Decree No. 116/2014/ND-CP detailing some provisions of the Law on Plant Protection and Quarantine

DECREE
Regulations on certain provisions of

Law on Plant Protection and Quarantine

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Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

1. List of products changing information related to trade name and information related to organizations and individuals registering, Appendix I issued together with this Circular:

At the request of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development,

The Government promulgates this Decree to provide detailed regulations for certain provisions of the Law on Plant Protection and Quarantine.

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Decree provides detailed regulations and guidance for implementing Article 9, Article 17, Article 21, and Article 35 of the Law on Plant Protection and Quarantine concerning specialized agencies for plant protection and quarantine; declaration of plant pests; anti-pest funds; suspension of export and import; prohibition of export and import of objects subject to plant quarantine.

Article 2. Applicability

This Decree applies to organizations and individuals within the country and foreign organizations and individuals related to activities of plant protection and quarantine in Vietnam.

Article 3. System of specialized agencies for plant protection and quarantine

1. The central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has the function of advising and assisting the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in state management and enforcement of laws in the field of prevention and control of plant pests; plant quarantine; and plant protection chemical management nationwide.

2. The provincial specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine (hereinafter referred to as the provincial level) under the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development assists the Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in advising the People's Committee at the provincial level to perform state management functions and enforce laws in the field of prevention and control of plant pests; domestic plant quarantine; and plant protection chemical management in the province and directly under the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine in terms of professional guidance.

3. The district-level specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine under the provincial specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine performs tasks assigned on the district level and cooperates with the District Agricultural and Rural Development Office to assist the People's Committee at the district level in state management in the field of prevention and control of plant pests; domestic plant quarantine; and plant protection chemical management on the district level.

4. Local specialized agencies for plant protection and quarantine operate according to the guidelines of the Minister of Home Affairs and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Chapter II
DECLARATION OF PLANT PESTS

FUNDS FOR PEST CONTROL

Article 4. Conditions for declaring plant pests

1. For plant pests not subject to plant quarantine or not being new pests, the following two conditions must be met:

a) The plant pest increases dramatically in quantity, area, and degree of damage compared to the average of the last two consecutive years prior to the declaration of the pest outbreak, and the forecast of the provincial-level specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine or higher; poses a risk of rapid spread over a wide area, seriously affecting production, environment, people's livelihood, and exceeding the control capacity of the plant owner;

b) Management measures for plant pests have been applied by the plant owner according to the guidance of the specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine but have not achieved the desired results, thus requiring urgent and mandatory measures to be strictly implemented by the plant owner, organizations, and individuals related to the affected area for a specific period to quickly contain and extinguish the pest outbreak.

2. For plant pests that are subject to plant quarantine or new pests

Upon discovering plant quarantine objects or new pests appearing or entering the territory of Vietnam, posing a risk of establishing populations and spreading widely, urgent and mandatory measures must be strictly implemented by the plant owner, organizations, and individuals related to the affected area to quickly isolate and thoroughly deal with the plant quarantine object or new pest.

Article 5. Procedures for Announcing Plant Pests

1. Procedures for Announcing Plant Pests

a) Based on the provisions of Article 4 of this Decree, the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine shall report to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development; the provincial specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine shall submit a report to the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, which then reports to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province regarding the pest situation, actual data proving the conditions for announcing the pest, the necessity of announcing the pest, and proposals for the scope of the announcement and measures to control the pest.

b) The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development shall decide to announce the pest based on the report from the head of the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine; the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province shall decide to announce the pest based on the report from the Director of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

c) In cases where necessary, the authorized person to announce the pest may establish an Advisory Board to seek opinions. The Board shall be chaired by the authorized person to announce the pest or their deputy, with the Deputy Chair being the head of the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine or the Director of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, and members representing relevant agencies, organizations, and experienced experts in the field of plant protection.

The Advisory Board shall be responsible for reviewing the reports of the specialized agencies for plant protection and quarantine, advising the authorized person on the announcement of the pest, the scope of the announcement, and pest control measures.

2. Decision on Announcing Plant Pests

a) The contents of the decision to announce the pest include: the harmful organism, the affected object, the scope of the announcement, pest control measures, and the effectiveness of the decision.

b) Within 24 hours from the announcement of the pest, the decision to announce the pest must be publicly announced through central and local mass media; the local authority where the pest is announced must inform the plant owner, organization, or individual related parties within the area and ensure compliance.

Article 6. Procedures for Announcing the End of Plant Pests

1. When the plant pest has been controlled and no longer poses a serious threat, the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine shall report the results of pest control and propose the end of the announcement to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development; the provincial specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine shall submit a report to the Director of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, who then reports the results of pest control and proposes the end of the announcement to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province.

2. The contents of the report on the results of pest control and the proposal to end the announcement include: the situation and forecast trends of the pest development; measures to mitigate the consequences caused by the pest, stabilize living conditions, and restore production; sustainable management measures for harmful organisms; legal, scientific, and practical bases for proposing the end of the announcement.

3. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development shall decide to end the announcement based on the report from the head of the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine; the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province shall decide to end the announcement based on the report from the Director of the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

4. Within 24 hours from the date when the authorized person signs the Decision to End the Announcement, the Decision must be publicly announced through central and local mass media.

Article 7. Plant pest control funds

1. Sources of plant pest control funds

a) State budget according to the current classification;

b) Funds of organizations or individuals having ownership rights or usage rights or directly managing the plants;

c) Contributions and sponsorships from domestic and foreign organizations and individuals, international organizations, and other lawful sources.

2. Recipients of state budget support for plant pest control funds:

a) Plant owners whose plants have suffered losses due to pests or who are required to implement pest control measures as requested by competent state authorities;

b) Individuals participating in plant pest control activities.

3. Contents supported for plant pest control

a) Propaganda, training, and organization of pest control;

b) Equipment, tools, and plant protection chemicals for pest control;

c) Losses caused by pests;

d) Losses resulting from the application of plant treatment measures as required by competent state authorities and the costs of such treatments.

4. Levels of support for plant pest control

a) For supported contents with established standards set by the State, funding shall be carried out according to current regulations;

b) For supported contents without established standards, the Minister of Finance, in coordination with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, shall submit to the Prime Minister for decision on the level of support from the central government budget; the Chairman of the People's Committee at the provincial level shall decide on the level of support from the local budget.

5. Utilization of plant pest control funds from the state budget

a) Local pest control funds are decided by the People's Committees at all levels to be used from the local budget reserve according to the provisions of the State Budget Law.

In cases where pest control funds exceed the local budget's capacity, the Provincial People's Committee shall report to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consolidation and submission to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision;

b) Central agencies' pest control expenses are allocated from the central government budget according to the provisions of the State Budget Law.

6. Utilization of plant pest control funds from plant owners

Other expenses for pest control outside of state budget support funds and financial sponsorships from domestic and foreign organizations and individuals, and international organizations (if any).

7. Utilization of plant pest control funds from contributions and sponsorships by domestic and foreign organizations and individuals, international organizations, and other lawful sources.

a) For contributions and sponsorships from domestic and foreign organizations that are part of state budget revenue, implementation shall follow the provisions of the State Budget Law;

b) For other lawful contributions and sponsorships, implementation shall follow the requirements of the sponsors.

Chapter III
PROVISIONS ON TEMPORARY SUSPENSION OF EXPORT AND IMPORT;

PROHIBITION OF EXPORT AND IMPORT OF ITEMS SUBJECT TO PLANT QUARANTINE

 PLANT QUARANTINE

Article 8. Temporary suspension of export and import of items subject to plant quarantine (hereinafter referred to as items)

1. Temporary suspension of export of items in the following cases:

a) Items pose a high risk of carrying plant quarantine objects of the importing country and have not been treated thoroughly;

b) Items have violated the regulations of the importing country and have not taken thorough corrective measures for the violation and pose a risk of losing the export market.

2. Temporary suspension of import of items in the following cases:

a) Items imported from countries or regions posing a high risk of carrying plant quarantine objects of Vietnam and have not been treated thoroughly;

b) Items imported from a country or region found to be infected with plant quarantine objects or harmful organisms, and the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine has issued a notice of non-compliance with Vietnam’s plant quarantine regulations;

c) Items from a country or region with official information about the outbreak of plant quarantine objects in Vietnam.

Article 9. Conditions for continuing export and import of plant quarantine objects

1. Conditions for continuing export:

a) The object has been subject to all measures as directed by the competent plant protection and quarantine authority.

b) The object has been inspected, monitored, and confirmed that the measures taken have effectively mitigated the risks specified in Clause 1, Article 8 of this Decree.

2. Conditions for continuing import:

a) The exporting country's plant quarantine agency has reported on identifying the cause of the quarantine pest infection and has applied thorough treatment measures.

b) The object has been inspected, monitored, and confirmed that the measures taken have effectively mitigated the risks specified in Clause 2, Article 8 of this Decree.

Article 10. Prohibition on Exporting and Importing Plant Quarantine Objects

1. Prohibition on exporting in the following cases:

a) The object is listed in the importing country's prohibited import list.

b) The object does not have treatment measures meeting the importing country's requirements.

2. Prohibition on importing in the following cases:

a) The object imported from a country or region identified as having a high risk of carrying quarantine pests, threatening domestic agricultural production and national food security, without thorough treatment measures.

b) The object imported has been subject to temporary import suspension measures but still lacks effective mitigation measures or has been treated but still fails to meet Vietnam’s plant quarantine regulations.

Article 11. Authority to Suspend or Prohibit Exporting and Importing Plants or Continue Exporting and Importing Quarantine Objects

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development decides on suspending or prohibiting export and import or continuing export and import of quarantine objects according to this Decree.

Article 12. Procedures and Formalities for Suspending or Prohibiting Exporting and Importing Quarantine Objects

1. Based on the provisions of Articles 8 and 10 of this Decree, the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine identifies specific types of objects to be suspended or prohibited from export and import, the reasons for such actions against a particular country or region, and reports to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development bases their decision on the report from the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine, considering it necessary to convene meetings with relevant ministries and sectors before deciding to suspend or prohibit export and import of objects.

3. The decision to suspend or prohibit export and import must specify the following contents:

a) The name of the object including its scientific name;

b) The name of the country or region from which the object is exported to Vietnam or imported from Vietnam;

c) The reasons for suspension or prohibition including legal and scientific bases;

d) The decision takes effect two months (60 days) after signing and must be officially published within 24 hours through mass media and notified to the authorized plant quarantine agencies of the exporting country or region.

Article 13. Procedures and formalities for continuing the export and import of objects subject to plant quarantine

1. Based on the provisions of Article 9 of this Decree, the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine shall inspect, supervise, confirm the effective implementation of corrective measures, and report to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development shall consider the report of the central specialized agency for plant protection and quarantine and decide on continuing the export and import of objects.

3. The decision to continue the export and import of objects takes effect from the date of signing and must be officially announced within 24 hours through mass media and notified to the competent authority for plant quarantine of the exporting country or territory.

Chapter IV
IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 14. Effective Date

1. This Decree takes effect from January 18, 2015.

2. The Plant Protection Regulations and the Plant Protection Chemicals Management Regulations issued together with Decree No. 58/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002 of the Government; and Decree No. 02/2007/NĐ-CP dated January 5, 2007 of the Government concerning plant quarantine shall cease to be effective from the date this Decree takes effect.

Article 15. Responsibility for Implementation

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees under the Central Government, and related agencies are responsible for implementing this Decree./.