Circular No. 07/2023/TT-BTC stipulates the level of collection, collection regime, payment, management, and use of fees for reviewing plans to rehabilitate and restore the environment conducted by central agencies.

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the level of collection, collection system, payment, management, and use of fees for reviewing plans to improve and restore the environment conducted by central agencies

Pursuant to the Law on Fees and Charges dated November 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Minerals dated November 17, 2010;

Pursuant to the State Budget Law dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Environmental Protection Law dated November 17, 2020;

Pursuant to the Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP dated August 23, 2016 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain articles of the Law on Fees and Stamp Duties;

Pursuant to Decree No. 126/2020/NĐ-CP dated October 19, 2020 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration; Decree No. 91/2022/NĐ-CP dated October 30, 2022 of the Government amending and supplementing certain provisions of Decree No. 126/2020/NĐ-CP;

Pursuant to Decree No. 08/2022/NĐ-CP dated January 10, 2022 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Environmental Protection;

Pursuant to Decree No. 87/2017/NĐ-CP dated July 26, 2017, issued by the Government, stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the request of the Director of the Tax Policy Department;

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular stipulating the level of collection, collection system, payment, management, and use of fees for reviewing plans to improve and restore the environment conducted by central agencies.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. This Circular stipulates the level of collection, collection system, payment, management, and use of fees for reviewing plans to improve and restore the environment conducted by central agencies, as prescribed in Article 36 of Decree No. 08/2022/NĐ-CP dated January 10, 2022 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Environmental Protection.

2. This Circular applies to fee payers; organizations collecting fees; other organizations and individuals related to the collection and payment of fees for reviewing plans to improve and restore the environment conducted by central agencies.

Article 2. Fee Payers and Fee Collecting Organizations

1. Fee payers are organizations and individuals requesting central competent authorities to review plans to improve and restore the environment.

2. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment or state agencies entrusted by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to review plans to improve and restore the environment shall organize the collection of review fees according to the provisions of this Circular.

Article 3. Level of Fees

The level of review fees for plans to improve and restore the environment is specified as follows:

Article 4. Declaration and Payment of Fees

1. Fee payers must pay the review fees at the levels prescribed in Article 3 of this Circular to the collecting organization when submitting the application for review of plans to improve and restore the environment in accordance with the forms prescribed in Circular No. 74/2022/TT-BTC dated December 22, 2022 of the Minister of Finance on the form, time limit, declaration, and payment of various fees and charges under the authority of the Ministry of Finance.

2. By the fifth day of each month, the collecting organization must deposit the collected review fees from the previous month into the account opened at the State Treasury for pending budget payments. The collecting organization must declare, collect, pay, and settle the review fees according to the provisions of Circular No. 74/2022/TT-BTC.

Article 5. Management and use of fees

1. The collecting organization must remit 100% of the collected fees into the state budget. The costs for conducting reviews and collecting fees are covered by the state budget within the organizational budget of the collecting organization according to the state budget expenditure regulations.

2. In cases where the collecting organization is a state agency allocated operational costs from the collected fees according to Clause 1, Article 4 of Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP dated August 23, 2016 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Fees and Charges, it may retain 70% of the total collected fees for operational activities and remit 30% of the total collected fees into the state budget.

a) Retained fees are managed and used according to the provisions of Article 5 of Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP; including other expenses related to conducting reviews and collecting fees, such as inspection and evaluation costs at the site and location of the project, organizing meetings of the review board (costs for opinions, review comments, review reports), and the cost levels prescribed in Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BTC dated January 6, 2017 of the Minister of Finance guiding the management of environmental protection service funds.

b) After settling accounts according to the regulations, the retained unspent fees from the year will be transferred to the next year for continued spending according to the prescribed regulations; if two years have passed since the transfer without any remaining tasks, the transferred fees must be fully remitted into the state budget.

Article 6. Implementation Provisions

1. This Circular takes effect from March 20, 2023.

2. This Circular abolishes Circular No. 35/2017/TT-BTC dated April 25, 2017 of the Minister of Finance stipulating the level of collection, collection system, payment, management, and use of fees for reviewing plans to improve and restore the environment; supplementary plans to improve and restore the environment reviewed by central agencies.

3. Other contents related to the collection, payment, management, use, receipt vouchers, and publicizing the fee collection system not stipulated in this Circular shall be implemented according to the provisions of the following legal documents: Law on Fees and Charges; Decree No. 120/2016/NĐ-CP; Law on Tax Administration; Decree No. 126/2020/NĐ-CP dated October 19, 2020 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration; Decree No. 91/2022/NĐ-CP dated October 30, 2022 of the Government amending and supplementing certain provisions of Decree No. 126/2020/NĐ-CP; Decree No. 11/2020/NĐ-CP dated January 20, 2020 of the Government on administrative procedures under the State Treasury sector; Decree No. 123/2020/NĐ-CP dated October 19, 2020 of the Government on invoices and documents, and Circular No. 78/2021/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2021 of the Minister of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration dated June 13, 2019, and Decree No. 123/2020/NĐ-CP dated October 19, 2020 of the Government on invoices and documents.

4. During the implementation period, if the legal normative documents cited in this Circular are amended, supplemented, or replaced, they shall be implemented according to the amended, supplemented, or replaced documents.

5. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, organizations and individuals are requested to promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Finance for research and supplementary guidance.