Circular No. 22/2023/TT-BNNPTNT Amending and supplementing certain articles of Circulars in the forestry sector

CIRCULAR

Amending and supplementing certain articles of Circulars in the forestry sector

Pursuant to Decree No. 105/2022/NĐ-CP dated December 22, 2022 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

Pursuant to the Forestry Law dated November 15, 2017;

At the proposal of the Director of the Forest Management Department;

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development issues this Circular to amend and supplement certain articles of Circulars in the forestry sector.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing certain articles of Circular No. 25/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 30, 2022, issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on planting substitute forests when changing the purpose of forest land use to other purposes

1. Market management agencies at all levels include: the Department of Domestic Market Management and Development under the Ministry of Industry and Trade; the Market Management Business Unit under the Department of Domestic Market Management and Development; the Market Management Sub-department under the Department of Industry and Trade of provinces and centrally-administered cities; and the Market Management Team under the Market Management Sub-department.

"Article 2. General Provisions

1. Principles for planting substitute forests:

a) The area required for planting substitute forests when changing the purpose of forest land use to other purposes shall be implemented according to Article 21 of the Forestry Law. In cases where organizations or individuals implementing projects that change the purpose of forest land use to other purposes (hereinafter referred to as project owners) pay money into the Forest Protection and Development Fund of the province or centrally governed city, or the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the locality which has not established a Forest Protection and Development Fund (hereinafter referred to as the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund), the area planted must ensure it is not less than the area of substitute forest that the project owner has paid for;

b) Provinces and centrally governed cities (hereinafter referred to as provinces) shall review the areas of land planned for special-use forests, protective forests, and production forests; implement planting substitute forests when there is still available land; only propose planting substitute forests in another province when there is no longer available land or there is still available land but the conditions for establishing the site are unsuitable for planting forests;

c) Planting substitute forests must be completed within 12 months from the date the Substitute Forest Planting Plan is approved or from the date the project owner completes the obligation to pay for planting substitute forests;

d) Planting substitute forests is a forestry engineering project in a project that changes the purpose of forest land use to other purposes.

2. Implementation of planting substitute forests:

a) For provinces that can allocate land for planting substitute forests: plant forests on land planned for special-use forests and protective forests; plant forests on land planned for production forests as defined in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of Article 8 of the Forestry Law, except for private enterprises; support planting production forests with large timber species (harvested after 10 years) on land planned for production forests allocated to households and individuals;

b) For provinces that receive funding for planting substitute forests from other localities that no longer have land for planting substitute forests, they only implement planting special-use forests and protective forests on land planned for special-use forests and protective forests.

3. Funding for implementing replacement forest planting:

a) The People's Committee of the province decides on the unit price or adjusts the unit price for planting substitute forests when necessary based on the economic-technical norms for planting forests as prescribed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development;

b) The design and budget for planting substitute forests are determined based on the economic-technical norms as prescribed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development; the construction cost for the budget for planting substitute forests is regulated by the People's Committee of the province where the substitute forest planting is organized. The establishment, examination, approval, acceptance, and risk management during the investment phase of planting substitute forests are carried out according to the regulations on managing public investment in forestry engineering projects;

c) The project owner pays the planting substitute forest fund into the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund based on the area of substitute forest planting specified in Point a Clause 1 of this Article multiplied by the unit price for 1 hectare of planting forest;

d) For funds for planting substitute forests to support planting production forests with large timber species, support is provided according to the policy of the locality; for provinces that do not issue a support policy for planting forests, the current national policy shall apply.

4. Receiving, managing, using, and settling accounts for funds for planting substitute forests:

a) The Forest Protection and Development Fund and organizations assigned the task of planting substitute forests open accounts at the State Treasury to receive funds for planting substitute forests;

b) Funds for planting substitute forests are managed, used, settled, and controlled through the State Treasury according to the current regulations of the state;

c) The entity receiving funds for planting substitute forests prepares reports and submits them to the higher financial authority or the authority with delegated powers or the authority designated by the competent authority for examination and settlement of accounts for funds for planting substitute forests;

d) The Chairman of the People's Committee of the province decides to use interest from funds deposited for planting substitute forests to carry out activities related to planting substitute forests according to this Circular.

5. Criteria for selecting localities to receive funds for planting substitute forests from provinces that no longer have land for planting substitute forests:

a) Having areas of land planned for special-use forests and protective forests as stipulated in Point b Clause 2 of this Article, determined based on the land use plan and land use plan approved by the competent authority and the current status of forests at the time of proposal; having a letter from the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province registering to receive funds for planting substitute forests according to Model No. 01 Appendix I attached to this Circular.

b) In cases where multiple localities register to receive funds for planting substitute forests, priority will be given to localities with larger areas of unplanned land for special-use forests and protective forests but unable to balance the budget for planting forests."

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 1, Point c Clause 3, Point b and Point d Clause 8 of Article 3 as follows:

a) Amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

"1. The project owner shall prepare and submit to the competent authority for approval the Substitute Forest Planting Plan. If the area of forest converted to other purposes lies across multiple provinces, separate plans shall be prepared for each province. Implement planting substitute forests on land planned for special-use forests, protective forests, and production forests."

b) Amend and supplement Point c of Clause 3 as follows:"

"c) The original budget and design for planting substitute forests as prescribed in Point b Clause 3 of Article 2 of this Circular;"

c) Amending and supplementing Point b and Point d Clause 8 as follows:

"b) The project owner implements afforestation according to the approved Afforestation Plan, design, and budget for replacement afforestation; the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development organizes the acceptance of the completion of replacement afforestation carried out by the project owner."

"d) The Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund implements the disbursement of funds for replacement afforestation in accordance with Clause 4, Article 2 of this Circular."

3. Amend and supplement Clause 5, Clause 6, and add Clauses 7 and 8 after Clause 6 of Article 4 as follows:

"5. Procedures for approving payment of funds for replacement afforestation in cases where the provincial People's Committee arranges land for replacement afforestation within its jurisdiction:"

"a) Within seven days from the date of receipt of the valid project owner’s dossier in accordance with Clause 3 of this Article, the provincial People's Committee shall examine and resolve, and notify the project owner in writing about the approval of payment, the time and amount to be paid based on the area of replacement afforestation required by the project owner and the replacement afforestation unit price of the province;"

"b) Within ten days from the date of receipt of the written notification of the provincial People's Committee, the project owner must pay the full amount for replacement afforestation into the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund to organize replacement afforestation;"

"c) Within five days from the date of receipt of the full payment from the project owner, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund shall notify the project owner in writing about the completion of the obligation to pay for replacement afforestation."

6. Procedures for approving payment of funds for replacement afforestation in cases where localities cannot arrange land for replacement afforestation:

"a) Within seven days from the date of receipt of a valid dossier in accordance with Clause 3 of this Article, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall submit to the provincial People's Committee for examination and send the dossier requesting the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to approve the payment of funds for replacement afforestation into the National Forest Protection and Development Fund to organize replacement afforestation in another locality;"

The dossier includes: the dossier as prescribed in Clause 3 of this Article and a document from the provincial People's Committee requesting the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to approve the payment of funds for replacement afforestation into the National Forest Protection and Development Fund, clearly stating the reason for the lack of available land for replacement afforestation;

"b) Within five days from the date of receipt of a valid dossier from the provincial People's Committee in accordance with point a of this clause, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall issue a document requesting the provincial People's Committee receiving the afforestation funding to provide information on the location for replacement afforestation and the afforestation unit price in the province at the time the project owner requests payment;"

"c) Within twelve days from the date of receipt of the document from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the provincial People's Committee receiving the afforestation funding shall issue a document confirming the allocation of the location for replacement afforestation and the afforestation unit price, and send it to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;"

"d) Within three days from the date of receipt of the document from the provincial People's Committee receiving the afforestation funding, accompanied by a copy of the decision approving the afforestation unit price of the province, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall issue a document to the provincial People's Committee requesting payment regarding the time and amount the project owner must pay for replacement afforestation;"

"đ) Within five days from the date of receipt of the document from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee requesting payment shall issue a document to the project owner regarding the time and amount the project owner must pay for replacement afforestation;"

"e) Within ten days from the date of receipt of the document from the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee, the project owner must pay the full amount for replacement afforestation into the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund where the project owner submitted the dossier;"

"g) Within five days from the date the project owner pays the full amount for replacement afforestation, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund requesting payment shall transfer the amount paid by the project owner to the National Forest Protection and Development Fund to carry out afforestation in another locality and notify the project owner in writing about the completion of the obligation to pay for replacement afforestation;"

"h) Within ten days from the date of receipt of the full payment for replacement afforestation, the National Forest Protection and Development Fund shall transfer the funds to the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund designated for replacement afforestation in accordance with the regulations;"

"i) In cases where the project owner requests immediate payment of the full amount for replacement afforestation based on the afforestation unit price of the provincial People's Committee requesting payment:"

"- Within seven days from the date of receipt of the valid project owner’s dossier in accordance with Clause 3 of this Article and the project owner's commitment to pay the full amount according to the afforestation unit price of the province receiving replacement afforestation as stipulated in Appendix IIA issued together with this Circular, the provincial People's Committee shall examine and notify the project owner in writing about the approval of payment, the time and amount to be paid based on the area of replacement afforestation required by the project owner and the replacement afforestation unit price of the province;"

"- Within ten days from the date of receipt of the written notification of the provincial People's Committee, the project owner must pay the full amount for replacement afforestation into the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund where the project owner submitted the dossier;"

"- Within five days from the date of receipt of the full payment from the project owner, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund where the project owner submitted the dossier shall notify the project owner in writing about the completion of the obligation to pay for replacement afforestation;"

"- Within five days from the date of receipt of the document from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development regarding the afforestation unit price of the provincial People's Committee receiving replacement afforestation, the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee requesting payment shall issue a document to the project owner notifying the difference in the afforestation unit price for replacement afforestation.

In case the amount paid according to the planting price set by the provincial People's Committee where the payment is proposed is lower than the amount required according to the planting price set by the province where the substitute forest planting takes place, within ten days from the date of receipt of the document from the provincial People's Committee, the project owner must supplement the difference in amount into the Forest Protection and Development Fund of the province where the project owner submitted the application. The Chairman of the provincial People's Committee where the payment is proposed directs the project owner to pay the full amount for substitute forest planting as committed by the project owner.

In case the amount paid according to the planting price set by the provincial People's Committee where the payment is proposed is higher than the amount required according to the planting price set by the province where the substitute forest planting takes place, within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the document from the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee sent to the project owner, the Forest Protection and Development Fund of the province where the application was submitted shall refund the excess amount including interest to the project owner in accordance with regulations.

7. Organizing substitute forest planting:

a) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development advises the provincial People's Committee to assign the forest owners specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 4 of Article 8 of the Forestry Law, except for private enterprises or other state agencies that are project investors, to carry out substitute forest planting.

b) The project investor prepares and submits for approval the design and budget; implements substitute forest planting, manages, protects, and accepts completion of the planted forest area in accordance with this Circular and other forestry laws.

8. Supporting the planting of large timber production forests:

a) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development advises the provincial People's Committee to assign the provincial or district project management board or the specialized agency under the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, or the district People's Committee if there is no project management board, as the project investor in cases of supporting the planting of production forests on land allocated to households or individuals for management.

b) The beneficiaries of support: households or individuals who have a need for support in planting large timber production forests and commit to harvesting after ten years of age on the planned area for production forest development according to Model 01 of Appendix IIB issued together with this Circular.

c) Content of support, level of support, form and method of support: carried out according to local policy; for provinces that do not issue support policies for forest planting, apply the current national policy. Management costs, inspection, and acceptance fees are determined in the budget approved by the competent authority.

d) The project investor compiles a list of beneficiaries, area, and support needs for planting forests according to Model 02 of Appendix IIB issued together with this Circular, sends it to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for approval by the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee; organizes support, manages, and uses funds in accordance with current laws.

4. Amending and supplementing Article 5 as follows:

"Article 5. Management of planted forests from substitute forest planting funds"

Planted forests from substitute forest planting funds, after acceptance of completion, shall be managed in accordance with the Regulations on Specialized Forests, Protective Forests, and Production Forests.

5. Amending, supplementing, and abolishing some clauses of Article 7 as follows:

a) Amend the name of Clause 1 as follows:

"1. The Forest Service:"

b) Amend and supplement Clause 2 as follows:

"2. Provincial People's Committees:"

a) Direct and organize the implementation of this Circular within their jurisdiction;

b) Approve the substitute forest planting prices within their jurisdiction; assign tasks to the project investors for substitute forest planting within their jurisdiction.

c) Direct the planting of substitute forests within twelve months from the date the project owner pays the money into the Forest Protection and Development Fund of the province; organize the implementation of substitute forest planting at the local level with the funds paid by the project owner, ensuring no accumulation of funds.

c) Amending and supplementing Clause 3 as follows:

"3. Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development:"

a) Advise the provincial People's Committee to organize the implementation of substitute forest planting work within their jurisdiction;

b) Advise the provincial People's Committee to approve and adjust substitute forest planting prices, assign tasks to project investors for substitute forest planting within their jurisdiction; advise the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee to send a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in case the locality has a need to accept substitute forest planting funds; take the initiative to contact and provide information about provinces that need to plant substitute forests in case the locality does not have land for substitute forest planting, sending to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

c) Take the lead in reviewing the substitute forest planting plans, designs, and budgets of project investors;

d) Organize inspections and supervision of substitute forest planting work within their jurisdiction;

đ) Annually, before December 15, report to the provincial People's Committee and the Forest Service on the results of substitute forest planting within the province according to Model 01 of Appendix IV issued with this Circular.

d) Abolish Clause 4.

đ) Amend and supplement point a of Clause 6 as follows:

"a) Prepare the design and budget for forest planting for approval by the competent authority in accordance with point b of Clause 3 of Article 2 of this Circular;"

6. Supplement point c of Clause 3 of Article 8 as follows:

"c) For substitute forest planting funds that the project owner has paid into the Forest Protection and Development Fund of the province but have not yet had a plan, content, or usage before the effective date of this Circular, the provincial People's Committee shall implement substitute forest planting in accordance with this Circular, ensuring the area of substitute forest planting is not less than the area committed by the project owners."

7. Replace, supplement, and abolish some Appendices as follows:

a) Replace Model 01 of Appendix I issued with Circular No. 25/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 30, 2022, of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development regarding substitute forest planting when changing the purpose of using forests to other purposes with Model 01 of Appendix I issued with this Circular.

b) Abolish Model 02 of Appendix I issued with Circular No. 25/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 30, 2022, of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development regarding substitute forest planting when changing the purpose of using forests to other purposes.

c) Supplement Appendix IIA; Model 01, Model 02 of Appendix IIB.

Article 2. Amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No. 26/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 30, 2022 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on management and traceability of forest products

1. Amending and supplementing the opening clause of Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 3 as follows:

a) Amending and supplementing the opening clause of Clause 2 as follows:

"2. Roundwood is raw wood, still retaining its original shape after harvesting, either uncut or cut into sections, peeled bark, or stripped to the core (only the wood core remains), with dimensions falling under one of the following cases:"

b) Amend and supplement Clause 3 as follows:

"3. Sawn timber, shaped timber is timber that has been processed into forms such as planks, sheets, boxes, round logs, polygonal columns, or other shapes, except for peeled bark."

2. Amending and supplementing the opening clause of Clause 1, the opening clause of Clause 4, Point a and Point b of Clause 4, Clause 6, Clause 8, and adding Clause 10 of Article 4 as follows:

a) Amending and supplementing the opening clause of Clause 1 as follows:

"1. Method of measuring and calculating the volume of roundwood and shaped timber:"

b) Amending and supplementing the opening clause of Clause 4 and Point a and Point b of Clause 4 as follows:

"4. Method of measuring and determining the volume of standing trees:"

a) Height:

In case the tree retains its root, trunk, crown, branches, and leaves: measure the total length of the tree from the ground level at the base to the point where the diameter is 6 cm at the top of the tree.

In case the tree retains its root, trunk, branches, and leaves but the top of the tree has been cut: measure the total length of the tree from the ground level at the base to the cut surface of the top of the tree.

In case the tree retains its trunk, crown, branches, and leaves but the base has been cut: measure the total length of the tree from the cut surface of the base to the point where the diameter is 6 cm at the top of the tree.

In case the tree has multiple trunks or branches: measure the length of each section of the trunk or branch that meets the roundwood size requirements specified in this Circular.

The unit of measurement is meters, rounded to the nearest whole number and two decimal places.

b) Diameter: Measure the circumference to determine the diameter at the position 1.3 meters from the cross-section of the base of the tree; in case the tree has multiple trunks or branches meeting the roundwood size requirements specified in this Circular, measure the circumference of each trunk of wood. The unit of measurement is centimeters; rounded to the nearest whole number and one decimal place.

c) Amending and supplementing Clause 6 as follows:

"6. For wood not falling under the cases stipulated in Clause 2 of Article 3 and Clause 3 of Article 4 of this Circular; standing trees whose diameter cannot be determined at the 1.3 meter mark; root, bark, wood with complex shapes, not uniform; peeled wood, wood chips,, wood that cannot be measured in size shall be weighed, with the unit of measurement being kilograms (kg) or calculated in cubic meters; converting 1000 kg to 01 cubic meter³of roundwood or converting 01 cubic meter to 0.7 cubic meters³of roundwood."

d) Amending and supplementing Clause 8 as follows:

"8. The unit of measurement for non-wood forest products is kilograms or cubic meters; forest products belonging to the families of bamboo, rattan, palm, and those listed in the CITES Appendices or endangered, precious, rare species group IA, IIA regardless of size."

đ) Adding Clause 10 of Article 4 as follows:

"10. Marking serial numbers for the ends of logs, sections, boxes, planks, sheets of roundwood and shaped roundwood meeting the size requirements specified in Point a and Point b of Clause 2 of Article 3 of this Circular; sawn timber and shaped timber boxes with lengths of 1 meter or more, widths of 20 cm or more, thicknesses of 5 cm or more; sawn timber and shaped timber in other polygonal column forms; timber listed in Appendix CITES or endangered, precious, rare species group IA, IIA regardless of size."

3. Amending and supplementing Clause 3, Clause 4, Point h of Clause 7, and Point d of Clause 8 of Article 5 as follows:

a) Amending and supplementing Clause 3 and Clause 4 as follows:

"3. Forest products must have a Forest Product Inventory Form confirmed, including:

a) Common wood species harvested from natural forests;

b) Forest products after confiscation;

c) Plants listed in the List of Endangered, Precious, Rare Forest Plants; plants listed in the CITES Appendices;

d) Wild animals and parts, derivatives, products of wild animals originating from nature, imported, or bred; critically endangered wildlife species listed in the CITES Appendices, excluding aquatic species;

đ) Forest products not falling under the cases stipulated in Points a, b, c, and d of this Clause upon the request of the forest product owner.

4. Wood of enterprises classified as Group I according to the provisions of the Vietnam Timber Legality Assurance System when buying, selling, transferring ownership, or transporting does not require confirmation of the Forest Product Inventory Form,, except in cases where the enterprise requests confirmation according to Point đ of Clause 3 of this Article."

b) Amending and supplementing Point h of Clause 7 as follows:

"h) Original Record Book of Import and Export of Forest Products for forest product owners who are organizations or business households selling forest products according to Model No. 07 of the Appendix issued together with this Circular in the case of forest products being forest plants. Original Record Book of Breeding for forest breeding facility owners selling wild animals according to the Government's regulations on managing endangered, precious, rare forest plants and animals and implementing the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora."

c) Amending and supplementing Point d of Clause 8 as follows:

"d) After confirming the Forest Product Inventory Form and confirming the inventory of forest products, the local Forest Protection Authority returns the original Forest Product Inventory Form, Record Book of Import and Export of Forest Products, and Record Book of Breeding already confirmed to the forest product owner or organization or individual authorized by the forest product owner."

4. AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING ARTICLE 6 AS FOLLOWS:

"Article 6. Approving the harvesting plan for common forest plants

1. Cases for approving the harvesting plan:

a) Utilizing wood from common forest plant species in natural forests;

b) Harvesting residual wood from common forest plant species in natural forests;

c) Harvesting non-wood forest plants outside common forest plant species in natural forests which are special-use forests;

d) Collecting samples of common forest plants from special-use forests for scientific research and technology;

đ) Main harvesting, utilizing, and residual harvesting of wood from common forest plant species in production forests owned by the State as the representative owner;

e) Main harvesting, utilizing, and residual harvesting of wood from common forest plant species in protective forests which are planted forests;

g) Utilizing and residual harvesting of wood from common forest plant species in special-use forests which are planted forests, except for harvesting to implement tasks of approved scientific research and technology programs."

2. Competent authority to approve:

a) The competent ministry or sector shall approve the plan for exploitation and utilization, exploitation and recovery, and collection of specimens as provided in points a, b, c, d, and g of Clause 1 of this Article on areas managed by subordinate units.

b) The competent authority to approve the funding source for afforestation shall approve the plan for exploitation as provided in point d of Clause 1 of this Article.

c) The People's Committee at the district level shall approve the plan for exploitation as provided in point e of Clause 1 of this Article for cases where individuals, households, or community groups self-fund or participate in state-supported projects or policies; exploitation and utilization, and recovery of production forest timber which is natural forest managed by individuals, households, or community groups.

d) The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall approve the plan for exploitation as provided in cases not covered by points a, b, and c of this Clause.

3. Documents:

a) Original Application for Approval of the Exploitation Plan according to Model No. 10 of the Appendix issued together with this Circular;

b) Original Exploitation Plan according to Model No. 11 of the Appendix issued together with this Circular;

c) Copy of the decision on changing the purpose of forest land use approved by the competent authority or copy of the project approval decision or documentation proving the implementation of forestry measures or scientific research programs and topics approved by the competent authority for cases provided in points a, d, e, and g of Clause 1 of this Article.

4. Procedure for implementation:

a) The forest owner or organization or individual authorized by the forest owner or organization or individual assigned to utilize the forest area managed by the People's Committee at the commune level shall submit directly or through postal services or electronic environment one set of documents as stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article to the competent authority for approval as specified in Clause 2 of this Article. In case of submission through the electronic environment, it shall be carried out in accordance with Decree No. 45/2020/NĐ-CP;

b) Time limit for responding to the validity of the document components:

For direct submission: the competent authority for approval shall check the document components and immediately respond to the validity of the document components to the organization or individual submitting the documents;

For submission through postal services or electronic environment: within one working day from the date of receipt of the documents, the approving authority shall examine the validity of the document components; if the documents are invalid, notify in writing and specify the reasons;

c) Within ten days from the date of receipt of valid documents, the competent authority for approval of the forest product exploitation plan and provide the result to the forest owner or organization or individual authorized by the forest owner; if not approved, notify in writing and specify the reasons.”

5. Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 8 as follows:

“2. Procedure: Before organizing exploitation, the forest owner or organization or individual authorized by the forest owner or organization or individual assigned to utilize the forest when changing the purpose of forest land use to another purpose for the forest area managed by the People's Committee at the commune level shall send one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Authority for supervision during the implementation process and within five working days from the completion of exploitation, submit the original Inventory of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Authority for confirmation in accordance with Article 5 of this Circular.”

6. Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 9 as follows:

“2. Procedure: Before organizing exploitation, the forest owner or organization or individual authorized by the forest owner shall send one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Authority for supervision during the implementation process and within five working days from the completion of exploitation, submit the original Inventory of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Authority for confirmation in accordance with Article 5 of this Circular.”

7. Amend and supplement the name of the article and Clause 2 of Article 10 as follows:

a) Amend and supplement the name of Article 10 as follows:

“Article 10. Primary harvesting, utilization harvesting, residual harvesting of non-timber forest products from common forest plants in natural forests. Article 10. Primary harvesting, utilization harvesting, residual harvesting of non-timber forest products from common forest plants in natural forests.”.

b) Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 10 as follows:

“2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit a copy of the Inventory List of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Agency for monitoring and consolidation.” “2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit a copy of the Inventory List of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Agency for monitoring and consolidation.”

8. Amending and supplementing Article 11 as follows:

Article 11. Primary harvesting, utilization harvesting, residual harvesting of common forest plants from production forests which are planted forests owned by the State as representative owner; harvesting of common forest plants from protective forests which are planted forests; harvesting of common forest plants from special-use forests which are planted forests.

1. Documents:

a) A copy of the approved harvesting plan in cases of timber harvesting or a copy of the harvesting plan established by the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner according to Model No. 11 of the Appendix issued together with this Circular in cases of non-timber forest product harvesting, parts, or derivatives from forest plants;

b) A copy of the decision on changing the purpose of forest land use to another purpose in cases of utilizing timber on areas where the purpose of forest land use has been changed to another purpose or a copy of the decision approving the forest production project or a copy of the documentation proving the implementation of forest production measures during the process of adjusting forest composition, nurturing forests, and applying other forest production measures.

2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner or the organization or individual assigned to utilize harvesting when changing the purpose of forest land use to another purpose for state-owned planted forests managed by the People's Commune Management Committee shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit “2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit a copy of the Inventory List of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Agency for monitoring and consolidation.”

9. Amend and supplement Article 12 as follows:

“Article 12. Harvesting of common forest plants from production forests which are planted forests, garden wood, and scattered trees planted by organizations, individuals, households, and community groups either self-invested or under state-supported projects and policies.

1. Documents: the original Logging Information Form prepared by the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner according to Model No. 13 of the Appendix issued together with this Circular.

2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner or the organization or individual, household, community group having garden wood, scattered trees shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit “2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing harvesting, the forest owner or the organization or individual authorized by the forest owner shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of harvesting, submit a copy of the Inventory List of Forest Products to the local Forest Protection Agency for monitoring and consolidation.”

10. Amend and supplement Clause 2 of Article 13 as follows:

“2. Procedure for implementation: Prior to organizing specimen collection, the organization or individual implementing scientific research programs or projects or the person authorized by the organization or individual implementing scientific research programs or projects shall submit one set of documents as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article to the local Forest Protection Agency for supervision during the implementation process, and within five working days from the completion of specimen collection, the organization or individual implementing scientific research programs or projects or the person authorized shall submit a copy of the Specimen Collection Inventory List to the local Forest Protection Agency for monitoring and consolidation.”

11. Amend and supplement Article 17 as follows:

Article 17. Documents of the origin of forest products after confiscation.

1. In cases where the agency responsible for handling confiscated assets is the Forest Protection Agency: the original Inventory List of Forest Products prepared by the Forest Protection Agency responsible for handling confiscated assets.

2. In cases where the agency responsible for handling confiscated assets is not the Forest Protection Agency: the original Inventory List of Forest Products prepared by the agency responsible for handling confiscated assets, certified by the local Forest Protection Agency.

12. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 31 as follows:

“1. Announce and hand over the inspection decision to the inspected entity or its representative; notify the composition of the Inspection Team and the witness (if any). In cases of surprise inspections without an inspection decision, the representative of the inspection team must introduce the participants and the reasons for the inspection.”

13. Amend and supplement Clause 1, Clause 2 of Article 32 as follows:

“1. The Forest Protection Department:

a) Organize the dissemination, promotion, and implementation of this Circular nationwide;

b) Guide, inspect, and supervise the compliance with laws on the management and tracing of the origin of forest products throughout the country as prescribed in this Circular;

c) Develop pilot models for the application of information technology in the management and tracing of the origin of forest products;

d) Summarize and report on the implementation of regulations on the management and tracing of the origin of forest products throughout the country as prescribed in this Circular.

2. The Forestry Department:

a) Guide and inspect the implementation of procedures and formalities for harvesting forest products as prescribed in this Circular throughout the country;

b) Develop pilot models for issuing and managing plantation codes for raw material forests serving the tracing of the origin of forest products linked to sustainable forest management and forest certification.”

14. Replace the phrase "Section II. PROCEDURE FOR HARVESTING COMMON FOREST PLANTS AND COMMON WILDLIFE" with the phrase "Section 2. PROCEDURE FOR HARVESTING COMMON FOREST PLANTS AND COMMON WILDLIFE" in Chapter II.

15. Replace Model No. 04, Model No. 11 of the Appendix issued together with Circular No. 26/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 30, 2022 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on the management and tracing of the origin of forest products with Model No. 04, Model No. 11 of Appendix III issued together with this Circular.

Article 3. Amend and supplement some provisions of Circular No. 22/2021/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 29, 2021 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on the list of major forest tree species; recognition of forest tree varieties and sources of forest tree varieties.

1. Amend and supplement Section 1 Chapter II as follows:

“Section 1

LIST OF MAJOR FOREST TREE SPECIES AND VARIETIES

Article 4. List of major forest tree species

1. Criteria for selecting major forest tree species

a) For special-purpose forest tree species: for national parks, nature reserves, and species conservation areas, it is native tree species distributed within the special-purpose forest area; for scenic protection zones, botanical gardens, research forests, and scientific experimental forests, it is native tree species or tree species naturally distributed outside the area that are suitable for the site conditions at the planting location.

b) For protective forest tree species: they are native tree species distributed in the ecological region; native tree species from other ecological regions that adapt to local soil and climate conditions; introduced tree species that have been planted for a long time and grow well in the local ecosystem.

Select tree species with one or more of the following characteristics: multi-purpose trees; trees with dense evergreen foliage and developed root systems; long-lived trees; trees resistant to windstorms and pests; trees that grow well and adapt to harsh environmental and site conditions.

c) For production forest tree species: they are native or introduced tree species with high productivity, quality, and economic value, meeting production and business purposes and suitable for local site conditions.

2. Based on the criteria stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development shall submit to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province or centrally governed city for issuance of supplementary major forest tree species for planting in the locality outside the list of major forest tree species prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 5 of this Circular.

Article 5. Provisions on developing major forest tree varieties

1. Major forest tree varieties are varieties of species listed in Appendix II attached to this Circular.

2. The addition of species to the list of major forest tree species prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article must meet the following criteria:

a) There must be recognized varieties or sources of varieties by competent authorities;

b) There must be at least 500 hectares of planted forests in two or more forestry ecological regions;

c) They must comply with the provisions of Clause 4 of Article 3 of Decree No. 27/2021/NĐ-CP dated March 25, 2021 of the Government on the management of forest tree varieties.

3. Species will be removed from the list of major forest tree species prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article if they fail to meet any of the criteria stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. The Forest Service shall submit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consideration of additions and removals of species from the list of major forest tree species according to the provisions of Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article.

5. Management of the quality of varieties of tree species listed in Clause 1 of this Article shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Decree No. 27/2021/NĐ-CP dated March 25, 2021 of the Government on the management of forest tree varieties.”

2. Replace the term "Forest General Administration" with the term "Forest Service" in Articles 8, 9, 13, and Appendix IV of this Circular.

3. Replace Model No. 01 and Model No. 03 of Appendix III issued along with Circular No. 22/2021/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 29, 2021 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on the list of major forest tree species; recognition of forest tree varieties and sources of forest tree varieties with Model No. 01 and Model No. 03 of Appendix IV issued along with this Circular.

Article 4. Amend and supplement Article 15 of Circular No. 29/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated November 16, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on forestry measures.

"Article 15. Responsibilities of State Management Agencies

1. The Forestry Department

a) Organize the implementation and provide guidance on this Circular throughout the country;

b) Develop and submit to the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development for issuance technical guidelines for planting forests for major forest tree species;

c) Conduct inspections and evaluations of the implementation situation at localities."

Article 5. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 16 of Circular No. 31/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated November 16, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on delineation of forest boundaries.

"Article 16. Responsibilities for organizing implementation

1. The Forestry Department shall be responsible for guiding and inspecting the implementation of this Circular throughout the country."

Article 6. Amend and supplement some articles of Circular No. 12/2019/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 25, 2019 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on forestry statistics.

1. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 2 as follows:

"1. The Forestry Department, the Forest Protection Department, and the Center for Digital Transformation and Agricultural Statistics under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development."

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 2 Article 5 as follows:

"2. Provincial-level forestry sector statistical reports

a) Reporting unit: Provincial-level Forest Protection Agency;

b) Receiving units: The Forestry Department, the Forest Protection Department, and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development."

3. Amend and supplement Clause 1 and add Clause 2a following Clause 2 of Article 6 as follows:

a) Amend and supplement Clause 1 as follows:

"1. The Forestry Department

a) Implement the application of information technology in the process of integrating, storing, and exploiting forestry sector statistical data from specialized software applications; take the lead or coordinate with relevant organizations to conduct forestry sector statistical surveys within the scope of management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

b) Guide, inspect, and report on the results of implementing the Statistical Indicators System and reporting system for the forestry sector as prescribed in this Circular; request reporting units to recheck and resubmit reports and related information when necessary to verify the accuracy of reported data;

c) Aggregate statistical information and forestry sector statistical reports to report to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as prescribed;

d) Manage, use, and secure forestry sector statistical information in accordance with the law;

e) Serve as the focal point for coordinating with the General Statistics Office in collecting, aggregating, reconciling, and standardizing data within the statistical indicator list; serve as the focal point for providing review files for the forestry sector statistical indicator system;

f) Coordinate with relevant agencies and units to review the list and content of statistical report forms as prescribed in this Circular to promptly propose amendments and supplements to the forms to align with practical needs."

b) Add Clause 2a following Clause 2 as follows:

"2a. The Forest Protection Department

a) Coordinate with the Forestry Department to urge, aggregate, and update forestry sector statistical data for indicators related to forest protection and forest cover ratio; coordinate to organize forestry sector statistical surveys within the scope of management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

b) Coordinate to guide, inspect, and report on the results of implementing the Statistical Indicators System and reporting system for the forestry sector."

c) Replace the phrase "Information Technology and Statistics Center" with the phrase "Center for Digital Transformation and Agricultural Statistics" in Clause 2 of Article 6.

Article 7. Amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No. 15/2019/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 30, 2019 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development guiding certain contents on managing public investment for forestry works.

1. Amending and supplementing Point a Clause 1 Article 7 as follows:

“a) For projects decided to be invested in by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development: The Forestry Department shall take the lead in reviewing the design and budget estimate of forestry works.”

2. Amending and supplementing the name of Article 21 as follows:

“Article 21. Responsibilities of the Forestry Department”.

Article 8. Amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No. 12/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated September 20, 2022 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development guiding certain activities related to forestry under the Sustainable Forestry Development Program and the National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas from 2021 to 2030, Phase I: from 2021 to 2025.

1. Amending and supplementing Point a Clause 3 Article 24 as follows:

“a) The Forestry Department shall be responsible for advising the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to organize the overall assessment of the Program according to the content stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.”

2. Amending and supplementing the name of Article 28 as follows:

“Article 28. Responsibilities of the Forestry Department” .

3. Replacing the phrase "Forest Protection General Department" with the phrase "Forestry Department" in Clause 6 Article 30.

Article 9. Amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No. 16/2022/TT-BNNPTNT dated October 25, 2022 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development promulgating the National Technical Regulation on Wood Adhesive.

1. Amending and supplementing Article 4 as follows:

“Article 4. Implementation

The Director of the Forestry Department, the Director of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment, the Heads of units related to the Ministry; the Directors of Provincial Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development under the Central Government and relevant organizations and individuals are responsible for implementing this Circular.”

2. Amending and supplementing Section 4.3 of the National Technical Regulation on Wood Adhesive.

“4.3. Forestry Department

4.3.1 Organizing review, examination of files, inspection, evaluation, issuance of registration certificates for organizations: testing, certification of compliance; coordinating with relevant agencies to guide the implementation of this regulation.

4.3.2 Directly performing tasks of quality management and state supervision of wood adhesive products and goods according to the provisions of the law.”

Article 10. Amending and supplementing Clause 1 Article 12 of Circular No. 08/2017/TT-BNNPTNT dated March 29, 2017 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development stipulating professional training, vocational training, and uniform for specialized forest protection forces of forest owners.

“1. The Forest Protection Department shall be responsible for directing specialized agencies to inspect and urge the implementation of this Circular.”

Article 11. Amending and supplementing some articles of Circular No. 25/2019/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 27, 2019 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development stipulating fire prevention and firefighting in forests.

1. Amending and supplementing Clause 2 Article 8 as follows:

“2. The Forest Protection Department shall direct the Forest Protection Inspection Bureaus in regions to allocate personnel, equipment, and devices to support firefighting at the scene upon request of the Forest Protection Inspection Bureaus in provinces, Forest Protection Stations in national parks directly under the Forest Protection Department, or according to the requirements of competent authorities.”

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 1 Article 19 as follows:

“1. The Forest Protection Department shall guide and inspect the implementation of this Circular throughout the country.”

3. Amending and supplementing Clause 2 Article 20 as follows:

“2. During the implementation process, if there are difficulties, relevant agencies, organizations, and individuals shall promptly report to the Forest Protection Department for consolidation and reporting to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for consideration and resolution.”

Article 12. Amend and supplement some articles of Circular No. 29/2019/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 31, 2019 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on handling wild animals as evidence or objects handed over to the State; wild animals voluntarily handed over to the State by organizations and individuals.

1. Amending and supplementing Article 7 as follows:

"Article 7. Receiving agencies and units

1. National Parks under the Forest Protection Department.

2. Wildlife rescue facilities managed by the State, Zoos managed by the State, Management Boards of Specialized Forests not under the Forest Protection Department that have wildlife rescue facilities.

3. Forest Protection Agencies at the district level, Forest Protection Agencies at the provincial level."

2. Amending and supplementing Clause 2, Article 9 as follows:

"2. In cases where the National Parks specified in Clause 1 of Article 7 of this Circular receive wild animals voluntarily handed over to the State: the receiving unit shall carry out procedures to establish the ownership of the entire people, prepare and submit to the Director of the Forest Protection Department for approval the plan for handling assets which are wild animals voluntarily handed over to the State in accordance with the laws on management and use of public assets."

3. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 17 as follows:

"1. The Forest Protection Department shall implement and inspect the implementation of this Circular throughout the country."

Article 13. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 11 of Circular No. 21/2021/TT-BNNPTNT dated December 29, 2021 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on classifying wood processing and exporting enterprises.

"Article 11. Responsibilities for Implementation

1. The Forest Protection Department

a) Organize the implementation of this Circular nationwide; guide the management and use of the Enterprise Classification Information System and Violation Database;

b) Coordinate with relevant agencies, People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities to inspect and urge implementation;

c) Build, manage, and operate the Enterprise Classification Information System and Violation Database before December 31, 2022; inspect and supervise the enterprise classification process and compliance with laws on wood production and processing, handle violations if any; compile and report on the results of enterprise classification nationwide."

Article 14. Implementation clause

1. This Circular takes effect from February 1, 2024.

2. During the implementation of this Circular, if there are difficulties or obstacles, agencies, organizations, and individuals should promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for guidance and research on amendments and supplements.