Circular No. 45/2025/TT-BXD guiding the method for determining maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for determining the costs of maintaining infrastructure(hereinafter referred to collectively as traffic accidents).

--------------------

On the basis of Law on Inland Waterway Transport No. 23/2004/QH11 amended and supplemented by Law on Inland Waterway Transport No. 48/2014/QH13;

Decree No. Decree No. 06/2021/NĐ-CP dated January 26, 2021 of the Government detailing certain contents regarding construction quality management and maintenance of construction works;

Decree No. Decree No. 33/2025/NĐ-CP dated February 25, 2025 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, authorities, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

At the proposal of the Director of the Economic Management Department for Investment and Construction and the Director of the Vietnam Maritime and Inland Waterway Administration;

The Minister of Construction issues this Circular guiding the method for determining the costs of maintaining inland waterway transport infrastructure.

Article 1. Scope of application

This Circular guides the method for determining the costs of maintaining inland waterway transport infrastructure using state budget funds including: costs for regular maintenance of inland waterway transport infrastructure; costs for repairing inland waterway transport infrastructure; and other costs in the maintenance plan for inland waterway transport infrastructure.

Article 2. Applicability

This Circular applies to agencies, organizations, and individuals related to the maintenance of inland waterway transport infrastructure as specified in Article 1 of this Circular.

Article 3. Determining the Costs of Regular Maintenance of Inland Waterway Transport Infrastructure

The costs for regular maintenance of inland waterway transport infrastructure are compiled by the project sponsor according to the guidelines set out in Appendix I of this Circular, including the following items:

1. Costs for performing regular maintenance work on inland waterway transport infrastructure are costs determined to carry out inspection tasks for inland waterway transport works; maintenance of signaling; maintenance of signal lights, equipment, information systems, and facilities serving inland waterway transport routes; sounding of shoals; special tasks in inland waterway transport maintenance. The determination of costs for performing regular maintenance work is carried out according to Appendix II of this Circular.

2. Management costs of inland waterway transport management agencies or agencies entrusted with managing inland waterway transport infrastructure assets (hereinafter referred to as the project sponsor) are costs for carrying out tasks such as compiling budgets for submission to competent authorities for approval; organizing selection and signing contracts with maintenance units; inspecting and settling accounts; organizing supervision of the implementation of maintenance tasks for inland waterway transport infrastructure by these units. Management costs of the project sponsor are determined based on the percentage rate (%) as stipulated in Section I of Appendix III of this Circular. The management and use of management costs of the project sponsor shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law.

3. Consulting costs are costs incurred for consulting tasks related to regular maintenance of inland waterway transport infrastructure, determined according to the provisions in Section II of Appendix III of this Circular.

4. Other costs are costs for necessary tasks related during the process of regular maintenance of inland waterway transport infrastructure. Costs for other necessary tasks are determined based on the percentage rate (%) or prepared according to the provisions of the law.

Article 4. Determining repair costs for inland waterway infrastructure structures

1. Repair costs for inland waterway infrastructure structures include:

a) Regular repair costs including maintenance dredging costs for inland waterway channels at the announced technical level; repairing harbor mooring areas, revetments, station houses, water markers; clearing obstructions within channels and channel protection zones; repairing, supplementing, and replacing navigation aids and lights; repairing, replacing, and supplementing auxiliary facilities, equipment, and accessories directly serving management, maintenance, and operation of inland waterway traffic.

b) Emergency repair costs are costs to repair damage caused by natural disasters or other unusual incidents.

2. Repair costs for inland waterway infrastructure structures shall be determined according to the guidelines for determining maintenance costs of construction projects issued by the Ministry of Construction.

Article 5. Determining other work costs in the maintenance plan for inland waterway infrastructure structures

1. Other work costs include periodic survey costs for inland waterway channels; traffic control and safety assurance for inland waterway traffic, constant readiness against drifting; establishing, adjusting procedures and standards for managing, operating, and maintaining infrastructure funded by the state budget; inspecting, monitoring, and evaluating the safety of inland waterway infrastructure; setting economic and technical standards; applying technology directly serving management, maintenance, and operation of inland waterway traffic.

2. Budget estimates for survey and inspection works are determined according to the regulations on preparing and managing investment construction costs issued by the Ministry of Construction.

3. Budget estimates for traffic control and safety assurance works for inland waterway traffic; constant readiness against drifting are determined similarly to the budget estimates for regular maintenance works of inland waterway infrastructure structures as stipulated in Appendix II of this Circular.

4. Budget estimates for establishing, adjusting procedures and standards for managing, operating, and maintaining infrastructure funded by the state budget; evaluating the safety of inland waterway infrastructure; setting economic and technical standards; applying technology directly serving management, maintenance, and operation of inland waterway infrastructure are determined based on the scope of work volume, standards, unit prices, detailed budget estimates or quotations from consulting units and service providers when there are no established standards or unit prices.

Article 6. Managing the budget estimate for maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure structures

1. The budget estimate for maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure structures, organized by the project sponsor, includes all or some of the works specified in Articles 3, 4, and 5 of this Circular according to the maintenance plan for inland waterway infrastructure structures under the management scope of each project sponsor. The project sponsor compiles the annual budget estimate for maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure structures according to the guidelines set out in Appendix IV of this Circular.

2. The central agency responsible for managing assets of inland waterway infrastructure structures organizes the preparation, review, and approval of the budget estimate for maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure structures within its management scope as the basis for reporting to the Ministry of Construction for allocation of the state budget annually.

3. The People's Committee of the province, within its authority, organizes the preparation, review, and approval of the budget estimate for maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure structures within the management scope of the locality.

Article 7. Economic and technical norms and unit prices for maintaining inland waterway infrastructure

1. The economic and technical norms for maintaining inland waterway infrastructure shall be issued by the Ministry of Construction and provincial People's Committees within their respective jurisdictions.

2. Unit prices for preparing budgets for maintenance works of inland waterway infrastructure shall be determined based on the economic and technical norms issued by state management agencies or based on market quotations or similar work unit prices that have been implemented.

3. Material costs, labor unit prices, machinery and equipment rental prices used to determine unit prices for maintenance and repair works shall be established based on:

a) Material costs, labor unit prices, machinery and equipment rental prices for maintenance work published by provincial People's Committees in accordance with regulations.

b) In cases where material costs, labor unit prices, machinery and equipment rental prices for maintenance work are not included in the published construction cost information or are not suitable for the specific characteristics of maintenance work on inland waterway infrastructure, the project investor shall organize surveys and collect information from manufacturers' quotations or supplier price information or similar completed prices to decide on the application of unit prices for budgeting periodic maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure, ensuring efficiency in management.

c) For inland waterway infrastructure located across multiple provinces or cities, depending on the scope and volume of maintenance work, the project investor shall decide on the application of construction cost information published by one locality or calculate the average price based on the published prices of related localities to establish the basis for determining unit prices for budgeting maintenance costs of inland waterway infrastructure.

Article 8. Effective Date

1. This Circular shall take effect from February 1, 2025.

2. The Circular No. 38/2020/TT-BGTVT dated December 31, 2020 of the Minister of Transport guiding the pricing method and price management for public service activities in the field of inland waterway infrastructure management and maintenance carried out through central government procurement using regular budget funds, amended and supplemented by Circular No. 23/2022/TT-BGTVT dated October 3, 2022, is hereby repealed.

Article 9. Transitional Provisions

For maintenance tasks of inland waterway infrastructure whose tender documents were issued before this Circular takes effect, they shall continue to be implemented according to Circular No. 38/2020/TT-BGTVT dated December 31, 2020 of the Minister of Transport guiding the pricing method and price management for public service activities in the field of inland waterway infrastructure management and maintenance carried out through central government procurement using regular budget funds, amended and supplemented by Circular No. 23/2022/TT-BGTVT dated October 3, 2022 until completion.

ANNEX I

CONSOLIDATED ESTIMATE OF REGULAR MAINTENANCE COSTS FOR INLAND WATERWAY INFRASTRUCTURE
(Annexed to Circular No. 45/2025/TT-BXD dated December 11, 2025 of the Minister of Construction)

Unit of measurement: dong

ANNEX II

ESTIMATE OF COSTS FOR IMPLEMENTING REGULAR MAINTENANCE WORK ON INLAND WATERWAY INFRASTRUCTURE
(Annexed to Circular No. 45/2025/TT-BXD dated December 11, 2025 of the Minister of Construction)

I. ESTIMATE OF COSTS FOR IMPLEMENTING REGULAR MAINTENANCE WORK ON INLAND WATERWAY INFRASTRUCTURE

Unit of measurement: dong

- Of which:

+ Q_{9. Travel distance is the distance traveled without using mechanical means (cars, motorcycles, motorboats) to reach locations for implementing technical forest management measures and patrolling to protect forests.} is the quantity of regular maintenance work j (j = 1 + n);

+ D_{9. Travel distance is the distance traveled without using mechanical means (cars, motorcycles, motorboats) to reach locations for implementing technical forest management measures and patrolling to protect forests.}^KH, D_{9. Travel distance is the distance traveled without using mechanical means (cars, motorcycles, motorboats) to reach locations for implementing technical forest management measures and patrolling to protect forests.}^NC, D_{9. Travel distance is the distance traveled without using mechanical means (cars, motorcycles, motorboats) to reach locations for implementing technical forest management measures and patrolling to protect forests.}^{Briefly describe technical improvements, production processes, raw materials, designs; new technology applications such as automation, digitalization, clean technology; management, marketing, distribution solutions; products winning awards or certifications related to innovation…):…} is the unit price of materials, labor, machinery, and equipment for work j;

+ LT: Temporary housing costs for living and managing construction

+ G: Implementation costs pre-tax;

+ T^VAT: Value-added tax rate applicable to inland waterway infrastructure management and maintenance;

+ G_{d.1. Amount of taxable income in Vietnam:}: Post-tax construction costs.

II. DETERMINATION OF COST ITEMS

1. Direct costs

1.1 Direct costs include: material costs (including materials provided by the Project Owner), labor costs, construction machinery and equipment costs;

1.2 Method of determination:

Direct costs are determined based on the quantity and unit prices of regular maintenance works, wherein:

a) The quantity of regular maintenance works is determined based on the maintenance procedures, plans, and economic and technical norms for maintaining inland waterway infrastructure within the jurisdiction of the project owner;

b) The unit price of regular maintenance work is determined in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 7 of this Circular.

c) The components of costs in the unit price include material costs, labor costs, construction machinery costs, which are determined in accordance with the guidance provided below in Section 1.3.

1.3 Determination of cost components in the unit price when determined based on economic and technical norms:

a) Material costs (including raw materials, materials, energy)

Material costs are determined by the formula:

Where:

- V (VND/year): is the total investment capital allocated annually for the usable area of social housing for rent, ensuring the preservation of capital, calculated according to the following formula:_{international}: Quantity of material consumption i (i = 1 ÷ n) per unit of work volume specified in the economic and technical norms issued by the Ministry of Construction or provincial People's Committees;

: bid price after corrections and adjustments, minus any discount (if applicable) of the lowest bidder among those detailed financial evaluations;^KH_{international}: On-site price of one unit of material i (i = 1÷ n), determined in accordance with the type, quality, and standards of the materials used and in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 7 of this Circular. The material price used for calculation does not include value-added tax;

+ K^KH is the material adjustment factor (if any).

b) LABOR COSTS:

- N |||_{international}: Quantity of labor consumption measured in direct working days according to the level of labor grade i (i = 1 ÷ n) per unit of work volume specified in the economic and technical norms issued by the Ministry of Construction or provincial People's Committees;

: bid price after corrections and adjustments, minus any discount (if applicable) of the lowest bidder among those detailed financial evaluations;_{international}^NCThe daily wage rate according to the skill level of direct workers shall be determined in accordance with Clause 3 of Article 7 of this Circular.

- K^NCAdjustment factor for labor costs (if applicable).

c) Machinery, equipment, and means of transport costs (hereinafter referred to collectively as machinery): Machinery costs are determined using the following formula:

Where:

- M_{international}: The amount of machinery shift consumption of type i construction machinery and equipment (i = 1 ÷ n) for a specified volume of work in the economic and technical norms;

: bid price after corrections and adjustments, minus any discount (if applicable) of the lowest bidder among those detailed financial evaluations;_{international}^MTC: The machinery shift cost of type i construction machinery and equipment (i = 1 ÷ n) as prescribed in Clause 3 of Article 7 of this Circular;

- K^MTC: Is the adjustment factor for machinery costs (if applicable);

- The machinery shift cost used for calculation is the cost excluding value-added tax.

2. Indirect Costs

2.1 Common Costs:

a) Common costs include expenses for the management and operation system of the enterprise; expenses for serving workers (labor protection expenses, labor tool expenses); social expenses that employers must pay to the state (social insurance, health insurance, trade union fees, unemployment insurance); depreciation and repair costs of fixed assets serving the management and operation system of the enterprise, audit fees of the enterprise, and other related expenses to the general activities of the enterprise.

b) Common costs are determined by multiplying the percentage standard set forth in the table below by the direct labor costs in the budget estimate for the regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure.

c) The percentage standard is determined based on the total direct labor costs in the budget estimate for the regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure under the management scope of each project owner.

2.2 Temporary Housing Costs:

a) Temporary housing costs for living and managing construction, serving regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure are determined by multiplying the percentage standard set forth in the table below by the direct costs in the budget estimate for the regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure, determined for each river and canal under the management scope of each project owner.

b) The percentage standard for temporary housing costs is determined based on the total direct costs before tax in the budget estimate for regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure under the management scope of each project owner.

3. Pre-Tax Income Subject to Tax:

Pre-tax income subject to tax is established to ensure consistency with market conditions and is calculated at 6% of the total direct costs and common costs in the budget estimate for regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure.

4. Value-Added Tax: Applied in accordance with current regulations.

ANNEX III

MANAGEMENT COSTS OF THE PROJECT OWNER AND CONSULTING FEES
(Annexed to Circular No. 45/2025/TT-BXD dated December 11, 2025 of the Minister of Construction)

I. Management Costs of the Project Owner

1. Management costs of the project owner are determined by multiplying the percentage standard set forth in the table below by the pre-tax budget estimate cost for implementing regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure (excluding VAT) within the management scope of each project owner.

2. The percentage standard for management costs of maintenance work is determined based on the actual implementation costs for regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure of each project owner.

3. In cases where the project owner uses its own legal entity and affiliated professional staff who have sufficient qualifications to directly manage, the project owner's costs are determined according to the management cost standard table and adjusted with a coefficient k = 0.8.

Table of Management Cost Standards

Unit of Measurement: Percentage (%)

II. Consulting Fees

1. Consulting fees are calculated separately for each specific task based on the percentage standard multiplied by the pre-tax cost of implementing regular maintenance work. The percentage standard is determined based on the scale of pre-tax costs for implementing regular maintenance work of inland waterway infrastructure corresponding to the cost scale issued in the Circular on Construction Norms.

2. In cases where consulting fees are not defined by standards or are defined but are not appropriate, they are determined by preparing a budget estimate; the preparation of the consulting fee budget estimate is carried out in accordance with the legal provisions on determining investment construction management costs.

ANNEX IV

COMBINED BUDGET ESTIMATE FOR MAINTENANCE COSTS OF INLAND WATERWAY INFRASTRUCTURE
(Annexed to Circular No. 45/2025/TT-BXD dated December 11, 2025 of the Minister of Construction)

Unit of measurement: dong