Decision No. 202-TTg On the issuance of the Regulation on coordination of activities among agencies and organizations performing state management tasks at Vietnamese seaports

Pursuant to …;

 ON THE ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS ON COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS PERFORMING STATE MANAGEMENT TASKS AT VIETNAMESE SEAPORTS .

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Government Organization Law dated September 30, 1992;
Based on the Vietnam Maritime Code dated July 12, 1990;
Considering the proposal of the Minister of Transport,

DECISION:

Clause 4 of Article 6Hereby promulgates the "Regulations on coordination of activities between organizations performing state management tasks at Vietnamese seaports" attached to this Decision.

12/2025/TT-BNNMT dated June 19, 2025 issued by the Minister of Agriculture and EnvironmentThese Regulations shall take effect from the date of issuance.

Previous provisions contrary to these Regulations are abolished.

Article 3. The Minister, Heads of Ministries equivalent to Ministries, Heads of Government Agencies, and Chairpersons of the People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities directly under the Central Government are responsible for enforcing this Decision.

(issued together with Decision No. 57/2002/QĐ-BKHCNMT dated August 5, 2002 of

COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONS PERFORMING STATE MANAGEMENT TASKS AT VIETNAMESE SEAPORTS
(Issued together with Decision No. 202-TTg dated December 28, 1992 of the Prime Minister).

Article 1.These Regulations stipulate the principles for coordinating activities between organizations performing state management tasks at Vietnamese seaports.

Article 2. The organizations referred to in Article 1 of these Regulations are those organizations assigned the task of implementing specialized state management functions concerning ships, goods transported on ships, crew members, passengers, and other persons working on ships or at seaports in the following areas:

a) Maritime affairs;

b) Border gate security;

c) Customs and taxation;

d) Health quarantine, animal and plant quarantine;

e) Environmental protection;

f) Cultural protection;

g) Fire prevention and explosion control.

Article 3.

1- Organizations performing state management tasks at seaports shall carry out their business activities independently but must comply with the law, not cause undue inconvenience, and not affect the normal operation of port enterprises, ships, and other organizations and individuals within the port.

2- While carrying out state management activities at seaports, all related organizations must cooperate closely with each other to complete their business activities quickly and in accordance with the law, creating favorable conditions for ships to enter and operate at the port smoothly and safely.

3- Organizations performing state management tasks at seaports have the responsibility to negotiate and resolve any issues arising during the performance of state management functions over the objects specified in Article 2 of these Regulations, based on respecting the functions, powers, and duties of each organization as prescribed by law.

Article 4.

1- The Port Director is responsible for chairing the coordination of business activities of organizations performing state management tasks at the port related to procedures for ships and supervision of ship operations, crew members, passengers, and other persons on board during the ship's stay at the port, with the aim of ensuring the normal operation of port enterprises and ships.

2- In line with the objectives of these Regulations, the Port Director has the right:

a) To request organizations performing state management tasks at the port to notify about business activities that may or will affect the cargo handling plan of the port enterprise or the ship dispatching plan of the port director.

b) To convene and chair meetings aimed at negotiating and resolving emerging issues related to ship operations at the port.

Article 5. The Port Director is responsible for planning the entry and departure of ships, ship movements in the water area, and promptly and accurately informing the ship captain or the ship owner's agent of such plans.

The ship captain or the ship owner's agent is responsible for notifying relevant organizations performing state management tasks of such plans so they can arrange procedures for the ship and implement other business activities as prescribed by law.

Article 6.

1- For ships entering the port, specialized organizations performing state management tasks may conduct procedures for ships at appropriate times according to the requirements of specialized management, but only after the health quarantine authority permits the lowering of the quarantine flag and the Port Director allows the ship to operate in the port waters.

2- Specialized organizations performing state management tasks must proactively complete procedures allowing ships to depart from the port, at the latest two hours before the ship departs according to the plan announced by the Port Director.

3- Only the Port Director has the authority to permit procedures for ships entering or departing the port when the ship is traveling from Buoy 0 into the port or vice versa.

To ensure safety for ships, people, and cargo on board and to ensure compliance with the schedule for ship dispatching by the port director, relevant organizations performing state management tasks at the port must inform the Port Director to coordinate the implementation of procedures for the cases mentioned above.

Article 7.

1- The ship owner's agent has the right to directly represent the ship in requesting permission for the ship to enter and depart the port.

2- Only at ports with special geographical conditions or in cases where the ship encounters accidents, emergencies, urgent requests, or other special circumstances, and when organizations performing state management tasks at the port cannot independently carry out business activities as prescribed in Article 3, Clause 1 of these Regulations, may such organizations establish a Joint Inspection Team to handle procedures for ships.

In this case, each organization participating in the Joint Inspection Team may only appoint one person, with the representative of the port director serving as the team leader.

Article 8.

1- If specialized organizations performing state management tasks have not completed necessary procedures for ships entering or departing the port, the Port Director has the right to direct ships to an appropriate anchorage within the port waters to complete the procedures before the ship is officially allowed to enter or depart the port.

2- In any case, related organizations must inform the port director about delays in completing procedures for ships entering or departing the port according to the planned schedule.

The Port Director is responsible for investigating the causes of such delays and coordinating with relevant organizations to find timely solutions.

3. During the process of performing state management tasks at seaports, if any agency or organization engages in actions contrary to the law, causing obstacles or delays to ship operations at the port or affecting the maritime safety capability of the ship, then such agency or organization shall be fully responsible for any related losses.

4. The Port Director may only permit a ship to depart from the port when the ship has met all conditions prescribed by law.

Article 9.

1. The inspection and supervision of ship activities and other related entities during the ship's stay at the port must be carried out through methods stipulated by law.

2. Only in cases of genuine necessity and as prescribed by law, staff members of state management agencies operating at the port may board ships to conduct such operational measures.

Article 10. If, during the ship's stay at the port, the ship or persons on board are subject to administrative handling by agencies or organizations performing state management tasks at the port, these agencies or organizations must notify the Port Director in writing of such actions for coordination purposes.

Article 11. Only the Port Director has the authority to execute requests for retention, detention, or arrest of maritime vessels or orders to detain ships at seaports as provided by law.

Such requests must be in writing and delivered to the Port Director at least two hours before the ship departs according to its planned schedule.

Article 12.

1. Upon discovering deficiencies or violations of state management regimes concerning the entities mentioned in Article 2 of this Regulation, the person who discovers them has the obligation to immediately inform the head of the relevant state management agency and the Port Director so that appropriate measures can be taken.

2. In cases where incidents arise involving the coordination of activities between agencies or organizations performing state management tasks at the port or issues related to the functions, duties, and authorities of each agency that cannot be resolved immediately at the port, the heads of the relevant agencies or organizations must promptly report to the Minister of the principal ministry for resolution.

If deemed necessary, the relevant ministries have the responsibility to coordinate with the Minister of Transport and the Director of the Vietnam Maritime Administration to examine and resolve such incidents.

3. Within no more than twenty-four hours from receiving the report, those responsible as stipulated in Clause 1 and 2 of this Article must also notify the decision on handling to the relevant organizations and individuals.