Decree No. 18/2006/NĐ-CP on Handling Sunken Assets in the Sea

DECREE

On the handling of sunken assets in the sea

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THE GOVERNMENT

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

Pursuant to the Maritime Code of Vietnam dated June 14, 2005;

At the proposal of the Minister of Transport,

DECREE:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Decree specifies the handling of sunken assets, including identifying the owner of sunken assets, salvaging sunken assets, preserving, delivering, and receiving sunken assets within internal waters, territorial seas of Vietnam, or floating on the sea or drifting onto the coast of Vietnam.

Article 2. Applicability

This Decree applies to organizations and individuals, both domestic and foreign, related to the handling of sunken assets.

Chapter II

HANDLING OF SUNKEN ASSETS

Section 1

 IDENTIFICATION OF THE OWNER OF SUNKEN ASSETS

Article 3. Reporting sunken assets

1. The owner of sunken assets, persons who accidentally salvage sunken assets, those who find, rescue, or participate in rescuing other people's assets floating on the sea or drifting onto the coast must immediately report to the Maritime Port Office or the People's Committee of the nearest commune or district about the location and type of sunken assets.

Within the latest seven days from the date of receipt of the report, the Maritime Port Office or the People's Committee of the nearest commune or district shall report to the Vietnam Maritime Administration or the People's Committee of the province; in cases where the sunken assets are export or import goods, they must also report to the nearest customs authority for coordination in handling according to the laws on customs.

2. In cases where sunken assets are located in military areas, the owner of sunken assets, persons who accidentally salvage sunken assets, those who find, rescue, or participate in rescuing other people's assets floating on the sea or drifting onto the coast must immediately report to the nearest local military authority. The local military authority shall be responsible for reporting to the higher-level military authority within seven days from the date of receipt of the report.

3. The owner of sunken assets is the owner of the sunken asset or the shipowner, the person managing the ship, or the person operating the sunken ship.

Article 4. Reporting to find the owner of sunken assets

1. If sunken assets have documents, materials, or marks that can identify the name and address of the owner of the sunken assets, within seven days from the date of receipt of the report, the Maritime Port Office or the People's Committee of the nearest commune or district shall notify the owner of the sunken assets at that address.

2. If the owner of the sunken assets cannot be identified, within seven days from the date of receipt of the report of the sunken assets, the Vietnam Maritime Administration or the People's Committee of the province must publish three consecutive notices in central or local mass media to find the owner of the sunken assets.

3. After sixty days from the date of the last notice as stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article, the owner of the sunken assets or their authorized representative must contact the notifying authority to complete procedures to reclaim the asset or fulfill the obligation to salvage the asset.

4. If the owner of the sunken assets or their authorized representative does not report or salvage the sunken assets within the prescribed time limit, such assets will become the property of the State and will be handled according to this Decree and other relevant laws.

Article 5. Contents of the notice to find the owner of sunken assets

The notice to find the owner of sunken assets must include the following main contents:

1. Description of the characteristics of the asset;

2. Time and place of discovery or finding, salvaging the asset;

3. Deadline and address where the owner of the sunken assets or their authorized representative must come to complete procedures to reclaim the asset or fulfill the obligation to salvage the asset;

4. Name and address of the notifying authority.

Article 6. Costs for locating the owner of sunken property

Costs for locating the owner of sunken property shall be included in the costs for handling sunken property.

Article 7. Establishing ownership rights over sunken property at sea when the owner cannot be identified

Establishing ownership rights over sunken property at sea when the owner cannot be identified shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Articles 187 and 240 of the Civil Code 2005 and other relevant legal regulations.

Section 2

 RAISING SUNKEN PROPERTY

Article 8. Raising sunken property

1. Raising sunken property means making the sunken property float or moving, destroying it.

2. The owner of the sunken property or the competent authority specified in Article 9 of this Decree shall organize the raising of sunken property.

Article 9. Drafting, approving plans and organizing the raising of sunken property

1. For sunken property that poses a danger to maritime activities, the owner of the sunken property must immediately draft a plan for raising, report to the Maritime Port Authority, and organize the raising of the property after receiving approval from the Maritime Port Authority. In cases where the owner of the sunken property has not been identified, the Maritime Port Authority shall be responsible for drafting a plan for raising, submitting it to the Vietnam Maritime Administration for approval, and organizing the raising of the property after receiving approval from the Vietnam Maritime Administration. If the sunken property poses a danger to maritime activities and is underwater cultural heritage or related to national defense and security, before approval, the plan for raising must have the opinion of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism or the Ministry of National Defense.

2. For sunken property that is underwater cultural heritage, the raising shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law on cultural heritage.

3. For sunken property related to national defense and security and sunken property within military areas, local military agencies shall draft plans to submit to the Ministry of National Defense for approval and decide on the organization of raising.

4. For sunken property not covered by the provisions of Clause 1, Clause 2, and Clause 3 of this Article, the People's Committee of the province shall organize the drafting of plans, approve, and decide on the raising.

5. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and other ministries and sectors shall, based on their functions, tasks, and authorities, be responsible for coordinating with the agencies specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of this Article in the organization of raising sunken property.

Article 10. Contents of the Plan for Raising Sunken Property

The plan for raising sunken property includes the following main contents:

1. Name and location of the sunken property;

2. Agencies or units conducting the work;

3. Expected start and end times;

4. Means and methods of raising;

5. Measures to ensure maritime safety;

6. Measures to preserve the property;

7. Measures to prevent environmental pollution;

8. Fire prevention and explosion control measures (if necessary);

9. Budget estimate for raising.

Article 11. Right to Raise Sunken Property

1. Vietnamese organizations and individuals have priority rights to raise sunken property within internal waters and territorial seas of Vietnam.

2. In cases where Vietnamese organizations and individuals lack the capacity to raise sunken property, based on the type of sunken property specified in Article 9 of this Decree, the Minister of relevant ministries or the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province concerned shall decide on allowing foreign organizations and individuals to carry out the raising of sunken property in accordance with this Decree and other relevant legal regulations.

Article 12. Costs for salvaging sunken property posing danger to maritime activities

In cases where sunken property poses danger to maritime activities, after the salvage and auction of the property, if the proceeds from the sale are insufficient to cover the costs and the owner is unable to pay or the owner of the sunken property cannot be identified, the shortfall will be covered from the maritime security fee; if the costs for salvaging the sunken property exceed the capacity of the maritime security fee revenue, it shall be supplemented by the state budget.

Section 3

STORAGE AND HANDOVER OF SUNKEN PROPERTY

Article 13. Storage of sunken property

1. The owner of the sunken property is responsible for storing their own property, except in the cases stipulated in Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article.

2. Persons who accidentally salvage, find, rescue, or participate in rescuing other people's property floating on the sea or washed ashore on Vietnam’s coast have the responsibility to store such properties until they hand them over to the Maritime Port Authority or the People's Committee of the nearest commune or district.

The Maritime Port Authority or the People's Committee of the nearest commune or district has the responsibility to designate organizations or individuals to store the property.

3. In cases where the sunken property is underwater cultural heritage, it shall be handled according to the laws on cultural heritage.

4. In cases where the sunken property is related to national defense, security, or located within military areas, the relevant military authority shall be responsible for organizing its storage.

Article 14. Handover of sunken property

1. The handover of sunken property between organizations and individuals must be recorded in a protocol.

2. The handover protocol includes the following main contents:

a) Name and address of the organization or individual handing over the property;

b) Name and address of the organization or individual receiving the property;

c) Time and place of discovery or salvage of the property;

d) Characteristics of the property and other necessary related information.

3. The handover protocol must be signed and confirmed by the authorized representatives of both the handing-over party and the receiving party, each party retains a copy and sends a copy to the relevant authority.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 15. Effective Date

This Decree takes effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette and replaces Government Decree No. 39/1998/NĐ-CP dated June 10, 1998, on handling sunken property in the sea.

Article 16. Implementation Organization

The Minister of Transport, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Minister of National Defense, the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministers of relevant ministries, the Chairmen of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities, the Director of the Vietnam Maritime Administration, the Heads of agencies, organizations, and individuals concerned are responsible for implementing this Decree./.