Circular No. 197/2012/TT-BTC guiding the regime of collection, payment, management, and use of road usage fees based on vehicle types

CIRCULAR

Guidelines on the collection, payment, management, and use of road usage fees based on vehicle types

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||| Pursuant to the Law on Road Traffic dated November 13, 2008;

||| Pursuant to the Ordinance on Fees and Charges dated August 28, 2001;

Pursuant to Decree No. 57/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Ordinance on Fees and Charges; Decree No. 24/2006/NĐ-CP dated March 6, 2006 amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 57/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002;

Pursuant to the Decree No. 118/2008/NĐ-CP dated November 27, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 18/2012/NĐ-CP dated March 13, 2012 of the Government on the Road Maintenance Fund;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the Tax Policy Department,

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular guiding the amount of collection, collection regime, payment, management, and use of road usage fees based on vehicle types, as follows:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

Athletes This Circular guides the amount of collection, collection regime, payment, management, and use of road usage fees Article 2. Effectiveness of enforcement based on vehicle types (hereinafter referred to as road usage fees) as prescribed in Decree No. 18/2012/NĐ-CP dated March 13, 2012 of the Government on the Road Maintenance Fund.

Athletes This Circular does not apply to special-purpose motorcycles as prescribed in Clause 20, Article 3 of the Law on Road Traffic.

Article 2. Objects Subject to Fees

1. Motor vehicles on roads, including: automobiles, tractors; semi-trailers, tractor-trailers pulled by automobiles, tractors (hereinafter collectively referred to as automobiles) and two-wheeled motorcycles, three-wheeled motorcycles, motorized bicycles (hereinafter collectively referred to as motorcycles) are subject to road usage fees.

2. Vehicle Automobiles subject to road usage fees as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article shall not be subject to road usage fees in the following cases:

a) ||| Destroyed due to accidents or natural disasters;

b) Seized;

c) Involved in accidents to the extent that they cannot continue to operate and require repair for thirty days or more.

3. In the cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article, if the automobile has already paid the road usage fee, the vehicle owner will be refunded the amount of fee paid (applicable to automobiles destroyed, seized and not allowed to continue operating) or deducted from the amount of fee payable in the next period (applicable to automobiles that continue to operate after being repaired) corresponding to the time not using the road if there is sufficient documentation as prescribed in Article 9 of this Circular.

4. Clause 2 of this Article shall not apply to automobiles of the defense forces, public security forces, and foreign vehicles temporarily imported for circulation in Vietnam.

Article 3. Cases Exempted from Fees

Exemption from road usage fees applies to the following cases:

Clause 1. Ambulances.

2. Fire trucks.

3. ||| Special-purpose vehicles for funerals.

4. Special-purpose vehicles serving national defense include motor vehicles with license plates having a red background, white letters and numbers embossed and equipped with specialized devices for national defense (vehicles transporting armed forces on maneuvers is understood as automobiles carrying twelve passengers or more, or cargo trucks with a roof and seats installed in the cargo area, bearing red license plates).

5. Special-purpose vehicles serving public security (automobiles) of public security forces (Ministry of Public Security, provincial police, city police, district police, county police, etc.) include:

a) ||| Traffic police patrol cars characterized by rotating lights on the roof and the inscription "TRAFFIC POLICE" on both sides of the car body.

b) Passenger cars of the 113 Police Force marked with the phrase "POLICE 113" on both sides of the vehicle body.

c) ||| Passenger cars marked "MOBILE POLICE" on both sides of the car body.

d) ||| Passenger cars with covered cargo compartments and installed seats inside the cargo compartment carrying police forces on duty.

đ) ||| Specialized vehicles transporting prisoners, rescue and relief vehicles.

6. ||| Motorcycles owned by the defense and police forces.

7. Two-wheeled motorcycles owned by individuals belonging to poor households as defined by laws on poverty.

Article 4. Fee Payers

Organizations, individuals owning, using, or managing vehicles (hereinafter collectively referred to as vehicle owners) as prescribed in Article 2 of this Circular are the persons paying the road usage fee.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Article 5. Level of Fee Collection

The amount of road usage fee is implemented according to the provisions in the Fee Collection Schedule at Appendix No. 01 issued together with this Circular.

Article 6. Methods of collecting and paying fees

1. For automobiles

1.1. Period of fee calculation and time of declaration and payment

a) For automobiles of organizations and individuals registered in Vietnam (excluding those of public security and defense forces as stipulated in point c of this clause)

Road usage fees are calculated annually (12 months) and according to the vehicle inspection cycle. Vehicle owners pay the road usage fee to the inspection authority when inspecting the vehicle. The inspection authority affixes the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker corresponding to the payment period. Specifically, as follows:

a.1) For automobiles with an inspection cycle of up to one year: Vehicle owners pay the road usage fee for the entire inspection cycle and receive the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker corresponding to the payment period.

Example 1: Mr. A's automobile has an inspection cycle of six months (from January 1, 2013 to June 30, 2013). On January 1, 2013, Mr. A brings the vehicle for inspection and pays the road usage fee to the inspection authority. The inspection authority conducts the inspection, collects the road usage fee, and issues the six-month Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker.

a.2) For automobiles with an inspection cycle exceeding one year (18, 24, and 30 months): The vehicle owner must pay the road usage fee annually (12 months) or for the entire inspection cycle (18, 24, and 30 months).

In the case of paying fees according to the inspection cycle (18, 24, and 30 months): The inspection authority issues the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker corresponding to the inspection period.

In the case of paying fees annually (12 months): The inspection authority issues the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker corresponding to the 12-month payment period. Upon expiration of the payment period (12 months), the vehicle owner must go to the inspection authority to pay the fee and receive the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker for the subsequent period (12 months or the remaining time of the inspection cycle).

Example 2: Mr. B's automobile has an inspection cycle of 30 months (from January 1, 2013 to June 30, 2015). On January 1, 2013, Mr. B brings the vehicle for inspection. Mr. B can choose to pay for one year (12 months) or pay for the entire inspection cycle (30 months).

If Mr. B chooses to pay for the entire inspection cycle, he will receive a 30-month Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker.

If Mr. B chooses to pay annually: The inspection authority issues the 12-month Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker. After 12 months, on January 1, 2014, Mr. B must go to pay the road usage fee for the next 12 months (or may pay for the remaining 18 months of the inspection cycle) and receive the Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker for the corresponding payment period (12 months or 18 months). If paying 12 months, then on January 1, 2015, Mr. B must go to pay the fee for the remaining 6 months (from January 1, 2015 to June 30, 2015) and receive the 6-month Road Usage Fee Payment Sticker. On July 1, 2015, Mr. B brings the vehicle for inspection and pays the fee for the next cycle.

a.3) In the case where the vehicle owner arrives for inspection earlier or later than the scheduled inspection cycle, the inspection authority inspects the vehicle and calculates the road usage fee from the end of the previous payment period. If the fee calculation period is not a full month, the amount of fee payable will be calculated by dividing the number of odd days by 30 days and multiplying by the monthly fee rate.

Example 3: In the case of early inspection, Mr. C's vehicle has an inspection cycle of six months from March 1, 2013 to August 31, 2013. On March 1, 2013, Mr. C brings the vehicle for inspection and pays the six-month fee. According to schedule, Mr. C should have brought the vehicle for inspection on September 1, 2012, but due to some reason, on August 20, 2013, Mr. C brings the vehicle for inspection and pays the fee (early inspection by ten days).

The inspection agency shall conduct vehicle inspections and issue Inspection Stickers for the six-month period from August 20, 2013 to February 19, 2014. Since Mr. C has paid the fee up to September 1, 2013, the inspection agency will calculate and collect the road usage fee from September 1, 2013 to February 19, 2014 (5 months and 20 days), specifically as follows:

The amount of fee to be paid = 5 months x 180,000 VND/month + (20/30 days) month x 180,000 VND/month = 1,020,000 VND.

Example 4: In the case of late inspection, under the same assumptions as in Example 3 above, but Mr. C brings the vehicle for inspection on September 15, 2013 (15 days late).

The inspection agency will inspect and issue Inspection Stickers for the six-month period from September 15, 2013 to March 14, 2014. Since Mr. C has only paid the fee up to September 1, 2013, the inspection agency will calculate and collect the road usage fee from September 1, 2013 to March 14, 2014 (6 months and 15 days), specifically as follows:

The amount of fee to be paid = 6 months x 180,000 VND/month + (15/30 days) month x 180,000 VND/month = 1,170,000 VND.

a.4) For vehicles inspected before January 1, 2013 (the effective date of this Circular):

In the case where the next inspection period occurs within the time frame from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013, the vehicle owner must go for inspection and pay the fee for the period from January 1, 2013 to the next inspection period.

In the case where the next inspection period occurs after December 31, 2013, the vehicle owner must go to the inspection agency to pay the fee for the period from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013 or until the next inspection period, no later than June 30, 2013.

Example 5: Mr. D's vehicle was inspected on February 1, 2012 with a 12-month inspection cycle. By February 1, 2013, Mr. D must go for inspection and pay the fee for the period from January 1, 2013 to January 31, 2014 (13 months).

Example 6: Mr. M's vehicle was inspected on September 1, 2012 with a 30-month inspection cycle. By June 30, 2013, Mr. M must go to the inspection agency to pay the fee. Mr. M can choose to pay for 12 months (from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013) or for the remaining period of the inspection cycle (27 months). If Mr. M pays for 12 months, he must go to the inspection agency to pay for the subsequent period by January 1, 2014.

a.5) In the case where the vehicle owner fails to pay the road usage fee for the previous inspection cycle within the prescribed deadline, in addition to the fee for the next cycle, the vehicle owner must also pay the unpaid fee for the previous cycle. The inspection agency will recover the unpaid fee for the previous cycle, which is calculated as the monthly fee rate multiplied by the number of delayed payment months.

b) For imported passenger cars circulating in Vietnam

The billing period is the permitted circulation period in Vietnam. The payment time is when submitting the application for entry and circulation in Vietnam.

Example 7: Mr. E is the owner of a passenger car with less than 10 seats that entered Vietnam from July 10 to July 19, 2013. When applying for entry, the road usage fee must be paid as follows: 10/30 days x 180,000 VND/30 days = 60,000 VND.

c) For vehicles of national defense and security forces: The fee is paid annually according to the rates specified in Appendix 01 issued together with this Circular.

1.2. Declaration and Payment of Fees

a) For vehicles specified in point a, Clause 1.1 of this Article: The payer must declare using Form No. 01/TKNP in Appendix 03 issued together with this Circular and pay the fee to the inspection agency.

b) For foreign vehicles temporarily imported for circulation in Vietnam: The payer must declare using Form No. 01/TKNP in Appendix 03 issued together with this Circular and pay the fee to the Department of Transport each time it arises.

c) For police and national defense vehicles: The payment of road fees shall be made as follows:

c.1) Annually, the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security shall prepare estimates of the quantity and types of "national road fee" tickets needed and submit them to the Central Road Maintenance Fund (Fund Office).

c.2) The Fund Office shall print and distribute "national road fee" tickets exclusively for national defense and public security vehicles.

c.3) The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security shall purchase "national road fee" tickets from the Fund Office according to the following procedures:

At the time of purchasing tickets, the purchaser shall bring an introduction letter from the Ministry of National Defense or the Ministry of Public Security specifying the name, position of the purchaser, the quantity and type of tickets required, along with their identification card to the Fund Office to purchase tickets.

The Fund Office shall provide the purchaser with the requested quantity and type of "national road fee" tickets. Based on the tickets issued, the Fund Office shall be responsible for collecting the road usage fee from national defense and public security vehicles and depositing it into the Central Road Maintenance Fund account at the State Treasury.

1.3. Fee Receipts

a) The fee collection agency shall issue and provide a Receipt for the fee payer according to regulations.

For motorcycle fee collection, a Receipt for the fee shall be used according to the model in Appendix 02 issued together with this Circular. The fee collection unit may print, order printing, or purchase from the tax authority.

b) For national defense and public security vehicles, the fee collection agency shall issue a Receipt for the fee and a "national road fee" ticket.

SEAT, TRUCKS WITH A LOAD CAPACITY OF LESS THAN 2 TONS; ALL TYPES OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION BUSES The "national road fee" ticket exclusively for national defense and public security vehicles has the title "national road fee." A national defense or public security vehicle with a "national road fee" ticket means that the vehicle has paid the road usage fee based on the vehicle's value according to the rate issued with this Circular and is valid at all toll stations nationwide (regardless of whether they are BOT or other investment forms).

Content The "national road fee" ticket exclusively for national defense vehicles includes: the issuing authority (Fund Office), the type of vehicle used includes two types: tickets for military passenger cars and tickets for military cargo trucks (without detailed specifications according to load capacity and specific license plates), year of use (without denomination). The ticket size is 12 x 8 cm and has colors: red background, white letters and numbers. The "national road fee" ticket applies to vehicles under the Ministry of National Defense with red license plates, and does not apply to vehicles with other license plates (including those of the Ministry of National Defense without red license plates).

The content of the "national road usage fee" ticket applicable to vehicles of the Ministry of Public Security includes: Issuing authority (Central Road Maintenance Fund), types of vehicles include four types (as per the fee rate table issued together with this Circular). The size of the ticket is 12 x 8 cm and has colors: the background of the ticket is yellow with red stripes running vertically along the body of the ticket at one-third from left to right, letters and numbers are black.

c) The printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of receipts for collecting fees shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Circular No. 153/2012/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2012, of the Ministry of Finance guiding the printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of documents for collecting money for fees and charges under the state budget.

2. For motorcycles

a) The People's Committee of communes, towns, and wards (hereinafter referred to as the People's Committee at the commune level) is the agency responsible for collecting fees from motorcycles owned by organizations, households, and individuals (vehicle owners) within its jurisdiction.

b) The People's Committee at the commune level directs neighborhood associations (or villages) to guide the declaration and payment of road usage fees for motorcycles owned by vehicle owners within its jurisdiction according to Model No. 02/TKNP attached as Appendix No. 04 issued together with this Circular and organize the collection of fees.

c) Vehicle owners shall declare and pay fees as follows:

c.1) For motorcycles that were in existence before January 1, 2013, in January 2013, they must declare and pay the annual fee for the year 2013, at the rate for twelve months.

c.2) For motorcycles that came into existence on or after January 1, 2013, the declaration and payment of fees shall be carried out as follows:

For motorcycles coming into existence from January 1 to June 30 each year, vehicle owners must declare and pay the fee for their motorcycles, at a rate equal to half of the annual fee. The latest date for declaration and payment is July 31.

For motorcycles coming into existence from July 1 to December 31 each year, vehicle owners must declare and pay the fee in January of the following year (no later than January 31) and will not have to pay the fee for the remaining time of the year in which the motorcycle was registered.

When collecting road usage fees from motorcycles, the fee collection agency must issue and provide a receipt for the fee payer in accordance with the regulations.

đ) The printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of receipts for collecting road usage fees shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Circular No. 153/2012/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2012, of the Ministry of Finance guiding the printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of documents for collecting money for fees and charges under the state budget.

Article 7. Management and Use of Fees

1. For fees collected from automobiles

a) The unit organizing the collection of road usage fees may retain one percent (1%) of the actual collected road usage fees for the following purposes:

a.1) To cover the costs of organizing the collection of fees in accordance with the regulations. The retained road usage fee is integrated into the unit's operating budget to cover the expenses related to organizing the collection of fees.

a.2) Inspection units (fee collection units) shall transfer three percent (3%) of the retained fee to the Vietnam Vehicle Inspection Agency to support the management and submission of road usage fees (including: software development costs, database construction, dedicated internet connection rental, training, inspection, and other related expenses) for the entire national inspection system.

b) Refund the fee for cases exempted from paying the fee as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular.

c) The remaining amount (after deducting the amounts specified in points a and b of this Clause) must be deposited into the account of the Central Road Maintenance Fund opened at the State Treasury within a maximum period of three working days from the date of collection.

2. For fees collected from motorcycles

a) For urban wards and towns, up to a maximum of ten percent (10%) of the collected road usage fees can be retained to cover the costs of organizing the collection of fees in accordance with the regulations, while for rural communes, up to a maximum of twenty percent (20%) of the collected fees can be retained for the same purpose.

The Provincial People's Councils (hereinafter collectively referred to as provincial level) shall specify the specific retention rates for local areas in accordance with the actual situation.

b) The remaining amount must be deposited weekly into the account of the Local Road Maintenance Fund opened at the State Treasury (in cases where the locality has not established a Local Road Maintenance Fund, it should be deposited into the local budget) and used in accordance with the joint Circular of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Transport guiding the management and settlement of the Road Maintenance Fund.

Article 8. Refund of Paid Fees

For vehicles specified in Clause 2 of Article 2 of this Circular that have already paid fees, the vehicle owner shall be entitled to a refund of the paid fees or a deduction from the fees payable for the next period.

1. For motor vehicles specified in Point c of Clause 2 of Article 2, before taking the vehicle for repair, the vehicle owner must present the Accident Scene Report with confirmation from the police authority and return the Inspection Stamp and the Inspection Certificate (still valid) to the nearest inspection agency for the basis to refund the fee after the vehicle has completed repairs and been re-inspected for continued operation.

2. The documents for refunding fees or deducting them from the next period's road usage fees (hereinafter referred to as refunding fees) include:

a) A request for refund of fees according to Form No. 01/ĐNTP attached at Appendix No. 05 issued together with this Circular;

b) Photocopies of documents proving the time during which the vehicle was not in use as specified in Points a and b of Clause 2 of Article 2 (such as: Decision on confiscation or temporary detention of the vehicle by the competent authority, document revoking the registration certificate and license plate);

c) Photocopies of payment receipts;

d) For motor vehicles specified in Point c of Clause 2 of Article 2, in addition to the aforementioned documents, the vehicle owner must also provide the Receipt for Collection of the Inspection Stamp and the Inspection Certificate (Receipt Form at Appendix No. 06 issued together with this Circular). The time for refunding or offsetting fees is calculated from the date of collection of the Inspection Stamp and the Inspection Certificate.

3. The refund application documents must be submitted to the inspection agency. When submitting photocopies of documents, the person requesting the refund must bring the originals for verification by the inspection agency. Upon receipt of the documents, the inspection agency will stamp the receipt, record the submission time, and note down the contents of the documents.

If the refund application is incomplete, the inspection agency must notify the applicant to complete the application within three working days from the date of receipt.

4. Within no more than five working days from the date of receiving all the refund application documents, based on the application documents of the vehicle owner, the head of the inspection agency will issue a decision to refund fees according to Form No. 01/QĐTP at Appendix No. 07 or notify about non-refund of fees according to Form No. 01/TP-TB at Appendix No. 08 issued together with this Circular to the person requesting the refund.

5. The amount of refunded or offset fees corresponds to the amount of fees paid for the period when the vehicle was not in use.

6. The decision to refund fees serves as the basis for the inspection agency to declare and settle the amount of refunded fees or offset against the fees payable for the next period.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 9. Implementation Organization

1. The fee collection agency is responsible for organizing the collection, payment, declaration, and settlement of fees in accordance with this Circular and the laws governing tax, fee, and charge management.

2. The People's Committee of the province is responsible for:

a) Developing plans and organizing the collection, management, and use of road usage fees for motorcycles applicable within its jurisdiction; providing detailed guidance on the level of fees, methods of collection, percentage retained by the fee collection unit, and management and use of collected funds to be submitted to the Provincial People's Council for consideration and decision. The development and regulation of fee levels must be based on national policies, economic and social conditions, and the characteristics of local areas during each period, in line with the ability of those paying the fees to contribute.

b) Directing lower-level People's Committees to cooperate with public security agencies, transportation authorities, tax agencies, and financial agencies to disseminate and promote information related to road usage fees to grassroots levels; effectively implementing the collection of road usage fees for motorcycles.

c) Directing and guiding the inspection of the implementation of the collection of the road usage fee from motorcycles within the territory.

3. The Vietnam Vehicle Inspection Agency is responsible for organizing the printing, distribution, and management of the Road Usage Fee Payment Stamps for automobiles according to the model approved by the Ministry of Transport.

Article 10. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2013. This Circular abolishes the provisions regarding road usage fees for roads funded by state budget capital in Circular No. 90/2004/TT-BTC dated September 7, 2004, of the Ministry of Finance guiding the system of collection, payment, management, and use of road usage fees.

2. For the quantity of "national road usage fee" tickets printed by the General Department of Taxation at the request of the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense for use in 2013, they may continue to be used until the end of 2013.

3. Other matters related to the collection, payment, management, use, receipts, and public disclosure of road usage fee regulations not stipulated in this Circular shall be implemented in accordance with Circular No. 63/2002/TT-BTC dated July 24, 2002, of the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of laws on fees and charges, Circular No. 45/2006/TT-BTC dated May 25, 2006 amending and supplementing Circular No. 63/2002/TT-BTC dated July 24, 2002, Circular No. 28/2011/TT-BTC dated February 28, 2011 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration, guiding the implementation of Decree No. 85/2007/NĐ-CP dated May 25, 2007 and Decree No. 106/2010/NĐ-CP dated October 28, 2010 of the Government, Circular No. 153/2012/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2012 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of receipts for fees and charges under the state budget, and any subsequent amendments and supplements (if any).

4. In the course of implementation, if there are any difficulties, please report to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and resolution./.