Joint Circular No. 02/2018/TTLT-VKSTC-TATC-BCA-BQP-BTC-BNN&PTNT on the coordination in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding complaints and reports

JOINT CIRCULAR

Regulations on cooperation in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code concerning complaints and denunciations

Pursuant to the Criminal Procedure Code dated November 27, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Issuance of Legal Normative Documents dated June 22, 2015;

The Supreme People's Procurator, the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court, the Minister of Public Security, the Minister of National Defense, the Minister of Finance, and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development issue this Joint Circular regulating cooperation in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code concerning complaints and denunciations.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Joint Circular regulates cooperation in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code concerning the acceptance, classification, registration for trial, resolution, and supervision of the resolution of complaints and denunciations in criminal proceedings.

2. This Joint Circular does not apply to complaints, appeals, and protests stipulated in Clause 2, Article 469 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Article 2. Applicability

This Joint Circular applies to competent investigative agencies, persons with authority to conduct criminal proceedings, organizations, and individuals related to complaints and denunciations in criminal proceedings.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

In this Joint Circular, the following terms shall be understood as follows:

1. "Complaint in criminal proceedings" means the act of an organization, individual, or entity (hereinafter referred to collectively as the complainant), according to the procedures prescribed in Chapter XXXIII of the Criminal Procedure Code, requesting a competent agency or person with authority to review a decision, procedural act, or complaint resolution decision when there is evidence that such decision or act is contrary to the law, infringing upon their lawful rights and interests.

2. "Complaint against decisions and procedural acts in the detention, arrest, temporary custody, and pretrial detention" refers to complaints against orders and decisions specified in Clause 1, Article 474 of the Criminal Procedure Code and the implementation of these orders and decisions.

3. "Denunciation in criminal proceedings" means the act of an individual, according to the procedures prescribed in Chapter XXXIII of the Criminal Procedure Code, reporting to a competent agency or person with authority about acts of violating the law in criminal proceedings by a person with authority to conduct criminal proceedings which they believe cause or threaten to cause damage to state interests or the lawful rights and interests of organizations, entities, or individuals.

4. "Complex denunciation case" means a denunciation case involving multiple contents, denunciations related to the violation of the law by multiple persons or requiring investigation at multiple locations.

5. "Supervisory measures" means the methods by which the Procuracy conducts inspections and oversight of the resolution of complaints and denunciations in criminal proceedings by the Investigative Agency, the agency assigned to perform certain investigative activities, and courts at the same level and subordinate levels.

Article 4. Use of Model Documents

The issuance of documents in the process of accepting, classifying, registering for trial, and resolving complaints and denunciations in criminal proceedings shall be carried out according to 11 models attached to this Joint Circular.

Chapter II

COOPERATION IN THE ACCEPTANCE, CLASSIFICATION, REGISTRATION FOR TRIAL, AND RESOLUTION OF COMPLAINTS

Article 5. Conditions for Accepting Complaints

The competent authority shall accept complaints for resolution when the following conditions are met:

1. The content of the complaint pertains to criminal proceedings; the complaint is made through a formal complaint letter or directly:

a) In cases where the complaint is made through a letter, it must clearly state the date, month, and year of the complaint; the name and address of the complainant; the name and address of the competent authority conducting the criminal proceedings being complained against; the content, reasons for the complaint, related documents, and the complainant's request for resolution. The complaint letter must be signed by the complainant or marked with their fingerprint; if multiple complainants submit a joint complaint letter, each must sign the letter and designate a representative to present the case upon request from the complaint resolver;

b) In cases where the complainant makes a direct complaint, the person receiving the complaint shall guide the complainant to write a letter or record the content of the complaint in writing and require the complainant to sign or mark their fingerprint on the document. If multiple people make a direct complaint about the same matter, the competent authority shall organize the reception and guide the complainants to appoint a representative to present the content of the complaint and record the complaint in writing.

2. The complaint against a decision or procedural act within the time limit prescribed in Article 471 of the Criminal Procedure Code; in cases where the complaint is against the initial decision resolving the complaint, the time limit for filing the complaint is three days, starting from the day the initial decision resolving the complaint is received.

In cases where the complainant cannot exercise their right to file a complaint within the prescribed time limit due to force majeure or objective obstacles, the complainant must provide proof documents or a confirmation document from the competent authority.

3. The complaint falls within the jurisdiction of the competent authority as stipulated by the Criminal Procedure Code.

4. The complainant must have legitimate rights and interests directly affected by the procedural decision or act they are complaining about.

5. The complainant must have full capacity to act according to the law.

The complainant may exercise their right to file a complaint themselves or through a defense counsel, a representative protecting their legitimate rights and interests, or a representative; in cases where the complainant is under 18 years old, has lost capacity to act, has difficulty in understanding and controlling their actions, or is restricted in their capacity to act and cannot file a complaint themselves, the complaint must be filed through a legal representative and must be accompanied by proof documents.

6. The complaint has not yet been resolved by a legally effective decision or there is no withdrawal complaint letter from the complainant.

Article 6. Receiving and Categorizing Complaints for Processing

1. When receiving complaints within the jurisdiction for resolution, the competent authority shall handle them as follows depending on the circumstances:

a) If the complaint meets the conditions for acceptance, it must be accepted for resolution in accordance with the law and a written notice of acceptance must be sent to the complainant;

b) If the complaint does not meet the conditions for acceptance, the complaint letter must be returned with a clear explanation of why it was not accepted;

c) If the complaint lacks sufficient information or documents regarding the conditions for acceptance, the complainant must be requested to supplement the information or documents to enable acceptance;

d) If the complaint contains multiple contents and falls within the jurisdiction of multiple authorities, the complainant must be guided to write separate letters.

2. For complaints outside the jurisdiction for resolution, the authority or person receiving the complaint shall handle them as follows depending on the circumstances:

a) Complaints against decisions, procedural acts, or decisions resolving complaints in judicial activities shall be transferred to the competent authority for resolution, while simultaneously sending a written notification to the complainant;

b) For complaints not falling under the provisions of point a of this clause, the complainant shall be guided to send the complaint to the competent authority for resolution, such guidance shall only be provided once. If the complainant sends original documents or materials, these must be returned to the sender; if returned via postal service, they must be sent with guaranteed delivery.

3. In cases where the complainant directly comes to file a complaint and is unable to write a letter, the authority or person receiving the complaint must prepare a record in accordance with Article 133 of the Criminal Procedure Code and send it to the competent authority for resolving the complaint.

Article 7. Procedure and formalities for accepting and resolving complaints

1. From the date of receiving a complaint within its jurisdiction and meeting the conditions for acceptance, within the time limit for resolving complaints as prescribed by the Criminal Procedure Code, the agency or person with authority to resolve complaints (hereinafter referred to collectively as the complaint resolver) must accept the complaint and carry out the following procedures:

a) Issue a document requesting the complainant to present the content of the complaint and provide information, documents, and evidence to clarify the content of the complaint; request the respondent to explain in writing about the decision or procedural act being complained of and provide information, documents, and evidence related to the complained-of content.

b) Examine the basis and legality of the procedural decision, procedural act, and decision on resolving the complaint.

Based on the examination results, if there are sufficient grounds to resolve the complaint and no need to verify the content of the complaint, the complaint resolver shall issue a decision to resolve the complaint immediately.

In cases where verification of the content of the complaint is necessary, the complaint resolver may conduct the verification themselves or issue a decision to assign someone to verify the content of the complaint. The person assigned to verify has the responsibility to develop a plan for verifying the content of the complaint to be submitted for approval by the competent authority.

Directly or propose that the competent agency or person apply necessary measures to prevent potential damage from occurring;

d) If the verification results of the content of the complaint and the demands of the complainant still differ, if deemed necessary, the complaint resolver shall organize a dialogue with the complainant, the respondent, and relevant agencies, organizations, or individuals to clarify the content of the complaint;

đ) When the verification period for the content of the complaint has expired but the verification has not been completed, the complaint resolver shall consider extending the verification period. The extended verification period shall not exceed the time limit for resolving the complaint;

e) Upon completion of the verification, the person assigned to verify must submit a report on the verification results of the content of the complaint and propose a resolution direction;

g) Issue a decision to resolve the complaint. In cases where the complainant withdraws the complaint, issue a decision to terminate the resolution process of the complaint.

2. The resolution of complaints must be documented in a file. The complaint resolution file includes: The complaint letter or record of the complaint content (if any); notification of acceptance of the complaint; explanation document of the respondent; decision on assignment for verification and approved verification plan (if any); minutes of meetings with the complainant, respondent, and relevant agencies, organizations, units, or individuals; collected information, documents, and evidence; appraisal results (if any); minutes of organized dialogues (if any); report on verification results of the complaint content; decision to resolve the complaint or decision to terminate the complaint resolution process (if any); other related documents.

The complaint resolution file must be numbered according to the sequence of documents and stored in accordance with legal regulations.

Article 8. Responsibilities of agencies and persons with authority in handling complaints

1. Agencies and persons with authority to handle complaints shall be responsible for organizing the acceptance of complaints, recording the full content of the complaint in the case registration book, monitoring, promptly resolving according to the provisions of the law, and sending the decision on handling the complaint or the decision to suspend the handling of the complaint to the complainant and the person complained against; reporting or informing the results of handling the complaint to the agencies, organizations, or individuals who have transferred the complaint.

In cases where the complaint meets the conditions stipulated in Article 5 of this Joint Circular but is not resolved in accordance with the law, seriously infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of the complainant, it shall be handled in accordance with the provisions at point p, Clause 1 of Joint Circular No. 02/2017/TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC-BCA-BQP dated December 22, 2017 issued by the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of National Defense regarding cooperation among agencies conducting criminal proceedings in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code concerning returning files for supplementary investigation.

2. Within three days from the date of case registration or issuance of the decision on handling the complaint, the Investigative Agency, agency assigned tasks to conduct some investigative activities, and the Court must send a written notice of case registration or the decision on handling the complaint or the decision to suspend the handling of the complaint to the same-level People's Procuracy or the Procuracy with jurisdiction for supervision of the handling of the complaint. Within three days from the date of receipt of the decision on handling the complaint, the Procuracy must notify in writing whether it agrees or disagrees with the decision on handling the complaint or the decision to suspend the handling of the complaint of the Investigative Agency, agency assigned tasks to conduct some investigative activities, and the Court.

The agency or individual with a procedural decision, procedural act, decision on handling the complaint that is being complained about shall be responsible for providing explanations in writing, supplying files, information, documents, evidence related to the content of the complaint according to the requirements of the complaint handler. Specifically, the Investigative Agency only provides documents to the Procuracy that the Procuracy does not already possess.

The explanation, supply of files, information, documents, evidence related to the complaint and its resolution shall be carried out within three days from the date of receiving the request.

The supply of files, information, documents, evidence related to the complaint and its resolution concerning the application of measures to detain a person in urgent circumstances, arrest, temporary detention, or pretrial detention shall be carried out within twelve hours from the date of receiving the request from the agency or person with authority to resolve the complaint.

Chapter III

COOPERATION IN THE ACCEPTANCE, CLASSIFICATION, REGISTRATION, AND RESOLUTION OF ACCUSATIONS

Article 9. Conditions for registering accusations

Agencies and persons with authority to register and resolve accusations shall do so when all of the following conditions are met:

1. The content of the accusation is an accusation in criminal proceedings; the accusation is made through a petition or directly presented to the competent authority:

a) In cases where the accusation is made through a petition, it must clearly state the date, month, year of the accusation; the name and address of the accuser; the name, position, and title of the competent authority conducting criminal proceedings being accused; the content, reasons for the accusation, relevant documents to the content of the accusation, and the accuser's request for resolution. The accusation petition must be signed by the accuser or marked with their fingerprint; if multiple people jointly make an accusation about the same content, the petition must clearly state the names, addresses, contact methods of each accuser, and the name of the representative for those accusers.

b) In cases where the accuser makes a direct accusation, the person accepting the accusation shall guide the writing of a petition or record the content of the accusation in writing and require the accuser to sign or mark their fingerprint to confirm the written document. If multiple people make a direct accusation about the same content, the person accepting the accusation shall guide the accusers to elect a representative to write the accusation petition or record the content of the accusation in writing and require the accusers to sign or mark their fingerprints to confirm the written document.

2. The accusation has not been resolved or has been resolved but new circumstances may change the content of the resolution decision.

In cases where the complaint has been resolved in accordance with the law, but the complainant disagrees with the decision on handling the complaint and thus accuses the complaint resolver, the accusation will only be registered if the accuser can provide information, documents, evidence to prove the content of the accusation.

3. The accusation falls within the jurisdiction to resolve according to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Article 10. Receiving, Categorizing, and Processing Complaints

When receiving a complaint, the competent authority or person responsible for receiving complaints shall examine and categorize it for processing as follows:

1. For complaints within their jurisdiction to resolve, within ten days from the date of receipt of the complaint, twelve hours for complaints specified in Clause 4, Article 481 of the Criminal Procedure Code, they must conduct verification and examination regarding the name, address of the complainant, and other contents as prescribed by laws on complaints. In cases where the complainant directly comes to lodge a complaint, they must request the complainant to clearly state their name, address, and present identification documents.

If the complaint meets the conditions for acceptance for handling, the competent authority or person with the authority to accept it for resolution shall handle it and notify the complainant in writing if requested.

If the complaint does not meet the conditions for acceptance for handling, they shall notify the complainant in writing about the non-acceptance for resolution of the complaint.

2. For complaints outside their jurisdiction to resolve, they shall transfer the complaint form or record of the complaint's content and related documents to the competent authority or person with the authority to resolve it and notify the complainant if requested.

3. They shall not consider or resolve anonymous complaints or those using another person’s name, or complaints whose content has already been resolved by the competent authority or person with the authority to resolve but the complainant cannot provide new evidence. If the complaint information does not clearly identify the complainant but provides specific documents and evidence regarding the violation of the law by the accused, the authority or organization receiving the complaint shall conduct inspections and investigations according to their authority or transfer it to the competent authority or organization to conduct inspections and investigations to serve management work.

4. Complaints about violations of the law outside litigation activities by persons conducting litigation or persons assigned tasks to carry out certain investigative activities; complaints about litigation activities by persons without the authority to conduct litigation or persons not assigned tasks to carry out certain investigative activities; complaints about violations of the law by other individuals belonging to the litigation authority shall be handled according to the provisions of the Law on Complaints.

Article 11. Procedures and Formalities for Accepting and Resolving Complaints

1. From the date of receiving a complaint within their jurisdiction to resolve, within the time limit for resolving complaints as stipulated by the Criminal Procedure Code, the competent authority or person with the authority to resolve complaints (hereinafter referred to collectively as the complaint resolver) shall implement the following procedures:

a) Verify the conditions for accepting the complaint as prescribed in Article 9 of this Joint Circular;

b) Issue a decision to verify the content of the complaint. In cases where the complaint resolver does not directly conduct the verification, they issue a decision to assign someone to verify the content of the complaint. The person assigned to verify has the responsibility to develop a plan for verifying the content of the complaint to be submitted for approval by the competent authority;

c) Work with the complainant, requesting them to provide information, documents, and evidence to clarify the content of the complaint. In cases where direct work with the complainant is not possible due to objective reasons, they shall issue a written request for the complainant to provide information, documents, and evidence to clarify the content of the complaint;

d) Work with the accused, requesting them to explain the matters complained about and provide relevant information, documents, and evidence concerning the content of the complaint. In cases where the explanations of the accused are unclear or the provided information, documents, and evidence are incomplete, they shall request the accused to continue explaining and providing information, documents, and evidence regarding unresolved issues;

đ) Issue a document requesting agencies, organizations, or individuals to provide information, documents, and evidence related to the content of the complaint. In necessary cases, the verifier may directly work with relevant agencies, organizations, or individuals to collect information, documents, and evidence related to the content of the complaint;

e) Directly or propose that the competent authority apply necessary measures to promptly prevent the complained-about actions from causing damage or threatening to cause damage to the interests of the State, organizations, or the lives, health, and property of individuals;

g) When the verification period for the content of the complaint has expired but the verification has not been completed, the complaint resolver shall consider extending the verification period. The extended verification period shall not exceed the time limit for resolving the complaint;

h) Upon completion of verification, the person assigned to verify must submit a report on the results of verifying the content of the complaint and propose a resolution direction;

i) Issue a decision to resolve the complaint.

2. The resolution of complaints must be documented in a file. The complaint resolution file includes: The complaint form or record of the complaint's content (if any); notification of acceptance for handling the complaint; decision on assignment for verification, verification plan; explanation document on the complained-about behavior; working records with the complainant, the accused, and related agencies, organizations, or individuals; collected information, documents, and evidence; inspection results (if any); report on the results of verifying the content of the complaint; decision to resolve the complaint; other related documents.

The complaint resolution file must be numbered according to the order of documents and stored in accordance with the law.

Article 12. Responsibilities of agencies and individuals with authority in handling complaints

1. The person handling the complaint shall be responsible for organizing the receipt of complaint letters, recording the content of the complaint in a protocol when the complainant directly presents the complaint (if necessary, audio or video recordings may be made); fully documenting the content of the complaint in the case registration book, promptly and properly following legal regulations; notifying the registration of the complaint, sending the decision on handling the complaint to the complainant and the accused; informing the results of handling the complaint to the management agency of the accused; reporting or notifying the results of handling the complaint to the agencies, organizations, or individuals who transferred the complaint.

In cases where the complaint meets the conditions stipulated in Article 9 of this Joint Circular but is not handled according to the provisions of the law, seriously infringing upon the legitimate rights and interests of the complainant, then it shall be implemented according to the provisions at point p, Clause 1 of Decision No. 02/2017/TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC-BCA-BQP dated December 22, 2017 of the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of National Defense, concerning the coordination among judicial agencies in implementing certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding returning files for supplementary investigation.

2. Within three days from the date of registration or issuance of the decision on handling the complaint, the Investigative Agency and the Court must send a written notification of registration or the decision on handling the complaint to the same-level Procuracy for supervision of the handling of the complaint. Within three days from the date of receiving the decision on handling the complaint, the Procuracy must notify in writing whether they agree or disagree with the decision on handling the complaint issued by the Investigative Agency or the Court.

3. Agencies, organizations, and individuals related to the content of the complaint must provide full information, documents, evidence, and physical evidence (if any), and report in writing about the content related to the alleged behavior according to the request of the complaint handler within five days from the date of receiving the request, or within twelve hours from the time of receiving the request for complaints related to the behavior of emergency detention, arrest, temporary detention, or temporary imprisonment.

4. The person handling the complaint and the individual assigned to verify the content of the complaint must keep confidential the name, address, handwriting of the complainant according to their request; promptly request competent authorities to protect the complainant if they are threatened, retaliated against, or persecuted.

5. During the process of handling the complaint, if violations of procedural laws are discovered, the complaint handler must apply preventive measures or recommend that competent authorities apply preventive measures until the complaint resolution result is obtained; if there are signs of criminal offenses, the complaint letter or the protocol recording the content of the complaint and related documents and evidence must be transferred to the competent investigative agency.

If the accused has violated the law but does not reach the level requiring criminal responsibility, appropriate measures should be applied according to their authority or recommended to competent authorities for handling. If it is determined that the complaint is false, the rights and legitimate interests of the accused infringed upon due to the false complaint must be restored or recommended to competent authorities to restore them; simultaneously, recommend that competent authorities handle those who intentionally make false complaints.

6. Complaints related to the application of arrest and detention measures pursuant to the decision of the Deputy President of the Court shall be resolved by the President of the Court. Complaints related to the application of arrest and detention measures pursuant to the decision of the President of the Court shall be resolved by a higher-level Court; complaints regarding violations of the law in the implementation of arrest and detention decisions of the Court shall be resolved by the head of the agency responsible for implementing such decisions. The deadline for resolving complaints related to the application of arrest and detention measures and the implementation of arrest and detention decisions of the Court shall be carried out according to the deadlines stipulated in Clause 4 of Article 481 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Chapter IV

COORDINATION IN SUPERVISING THE HANDLING OF PETITIONS AND COMPLAINTS

Article 13. Scope of Supervision over the Handling of Complaints and Petitions

The Procuracy conducts supervision over the handling of complaints and petitions in criminal proceedings by the Investigative Agency, agencies assigned to carry out certain investigative activities, and courts at the same level and lower levels from the time of receiving and accepting complaints and petitions until the issuance of decisions on handling complaints and petitions or decisions to terminate the handling of complaints and petitions.

Article 14. Authority of the Procuracy in Supervising the Handling of Complaints and Petitions

1. When supervising the handling of complaints and petitions, the Procuracy has the authority to conduct activities and measures as prescribed by the Criminal Procedure Code that are related to the content of complaints and petitions.

2. Within the scope of their functions and tasks, agencies, organizations, and individuals with authority have the responsibility to cooperate in implementing the requirements of the Procuracy as stipulated by law.

Article 15. Application of Supervisory Measures

1. The Procuracy issues a document requesting the Investigative Agency, agencies assigned to carry out certain investigative activities, and courts to issue documents resolving complaints and petitions when the Procuracy receives a complaint or petition accompanied by evidence proving that the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions did not issue a resolution document after the deadline had expired, or when there is a document requesting such action from an authorized state agency accompanying the complaint or petition, or when there is other grounds indicating that the deadline for handling complaints and petitions had expired but the agency or person authorized to handle them did not issue a resolution document as required by law. The issuance of the request document must be carried out within three days from the date the Procuracy receives information about the violation.

The measure of requesting the issuance of a resolution document can be applied to a single complaint or petition, or to multiple complaints or petitions.

Within seven days from the date of receipt of the Procuracy's request document, the agency under supervision must implement the Procuracy's request. In cases where there are objective reasons necessitating an extension of the deadline, the agency under supervision must clearly notify the reason in writing, then the deadline will be fifteen days from the date of receipt of the document.

2. The Procuracy issues a document requesting the Investigative Agency, agencies assigned to carry out certain investigative activities, and courts to self-inspect the handling of complaints and petitions at their own level and lower levels when the Procuracy receives a complaint or petition and has grounds to determine that the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions has signs of violations in handling complaints and petitions but lacks sufficient grounds to conclude a violation, or according to the request of an authorized state agency accompanying the complaint or petition regarding violations of law by the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions.

The measure of requesting self-inspection of the handling of complaints and petitions can be applied to a single complaint or petition or multiple complaints or petitions at a single point in time.

Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the request document, the agency under supervision must implement the Procuracy's request. In cases where there are objective reasons necessitating an extension of the deadline, the agency under supervision must clearly notify the reason in writing, then the deadline will be thirty days from the date of receipt of the document.

3. The Procuracy issues a document requesting the Investigative Agency, agencies assigned to carry out certain investigative activities, and courts to provide files and materials related to the handling of complaints and petitions when the Procuracy receives a complaint or petition or receives the results of handling complaints and petitions and discovers signs of violations by the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions.

Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the request document, the agency under supervision must implement the Procuracy's request. In cases where there are objective reasons necessitating an extension of the deadline, the agency under supervision must clearly notify the reason in writing, then the deadline will be thirty days from the date of receipt of the document.

4. The Procuracy directly supervises the handling of complaints and petitions at the Investigative Agency, agencies assigned to carry out certain investigative activities, and courts at the same level and lower levels when the Procuracy receives a complaint or petition and discovers signs of violations by the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions, or according to the request of an authorized state agency accompanying the complaint or petition, or when there are grounds to determine that the agency or person authorized to handle complaints and petitions has signs of violations in handling complaints and petitions.

The direct supervision measure can be applied to supervise specific complaints and petitions or the handling of complaints and petitions at a specific point in time.

Direct supervision must be carried out based on a written decision and organized by the Procurator of the Procuracy. Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the Direct Supervision Decision, the agency under supervision must prepare a report on the contents being supervised and provide complete case files, registration books, and other relevant documents as requested by the Procuracy, facilitating the Procuracy's supervision.

Article 16. Issuance of Objections and Recommendations by the Procuracy

1. Upon completion of the application of one of the inspection measures specified in Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of Article 15 of this Circular, the Procuracy must issue an inspection conclusion. In cases where multiple inspection measures are applied to a single case, the Procuracy shall only issue an inspection conclusion upon completion of the final inspection measure.

Where there is evidence to conclude that there has been a violation of the law in the handling of complaints and reports by the inspected agency, depending on the nature and severity of the violation, the Procuracy shall issue an objection or recommendation requesting the inspected agency to rectify the violation.

Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the objection or recommendation of the Procuracy, the inspected agency must provide a written response; if an extension of time is necessary, the inspected agency must provide a written notification clearly stating the reasons. The content of the written response must express agreement to implement or disagreement with the objection or recommendation of the Procuracy.

If there is disagreement with the objection or recommendation of the Procuracy, the inspected agency has the right to submit a recommendation to the superior Procuracy. Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the recommendation, the superior Procuracy must provide a written conclusion and respond to the inspected agency.

2. In cases where the Procuracy issues a request, objection, or recommendation, but the inspected agency does not implement or does not fully implement without a valid reason, the Procuracy has the right to recommend the superior agency of the inspected agency to take measures to compel the inspected agency to implement.

Article 17. Inspection of Implementation of Objections and Recommendations

The Procuracy that issued an objection or recommendation is responsible for inspecting the implementation of the objection or recommendation. The content of the inspection must be consistent with the content of the objection or recommendation.

The inspection must have an inspection decision. Upon completion of the inspection, the Procuracy must provide a written conclusion on the implementation of the objection or recommendation by the inspected agency.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 18. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from October 19, 2018. This Circular replaces Circular Joint No. 02/2005/TTLT-VKSTC-TATC-BCA-BQP-BTP dated August 10, 2005 of the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Ministry of Justice guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code regarding complaints and reports.

2. Complaints and reports accepted before the effective date of this Circular but not yet resolved by a written decision shall be handled according to the provisions of this Circular.

Article 19. Responsibility for Implementation

1. The Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development are responsible for implementing, guiding, inspecting, and urging the implementation of this Circular within their respective sectors.

2. During the implementation of this Circular, if there are difficulties requiring guidance, amendment, or supplementation, relevant agencies, organizations, and individuals shall notify the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consideration and decision.