Article 95; clause 1, clause 6, clause 7 and clause 8 of Article 96; point d clause 4, point a clause 6 and point c clause 7 of Article 97; point c clause 5 (amended and supplemented under clause 47 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP), point a clause 7 and point c clause 8 of Article 98; clause 6 of Article 102; clause 1 and clause 4 of Article 104; clause 1 and clause 6 of Article 105; clause 1 of Article 107; clause 2 and clause 5 (amended and supplemented under clause 48 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) of Article 111; point c clause 2 of Article 114; clause 3 of Article 121; clause 4 of Article 125; point c clause 4 and clause 7 of Article 127; clause 3 of Article 133; clause 1 and point d clause 2 of Article 139; clause 2 of Article 141; clause 5 of Article 144; clause 1 of Article 145; clause 3 of Article 146; clause 4 and clause 6 of Article 147; point a clause 1 and clause 3 of Article 148; clause 1 of Article 149; clause 1 and clause 2 of Article 150; point c clause 2 of Article 160; clause 2 and point a clause 3 of Article 164; clause 1 and clause 2 of Article 166; point a clause 3 and point a clause 12 of Article 167; clause 10, clause 18 and clause 19 of Article 168; Appendix XVIII; Appendix XX; Appendix XXIV; Appendix XXX; Appendix XXXII; Appendix XXXIV are replaced with the phrase “Bộ Nông nghiệp và Môi trường” (“Ministry of Agriculture and Environment”);

g) The phrase “Ban chỉ huy phòng, chống thiên tai và tìm kiếm cứu nạn” (“Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control”) in clause 2 of Article 109; clause 3 of Article 110; point a clause 1 of Article 111 is replaced with the phrase “Ban chỉ huy phòng thủ dân sự” (“Steering Committee for Civil Defense”);

h) The phrase “Bộ Giao thông vận tải” (“Ministry of Transport”) in clause 7 of Article 65; clause 2 of Article 75; clause 8 of Article 111; point d clause 2 of Article 160 is replaced with the phrase “Bộ Xây dựng” (“Ministry of Construction”);

i) The phrase “Bộ Kế hoạch và Đầu tư” (“Ministry of Planning and Investment”) in point d clause 3 of Article 134; clause 4 of Article 136; clause 3 of Article 141; clause 5 and clause 6 of Article 144; clause 3 of Article 156; clause 4 of Article 157; point k clause 2 of Article 160; Appendix XXXIb (supplemented under section 19 of the Appendix to Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) is replaced with the phrase “Bộ Tài chính” (“Ministry of Finance”);

k) The phrase “Bộ Thông tin và Truyền thông” (“Ministry of Information and Communications”) in clause 6 of Article 105 is replaced with the phrase “Bộ Khoa học và Công nghệ” (“Ministry of Science and Technology”);

l) The phrase “Sở Tài nguyên và Môi trường” (“Department of Natural Resources and Environment”) in clause 10, clause 18 and clause 19 of Article 168 is replaced with the phrase “Sở Nông nghiệp và Môi trường” (“Department of Agriculture and Environment”);

m) The phrase “Mẫu báo cáo đề xuất cấp giấy phép môi trường được thực hiện như đối với trường hợp quy định tại khoản 3 Điều 28 Nghị định này” (“Regarding form of the report on proposal for issuance of environmental license, the regulations specified in clause 3 Article 28 of this Decree shall be complied with”) in point c clause 14 and point a clause 15 Article 168 of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP (amended and supplemented in Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) is replaced with the phrase “Mẫu báo cáo đề xuất cấp giấy phép môi trường được thực hiện như đối với trường hợp quy định tại khoản 3 Điều 28 Nghị định này” (“The report on proposal for issuance of environmental license shall be made using the form stipulated by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment”).

n) The phrase (“miễn đăng ký môi trường”) (“exempted from environmental registration”) with the phrase “không phải đăng ký môi trường” (“not required to undergo environmental registration”) in clause 2 and clause 5 of Article 5 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP and Appendix XVI to the Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP (amended and supplemented under section 13 of the Appendix issued together with Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP);

o) The phrase “cơ quan nhà nước quản lý công trình thủy lợi” (“regulatory bodies managing hydraulic structures”) in point b clause 1 Article 26 of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP (amended and supplemented under clause 8 Article 1 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) is replaced with the phrase “cơ quan quản lý nhà nước về thủy lợi” (“regulatory bodies managing irrigation”).

Article 37. Repealing clause 4 Article 5 of the Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP.

Article 38. Transitional clauses

1. For an organization or individual whose dossier is received by a regulatory body or competent persons for settlement in accordance with environment-related administrative procedures before the effective date of this Decree (except for the transitional clauses prescribed in Article 168 of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP, Article 5 of Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP and Article 63 of Decree No. 136/2025/ND-CP), such dossier shall continue to be processed in accordance with the laws in force at the time of receipt; unless such organization or individual requests that it be processed in compliance with this Decree.

2. Any project or business which is granted the environmental license before the effective date of this Decree but is not required to obtain an environmental license under this Decree may choose to continue using the granted environmental license until its expiry date. The granted environmental license will expire in case the investment project owner or business owner follows environmental registration procedures according to regulations or expire in case the project or business is not required to undergo environmental registration.

3. Chairpersons of provincial People’s Committees shall issue, adjust or re-issue environmental licenses for projects and businesses which have EIAR appraisal results approved and environmental licenses granted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment as per the law in force before the effective date of this Decree and which fall into one of the following cases:

a) Subjects specified in clause 3 of Article 41 of the Law on Environmental Protection (amended and supplemented in clause 11 of Article 1 of the Law amending and supplementing certain Articles of 15 laws in the field of agriculture and environment);

b) Investment projects and businesses equivalent to the subjects specified in Article 26a of this Decree; investment projects and businesses located in 02 provincial-level administrative divisions or within the territorial waters to which responsibility of the provincial People’s Committee for administrative management are yet to be assigned as prescribed in Article 27b of this Decree.

The time limit and fees for appraisal of applications for issuance, adjustment and re-issuance for environmental license in the cases specified in point a and point b of this clause are the same as those for projects and businesses under the authority to conduct appraisal and issue environmental licenses of the provincial People’s Committee.

4. Chairpersons of provincial People’s Committees shall issue, adjust or re-issue environmental licenses in cases where EIAR appraisal results were approved and environmental licenses were issued by provincial People’s Committees and district-level People’s Committees as per the law in force before the effective date of this Decree.

5. The Chairperson of the People’s Committee of Hanoi City shall issue, adjust, or re-issue environmental license in accordance with the Law on the Capital for projects and business under the authority of the People’s Committee of Hanoi City to decide investment and approve investment policies which had EIAR appraisal results approved and environmental licenses issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment as per the law in force before the effective date of this Decree.

6. Examination teams examining the issuance and re-issuance of environmental licenses before the effective date of this Decree are not required to carry out monitoring of treated waste prior to its discharge into the environment, unless they have so carried out.

7. Any project or business issued with an environmental license in accordance with the law in force before the effective date of this Decree which covers the trial operation of waste treatment works which, however, are not required to undergo trial operation under this Decree may choose to continue or discontinue the trial operation of such waste treatment works. The licensing authority is not required to fulfill the responsibility prescribed in point b clause 10 of Article 31 of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP (amended and supplemented by the Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) with regard to projects and businesses not required to conduct trial operation as specified in this clause.

8. The provincial specialized environmental protection authority is not required to fulfill the responsibility prescribed in point b clause 10 Article 31 of Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP (amended and supplemented by the Decree No. 05/2025/ND-CP) with regard to projects and businesses issued with environmental licenses by the district-level People’s Committee before July 01, 2025.

9. Any project or business which completes environmental registration before the effective date of this Decree but is not required to undergo environmental registration under this Decree may choose to continue employing the registered environmental registration.

Article 39. Effect and responsibility for implementation

1. This Decree comes into force from the day on which it is signed.

2. Clause 2 Article 31 and Section 8 Chapter III of the Government’s Decree No. 131/2025/ND-CP dated June 12, 2025 on distinction of powers of 02-tier local government in the field of state management by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment are repealed.

3. Clause 4 and clause 5 Article 44, clause 2 Article 45, clause 6 Article 46 and Chapter XI of the Government’s Decree No. 136/2025/ND-CP dated 12 June, 2025 providing for devolution and decentralization of powers in the field of agriculture and environment are repealed.

4. Ministers, heads of ministerial agencies, heads of Governmental agencies, Chairpersons of People’s Committees at all levels, other organizations and individuals concerned are responsible for the implementation of this Decree.