JOINT CIRCULAR No. 07/2007/TTLT-BTM-BTC GUIDING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS ON PROMOTION AND TRADE FAIRS, TRADE EXHIBITIONS AS PROVIDED FOR IN DECREE No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP OF APRIL 4, 2006 OF THE GOVERNMENT PROVIDING DETAILED REGULATIONS ON THE LAW ON COMMERCE REGARDING BUSINESS PROMOTION ACTIVITIES

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing certain provisions on promotions and trade fairs and exhibitions as stipulated in

Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP dated April 4, 2006 of the Government detailing the Law on Trade regarding trade promotion activities

Detailed regulations on trade promotion activities under the Law on Trade

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Pursuant to Decree No. 29/2004/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2004 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Trade;

Pursuant to Decree No. 77/2003/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 2003 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP dated April 4, 2006 of the Government detailing the Law on Trade regarding trade promotion activities (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP);

The Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Finance issue guidelines for implementing certain provisions on promotional activities and trade fairs and exhibitions as stipulated in Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP as follows:

I. NATIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITIES FOR TRADE IN RELATION TO PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES AND TRADE FAIRS AND EXHIBITIONS

1. National administrative authorities for trade with jurisdiction over promotional activities and trade fairs and exhibitions (hereinafter referred to as national administrative authorities) include:

a) The Ministry of Trade is responsible for handling registration for implementation of promotions and organization of trade fairs and exhibitions within its jurisdiction as prescribed in the Law on Trade, Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP, and the guidelines set forth in this Circular;

b) Provincial Departments of Trade are responsible for handling notification and registration for implementation of promotions and organization of trade fairs and exhibitions within their jurisdiction as prescribed in the Law on Trade, Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP, and the guidelines set forth in this Circular.

2. Responsibilities of national administrative authorities

a) Publicly announce conditions, timeframes, procedures, and formalities for notification and registration for implementation of promotions and organization of trade fairs and exhibitions;

b) Receive and handle notifications and registrations for implementation of promotions and organization of trade fairs and exhibitions within their jurisdiction as prescribed in the Law on Trade, Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP, and the guidelines set forth in this Circular;

c) Inspect and supervise promotional activities and trade fairs and exhibitions within their jurisdiction as prescribed;

d) Other responsibilities as prescribed by law.

II. PROMOTIONS

1. Forms of promotions must be notified in writing to the Provincial Department of Trade where the promotion is organized, including:

a) Providing samples of goods or services for customers to try free of charge;

b) Giving away goods or services to customers without charge, either accompanying or not accompanying the purchase or sale of goods or provision of services;

c) Selling goods or providing services at a lower price than the previous selling price or service fee;

d) Selling goods or providing services with attached purchase vouchers or service usage vouchers;

đ) Selling goods or providing services with attached lottery tickets for customers to participate in prize draws according to announced rules and prizes;

e) Organizing regular customer programs;

g) Organizing cultural, artistic, entertainment events, and other events for promotional purposes.

2. Notification of Promotion Implementation

At least seven working days before the implementation of promotions, traders implementing the forms of promotions specified in Clause 1 of this Section must submit a written notification (in accordance with Form KM-1 attached to this Circular) to the Provincial Department of Trade where the promotion is organized. Upon receiving the notification submission, the Provincial Department of Trade issues a receipt for the notification. The receipt for the notification is made in two copies (in accordance with Form KM-4 attached to this Circular), one copy is given to the trader implementing the promotion and one copy is kept at the Provincial Department of Trade (this does not apply to cases where the notification is sent via postal service);

3. Promotional forms that must be registered with the Provincial Department of Trade (if implemented in one province or centrally-administered city) or the Ministry of Trade (if implemented in two or more provinces or centrally-administered cities), including:

a) Selling goods or providing services accompanied by participation in promotional programs with elements of chance;

b) Other promotional forms as stipulated in Article 17 of Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP.

4. Documents for Registration of Promotion Implementation Include:

a) A written application for promotion implementation (in accordance with Form KM-2 attached to this Circular);

b) Rules of the promotional program (in accordance with Form KM-3 attached to this Circular);

c) Sample lottery tickets for promotional programs involving the issuance of lottery tickets;

d) Images of promotional goods and goods used for promotion;

đ) Sample proof of winning (if applicable);

e) Copies of certificates of quality of promotional goods and services and goods and services used for promotion as required by law (if applicable).

In addition to the documents mentioned in points a, b, c, d, đ, and e of this clause, traders do not need to present any additional documents.

5. Receipt of Application for Promotion Implementation Registration

a) When receiving applications for promotion implementation registration, the competent authority records a receipt for the application. The receipt for the application is made in two copies (in accordance with Form KM-4 attached to this Circular), one copy is given to the trader implementing the promotion and one copy is kept at the competent authority (this does not apply to cases where the application is sent via postal service);

b) Within three working days from the date of receipt of the application, if the application is incomplete or invalid, the competent authority notifies the trader in writing (in accordance with Form KM-5 attached to this Circular) to supplement and complete the application. The processing time for the application starts from the date when the competent authority receives a complete and valid application;

c) Traders applying for promotion implementation have the right to request the competent authority to clarify any requirements for supplementing and completing the application. The competent authority has the responsibility to respond to the trader's request.

6. Confirmation or Non-Confirmation of Promotion Implementation Registration

a) Within seven working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid registration file for implementing promotional activities, the state management agency shall examine and confirm or not confirm in writing (according to Model KM-6 or KM-7 attached as Appendix to this Circular), in case of non-confirmation, the reasons must be clearly stated;

b) In case the Ministry of Trade is the confirming authority for the registration of promotional activities, the trader must send a notification letter to the Department of Trade at the location where the promotional activity will be implemented, along with a copy of the confirmation letter from the Ministry of Trade, at least seven working days before the implementation of the promotional activity.

7. Amending and supplementing the content of the promotional program

a). If a trader wishes to amend or supplement the content of the promotional program, they must submit a notification letter or a registration form for amending or supplementing the content of the promotional program (according to Model KM-8 attached as Appendix to this Circular) to the state management agency where the notification or registration for the promotional activity was made;

b). The procedures and formalities for registering amendments and supplements to the content of promotional programs that require notification for implementation are guided by Clause 2, Section II of this Circular. The procedures and formalities for registering amendments and supplements to the content of promotional programs that require registration for implementation are guided by Clauses 5 and 6, Section II of this Circular;

c). Any amendment or supplementation to the content of the promotional program must ensure compliance with the provisions on promotions under the Commercial Law and Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP.

8. For promotional activities involving chance, when implementing the provision of evidence to determine winning prizes on goods or opening the prize draw for promotional programs with a total prize value of VND 100 million or more, traders must notify the Department of Trade at the location where such activities will take place at least seven working days in advance to organize inspection and supervision of the implementation.

9. Terminating the implementation of the promotional program

In cases where the implementation of the promotional program is terminated as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 19 of Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP, the trader has the obligation to publicly notify customers and the state management agency.

10. Suspending the implementation of the promotional program

The state management agency suspends the entire or part of the implementation of the promotional program of the trader if it discovers any violation as stipulated in Article 20 of Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP (according to Model KM-9 attached as Appendix to this Circular).

11. Handling unclaimed prizes of promotional programs involving chance

a) Within eight working days from the end of the prize awarding period, the trader is responsible for reporting in detail to the state management agency about unclaimed prizes (according to Model KM-10 attached as Appendix to this Circular);

b) Within seven working days from the date of receiving the trader's report, the state management agency shall inspect, confirm and issue a decision to collect 50% of the announced value of unclaimed prizes in the promotional program (according to Model KM-11 attached as Appendix to this Circular);

c) Within fifteen working days from the date of receiving the collection decision from the state management agency, the trader is responsible for depositing 50% of the announced value of unclaimed prizes in the promotional program into the account of the state management agency that confirmed the registration for implementing the promotion at the State Treasury;

d) Based on the collection decision, the State Treasury records and distributes the revenue according to the分级任务如下：

đ) Recording and finalizing accounts

The trader records the payment of 50% of the value of unclaimed prizes in the promotional program as business expenses. At the end of the fiscal year, the State Treasury notifies the issuing authority of the actual revenue collected and distributed to the budget. On this basis, the state management agency for trade consolidates and finalizes accounts with the financial management agency at the same level regarding the amount decided to be collected and the actual revenue collected into the state budget.

12. Reporting the results of promotional activities

a) Upon completion of the promotional program, the trader must report the results of the promotional activity to the local state management agency (according to Model KM-12 attached as Appendix to this Circular);

b) In case the Ministry of Trade is the confirming authority for the registration of promotional activities, in addition to the responsibility to report the results of the promotional activity to the Ministry of Trade, the trader also has the responsibility to report to the local Department of Trade the results of the promotional activity conducted in the locality.

III. TRADE FAIRS AND EXHIBITIONS

1. Registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions

a) Organizing trade fairs and exhibitions in Vietnam or participating in trade fairs and exhibitions abroad (hereinafter referred to as organizing trade fairs and exhibitions) must be registered with the state management agency before October 1 of the year preceding the year of organization.

b) In case of registration after the deadline specified in point a of this clause, traders or organizations related to trade must register at least thirty days before the opening of the trade fair or exhibition in Vietnam or forty-five days before the opening of the trade fair or exhibition abroad.

2. Documents for registering the organization of trade fairs and exhibitions

The registration documents for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions are carried out in accordance with Article 38 of Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP, including a registration document for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions (according to Model HCTL-1 attached as Appendix to this Circular).

3. Acceptance of registration documents for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions

a) Within three (3) working days from the date of receiving the file, for incomplete or invalid files, the state management agency shall notify in writing (in accordance with Model HCTL-2 attached as Appendix to this Circular) the trader, organization related to trade to supplement and complete the file;

b) The trader, organization related to trade has the right to request the state management agency to explain clearly the contents that need to be supplemented and completed in the file. The state management agency shall be responsible for responding to the request of the trader, organization related to trade;

4. Confirmation, non-confirmation of registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions

a) In the case of registering to organize trade fairs and exhibitions in accordance with the guidance at point a, Clause 1, Section of this Article, when receiving a complete and valid registration file for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions, the state management agency shall be responsible for examining and confirming or not confirming in writing (in accordance with Model HCTL-3 or HCTL-4 attached as Appendix to this Circular) before November 1 of the year prior to the year of organization, in the case of non-confirmation, the reasons must be clearly stated;

b) In the case of registering to organize trade fairs and exhibitions in accordance with the guidance at point b, Clause 1, Section of this Article, within ten (10) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid registration file, the state management agency shall be responsible for examining and confirming or not confirming in writing (in accordance with Model HCTL-3, HCTL-4 mentioned above);

5. In the case where two or more traders, organizations related to trade register to organize trade fairs and exhibitions with the same name, theme, time, and location:

a) In the case of registering in accordance with the guidance at point a, Clause 1, Section of this Article, the state management agency shall organize negotiations to select the trader, organization related to trade to organize the trade fair or exhibition. In the case where the negotiation does not reach a result, the state management agency shall decide to confirm one (1) trader or organization related to trade to organize based on the provisions set out in Clause 4, Article 34 and Clause 4, Article 36 of Decree No. 37/2006/NĐ-CP;

b) In the case of registering in accordance with the guidance at point b, Clause 1, Section of this Article, the state management agency shall confirm the registration of the trader, organization related to trade who registered first;

6. Modification, supplementation of the content of registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions

a) The trader, organization related to trade has the right to modify and supplement the content of the registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions that have been confirmed. The document requesting modification and supplementation of the content of the registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions (in accordance with Model HCTL-5 attached as Appendix to this Circular) must be sent to the state management agency at least thirty (30) days before the opening of the trade fair or exhibition in Vietnam or forty-five (45) days before the opening of the trade fair or exhibition abroad;

b) The procedures and formalities for modifying and supplementing the content of the registration for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions shall be carried out in accordance with the guidance at Clause 3, Section of this Article;

c) Within ten (10) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid registration file, the state management agency shall be responsible for examining and confirming or not confirming in writing (in accordance with Model HCTL-3 or HCTL-4 attached as Appendix to this Circular), in the case of non-confirmation, the reasons must be clearly stated;

7. Reporting the results of organizing trade fairs and exhibitions

Within thirty (30) days from the end date of the trade fair or exhibition, the trader, organization related to trade must submit a report on the results of organizing the trade fair or exhibition to the state management agency (in accordance with Model HCTL-6 attached as Appendix to this Circular);

8. Displaying counterfeit goods, goods infringing intellectual property rights for comparison with genuine goods

a) Organizations, individuals must send a registration document (in accordance with Model HCTL-7 attached as Appendix to this Circular) to the Department of Trade (in the case of participating in trade fairs and exhibitions in Vietnam) or the Ministry of Trade (in the case of participating in trade fairs and exhibitions abroad) before displaying counterfeit goods, goods infringing intellectual property rights for comparison with genuine goods at trade fairs and exhibitions;

b) Within three (3) working days from the date of receiving the file, for incomplete or invalid files, the state management agency shall notify in writing (in accordance with Model HCTL-8 attached as Appendix to this Circular) the organization, individual to supplement the file;

c) Within seven (7) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid file, the state management agency must approve or not approve the registration (in accordance with Model HCTL-9 or Model HCTL-10 attached as Appendix to this Circular), in the case of non-approval, the reasons must be clearly stated;

9. Temporary importation for re-export, temporary export for re-import of goods to participate in trade fairs and exhibitions

The temporary importation for re-export, temporary export for re-import of goods to participate in trade fairs and exhibitions shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the Commercial Law, Decree No. 12/2006/NĐ-CP dated January 23, 2006 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of the Commercial Law on international trade activities and certain activities of agency, purchase-sale, processing, and transit of goods with foreign countries, Circular No. 04/2006/TT-BTM dated April 6, 2006 guiding some provisions of Decree No. 12/2006/NĐ-CP and other relevant laws;

IV. IMPLEMENTATION

1. The Ministry of Trade assigns:

a) The Agency for Trade Promotion shall receive and handle applications for implementing promotions, applications for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Trade, and coordinate with competent agencies to inspect and supervise the compliance with legal regulations by traders, organizations related to trade.

b) The Market Management Agency shall coordinate with the Trade Promotion Agency and relevant agencies to inspect and supervise the implementation by traders and organizations related to trade activities, and impose administrative penalties according to the provisions of the law on acts violating the law by traders and organizations related to trade activities.

2. The Department of Commerce shall receive and process notifications and registrations for promotional activities, and registrations for organizing trade fairs and exhibitions within its jurisdiction as prescribed by law, and inspect, monitor, and handle violations in promotional activities and trade fairs and exhibitions. The Department of Commerce shall be responsible for reporting on promotional activities and trade fairs and exhibitions in its jurisdiction upon request of the Trade Promotion Agency.

3. This Circular shall take effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette. Any difficulties or obstacles encountered during the implementation should be promptly reported by relevant organizations and individuals to the Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of Finance for study and amendment./.