Circular No. 10/2004/TT-BGTVT guiding the implementation of Decree No. 125/2003/NĐ-CP dated October 29, 2003 of the Government on international multimodal transport

Joint Resolutions, Circulars

Guidelines for Implementing Decree No. 125/2003/NĐ-CP dated October 29, 2003 of the Government on International Multimodal Transport

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 4, Decree No. 125/2003/NĐ-CP dated October 29, 2003 of the Government on International Multimodal Transport, hereinafter referred to as the Decree, the Ministry of Transport hereby provides specific guidance on the following points:

1. Conditions for Operating International Multimodal Transport (Article 5, Decree)

a/ Vietnamese enterprises include:

- Limited liability companies, joint stock companies, limited partnerships, and private enterprises established and operating in accordance with the Law on Enterprises 1999;

- State-owned enterprises, limited liability companies, and joint stock companies established and operating in accordance with the Law on State-Owned Enterprises 2003;

- Cooperatives established and operating in accordance with the Law on Cooperatives 2003;

- Foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam, including joint ventures and wholly foreign-owned enterprises operating in accordance with the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam 1996 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Foreign Investment in Vietnam 2000.

b/ Foreign enterprises are those defined in Point a, Clause 3, Article 6 of the Decree.

c/ Vietnamese and foreign enterprises may only operate international multimodal transport after obtaining from the Ministry of Transport a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport”. Foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam may only engage in multimodal transport operations after obtaining from the Ministry of Planning and Investment an “Investment License” in the field of multimodal transport operations.

2. Conditions for Issuing a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” (Article 6, Decree)

a/ Vietnamese and foreign enterprises shall be issued a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” when they meet the conditions stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 6 of the Decree.

b/ Requirements for having professional liability insurance for multimodal transport or bank guarantees, specifically as follows:

- The enterprise must have a contract for purchasing professional liability insurance for multimodal transport with a Vietnamese insurance organization or an overseas insurance organization permitted to operate in Vietnam.

- The enterprise must have a guarantee from a Vietnamese banking organization or an overseas banking organization permitted to operate in Vietnam.

3. Procedures for Reviewing Applications and Issuing a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” (Article 7, Decree)

a/ Application for a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport”

For Vietnamese enterprises, it includes:

- An application for a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” must be signed and stamped by the representative head of the enterprise.

- Valid copies of the following documents: Business Registration Certificate, Declaration of Assets of the Enterprise or equivalent collateral, Insurance Contract for Professional Liability or Bank Guarantee must be certified by a Notary Public or the issuing authority.

- The Declaration of Assets of the Enterprise must be confirmed by the financial management agency of the enterprise or equivalent collateral must be confirmed by a bank.

For foreign enterprises, it includes:

- An application for a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” according to the template of the Ministry of Transport.

- A valid copy of the “Business Registration Certificate for Multimodal Transport Operations” must be legalized by the consulate or embassy of that country in Vietnam.

The template for the “Application for a License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” is attached as Appendix 1; the template for the “Application for Reissuance of a License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” is attached as Appendix 2.

b/ Reviewing applications and issuing licenses for Vietnamese and foreign enterprises

- Vietnamese and foreign enterprises engaged in multimodal transport operations must submit three sets of application documents to the Department of Transport under the Ministry of Transport. The Department of Transport is responsible for reviewing the documents and guiding enterprises to complete them and sign off on the submitted documents.

- After receiving all valid documents, within five working days, the Department of Transport will forward the documents to relevant agencies for review.

- Within five working days from the date of receipt of the application for a license for operating international multimodal transport, the specialized management agencies and related departments are responsible for providing comments in writing to the Department of Transport. If there is no written comment within the specified time frame, it is considered that the agencies and departments agree to approve.

- Within five working days from the date of receipt of the review agency's response, the Department of Transport will compile and submit the license to the Minister of the Ministry of Transport. The enterprise will receive the “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” within twenty days from the date of submission of valid application documents. In case of non-approval, a written response must be provided to the enterprise within twenty days, specifying the reasons.

c/ The “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” is valid for twenty-four months from the date of issuance. The template for the “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” is attached as Appendix 3.

Enterprises granted a “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” must pay the licensing fee as prescribed by the Ministry of Finance.

4. Regulations for Foreign-Invested Enterprises in Vietnam (Clause 5, Article 7)

Upon receipt of the application for an “Investment License” in the field of multimodal transport operations from foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam sent by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Department of Transport under the Ministry of Transport is responsible for organizing reviews and compiling reports to submit to the Ministry of Transport for reply within ten working days from the date of receipt of the request from the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

 5. Management and Revocation of the “License for Operating International Multimodal Transport” (Article 8, Decree)

Within one year (12 months) from the date of issuance of the "Business License for Multimodal Transport", enterprises engaged in multimodal transport business must submit a report on the results of their multimodal transport business operations to the Department of Transport under the Ministry of Transport for monitoring.

The Department of Transport under the Ministry of Transport shall coordinate with relevant Departments and Agencies to inspect the multimodal transport business activities of enterprises. If violations of the provisions of Clause 1, Article 8 of the Decree are discovered, a report shall be submitted to the Minister of Transport to revoke the "Business License for Multimodal Transport" in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2, Article 8 of the Decree.

6. Registration of multimodal transport documents (Article 9, Decree)

The Department of Transport shall certify the registration of multimodal transport document templates for Vietnamese and foreign enterprises engaged in multimodal transport business based on the contents stipulated in Article 12 of the Decree. The multimodal transport document template must reflect the characteristics of the enterprise and may not be a direct copy of other documents.

7. Implementation organization

This Circular shall take effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.

Enterprises that have been engaged in multimodal transport business must complete procedures to obtain the "Business License for Multimodal Transport" within thirty days from the effective date of this Circular.

During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties or inconsistencies in understanding, enterprises engaged in multimodal transport business shall report to the Ministry for prompt resolution./.