Circular No. 22/2012/TT-NHNN guiding the implementation of Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, and Decision No. 65/2011/QĐ-TTg dated December 2, 2011, of the Government on policies to support post-harvest loss reduction for agricultural and aquatic products.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for implementing Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, and Decision

 No. 65/2011/QĐ-TTg dated December 2, 2011, of the Government on policies to support reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products

To reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products

_____________________________

Pursuant to the Law on the State Bank of Vietnam No. 46/2010/QH12 dated June 16, 2010;

Pursuant to the Law on Credit Organizations No. 47/2010/QH12 dated June 16, 2010;

Pursuant to Decree No. 96/2008/NĐ-CP dated August 26, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the State Bank of Vietnam;

Pursuant to Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, of the Government on policies to support reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products; Decision No. 65/2011/QĐ-TTg dated December 2, 2011, of the Government amending and supplementing certain provisions of Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, of the Government on policies to support reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products;

Considering the proposal of the Director of the Credit Department;

The Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam issues this Circular guiding the implementation of loan policies for organizations and individuals aimed at supporting the reduction of post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products,

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular guides the implementation of loan policies to support the reduction of post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products, including: interest-subsidized loans, and loans with investment development credit interest rates as prescribed in Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, of the Government on policies to support reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural products (hereinafter referred to as Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg) and Decision No. 65/2011/QĐ-TTg dated December 2, 2011, of the Government amending and supplementing certain provisions of Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg (hereinafter referred to as Decision No. 65/2011/QĐ-TTg).

Article 2. Applicability

1. Credit institutions shall implement interest-subsidized loans to reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products as prescribed in Article 3 of this Circular, including: Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank, Mekong Delta Development Bank, Joint Stock Commercial Investment and Development Bank of Vietnam, Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade of Vietnam, Joint Stock Commercial Foreign Trade Bank of Vietnam (hereinafter collectively referred to as state commercial banks).

2. Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank shall implement loans with investment development credit interest rates to reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products as prescribed in Article 4 of this Circular.

3. Borrowers eligible for interest-subsidized loans or loans with investment development credit interest rates are defined in Clause 1 of Article 3 and Clause 1 of Article 4 of this Circular.

Article 3. Interest-subsidized loans to reduce post-harvest losses

1. Borrowers eligible for interest-subsidized loans to reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products are defined in Clause 1 of Article 1 of Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg.

2. Conditions for obtaining interest subsidies:

a) Belonging to the borrowing category as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) The borrower has a project or plan to invest in machinery and equipment to effectively and feasibly reduce post-harvest losses, which is approved by a state commercial bank after evaluation according to current regulations;

c) Medium-term or long-term loans denominated in Vietnamese Dong;

d) Machinery and equipment invested with borrowed funds must be included in the list of machinery and equipment to reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products as prescribed and announced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development during each period.

3. Loan amount:

The loan amount eligible for interest subsidy is agreed upon between the borrower and the lending bank, up to a maximum of 100% of the value of the goods.

4. Loan interest rate:

State commercial banks apply the lowest interest rate within the interest rate range applicable to loans for agricultural and rural areas with the same term during the same period.

5. Interest subsidy level:

The loan will be subsidized at 100% of the interest rate for the first two years, and from the third year onwards, it will be subsidized at 50% of the interest rate.

The interest subsidy is implemented based on the actual borrowing period of the borrower and only applies to loans repaid before or on time at the time of interest subsidy; overdue loans are not eligible for interest subsidy from the date they become overdue.

6. Source and documentation for interest subsidy:

a) The State budget subsidizes interest for loans aimed at reducing post-harvest losses as prescribed in this Article;

b) Documentation and procedures for interest subsidy are carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance.

Article 4. Loan with investment development credit interest rate

1. Borrowers:

a) Organizations, households, and individuals borrowing to purchase machinery and equipment for reducing post-harvest losses as specifically provided in Clause 1, Article 2 of Decision No. 63/2010/QD-TTg.

b) Organizations and individuals having projects to construct storage warehouses for 4 million tons of rice and corn, cold storages for preserving aquatic products (including cold storages on fishing vessels), vegetables and fruits, temporary storage warehouses for coffee, and projects to manufacture agricultural machinery aimed at reducing post-harvest losses.

2. Conditions for borrowing under the investment development credit interest rate:

a) Belonging to the borrowing category as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) The customer has a project or plan to invest in machinery and equipment for effectively and feasibly reducing post-harvest losses, which has been appraised and decided upon by the Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank according to current regulations;

c) The loan amount is in Vietnamese dong;

d) Machinery and equipment invested with borrowed capital must be included in the list of types of machinery and equipment for reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products as stipulated and announced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development during each period. Specifically, projects to manufacture agricultural machinery for reducing post-harvest losses must meet technical conditions as specified in Point c, Clause 1, Article 6 of Decision No. 63/2010/QD-TTg (amended and supplemented by Decision No. 65/2011/QD-TTg).

3. Loan amount and interest rate:

a) The loan amount under the investment development credit interest rate shall be agreed upon between the customer and the Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank in the credit agreement;

b) Customers can apply the state's investment development credit interest rate published by the Ministry of Finance during each period;

c) The commercial lending interest rate of the Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank serves as the basis for the state budget to subsidize the interest rate difference, being the lowest interest rate applied by the bank for loans serving agriculture and rural areas during the same period;

d) Application of the investment development credit interest rate for customers will only be implemented for loans repaid before or on time; overdue loans will not be eligible for the investment development credit interest rate from the date they become overdue.

4. Sources and procedures for subsidizing the interest rate difference:

a) The state budget will subsidize the difference between the commercial lending interest rate and the state's investment development credit interest rate for the Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank;

b) Procedures for subsidizing the interest rate difference shall be carried out in accordance with guidelines issued by the Ministry of Finance.

Article 5. Responsibilities of State Commercial Banks

1. Publicly announce the lowest lending interest rate as the basis for state banks to support or subsidize the interest rate difference.

2. Implement lending in accordance with current laws governing lending by credit institutions to customers and guidelines issued by the State Bank of Vietnam regarding policies to support lending aimed at reducing post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products as stipulated in this Circular.

3. Report periodically every month (before the 10th day of the following month) to the State Bank of Vietnam (Credit Department) and the Ministry of Finance on the results of interest rate support lending to reduce post-harvest losses for agricultural and aquatic products according to Form 01 attached to this Circular. Specifically, the Vietnam Agriculture and Rural Development Bank shall also report additional information on lending under the investment development credit interest rate to support reduction of post-harvest losses according to Form 02 attached to this Circular.

Article 6. Responsibilities of Borrowers

1. Provide complete and truthful information and documents related to borrowing as prescribed in this Circular and bear responsibility for the accuracy of the provided information and documents.

2. Use borrowed funds for the intended purpose and repay principal and interest according to the agreement with the state commercial bank.

Article 7. Implementation Organization

1. This Circular takes effect from August 10, 2012, and replaces Circular No. 03/2011/TT-NHNN dated March 8, 2011, issued by the State Bank of Vietnam guiding the detailed implementation of Decision No. 63/2010/QĐ-TTg dated October 15, 2010, of the Government Prime Minister on policies to support post-harvest loss reduction for agricultural and aquatic products.

2. The Director of the Office, Heads of the Credit Department, Heads of relevant units under the State Bank of Vietnam, Governors of the State Bank branches in provinces and centrally-administered cities, Chairmen of the Board of Members, Chairmen of the Board of Management, and General Directors of state commercial banks are responsible for implementing this Circular./.