Circular No. 32/2010/TT-BTNMT on granting permits for surveying and mapping activities

CIRCULAR

Regulations on Issuing Permits for Surveying and Mapping Activities

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         On the basis of Decree No. 25/2008/NĐ-CP dated March 4, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment;

         On the basis of Decree No. 12/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 22, 2002 of the Government on surveying and mapping activities;

         In accordance with the proposal of the Director of the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Agency and the Head of the Legal Department,

         The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment hereby stipulates regulations on issuing permits for surveying and mapping activities as follows:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

These Circulars regulate conditions, procedures, formalities, and authorities for issuing, supplementing, extending, and reissuing surveying and mapping activity permits.

Article 2. Applicability

1. State management agencies for surveying and mapping and other relevant agencies.

2. Organizations and individuals conducting surveying and mapping activities within the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 3. Responsibilities of the Permit-Issuing Management Authority for Surveying and Mapping Activities

1. Guide the procedures and formalities for preparing application files, provide sample forms for requesting issuance, supplementation, extension, and reissuance of surveying and mapping activity permits.

2. Issue, supplement, extend, and reissue surveying and mapping activity permits in accordance with regulations.

3. Manage permit issuance files for surveying and mapping activities.

4. Regularly and randomly inspect compliance with surveying and mapping laws by organizations granted surveying and mapping activity permits; identify violations and handle them according to their authority or propose handling in accordance with the law.

5. Annually, the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Agency reports to the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment on the situation of issuing surveying and mapping activity permits nationwide. The report is prepared according to Model No. 6 attached to these Circulars.

Article 4. Responsibilities of Organizations Conducting Surveying and Mapping Activities

1. Prepare application files for surveying and mapping activity permits and submit them to the competent state agency as prescribed.

2. Be responsible for the authenticity of the content of application files for surveying and mapping activity permits.

3. Pay the fee for issuing surveying and mapping activity permits as prescribed by law.

4. Report in writing to the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Agency when there is any of the following changes: change in the person responsible under the law or the chief technical officer; significant changes in technical staff or equipment compared to the time of permit issuance that affect the implementation of permitted activities; change in the main office address. For organizations specified in point b, Clause 2, Article 8, they must also report to the Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

 5. Organizations that have been issued surveying and mapping activity permits must prepare new permit application files when there is a change in name or type of activity. Previously issued surveying and mapping activity permits must be returned to the competent state agency for permit issuance to be revoked and canceled.

Chapter II

ISSUING, SUPPLEMENTING, AND EXTENDING SURVEYING AND MAPPING ACTIVITY PERMITS

Article 5. List of Surveying and Mapping Activities Requiring Permits

1. Surveying, project planning, technical design - cost estimate for surveying and mapping projects.

2. Quality inspection and evaluation of surveying and mapping projects and products.

3. Establishing national coordinate and elevation networks.

4. Establishing gravity, astronomical, coordinate, and elevation points.

5. Aerial photography and topographic scanning.

6. Topographic mapping at various scales.

7. Bathymetric mapping at various scales.

8. Land cadastral mapping at various scales.

9. Establishing administrative maps at various levels.

10. Boundary mapping at various administrative levels.

11. Building surveying and mapping databases.

12. Building geographic information system databases.

13. Creating thematic maps.

14. Creating atlases.

15. Surveying and mapping construction projects.

16. Calibration of surveying instruments.

 Article 6. Conditions for Issuing a Permit for Surveying and Mapping Activities

1. Domestic organizations shall be granted a permit for surveying and mapping activities when they meet the following conditions:

a) Having a decision on establishment issued by a competent state agency, which includes provisions on the functions and tasks related to surveying and mapping activities for public service units; having a business registration certificate for surveying and mapping activities for business organizations;

b) Possessing a technical force for surveying and mapping activities in accordance with the staffing norms stipulated in the Economic and Technical Norms for Surveying and Mapping Work to carry out the proposed permitted activities;

c) The technical staff responsible must have a bachelor's degree or higher, with a major suitable for the proposed surveying and mapping activities, at least three (03) years of practical experience in surveying and mapping activities; meeting health requirements and not concurrently serving as the technical staff of another organization engaged in surveying and mapping activities;

d) Possessing technological equipment capabilities for surveying and mapping activities in accordance with the equipment norms stipulated in the Economic and Technical Norms for Surveying and Mapping Work to carry out the proposed permitted activities.

2. Foreign-invested organizations shall be granted a permit for surveying and mapping activities when they have an investment permit from a competent Vietnamese state agency and meet the conditions specified in points b, c, and d of Clause 1 of this Article.

3. Foreign organizations not falling under the scope defined in Clause 2 of this Article shall be granted a permit for surveying and mapping activities when they have a surveying and mapping contract with domestic organizations outside Vietnam or foreign-invested organizations in Vietnam and meet the conditions specified in points b, c, and d of Clause 1 of this Article. The validity period of the permit shall be based on the duration of the project recorded in the contract but shall not exceed five (05) years.

Article 7. Authority for Issuing, Supplementing, and Extending Permits for Surveying and Mapping Activities

The National Administration of Surveying and Mapping is the authority responsible for issuing, supplementing, and extending permits for surveying and mapping activities.

Article 8. Procedures for Issuing a Permit for Surveying and Mapping Activities

1. Organizations engaged in surveying and mapping activities shall prepare an application dossier for a permit for surveying and mapping activities. The dossier shall include:

a) An application form for a permit for surveying and mapping activities according to Model No. 1 attached to this Circular;

b) A certified copy of the establishment decision or business registration certificate issued by a competent state agency for organizations specified in Clause 1 of Article 6; a certified copy of the investment permit issued by a competent state agency for organizations specified in Clause 2 of Article 6; a notarized Surveying and Mapping Contract for organizations specified in Clause 3 of Article 6 of this Circular;

c) Certified copies of academic certificates and professional certificates issued by a competent state agency, labor contracts of the main technical staff and other surveying and mapping technical personnel; a work history statement according to Model No. 8 attached to this Circular, appointment decisions, and health certificates of the main technical staff;

 d) Legal documents certifying ownership of technological equipment for carrying out the proposed permitted activities.

a) Organizations applying for a permit for surveying and mapping activities belonging to Ministries, agencies equivalent to ministries, government agencies; central agencies of political organizations, political-social organizations, and social-professional organizations; State-owned enterprises established by the Prime Minister's decision; and foreign organizations shall submit one (01) set of dossiers to the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping.

Within five (05) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping shall be responsible for reviewing the dossier, preparing a review record according to Model No. 2 attached to this Circular, issuing a permit for surveying and mapping activities to organizations meeting the conditions; if the conditions for issuing the permit are not met, it shall notify the organization in writing of the reasons.

b) Organizations applying for a permit for surveying and mapping activities not falling under the scope defined in point a of Clause 2 of this Article shall submit two (02) sets of dossiers to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

Within five (05) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment shall be responsible for reviewing the dossier, preparing a review record according to Model No. 2 attached to this Circular, and sending the review record along with one (01) set of dossiers to the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping; within five (05) working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping shall be responsible for examining and issuing a permit for surveying and mapping activities to organizations meeting the conditions; if the conditions for issuing the permit are not met, it shall notify the organization in writing of the reasons while simultaneously informing the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. In cases where the permit for surveying and mapping activities is lost, torn, or damaged and cannot be used, the organization shall submit an application for reissuing the permit according to Model No. 5 attached to this Circular to the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping. Upon receipt of a valid application, the National Administration of Surveying and Mapping shall complete the reissuance of the permit for surveying and mapping activities within three (03) working days. The validity period of the reissued permit shall remain unchanged from the original permit's validity period.

Article 9. Scope and validity period of the surveying and mapping business license

1. The surveying and mapping business license is valid throughout the country.

2. The validity period of the surveying and mapping business license is five (05) years. When the surveying and mapping business license expires, if the organization wishes to extend it, they shall request the competent state agency to extend it; each license can be extended once, with the extension period not exceeding three (03) years.

3. The surveying and mapping business license is issued by the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Center according to Model No. 9 attached hereto.

 Article 10. Supplementing the content of the surveying and mapping business license

1. During the course of operation, if an organization meets the conditions for expanding the scale and scope of surveying and mapping activities and has the need, they may be granted supplementary content for the surveying and mapping business license.

a) A request form for supplementing the content of the surveying and mapping business license according to Model No. 3 attached hereto;

b) A report on the organization's surveying and mapping activities since obtaining the license according to Model No. 7 attached hereto;

c) Documents and files on human resources and technological equipment that have been supplemented compared to the time of licensing as stipulated in point c and point d of Clause 1, Article 8 of this Circular;

d) The surveying and mapping business license already issued.

3. The submission of files, examination of files, and granting of supplementary content for the surveying and mapping business license shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Clause 2, Article 8 of this Circular.

Article 11. Extension of the surveying and mapping business license

1. An organization requesting to extend the surveying and mapping business license shall prepare one (01) set of files including:

a) A request form for extending the surveying and mapping business license according to Model No. 4 attached hereto;

b) A report on the organization's surveying and mapping activities since obtaining the license according to Model No. 7 attached hereto;

c) The surveying and mapping business license already issued.

Upon receipt of complete and valid files, the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Center will complete the extension of the surveying and mapping business license within three (03) working days for organizations meeting the conditions; in cases where the conditions for extending the license are not met, a written response explaining the reasons will be provided to the organization.

When the surveying and mapping business license expires as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 9 of this Circular, an organization wishing to continue surveying and mapping activities shall prepare a new application for the license in accordance with the provisions of Article 8 of this Circular.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 12. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from January 22, 2011.

2. This Circular replaces Decision No. 05/2004/QĐ-BTNMT dated May 4, 2004 of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment promulgating the Regulations on Registration and Issuance of Surveying and Mapping Business Licenses.

Article 13. Handling issues arising from the issuance of this Circular

1. All registration forms for surveying and mapping activities issued under Decision No. 05/2004/QĐ-BTNMT dated May 4, 2004 of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect.

2. Organizations that have obtained a surveying and mapping business license before the date this Circular takes effect, if they wish to supplement the content of their activities or extend the license, shall prepare a new application for the license in accordance with the provisions of this Circular.

3. The validity of surveying and mapping business licenses issued before the date this Circular takes effect is defined as follows:

a) Licenses with expiration dates on the license up to December 31, 2015 retain their validity according to the dates on the license.

b) Licenses with expiration dates on the license after December 31, 2015 will cease to be effective from December 31, 2015.

Article 14. Implementation Organization

The Director of the Vietnam National Survey and Mapping Center and the Directors of Provincial Departments of Natural Resources and Environment are responsible for monitoring and inspecting the implementation of this Circular. Any difficulties encountered during implementation must be promptly reported to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment./.