Circular No. 32/2012/TT-BYT on health declaration for entry, exit, and transit at Vietnamese border gates

CIRCULAR

Regulations on health declaration for entry, exit, and transit at Vietnamese border gates

At Vietnamese border gates

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Pursuant to the Law on Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases No. 03/2007/QH12;

Pursuant to Article 3 of Decree No. 103/2010/NĐ-CP dated October 1, 2010 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases regarding sanitary quarantine at borders;

This Circular prescribes procedures for receiving, providing health care for domestic violence victims and statistical reports on domestic violence victims at medical facilities.

At the proposal of the Director of the Preventive Health Department;

The Minister of Health issues this Circular regulating health declarations for entry, exit, and transit at Vietnamese border gates.

Article 1. Conditions for announcing the start time, limitations, and termination of health declaration requirements

1. Announcing the start time for implementing health declarations must be based on one or all of the following conditions:

a) Decision on declaring an infectious disease outbreak issued by the competent state management agency;

b) Notification about the situation of infectious disease outbreaks occurring abroad or factors posing risks to public health issued by the Ministry of Health.

2. Limitations on health declarations shall apply when infectious diseases or risk factors affecting public health continue to occur but have been contained in scope or target. Announcing the start time for limited health declarations must be based on notifications about infectious diseases or risk factors that have been contained, issued by the Ministry of Health.

3. Announcing the end time for implementing health declarations must be based on one of the following conditions:

a) Decision on declaring the end of an infectious disease outbreak issued by the competent state management agency;

b) Notification about infectious disease outbreaks occurring abroad or risk factors affecting public health that have been eliminated, issued by the Ministry of Health.

Article 2. Content of announcements regarding the start time, limitations, and termination of health declaration requirements

1. Content of the announcement regarding the start time for implementing health declarations:

a) Name of the infectious disease or risk factor affecting public health requiring health declarations;

b) Subjects required to make health declarations;

c) Start time for implementing health declarations.

2. Content of the announcement regarding the start time for limited health declarations:

a) Name of the infectious disease or risk factor affecting public health that has been contained, requiring limited health declarations;

b) Subjects required to continue making health declarations;

c) Subjects exempted from making health declarations;

d) Start time for limited health declarations.

3. Content of the announcement regarding the end time for implementing health declarations:

a) Name of the infectious disease or risk factor affecting public health requiring the termination of health declarations;

b) End time for implementing health declarations.

Article 3. Content of health declarations

1. The health declaration form includes:

a) Information on the declarant's surname, name, date of birth, gender, nationality;

b) Passport number or travel document number or border crossing permit number or border area identity card number;

c) Name of province, city, territory, or country of departure to Vietnamese border gate;

d) Place visited before arriving at the Vietnamese border gate within seven days;

đ) Contact address, telephone number in Vietnam or email address if available;

e) List of vaccines or medical products used;

g) Questions about symptoms of illness within seven days;

h) Date of health declaration;

i) Signature of the declarant.

2. Guidance section of the health declaration form includes:

a) Information on the declarant's surname, name;

b) Name of province, city, territory, or country of departure to Vietnamese border gate;

c) Confirmation by the health quarantine officer.

3. Languages used in the health declaration form include one of the following:

a) Vietnamese and English;

b) Vietnamese and Chinese;

c) Vietnamese and Khmer;

d) Vietnamese and Lao.

4. The health declaration content of declarants falling under point b Clause 1 and point b Clause 2 Article 2 of this Circular is valid for only one entry, exit, or transit.

5. The health declaration form prescribed in the Appendix attached to this Circular.

Article 4. Implementation of health declarations

1. Receiving the health declaration form:

a) Receiving the health declaration form on aircraft, ships, maritime agents, domestic and foreign tour companies, or tour guides;

b) Receiving the health declaration form at designated areas for health declarations at Vietnamese border gates;

c) Receiving the health declaration form at the departure border gates;

d) Accessing the preventive medicine department’s website of the Ministry of Health at http://ytdp.cimsi.org.vn, go to the Border Health Quarantine section to obtain the health declaration form.

2. Completing the health declaration form according to the contents in the health declaration form upon arrival at Vietnamese border gates for entry, exit, or transit procedures or prior to that but not earlier than seven days.

3. Submitting the health declaration form to the health quarantine officer at the border gate.

Article 5. Inspection of health declarations

1. Health quarantine officers at border gates inspect the content of health declarations and stamp confirmation before the declarant proceeds with entry, exit, or transit formalities. If a tampered or improperly filled out health declaration form is discovered, the declarant must be asked to complete the health declaration again.

2. Customs inspection forces at border gates during entry, exit, or transit formalities must verify the confirmation of the health quarantine officer in the guidance section for the declarant.

In cases where declarants falling under point b Clause 1 and point b Clause 2 Article 2 do not have the confirmation stamp of the health quarantine officer, customs inspection forces will require them to complete the health declaration before allowing entry, exit, or transit to Vietnam.

Article 6. Responsibility for Implementation

1. The Director of the Preventive Medicine Department is responsible for:

a) Announcing the start time, limitations, and termination of health declaration requirements based on the conditions stipulated in Article 1 of this Circular;

b) Publishing the health declaration form on the preventive medicine department’s website of the Ministry of Health at http://ytdp.cimsi.org.vn;

c) Promoting, guiding, and supervising the implementation of this Circular nationwide.

d) Organize mid-term and final reviews on the implementation of this Circular throughout the country on an annual basis.

2. The Director of the Health Department of the province or centrally governed city where there is a border gate shall be responsible for:

a) Popularizing, guiding, and inspecting the implementation of this Circular within the assigned management area.

b) Organizing mid-term and final reviews on the implementation of this Circular within the assigned management area on an annual basis and reporting the results to the Ministry of Health (Preventive Medicine Department).

3. Border health quarantine organizations shall be responsible for:

a) Notifying other specialized state management agencies at the border gate about the start time, restrictions, and termination of the application of health declaration upon receiving notification from the Preventive Medicine Department of the Ministry of Health;

b) Publicly posting the start time, restrictions, and termination of the application of health declaration in the border gate area; simultaneously organizing guidance for individuals making health declarations to fulfill their obligations;

c) Printing, managing, guiding, and distributing free health declaration forms to meet the requirements of individuals making health declarations;

d) Storing health declaration forms of individuals making health declarations for a period of one month and destroying such forms in accordance with the provisions of the law.

4. Health quarantine officers at the border gate shall be responsible for:

a) Promoting and guiding individuals making health declarations to comply with the health declaration requirements set forth in this Circular;

b) Receiving, inspecting health declaration forms, and stamping confirmation in the section designated for individuals making health declarations;

c) Cooperating with border control forces at the border gate to identify and handle cases of non-compliance with health declaration requirements.

5. Individuals making health declarations shall be responsible for:

a) Making accurate health declarations in accordance with the health declaration form and being accountable for the contents of their health declarations;

b) Not fabricating or using false health declaration forms.

Article 7. Effectiveness

This Circular takes effect from February 1, 2013.

Article 8. Responsibility for Implementation

The Head of the Ministry's Office, the Director of the Preventive Medicine Department, the Heads of Departments, Bureaus, and General Departments under the Ministry of Health, the Heads of subordinate agencies and units of the Ministry, the Directors of Provincial Health Departments, and the Heads of health agencies under ministries and sectors are responsible for implementing this Circular.

During the implementation process, if difficulties arise, units and localities shall report them to the Ministry of Health (Preventive Medicine Department) for research and resolution./.