Decree No. 55/2021/ND-CP Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 155/2016/ND-CP dated November 18, 2016 on administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection

DECREE

Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 155/2016/NĐ-CP

dated November 18, 2016, of the Government on administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection

The Government promulgates this Decree to amend and supplement some articles of Decree No. 155/2016/NĐ-CP dated November 18, 2016, on administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection.

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Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated June 19, 2015; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Organization of the Government and the Law on Organization of Local Administration dated November 22, 2019;

Pursuant to the Law on Handling Administrative Offenses dated June 20, 2012;

Pursuant to the Environmental Protection Law on June 23, 2014;

Pursuant to the Law on Biodiversity dated November 13, 2008;

Pursuant to the Environmental Police Ordinance dated December 23, 2014;

At the proposal of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment;

The Government issues a Decree amending and supplementing some Articles of Decree No. 155/2016/NĐ-CP dated November 18, 2016 on administrative penalties in the field of environmental protection. number 3. Amend Clauses 4, 7, 8, 10, and 11, and supplement Clauses 14 and 15 of Article 3 as follows:

Article 1. Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 155/2016/NĐ-CP dated November 18, 2016, of the Government on administrative penalties for violations in the field of environmental protection as follows:

1. Amend Point a Clause 2 Article 1 as follows:

"a) Acts violating provisions on environmental protection plans and environmental impact assessments;"

2. Supplementing Clause 3 and Clause 4 of Article 2 as follows:

"3. Organizations subject to administrative penalties under this Decree include:

a) Private enterprises, Joint Stock Companies, Limited Liability Companies, Limited Partnership Companies, and affiliated units of enterprises (branches, representative offices) established in accordance with the Law on Enterprises;

b) Cooperatives, Cooperative Federations established in accordance with the Law on Cooperatives;

c) Foreign investors, economic organizations with foreign investment capital, representative offices, branches of foreign traders in Vietnam, representative offices of foreign trade promotion organizations in Vietnam established in accordance with the Investment Law;

d) State agencies committing violations that are not within their assigned state management tasks;

đ) Political-social organizations, social-professional organizations;

e) Public service organizations;

g) Other organizations as prescribed by law."

4. Clause 4, Clause 7, Clause 8, Clause 10, and Clause 11 are amended, and Clauses 14 and 15 are supplemented as follows:

/day (24 hours) or more, except in cases of criminal offenses related to the environment.”

a) Amending Clause 4 as follows:

"4. Hazardous environmental parameters in exhaust gases and ambient air are environmental parameters listed in national technical regulations on certain harmful substances in ambient air and certain parameters listed in national technical regulations on waste, detailed in Section II of Appendix I attached to this Decree."

b) Amending Clause 7 and Clause 8 as follows:

"7. An environmental protection plan includes: A declaration of activities affecting the environment; an approved environmental protection program; a simplified environmental protection program; a registration of meeting environmental standards; a commitment to environmental protection; and an environmental protection plan.

8. An environmental impact assessment report includes: Detailed environmental impact assessment reports; environmental impact assessment reports of operating facilities; approved environmental protection programs; detailed environmental protection programs; supplementary environmental impact assessment reports; and environmental impact assessment reports."

c) Amending Clause 10 as follows:

"10. A certificate of completion of environmental protection works includes: A certificate of completion of the contents of the approved environmental protection program; a certificate of completion of the implementation of the detailed environmental protection program; a certificate regarding the implementation of the contents of the report and requirements of the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report of the project before it officially commences operation; a certificate of completion of environmental protection works serving the operational phase of the project; a certificate of completion of one of the components of the project that has been invested in when the project is divided into phases before the project or works are put into official operation; and a certificate of completion of environmental protection works."

d) Amending Clause 11 as follows:

"11. Environmental protection works include: Waste treatment works; solid waste collection and storage works; and other environmental protection works as prescribed."

đ) Supplementing Clause 14 and Clause 15 as follows:

"14. Suspension of operations causing environmental pollution referred to in this Decree means suspending the operations of parts or components directly causing environmental pollution or discharging pollutants beyond environmental technical standards to a level that may cause environmental pollution.

15. Special general solid waste referred to in this Decree includes: Solid waste generated from medical activities; construction waste; livestock waste; empty pesticide packaging after cleaning hazardous components; dredged sludge from canals and water conservancy works; and dredged sludge from seas, rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water."

4. Supplementing Point c Clause 2, Points o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3, and Clause 4 of Article 4 as follows:

a) Supplementing Point c Clause 2 as follows:

"c) The application of the additional penalty of suspension of operations for a limited time against public service providers assigned tasks, orders, or contracts by the state, except where the violation does not cause environmental pollution or the provider has ceased the violation or fully remedied the consequences caused by the administrative violation. The period of suspension starts from the date the state agency assigns tasks, orders, or contracts to another provider."

b) Supplementing Points o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3 as follows:

"o) Compelling relocation of projects or facilities to locations consistent with approved planning;

p) Compelling review and improvement of waste treatment works to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed;

q) Compelling installation of automatic continuous wastewater monitoring equipment or automatic continuous air emission monitoring equipment as prescribed within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision;

r) Compelling submission of an environmental protection plan to the competent state management agency for confirmation as prescribed;

s) Compel the preparation of an environmental impact assessment report for the project to renovate, upgrade, and supplement environmental protection works to be submitted to the competent authority for approval in accordance with regulations;

t) Compel the dismantling of construction works and equipment installed in violation of environmental protection regulations to discharge untreated waste into the environment.”

c) Supplement Clause 4 as follows:

“4. The application of remedial measures provided for in Points a, c, h, and m of Clause 3 of this Article shall only be implemented when there is sufficient evidence to prove the consequences or illegal gains obtained or environmental protection fees underpaid or evaded due to administrative violations, except in cases where the payment of costs for requesting forensic examination, inspection, measurement, and environmental sample analysis is required.”

5. Amend and supplement Article 6 as follows:

“Article 6. Application of Environmental Technical Standards and Use of Environmental Parameters to Determine Administrative Violations and the Degree of Administrative Violations in the Field of Environmental Protection; Principles for Imposing Penalties on Certain Administrative Violations Related to Environmental Protection

1. National technical standards shall be used to determine administrative violations and the degree of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection when individuals or organizations discharge or release waste into the environment; in cases where both national technical standards and local technical standards exist, the local technical standards (hereinafter referred to as technical standards) shall be applied.

2. The number of times exceeding environmental technical standards is the highest value determined based on the results collected using technical means and equipment, the results of forensic examination, inspection, monitoring, supervision, measurement, and environmental sample analysis divided by the maximum allowable value of that parameter in the environmental technical standards.

3. When imposing fines for discharging wastewater (Articles 13 and 14 of this Decree) or releasing dust and exhaust gases (Articles 15 and 16 of this Decree) exceeding environmental technical standards, if the wastewater or dust and exhaust gases contain harmful environmental parameters, bacteria, common environmental parameters exceeding the technical standards, or pH values outside the standard range, then the parameter corresponding to the administrative violation with the highest fine will be selected for punishment; in cases where the fines are equal, the harmful parameter will be used to determine the administrative violation.

The remaining environmental parameters exceeding the technical standards of the same waste sample will be subject to additional fines ranging from 10% to 50% of the fine amount of the selected administrative violation for each environmental parameter, but the total fine amount for each administrative violation shall not exceed the maximum fine amount.

In cases where a production, business, or service concentration site has multiple points discharging wastewater or releasing dust and exhaust gases exceeding environmental technical standards, they shall be punished separately for each point of discharge or release.

4. The volume of wastewater specified in Articles 13 and 14 of this Decree is the total volume of wastewater discharged into the environment within one day (24 hours). In cases where the volume of wastewater cannot be determined, it shall be calculated based on the flow rate of wastewater at the sampling time multiplied by 24 hours.

5. For a single violation simultaneously violating the provisions of Articles 9 and 10, it shall be handled according to the provisions of Article 10 of this Decree.

6. The acts stipulated in Point 1 Clause 1, Point 1 Clause 2 of Article 9, Point đ Clause 1, Point đ Clause 2 of Article 10, Point d Clause 1, Point d Clause 2, Point d Clause 3, Point d Clause 4, Point d Clause 5 of Article 11 of this Decree are ongoing administrative violations, and the statute of limitations for punishment shall be calculated from the date of discovery of the violation.

7. For violations concerning the implementation of plans for environmental restoration and recovery in mineral exploitation activities already subject to handling measures under Article 32, such measures shall not be applied under Article 9 of this Decree.

8. A person without the authority to apply remedial measures as prescribed in this Decree shall not have the authority to impose administrative penalties for the corresponding administrative violations.

6. Amend Point c Clause 2 of Article 7 as follows:

“c) Results obtained through automatic and continuous air emission and wastewater monitoring systems, based on daily average values (24 hours) of individuals and organizations that have been tested, inspected, and calibrated in accordance with the law for cases requiring installation and direct data transmission to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment for inspection and supervision. In cases where these results exceed the permissible levels of pollution parameters for wastewater according to technical standards, further analysis of samples from the next day's automatic sampling system shall be conducted to determine the violation; in cases where these results exceed the permissible levels of pollution parameters for air emissions according to technical standards, air emission monitoring of the individual or organization must be organized within three working days to determine the violation.”

“a) Establishing and developing effectively concentrated raw material zones according to the orientations set forth in Decree No. 98/2018/NĐ-CP dated July 5, 2018 of the Government on policies encouraging the development of cooperation and linkage in agricultural production and consumption; Decision No. 100/QĐ-TTg dated January 19, 2019 of the Prime Minister approving the project to implement, apply, and manage traceability systems; Decision No. 1804/QĐ-TTg dated November 13, 2020 of the Prime Minister approving the Program to support the development of collective economic organizations and cooperatives from 2021 to 2025; Decision No. 255/QĐ-TTg dated February 25, 2021 of the Prime Minister approving the Plan to restructure the agricultural sector from 2021 to 2025; Decision No. 885/QĐ-TTg dated June 23, 2020 of the Prime Minister approving the Project to develop organic agriculture from 2020 to 2030, and according to the planning of concentrated raw material zones of localities.”

“Article 8. Violations of Regulations on Implementing Environmental Protection Plans

1. Violations of regulations on implementing environmental protection plans within the confirmation authority of the Environmental Resources Management Office, District People's Committee, and not falling under the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article shall be penalized as follows:

a) Warning penalty for failing to implement one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of non-compliance with environmental monitoring and supervision regulations and Point c of this Clause; failure to notify the confirming authority of changes in the project owner or production, business, or service provider as required;

b) Fine of VND 500,000 to VND 1,000,000 for failing to implement one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of non-compliance with environmental monitoring and supervision regulations and the case stipulated in Point d of this Clause;

c) A fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 1,500,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating not in accordance with procedures for waste treatment facilities committed to in the environmental protection plan confirmed; constructing not in accordance with regulations for waste treatment facilities committed to in the environmental protection plan confirmed in cases where capacity reduction leads to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, change in technology, lack of processing stages; failing to collect thoroughly leading to a situation where a certain amount of wastewater, exhaust gas generated during project implementation and operation, production plans, business, service activities are not treated before being discharged into the environment;

d) A fine of VND 1,500,000 to VND 2,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection works as prescribed;

đ) A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 2,500,000 for the act of not re-registering the environmental protection plan as prescribed;

2. Acts violating provisions on implementing the environmental protection plan within the confirmation authority of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, People's Committee at district level, and registered by the provincial business registration agency shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of violation of provisions on environmental monitoring and supervision and the case stipulated in point c of this clause; failing to notify the confirming agency of changes in the project owner, production facility, business, service operator as prescribed;

b) A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of violation of provisions on environmental monitoring and supervision and the case stipulated in point d of this clause;

c) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating not in accordance with procedures for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental protection plan; constructing not in accordance with regulations for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental protection plan in cases of capacity reduction leading to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, change in technology, lack of processing stages; failing to collect thoroughly leading to a situation where a certain amount of wastewater, exhaust gas generated during project implementation and operation, production plans, business, service activities are not treated before being discharged into the environment;

d) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection works as prescribed;

đ) A fine of VND 25,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of not re-registering the environmental protection plan as prescribed;

3. Acts violating provisions on implementing the environmental protection plan within the confirmation authority of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of violation of provisions on environmental monitoring and supervision and the case stipulated in point c of this clause; failing to notify the confirming agency of changes in the project owner, production facility, business, service operator as prescribed;

b) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the environmental protection measures in the confirmed environmental protection plan, except in cases of violation of provisions on environmental monitoring and supervision and the case stipulated in point d of this clause;

c) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating not in accordance with procedures for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental protection plan; constructing not in accordance with regulations for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental protection plan in cases of capacity reduction leading to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, change in technology, lack of processing stages; failing to collect thoroughly leading to a situation where a certain amount of wastewater, exhaust gas generated during project implementation and operation, production plans, business, service activities are not treated before being discharged into the environment;

d) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection works as prescribed;

đ) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of not re-registering the environmental protection plan as prescribed;

4. Acts violating provisions on implementing the environmental standard compliance registration within the confirmation authority of ministries, ministerial-level agencies shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents of the confirmed environmental standard compliance registration, except in cases of violation of provisions on environmental monitoring and supervision and the case stipulated in point c of this clause;

b) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents of the environmental standard registration form that has been confirmed by the competent state agency, except in cases of violation of regulations on environmental monitoring and supervision and the cases stipulated in point d of this clause;

c) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating incorrectly according to the process for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental standard registration form; constructing improperly for waste treatment facilities committed to in the confirmed environmental standard registration form in cases where capacity reduction leads to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, technology change, missing treatment steps; failing to collect thoroughly leading to a situation where a certain amount of wastewater, exhaust gas generated during project implementation and operation, production, business, service plans is not treated before being discharged into the environment;

d) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection works as prescribed;

5. Additional forms of punishment:

a) Suspension of activities causing environmental pollution from one month to three months for cases violating the provisions stipulated in points c and d of Clause 1, points c and d of Clause 2 of this Article;

b) Suspension of activities causing environmental pollution from three months to six months for cases violating the provisions stipulated in points c and d of Clause 3 of this Article or suspension of activities of the facility from three months to six months for the act of not re-registering the environmental protection plan as prescribed in points đ of Clause 1, points đ of Clause 2, and points đ of Clause 3 of this Article;

c) Suspension of activities causing environmental pollution from six months to nine months for cases violating the provisions stipulated in points c and d of Clause 4 of this Article;

6. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Compel to operate according to the procedure for environmental protection works; compel to dismantle construction works, equipment installed illegally to discharge untreated waste into the environment for cases violating the provisions stipulated in point c of Clause 1, point c of Clause 2, point c of Clause 3, and point c of Clause 4 of this Article;

b) Compel to construct environmental protection works ensuring technical standards as prescribed within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative violation penalty decision for cases violating the provisions stipulated in point d of Clause 1, point d of Clause 2, point d of Clause 3, and point d of Clause 4 of this Article;

c) Compel to return illegal profits obtained from the acts of violation stipulated in points c and d of Clause 1; points c and d of Clause 2; points c and d of Clause 3, and points c and d of Clause 4 of this Article.";

8. Amend and supplement Article 9 as follows:

"Article 9. Violation of regulations on the implementation of decisions approving environmental impact assessment reports

1. Acts of violating regulations on the implementation of decisions approving environmental impact assessment reports within the approval authority of provincial People's Committees, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, except for cases stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of not cooperating with the People's Committee of the commune where opinions were solicited during the preparation of the environmental impact assessment report to publicly post the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report at the People's Committee office of the commune when required to consult according to regulations;

b) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of not informing the agency approving the environmental impact assessment report, the provincial specialized agency on environmental protection about changes in the project owner as prescribed;

c) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of not preparing and submitting the trial operation plan for the project's waste treatment facilities to the provincial specialized agency on environmental protection where the project is implemented and the agency approving the environmental impact assessment report as prescribed;

d) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of putting waste treatment facilities into trial operation without the approval of the competent authority; failing to stop operations or reduce capacity of the project to ensure existing waste treatment facilities can handle generated waste meeting environmental technical standards during trial operation; failing to improve, upgrade, or construct additional waste treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed when discovering that discharged waste does not meet environmental technical standards during trial operation;

đ) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of not complying with one of the contents of the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report, the decision on environmental approval (if any) issued by the agency approving the environmental impact assessment report; not fully incorporating the contents and requirements of the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report into the investment project, construction project, except for cases: Changes occur but do not need to be reported to the competent state agency as prescribed, violations of regulations on environmental monitoring and supervision, and cases stipulated in points b, h, and m of this clause;

e) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents of the decision approving the environmental impact assessment report, except for cases of violation of regulations on environmental monitoring and supervision and cases stipulated in points b, c, and k of this clause;

g) A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 for the act of not reviewing, improving, upgrading waste treatment facilities when they do not meet technical standards for waste and the requirements of the competent state agency to serve as the basis for compiling the application for confirmation of completion of environmental protection works.

h) A fine of VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating incorrectly according to procedures for waste treatment facilities; failing to test-run waste treatment facilities simultaneously with project trial operations; constructing waste treatment facilities not in accordance with regulations approved in the Decision on the Environmental Impact Assessment Report in cases where reducing capacity leads to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, changing technology, or lacking treatment stages.

i) A fine of VND 80,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of continuing trial operation of waste treatment facilities without immediately stopping such activities and promptly reporting to the provincial environmental protection authority at the location where the project is implemented for guidance on resolution in case of causing environmental incidents or pollution; failing to organize remediation of environmental pollution and compensation for damages as prescribed by law; exceeding the specified time limit for trial operation of waste treatment facilities.

k) A fine of VND 120,000,000 to VND 140,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection facilities as prescribed, except in cases stipulated in Point e Clause 3 Article 12 and Point k Clause 4 Article 12 of this Decree.

l) A fine of VND 140,000,000 to VND 160,000,000 for the act of not re-preparing the Environmental Impact Assessment Report of the project as prescribed.

2. Acts violating the implementation of decisions approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report within the approval authority of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall be penalized as follows:

a) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of failing to cooperate with the People's Committee of the commune where opinions were solicited during the preparation of the Environmental Impact Assessment Report to publicly post the decision approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report at the People's Committee of the commune for cases requiring consultation as prescribed.

b) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of failing to notify the authority approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report and the provincial environmental protection authority of changes in the project proponent as prescribed.

c) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of failing to prepare and submit the Trial Operation Plan of the project's waste treatment facilities to the provincial environmental protection authority implementing the project and the authority approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report as prescribed.

d) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of putting waste treatment facilities into trial operation without the approval of the competent authority; failing to stop operations or reduce capacity of the project to ensure existing waste treatment facilities can handle generated waste meeting environmental technical standards during project trial operations; failing to improve, upgrade, or construct additional waste treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed when discovering that discharged waste does not meet environmental technical standards during trial operations.

đ) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of failing to implement one of the contents of the decision approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report or the environmental approval decision of the authority approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report (if applicable); failing to fully incorporate the contents and requirements of the decision approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report into the investment project or construction project, except in cases where there has been a change but no report was made to the competent state authority as prescribed, violations of environmental monitoring and supervision regulations, and cases stipulated in Points b, h, and m of this clause.

e) A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 for the act of failing to implement one of the contents of the decision approving the Environmental Impact Assessment Report, except in cases of violations of environmental monitoring and supervision regulations and cases stipulated in Points b, c, and k of this clause.

g) A fine of VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 for the act of failing to review, improve, or upgrade waste treatment facilities in cases where they do not meet prescribed waste technical standards and the requirements of the competent state authority to serve as the basis for preparing the application for confirmation of completion of environmental protection facilities.

h) A fine of VND 80,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment; failing to operate regularly or operating incorrectly according to procedures for waste treatment facilities; failing to test-run waste treatment facilities simultaneously with project trial operations; constructing waste treatment facilities not in accordance with regulations approved in the Decision on the Environmental Impact Assessment Report in cases where reducing capacity leads to insufficient ability to treat generated waste, changing technology, or lacking treatment stages.

i) A fine of VND 100,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 for the act of continuing trial operation of waste treatment facilities without immediately stopping such activities and promptly reporting to the provincial environmental protection authority at the location where the project is implemented for guidance on resolution in case of causing environmental incidents or pollution; failing to organize remediation of environmental pollution and compensation for damages as prescribed by law; exceeding the specified time limit for trial operation of waste treatment facilities.

k) A fine of VND 140,000,000 to VND 160,000,000 for the act of not constructing environmental protection facilities as prescribed, except in cases stipulated in Point e Clause 3 Article 12 and Point k Clause 4 Article 12 of this Decree.

l) A fine of VND 160,000,000 to VND 180,000,000 for the act of not re-preparing the environmental impact assessment report of the project as prescribed.

3. Additional forms of punishment:

Suspend operations of the facility from three to six months to rectify violations for cases violating the provisions set out in points d, g, h, i, k, and l, Clause 1 and points d, g, h, i, k, and l, Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Measures to remedy consequences:

Compel the correct operation according to procedures for environmental protection works; compel the dismantling of works and equipment installed in violation of environmental protection regulations to discharge untreated waste into the environment for cases violating the provisions set out in point h, Clause 1 and point h, Clause 2 of this Article;

Compel the installation and operation of environmental protection works and the preparation of a report on the results of implementing such works to be submitted to the authority that approved the environmental impact assessment report for inspection and confirmation of completion of environmental protection works in accordance with the time limit determined by the competent authority imposing administrative sanctions under the decision on administrative penalties for cases violating the provisions set out in points g, i, k, and l, Clause 1 and points g, i, k, and l, Clause 2 of this Article;

Compel the preparation of a report on the completion of environmental protection works to be submitted to the competent authority for inspection and confirmation of completion of environmental protection works for acts violating the provisions set out in point g, Clause 1 and point g, Clause 2 of this Article;

Compel the return of unlawful profits obtained from committing violations set out in points d, g, h, and k, Clause 1 and points d, g, h, and k, Clause 2 of this Article.”

9. Replace Article 10 as follows:

“Article 10. Violations of Regulations on Implementing the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works

1. Acts violating the regulations on implementing the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works within the authority to confirm of provincial People's Committees, ministries, and ministerial-level agencies, except for cases stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article shall be penalized as follows:

a) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of not implementing correctly one of the contents of the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed, except for cases of violating the regulations on implementing environmental monitoring and supervision; installing automatic and continuous waste monitoring equipment systems; renovating and upgrading waste treatment facilities that have deteriorated or do not meet technical standards for waste; supplementarily installing one or more treatment stages for waste treatment facilities and cases stipulated in points c, d, and đ of this clause;

b) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents of the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed, except for cases of violating the regulations on implementing environmental monitoring and supervision and cases stipulated in points c and d of this clause;

c) A fine of VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 for the act of operating incorrectly according to procedures, operating incorrectly according to regimes, or not operating one of the stages of one of the waste treatment works as prescribed in the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project);

d) A fine of VND 80,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment;

đ) A fine of VND 100,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 for the act of not having the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed.

2. Acts violating the regulations on implementing the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works within the authority to confirm of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall be penalized as follows:

a) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 for the act of not implementing correctly one of the contents of the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed, except for cases of violating the regulations on implementing environmental monitoring and supervision; installing automatic and continuous waste monitoring equipment systems; renovating and upgrading waste treatment facilities that have deteriorated or do not meet technical standards for waste; supplementarily installing one or more treatment stages for waste treatment facilities and cases stipulated in points c, d, and đ of this clause;

b) A fine of VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents of the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed, except for cases of violating the regulations on implementing environmental monitoring and supervision and cases stipulated in points c and d of this clause;

c) A fine of VND 80,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of operating incorrectly according to procedures, operating incorrectly according to regimes, or not operating one of the stages of one of the waste treatment works as prescribed in the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project);

d) A fine of VND 100,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 for the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to discharge untreated waste into the environment;

đ) A fine of VND 120,000,000 to VND 140,000,000 for the act of not having the Certificate of Completion of Environmental Protection Works (each component of the work or each phase according to investment stages or the entire project) as prescribed.

3. Additional forms of punishment:

a) Suspend operations of the facility from three to six months to rectify violations for cases violating the provisions set out in points c and d, Clause 1 and points c and d, Clause 2 of this Article;

b) Suspend operations of the facility for a period of six to nine months to rectify violations as stipulated in points đ Clause 1 and point đ Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Compel compliance with the prescribed procedures for environmental protection works in cases of violation as stipulated in point c Clause 1 and point c Clause 2 of this Article;

b) Compel removal of construction projects and equipment installed in violation of environmental protection regulations to discharge untreated waste into the environment in cases of violation as stipulated in point d Clause 1 and point d Clause 2 of this Article;

c) Compel preparation of a report on the completion of environmental protection works to be submitted to the competent authority for inspection and confirmation of completion in accordance with the provisions for violations as stipulated in point đ Clause 1 and point đ Clause 2 of this Article;

d) Compel surrender of illegal profits obtained from the implementation of violations as stipulated in points c, d, and đ Clause 1 and points c, d, and đ Clause 2 of this Article.”

10. Amend and supplement Article 11 as follows:

a) Amend the name of Article 11 as follows:

“Article 11. Violations of environmental protection regulations in production, business, service activities, or project implementation without an environmental protection plan or environmental impact assessment report”

b) Amend the name of Clause 1 as follows:

“1. For production, business, service activities, or project implementation with scale and capacity equivalent to those required to submit an environmental protection plan to the People's Committee of the district for confirmation and not falling under the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article shall be subject to the following penalties:”

c) Amend the name of Clause 2 as follows:

“2. For production, business, service activities, or project implementation with scale and capacity equivalent to those required to submit an environmental protection plan to the People's Committee of the district for confirmation and registered by the provincial business registration agency shall be subject to the following penalties:”

d) Amend the name of Clause 3 as follows:

“3. For production, business, service activities, or project implementation with scale and capacity equivalent to those required to submit an environmental protection plan to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment for confirmation shall be subject to the following penalties:”

đ) Amend the name of Clause 4 as follows:

“4. For production, business, service activities, or project implementation with scale and capacity equivalent to those required to submit an environmental impact assessment report to the People's Committee of the province, ministries, or agencies at the ministerial level for approval, except for cases stipulated in Clause 5 of this Article shall be subject to the following penalties:”

e) Amend the name of Clause 5 as follows:

“5. For production, business, service activities, or project implementation with scale and capacity equivalent to those required to submit an environmental impact assessment report to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment for approval shall be subject to the following penalties:”

g) Supplement Clause 6a before Clause 6 as follows:

“6a. Fine from VND 1,500,000 to VND 2,000,000 for the failure to implement measures, facilities for collecting, storing, treating, and managing waste generated in accordance with regulations for projects, plans for production, business, and services exempted from registering an environmental protection plan as prescribed.”

h) Amend and supplement Clauses 6 and 7 as follows:

“6. Additional forms of punishment:

a) Suspend operations of the facility for three to six months for violations as stipulated in point c Clause 1, point c Clause 2, point c Clause 3, point c Clause 4, and point c Clause 5 and Clause 6a of this Article;

b) Suspend operations of the facility for six to twelve months for violations of the provisions as stipulated in point d Clause 1, point d Clause 2, point d Clause 3, point d Clause 4, and point d Clause 5 of this Article.

7. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Compel implementation of measures to manage solid waste, hazardous waste, reduce noise, vibration, light, heat, and treat wastewater and exhaust gas to meet technical standards on waste within the time limit set by the authorized authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations as stipulated in points b and c Clause 1, points b and c Clause 2, points b and c Clause 3, points b and c Clause 4, points b and c Clause 5, and Clause 6a of this Article;

b) Compel implementation of measures to remediate environmental pollution and report the results of remediation within the time limit set by the authorized authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations as stipulated in point a Clause 1, point a Clause 2, point a Clause 3, point a Clause 4, and point a Clause 5 of this Article;

c) Compel relocation of the project or facility to a location consistent with the approved planning by the competent authority for cases of violation as stipulated in point d Clause 1, point d Clause 2, point d Clause 3, point d Clause 4, and point d Clause 5 of this Article where the current location of the project or facility does not comply with the approved planning;

d) Compel submission of an environmental protection plan to the competent state authority for confirmation for cases of violation as stipulated in point d Clause 1, point d Clause 2, and point d Clause 3 of this Article where the current location of the project or facility complies with the approved planning;

đ) Compel submission of an environmental impact assessment report for the project to improve, upgrade, and supplement environmental protection facilities to the competent authority for approval for cases of violation as stipulated in point d Clause 4 and point d Clause 5 of this Article where the current location of the project or facility complies with the approved planning;

e) Order to return the unlawful profits obtained from implementing any of the following acts: construction, installation of equipment, pipelines, or other discharge channels to release untreated waste into the environment; failure to operate regularly or incorrect operation of waste treatment facilities as prescribed; lack of wastewater, exhaust gas, and dust treatment systems meeting technical standards specified in Points b and c Clause 1; Points b and c Clause 2; Points b and c Clause 3; Points b and c Clause 4; and Points b and c Clause 5 of this Article.

11. Amend and supplement Article 12 as follows:

a) Amend Point b Clause 3 as follows:

“b) Fine from VND 10,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of not maintaining an operational logbook for centralized wastewater treatment systems as prescribed;”

b) Amend Point b and Point c Clause 6 as follows:

“b) Fine equal to 50% of the fine amount prescribed in Articles 13 and 14 of this Decree for the act of discharging wastewater containing one of the environmental parameters (select the highest parameter exceeding the standard) into the collection and treatment system of industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech zones, clusters, and craft villages beyond the wastewater reception standards set by the project investors and infrastructure operators of such areas;

c) Fine from VND 50,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of illegally discharging wastewater into the stormwater drainage system of industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech zones, and clusters.”

c) Amend Clause 7 as follows:

“7. Acts violating regulations on automatic and continuous monitoring of wastewater and exhaust gases, and other violations concerning environmental protection in production, business, and service activities shall be punished as follows:

a) Fine from VND 60,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 for the act of failing to provide a safe operating platform at sampling locations for exhaust gases or exhaust gas sampling ports as prescribed; failing to install flow meters to monitor the inflow and outflow of wastewater in treatment systems as prescribed;

b) Fine from VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for acts of failing to operate, or incorrectly operating, automatic and continuous monitoring equipment or systems for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed; failing to retain monitoring data for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed or failing to transmit monitoring data to competent authorities upon request as prescribed;

c) Fine from VND 100,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 for the act of installing insufficient automatic and continuous monitoring parameters for wastewater or exhaust gas monitoring equipment or systems as prescribed or as required by state authorities; failing to install surveillance cameras, or failing to periodically assess the quality of automatic and continuous monitoring systems for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed;

d) Fine from VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 for the act of lacking automatic and continuous monitoring equipment or systems for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed or as required by state authorities; or failing to repair faults in automatic and continuous monitoring systems as required by state authorities;

đ) Fine from VND 200,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 for the act of intentionally constructing or installing pipelines or discharge outlets for wastewater into the environment at locations that cannot be inspected or monitored as prescribed; diluting treated wastewater or exhaust gases to meet technical standards for waste;

e) For the act of failing to calibrate or verify automatic monitoring systems for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed, the penalty shall be applied according to the provisions of laws on administrative violations in the field of measurement.”

d) Repeal Clause 8 and amend and supplement Clause 9 as follows:

“9. Measures to remedy consequences:

a) Order to implement measures to manage solid waste and hazardous waste, reduce noise and vibration, and treat wastewater and exhaust gases to meet technical standards for waste within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative violation penalty decision for violations under this Article;

b) Order to dismantle aquaculture structures; restore the environment caused by violations stipulated in Points d and đ Clause 5 of this Article; install automatic and continuous monitoring equipment or systems for wastewater or exhaust gases as prescribed within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative violation penalty decision for violations stipulated in Points c and đ Clause 7 of this Article; construct or install pipelines or discharge outlets for wastewater into the environment at locations where inspection and supervision can be carried out, or dismantle structures or equipment used to dilute waste and treat waste to meet technical standards for waste within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative violation penalty decision for violations stipulated in Point đ Clause 7 of this Article.”

12. Add Article 13a before Article 13 as follows:

“Article 13a. Violations of regulations on conducting environmental monitoring and supervision

1. Acts violating regulations on conducting environmental monitoring and supervision during construction, implementation of projects, production plans, business operations, and services shall be punished as follows:

a) Warning for the act of improperly or incompletely implementing the waste monitoring program (regarding parameters, locations, and frequency of monitoring) for cases within the jurisdiction of district People's Committees for confirming environmental protection plans.”

b) A fine of VND 500,000 to VND 1,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to confirm environmental protection plans of the People's Committee at the district level; failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) for cases within the authority to confirm environmental protection plans of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment or Industrial Park Management Board, Export Processing Zone Management Board, or Economic Zone Management Board.

c) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to confirm environmental impact assessment reports of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment or Industrial Park Management Board, Export Processing Zone Management Board, or Economic Zone Management Board; failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the People's Committee at the provincial level or agencies authorized by the People's Committee at the provincial level.

d) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the People's Committee at the provincial level or agencies authorized by the People's Committee at the provincial level; failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, ministries, or ministerial-level agencies.

đ) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, ministries, or ministerial-level agencies.

2. Violations concerning the implementation of environmental monitoring during trial operation of projects shall be penalized as follows:

a) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) to assess the effectiveness of treatment for each process and the entire treatment facility as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the People's Committee at the provincial level or agencies authorized by the People's Committee at the provincial level.

b) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of not implementing the waste monitoring program to assess the effectiveness of treatment for each process and the entire treatment facility as prescribed or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the People's Committee at the provincial level or agencies authorized by the People's Committee at the provincial level; failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) to assess the effectiveness of treatment for each process and the entire treatment facility as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, ministries, or ministerial-level agencies.

c) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for the act of not implementing the waste monitoring program to assess the effectiveness of treatment for each process and the entire treatment facility as prescribed or not reporting annual environmental protection work as prescribed for cases within the authority to approve environmental impact assessment reports of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, ministries, or ministerial-level agencies.

3. Violations concerning the implementation of environmental monitoring when projects go into operation shall be penalized as follows:

a) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to register environmental protection plans; failing to implement the surrounding environmental monitoring program or other environmental monitoring programs correctly and fully for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to prepare environmental impact assessment reports.

b) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work or not developing a regular environmental monitoring implementation plan to submit to competent state authorities as prescribed for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to register environmental protection plans; not implementing the surrounding environmental monitoring program or other environmental monitoring programs for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to prepare environmental impact assessment reports.

c) A fine of VND 25,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of failing to implement the waste monitoring program correctly and fully (regarding parameters, location, frequency of monitoring) for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to prepare environmental impact assessment reports.

d) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of not implementing waste monitoring or not reporting annual environmental protection work or not developing a regular environmental monitoring implementation plan to submit to competent state authorities as prescribed for cases that must be implemented and have scale and capacity equivalent to those required to prepare environmental impact assessment reports.

4. A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of collaborating with units that do not have a Certificate of Eligibility for Environmental Monitoring Services (in accordance with the scope and area specified on the certificate) to conduct environmental monitoring and supervision, except for public service units established by the provincial People's Committee or the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Public Security, and assigned to perform environmental monitoring and supervision tasks within the province or in the defense and security sectors.

13. Amend and supplement Article 13 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 7 as follows:

"7. For each environmental parameter exceeding technical standards from 1.1 to less than 1.5 times, an additional penalty of 10% of the highest selected monetary fine shall be imposed; 20% for each environmental parameter exceeding technical standards from 1.5 to less than three times; 30% for each environmental parameter exceeding technical standards from three to less than five times; 40% for each environmental parameter exceeding technical standards from five to less than ten times; 50% for each environmental parameter exceeding technical standards ten times or more. The total fine for each violation shall not exceed VND 1,000,000,000."

b) Amend Clause 8 as follows:

"a) Suspend operations causing environmental pollution of the facility for three to six months in cases of violations stipulated at points i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, and u of Clause 4, points h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, and s of Clause 5, and points g, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, and s of Clause 6 of this Article;

b) Suspend operations of the facility for six to twelve months in cases of violations stipulated at points ư, v, x, and y of Clause 4, points u, ư, v, x, and y of Clause 5, and points t, u, ư, v, x, and y of Clause 6 of this Article."

c) Replace point b and supplement point d of Clause 9 as follows:

"b) Order a review and improvement of wastewater treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed for violations stipulated in this Article;

d) Order the installation of automatic continuous wastewater monitoring equipment according to regulations within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision for repeated or multiple violations stipulated in this Article."

14. Amend and supplement Article 14 as follows:

a) Amend the name of Article 14 as follows:

"Article 14. Violations of provisions on discharging wastewater containing harmful environmental parameters or wastewater containing microbial parameters (Salmonella, Shigella, Vibrio cholerae) according to national technical standards for medical wastewater or discharging wastewater with a pH outside the standard range shall be punished as follows:"

b) Amend point k and abolish points l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, ư, v, x, y of Clause 6 as follows:

"k) A fine of VND 200,000,000 to VND 220,000,000 shall be imposed in cases where the volume of discharged wastewater exceeds 400 cubic meters/day (24 hours), except for cases involving criminal offenses against the environment."³c) Amend Points a and b of Clause 12 as follows:

land, wetland, water surface or more in areas not belonging to strictly protected zones of conservation areas; causing damage from 200 meters

c) Amend point a and point b of Clause 12 as follows:

"a) Suspend operations causing environmental pollution of the facility for three to six months in cases of violations stipulated at points h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, and s of Clause 4, points g, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, and s of Clause 5, points e, g, h, i, and k of Clause 6, points h, i, and k of Clause 7, points g, h, i, and k of Clause 8, and points e, g, h, i, and k of Clause 9 of this Article;

b) Suspend operations of the facility for six to twelve months in cases of violations stipulated at points u, ư, v, x, and y of Clause 4, points t, u, ư, v, x, and y of Clause 5, and Clause 10 of this Article."

"b) Order a review and improvement of wastewater treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed for violations stipulated in this Article;

d) Order the installation of automatic continuous wastewater monitoring equipment according to regulations within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision for repeated or multiple violations stipulated in this Article."

15. Replace point b and supplement point d of Clause 8 of Article 15 as follows:

a) Replace point b of Clause 8 as follows:

"b) Order a review and improvement of air emission treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed for violations stipulated in this Article;"

b) Supplement point d of Clause 8 as follows:

"d) Order the installation of automatic continuous air emission monitoring equipment according to regulations within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision for repeated or multiple violations stipulated in this Article."

16. Replace point b and supplement point d of Clause 9 of Article 16 as follows:

a) Replace point b of Clause 9 as follows:

"b) Order a review and improvement of air emission treatment facilities to meet technical requirements for environmental protection as prescribed for violations stipulated in this Article;"

b) Supplement point d of Clause 9 as follows:

"d) Order the installation of automatic continuous air emission monitoring equipment according to regulations within the time limit set by the authority issuing the administrative penalty decision for repeated or multiple violations stipulated in this Article."

17. Amend point đ of Clause 8 of Article 19 as follows:

"đ) Confiscate the means of violating administrative regulations for cases of violations stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article."

18. Amend and supplement Article 20 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1 and Clause 2 as follows:

"1. Acts of collecting and disposing of household waste in violation of environmental protection regulations shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 100,000 to VND 150,000 shall be imposed for the act of discarding cigarette butts, ends, and ashes in inappropriate places in residential buildings, commercial areas, service areas, or public places;

b) A fine of VND 150,000 to VND 250,000 shall be imposed for the act of personal hygiene (urination, defecation) in inappropriate places in residential buildings, commercial areas, service areas, or public places;

c) A fine of VND 500,000 to VND 1,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discarding household waste or dumping wastewater in inappropriate places in residential buildings, commercial areas, service areas, or public places, except for violations stipulated in point d of this clause;

d) A fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discarding household waste on sidewalks, streets, or into urban drainage systems or surface drainage systems; dumping wastewater inappropriately on sidewalks or streets.

2. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of controlling vehicles transporting raw materials, materials, goods without covering or allowing them to fall off into the environment while participating in traffic."

b) Supplement point a1 before point a of Clause 6 as follows:

"a1) A fine of VND 3,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of not having a handover record of household waste or general solid waste as prescribed;"

c) Amend points c, d, and đ of Clause 7 as follows:

"c) A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to implement one of the contents in the solid waste management plan approved by the competent authority, except for violations related to the implementation of environmental monitoring and supervision around the site."

d) A fine of VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents in the solid waste management plan approved by the competent authority, except in cases of violation of environmental monitoring and supervision requirements around the area;

đ) A fine of VND 140,000,000 to VND 160,000,000 for the act of not having a solid waste management plan approved by the competent authority as prescribed.

d) Amend points c, d, and g of Clause 8 as follows:

“c) A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 for the act of not implementing correctly one of the contents in the solid industrial waste management plan approved by the competent authority, except in cases of violation of environmental monitoring and supervision requirements around the area and the case stipulated in point đ of this clause;

d) A fine of VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of not implementing one of the contents in the solid industrial waste management plan approved by the competent authority, except in cases of violation of environmental monitoring and supervision requirements around the area and the case stipulated in point e of this clause;

g) A fine of VND 140,000,000 to VND 160,000,000 for the act of not having a solid industrial waste management plan approved by the competent authority as prescribed.

đ) Add Clause 9a before Clause 9 as follows:

“9a. For the act of collecting, transporting, and treating septic tank sludge and urban drainage sludge in violation of environmental protection regulations, the violator shall be subject to administrative penalties under the law on administrative sanctions in construction activities.

e) Amend Clause 9 as follows:

“9. The act of transferring, giving, selling solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products to entities without the required functions and capabilities for treatment; burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products in violation of environmental protection regulations, except in cases of criminal offenses against the environment; receiving solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products but failing to take measures for treatment or transfer them to entities with the required functions for treatment shall be punished as follows:

a) A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing less than 1,000 kg;

b) A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 1,000 kg to less than 2,000 kg;

c) A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 2,000 kg to less than 3,000 kg;

d) A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 3,000 kg to less than 4,000 kg;

đ) A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 4,000 kg to less than 5,000 kg;

e) A fine of VND 25,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 5,000 kg to less than 10,000 kg;

g) A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 35,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 10,000 kg to less than 20,000 kg;

h) A fine of VND 35,000,000 to VND 40,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 20,000 kg to less than 30,000 kg;

i) A fine of VND 40,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 30,000 kg to less than 40,000 kg;

k) A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 40,000 kg to less than 60,000 kg;

l) A fine of VND 100,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 60,000 kg to less than 80,000 kg;

m) A fine of VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 for the act of transferring, giving, selling, receiving, burying, landfilling, dumping, burning solid household waste, general industrial solid waste, special non-hazardous liquid waste products weighing from 80,000 kg to less than 100,000 kg;

n) A fine of VND 200,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the transfer, giving, selling, receiving, burying, filling, dumping, discharging, burning of household solid waste, general industrial solid waste, special general solid waste, non-hazardous liquid waste weighing 100,000 kg or more, except in cases of environmental crimes.

g) Amend Point b Clause 12 as follows:

“b) Confiscate the means of administrative violation for violations stipulated in Clauses 9a, 9, 10, and 11 of this Article.”

h) Amend Points a and b Clause 13 as follows:

“a) Order restoration of the original environmental condition, and transfer hazardous waste to a competent unit for treatment due to violations stipulated in Clauses 2, 9a, 9, 10, and 11 of this Article;

b) Order payment of costs for requesting expert appraisal, inspection, measurement, and environmental sample analysis in cases where there is a violation of exceeding technical standards for environmental protection or causing pollution according to current rates and prices for violations stipulated in Clause 10 of this Article;”

19. Amend and supplement Article 21 as follows:

a) Amend point a, Clause 1 as follows:

“a) Failure to prepare regular hazardous waste management reports as prescribed or failure to prepare other ad hoc reports as required by competent state agencies; failure to submit regular hazardous waste management reports or ad hoc reports to competent authorities as prescribed or submitting regular hazardous waste management reports not in accordance with regulations.”

b) Amend point b of Clause 2 as follows:

“b) Failure to collect and store hazardous waste as prescribed.”

c) Amend Point b Clause 5 as follows:

“b) Failure to transfer hazardous waste to a unit holding a permit for hazardous waste treatment suitable for collection and treatment as prescribed when not permitted to continue storage under legal provisions or at the request of competent state agencies;”

d) Amend the name of Clause 7 as follows:

“7. The act of transferring, giving, selling hazardous waste to organizations or individuals without a permit for hazardous waste treatment, except in special cases as prescribed by laws on hazardous waste management and cases of environmental crimes, shall be punished as follows:”

đ) Repeal Point a and supplement Point đ at Clause 12 as follows:

“đ) Order transfer of hazardous waste to a competent unit for treatment due to violations stipulated in Clause 7 of this Article.”

20. Amend and supplement Article 22 as follows:

a) Repeal Clause 1.

b) Repeal Points a, đ, e, g and amend Point c Clause 2 as follows:

“c) Failure to establish an online tracking file for the journey of transport vehicles using GPS and provide access rights to the licensing authority as prescribed;”

c) Repeal Point c Clause 3.

d) Amend Point d Clause 3 as follows:

“d) Failure to obtain approval from a competent state agency before transferring hazardous waste to other handlers.”

đ) Repeal Points c and đ Clause 4.

e) Amend Points b, c Clause 5 as follows:

“b) Collecting, transporting hazardous waste exceeding the quantity of one of the groups of hazardous waste specified in the hazardous waste treatment permit or in the trial operation approval document of the competent state agency;

c) Using transportation vehicles for hazardous waste not registered in the hazardous waste treatment permit or not included in the trial operation approval document of the competent state agency.”

g) Amend the name of Clause 6 as follows:

“6. The act of transferring, giving, selling hazardous waste to organizations or individuals without a permit for appropriate hazardous waste treatment, except in cases of environmental crimes, shall be punished as follows:”

h) Supplement Clause 10a before Clause 10 as follows:

“10a. For acts of burning hazardous waste, difficult-to-degrade organic substances that must be excluded according to the provisions of Appendix A of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants contrary to environmental protection regulations, except in cases of environmental crimes which shall be treated as acts of burying, dumping, discharging hazardous waste, difficult-to-degrade organic substances as provided in Clauses 8 and 9 of this Article.”

i) Amend Points b and d Clause 10 as follows:

“b) Suspend the collection and transportation activities of hazardous waste handlers from six months to twelve months for violations stipulated in Clauses 4, 5, and 6 of this Article;

d) Confiscate the means of administrative violation for violations stipulated in Clauses 8 and 9 of this Article.”

k) Supplement Point d Clause 11 as follows:

“d) Order transfer of hazardous waste to a competent unit for treatment due to violations stipulated in Clause 6 of this Article.”

21. Amend and supplement Article 23 as follows:

a) Amend the name of Article 23 as follows:

“Article 23. Violations of environmental protection regulations related to hazardous waste treatment activities and implementation of Hazardous Waste Treatment Permits”

a) Repeal Points g, h and amend Points a, b, e Clause 1 as follows:

“a) Failure to comply with any of the contents of the hazardous waste treatment permit: safe operation procedures for specialized equipment; pollution control and environmental protection plans; occupational safety and health plans; emergency prevention and response plans; annual training and drill plans;

b) Failure to implement the operational monitoring and effectiveness evaluation program for hazardous waste treatment as prescribed in the issued hazardous waste treatment permit;

e) Failure to report to the issuing authority changes in facilities, technology, key personnel, or programs and plans in the hazardous waste treatment permit compared to the time of issuance.”

c) Amend Point d Clause 2 as follows:

“d) Using storage facilities for hazardous waste not listed in the Hazardous Waste Treatment Permit, except in cases prescribed in Point c Clause 3 of this Article.”

d) Supplement Point e Clause 3 as follows:

“e) Failure to comply with the content of the trial operation approval document of the issuing authority.”

đ) Amend Point b Clause 4 as follows:

“b) Failure to obtain approval from a competent state agency before accepting hazardous waste from other hazardous waste handlers;”

e) Amend Point d Clause 5 as follows:

"d) Handling hazardous waste exceeding the treatment capacity specified for any of the groups of hazardous waste as set forth in the hazardous waste treatment permit or in the approval document for trial operation issued by the competent state authority;"

g) Amend the name of Clause 6 as follows:

“6. The act of transferring, giving, selling hazardous waste to organizations or individuals without a permit for appropriate hazardous waste treatment, except in cases of environmental crimes, shall be punished as follows:”

h) Add Clause 9a before Clause 9 as follows:

"9a. For acts of burning hazardous waste and persistent organic pollutants that need to be eliminated according to the provisions of Appendix A of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in violation of environmental protection regulations, except when such acts constitute environmental crimes, they shall be treated as acts of landfilling, dumping, or discharging hazardous waste and persistent organic pollutants as provided for in Clauses 7 and 8 of this Article;"

i) Amend Point a and Point d of Clause 9 as follows:

"a) Revoke the right to use the hazardous waste treatment permit or the approval document for trial operation for a period of from one month to three months in cases of violations of the provisions of Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article;"

"d) Confiscate the means of administrative violation in cases of violations of the provisions of Clauses 7 and 8 of this Article;"

k) Add Point a1 before Point a of Clause 10 as follows:

"a1) Compel the transfer of hazardous waste to a unit with the function of handling it in cases of violations of Point d of Clause 5 and Clause 6 of this Article;"

22. Amend and supplement Article 24 as follows:

a) Amend Point a, Point b, and Point c of Clause 4 as follows:

"a) Fine from VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 for the act of not implementing periodic reports to the competent state authorities regarding environmental protection work in dismantling used ships as prescribed;"

"b) Fine from VND 50,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 for the act of not applying the national standard TCVN ISO 14001 environmental management system for ship dismantling facilities;"

"c) Fine from VND 100,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 for the act of not having an environmental protection plan confirmed by the competent authority prior to the dismantling of each ship;"

b) Replace Point a of Clause 5 as follows:

"a) Confiscate the value of products after destruction in cases of violations of Clauses 1, 2, and 3 of this Article when the remedial measure of compulsory destruction of used machinery, equipment, transport vehicles, ships, raw materials, fuel, and materials is applied;"

c) Amend Point a of Clause 6 as follows:

"a) Compel re-exportation or destruction in cases where re-exportation is not possible for used machinery, equipment, transport vehicles, ships, raw materials, fuel, and materials in violation of Clauses 1, 2, 3, Points b, c, d, đ, e, and g of Clause 4 of this Article;"

d) Amend Point c of Clause 6 as follows:

"c) Compel the implementation of measures to mitigate environmental pollution and report the results of completed remediation within the time limit set by the authorized authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations of Clause 4 of this Article;"

23. Amend and supplement Article 25 as follows:

a) Amend and supplement Points b, c, and e of Clause 2 as follows:

"b) Fine from VND 130,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 for the act of not having storage areas for imported scrap materials meeting environmental protection conditions for import as raw materials for production or for testing as raw materials for production as prescribed; storing imported scrap materials in areas that do not meet environmental protection conditions for import as raw materials for production or for testing as raw materials for production as prescribed;"

"c) Fine from VND 150,000,000 to VND 170,000,000 for the act of not having recycling and reuse technology for scrap materials as prescribed; not treating accompanying impurities or not transferring impurities to units with the function of handling them as prescribed;"

"e) Fine from VND 230,000,000 to VND 250,000,000 for the act of importing scrap materials not matching the types specified in the confirmation document for environmental protection conditions for import as raw materials for production according to the technical standards on the environment, except in cases provided for in Clause 7 of this Article;"

b) Abolish Clause 3.

c) Amend Clause 7 as follows:

"7. Fine from VND 900,000,000 to VND 1,000,000,000 for the act of importing or transiting radioactive scrap materials; importing scrap materials not included in the list of scrap materials permitted for import, except in cases approved by the Prime Minister for importing scrap materials for testing as raw materials for production and other cases involving environmental crimes;"

d) Amend Point a and add Point d of Clause 8 as follows:

"a) Revoke the right to use the confirmation document for environmental protection conditions for import as raw materials for production for a period of from three months to six months in cases of violations of Clause 2 of this Article;"

"d) Confiscate the value of products after destruction in cases of violations of Point d, đ, and e of Clause 2, Clauses 4, 5, 6, and Clause 7 of this Article when the remedial measure of compulsory destruction of imported scrap materials is applied;"

đ) Amend Point a of Clause 9 as follows:

"a) Compel re-exportation or destruction in cases where re-exportation is not possible for violations of Point d, đ, and e of Clause 2, Clauses 4, 5, 6, and Clause 7 of this Article;"

e) Amend Point c of Clause 9 as follows:

"c) Compel the implementation of measures to mitigate environmental pollution and report the results of completed remediation within the time limit set by the authorized authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations of Clauses 2 of this Article;"

24. Abolish Point c of Clause 4 of Article 27.

25. Amend and supplement Article 29 as follows:

"1. Fine from VND 50,000,000 to VND 60,000,000 for the act of not conducting detailed investigations and assessments of contaminated areas as prescribed in cases of causing environmental pollution."

"2. Fine from VND 60,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 for the act of not preparing plans for treatment, improvement, and restoration of contaminated areas to be submitted to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment or provincial People's Committees for review, monitoring, and supervision as prescribed in cases of causing environmental pollution."

3. A fine of VND 80,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the failure to implement treatment, improvement, and restoration of the environment in areas affected by pollution as prescribed in cases causing environmental pollution.

4. Measures to remedy consequences:

The offender must take measures to remedy the environmental pollution situation and report the completion of the remediation results within the time limit set by the competent authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations stipulated in this Article.

26. Amend and supplement Article 32 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1 and add Clause 1a before Clause 1 as follows:

“1a. A fine of VND 30,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the failure to report on the implementation of environmental improvement and restoration work and the deposit for environmental improvement and restoration to the approving agency and the local environmental management agency as prescribed; failure to report to the approving agency for environmental improvement and restoration plans when there is a change in the environmental improvement and restoration plan as prescribed.”

1. A fine of VND 100,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for the failure to properly or fully implement any of the tasks specified in the environmental improvement and restoration plan as prescribed.

b) Amending Clause 3 as follows:

“3. A fine of VND 150,000,000 to VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the absence of an approved environmental improvement and restoration plan; failure to re-establish an environmental improvement and restoration plan as prescribed, except in cases where an environmental impact assessment report must be prepared.”

c) Repeal Point c and Point d of Clause 6.

27. Amend and supplement Article 33 as follows:

a) Add Clause 8a before Clause 8 as follows:

“8a. A fine of VND 70,000,000 to VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for the improper use of oil dispersants and biological products in response to oil spills as prescribed.”

b) Amend Point b of Clause 10 as follows:

“b. The offender must take measures to remedy the environmental pollution situation and report the completion of the remediation results, and compensate for damages caused by oil pollution according to the time limit set by the competent authority in the administrative penalty decision for violations stipulated in Clauses 8a, 8, and 9 of this Article.”

28. Amend and supplement Article 34 as follows:

a) Rename Article 34 as follows:

“Article 34. Violations of regulations on prevention, response, and remediation of environmental incidents and protection of the environment concerning chemicals, plant protection products, and veterinary drugs.”

b) Repeal Clause 1, Point a and Point b of Clause 4.

29. Amend and supplement Article 39 as follows:

a) Repeal Clause 2.

b) Amend and supplement Point g Clause 3 as follows:

“g. A fine of VND 250,000,000 to VND 400,000,000 shall be imposed for causing damage of 2,000 square meters or more of land, wetland, or water surface in areas not falling under the strictly protected zone of a nature reserve, or causing damage of 200 square meters or more of land, wetland, or water surface in the strictly protected zone of a nature reserve, except in cases involving environmental criminal offenses.”² land, wetland, water surface or more in strictly protected zones of conservation areas; except in cases of criminal offenses related to the environment.”² involving land, wetland, or surface water in the strictly protected zone of a nature reserve; except in cases of criminal offenses related to the environment.

c) Repeal Point b of Clause 5.

30. Amend and supplement Article 40 as follows:

a) Amending Clause 3 as follows:

“3. Unauthorized exploitation of timber and non-timber forest products listed in the Priority Protected Species List shall be subject to penalties as prescribed in Decree No. 35/2019/NĐ-CP dated April 25, 2019 of the Government on administrative penalties in the forestry sector. Unauthorized exploitation of wild plants listed in the Priority Protected Species List, excluding timber and non-timber forest products, shall be penalized as follows:

a. A fine of VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at less than VND 1,000,000;

b. A fine of VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 1,000,000 to less than VND 2,000,000;

c. A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 2,000,000 to less than VND 5,000,000;

d. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 5,000,000 to less than VND 10,000,000;

đ. A fine of VND 25,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 10,000,000 to less than VND 15,000,000;

e. A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 15,000,000 to less than VND 20,000,000;

g. A fine of VND 70,000,000 to VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for contraband valued at VND 20,000,000 to less than VND 30,000,000.”

b) Amend Clause 4 as follows:

“4. Unauthorized storage, transportation, processing, purchase, and sale of timber and non-timber forest products listed in the Priority Protected Species List shall be subject to penalties as prescribed in Decree No. 35/2019/NĐ-CP dated April 25, 2019 of the Government on administrative penalties in the forestry sector. Unauthorized storage, transportation, processing, purchase, and sale of wild plants listed in the Priority Protected Species List, excluding timber and non-timber forest products, shall be penalized as follows:

a. A fine of VND 5,000,000 to VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at less than VND 15,000,000;

b. A fine of VND 15,000,000 to VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 15,000,000 to less than VND 25,000,000;

c. A fine of VND 25,000,000 to VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 25,000,000 to less than VND 50,000,000;

d. A fine of VND 50,000,000 to VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 50,000,000 to less than VND 70,000,000;

đ. A fine of VND 70,000,000 to VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 70,000,000 to less than VND 90,000,000;

e. A fine of VND 90,000,000 to VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 90,000,000 to less than VND 120,000,000;

g. A fine of VND 120,000,000 to VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 120,000,000 to less than VND 150,000,000;

h. A fine of VND 150,000,000 to VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for wild plants valued at VND 150,000,000 to less than VND 180,000,000;

i) A fine of VND 180,000,000 to VND 210,000,000 for wild plant species with a value of VND 180,000,000 to less than VND 210,000,000;

k) A fine of VND 210,000,000 to VND 240,000,000 for wild plant species with a value of VND 210,000,000 to less than VND 240,000,000;

l) A fine of VND 240,000,000 to VND 270,000,000 for wild plant species with a value of VND 240,000,000 to less than VND 270,000,000;

m) A fine of VND 270,000,000 to VND 300,000,000 for wild plant species with a value of VND 270,000,000 to less than VND 300,000,000.”

31. Amend and supplement Article 44 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1, Clause 2, and Clause 3 as follows:

“1. Warning penalty for any of the following violations:

a) Failure to notify the competent state management agency about the transfer of genetic resources, derivatives of genetic resources to a third party for the same purpose of non-commercial research;

b) Failure to submit periodic reports or activity reports as prescribed during the period of access to genetic resources for non-commercial research as recorded in the Genetic Resource Access Permit.”

2. Fine from 5,000,000 VND to 10,000,000 VND for any of the following violations:

a) Failure to comply with the contents of the Genetic Resource Access Plan approved by the competent state authority;

b) Failure to notify the competent state authority about the transfer of genetic resources, derivatives of genetic resources to a third party for the same purpose of commercial research and product development;

c) Failure to share benefits derived from the use of genetic resources with relevant parties as prescribed;

d) Failure to submit periodic reports or activity reports as prescribed during the period of access to genetic resources for commercial research and product development as recorded in the Genetic Resource Access Permit;

đ) Exporting genetic resources out of Vietnam without complying with the contents specified in the Genetic Resource Access Permit or Decision allowing the export of genetic resources abroad for non-commercial study/research purposes;

e) Using the Genetic Resource Access Permit not in accordance with its content and purpose;

g) Continuing to collect samples and access genetic resources after the permit has expired without renewing the permit.

3. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for exchanging, transferring, providing genetic resources managed by an organization or individual in violation of the law; transferring genetic resources, derivatives of genetic resources with a change in the purpose of use as recorded in the Genetic Resource Access Permit.”

b) Amend Point a Clause 5 as follows:

“a) Suspension of the right to use the Genetic Resource Access Permit for six months to one year for violations stipulated at Points a, b, c, d, đ, e, and g Clause 2 of this Article;”

32. Amend and supplement Article 46 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1 as follows:

“1. A fine of VND 100,000 to VND 500,000 for failing to publicly disclose information on risk levels and risk management measures for the environment and biodiversity when importing, purchasing, selling, releasing genetically modified organisms, genetic material of genetically modified organisms.”

b) Supplement Clause 2a and 2b before Clause 2 as follows:

“2a. A fine of VND 10,000,000 to VND 20,000,000 for failing to comply with the contents of the Biosafety Certificate.

2b. A fine of VND 20,000,000 to VND 30,000,000 for concealing information about the risks of genetically modified organisms, genetic material, and products of genetically modified organisms that may have negative impacts on the environment and biodiversity.”

33. Amend and supplement Point đ Clause 2 Article 48 as follows:

“đ) Apply remedial measures for violations stipulated at Points a, b, c, đ, e, g, h, i, k, l, m, o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.”

34. Amend and supplement Article 49 as follows:

“1. People's Public Security officers performing official duties have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 500,000 VND.

2. The station chief, team leader of those specified in Clause 1 of this Article have the right to:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 1,500,000 VND.

3. Chiefs of public security stations at commune level, chiefs of public security posts, and chiefs of public security checkpoints at border gates and export processing zones have the authority to:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose fines up to 2,500,000 VND;

c) Seize administrative violation objects and means up to VND 2,500,000 in value;

d) Apply remedial measures for violations stipulated at Points a, c, and đ Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

4. Heads of public security departments at the district level; Heads of provincial public security departments including the Head of the Environmental Police Department and the Head of the Immigration Management Department performing official duties have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Suspend the use of environmental permits for a period within their jurisdiction or suspend operations for a period within their jurisdiction;

d) Seize administrative violation objects and means up to VND 25,000,000 in value;

đ) Apply remedial measures for violations stipulated at Points a, c, đ, h, i, k, l, m, o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

5. The Director of the Provincial Police Department has the authority to:

a) To issue warnings;

b) To impose fines up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Suspend the use of environmental permits for a period or suspend operations for a period;

d) Seize administrative violation objects and means up to VND 50,000,000 in value;

đ) Apply remedial measures for violations stipulated at Points a, c, đ, h, i, k, l, m, o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

6. Heads of the Environmental Police Bureau, Heads of the Immigration Management Bureau performing official duties have the right:

a) To issue warnings;

b) Impose a fine up to 1,000,000,000 VND;

c) Suspend the use of environmental permits for a period or suspend operations for a period;

d) Confiscate contraband and means of administrative violation;

đ) Apply remedial measures for violations stipulated at Points a, c, đ, h, i, k, l, m, o, p, q, r, s, and t Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.”

35. Amend and supplement Article 52 as follows:

a) Amend point a, Clause 1 as follows:

"a) Forest rangers have the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations related to forest ranger activities as stipulated in Articles 39, 40, 41, 42, Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 43, Article 44, Article 45, Clauses 1, Clause 2a, Clause 2b, Clause 2, Point a Clause 3, Point a Clause 4 of Article 46, and Article 47 of this Decree. Agricultural inspectors and rural development inspectors have the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations related to agricultural and rural development activities as stipulated in Clause 5 of Article 12, Clause 3 of Article 27, Clause 3 of Article 34, Articles 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, and 47 of this Decree. Fisheries specialized inspectors have the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations related to fisheries activities as stipulated in Clause 5 of Article 12, Clause 3 of Article 27, Articles 39, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, and 47 of this Decree;"

b) Amend Point d and Point đ of Clause 1 as follows:

^“d) Border Guard has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection as stipulated in Articles 20, 21, 22, 23, 27, 33, 34, 39, 40, 41, 42; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 43; Clauses 1, Clause 2a, Clause 2b, Clause 2, Point a Clause 3, Point a Clause 4 of Article 46, and Article 47 of this Decree;

đ) Maritime Police has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection occurring in the territorial waters, exclusive economic zone, and contiguous zone of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam as stipulated in Articles 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 20; Clauses 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Article 21; Clauses 6, 7, 8, and 9 of Article 22; Articles 27, 33, 34, 39, 40, 41, 42; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 43; Article 44, Article 45; Clauses 1, Clause 2a, Clause 2b, Clause 2, Point a Clause 3, Point a Clause 4 of Article 46, and Article 47 of this Decree;"

c) Amend Point e of Clause 1 as follows:

“e) Customs has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection related to customs activities as stipulated in Clauses 1, 2, 3 of Article 24; Clauses 4, 5, 6, 7 of Article 25; Articles 26, 40, 43, 46, and 47 of this Decree;"

d) Amend Point h of Clause 1 as follows:

“h) People's Public Security has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction, field, and scope of management for acts of administrative violations stipulated in Points c, d, đ, e, g, i, k, and l of Clause 1 of Article 9; Clause 1 of Article 10; Clause 4 of Article 11; Points c and d of Clause 2, Points c, d, đ, and e of Clause 3, Points g, h, i, and k of Clause 4, Points a, b, and c of Clause 5, Points b and c of Clause 6, Points a, b, c, d, and đ of Clause 7 of Article 12; Points d and đ of Clause 1, Points b and c of Clause 2, Clauses 3, 4 of Article 13a; Articles 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 9a, 9, 10, and 11 of Article 20; Point b of Clause 2, Clauses 7, 8, 9, and 10 of Article 21; Clauses 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10a of Article 22; Clauses 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9a of Article 23; Clauses 2 and 3, Points đ, e, and g of Clause 4 of Article 24; Clauses 5, 6, and 7 of Article 25; Point đ of Clause 3, Clauses 4, 5, and 6 of Article 27; Clauses 1, 2, 3, and 5 of Article 31; Point c of Clause 4, Point b of Clause 5, Point b of Clause 6, and Clause 8 of Article 33; Points b and đ of Clause 1, Point d of Clause 3 of Article 34; Clauses 2, 3, and 4 of Article 40; Article 41; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 43, Article 47, and the act of constructing, installing equipment, pipelines, or other discharge routes to release untreated waste into the environment as stipulated in Point c of Clause 1, Point c of Clause 2, Point c of Clause 3, Point c of Clause 4 of Article 8, Point h of Clause 2 of Article 9, Point c of Clause 2 of Article 10, Point b of Clause 1, Point b of Clause 2, Point b of Clause 3, Point b of Clause 5 of Article 11 of this Decree;"

đ) Amend Point i and Point k of Clause 1 as follows:

“i) Chairperson of the People's Committee at the commune level has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction and scope of management for acts of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection as stipulated in Point a of Clause 1, Point a of Clause 2 of Article 11; Clauses 1, 2, 6, 9 of Article 20; Articles 39, 40, 41, 42; Clauses 1, 2 of Article 43; Clauses 1, 2 of Article 45, and Clause 1 of Article 46 of this Decree;

k) Chairperson of the People's Committee at the district level has the authority to impose administrative penalties within their jurisdiction and scope of management for acts of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection as stipulated in Articles 8, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 27, 28, 30, 36, 39, 40, 41, 42; Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Article 43, Article 44, Article 45, Clauses 1, Clause 2a, Clause 2b, Clause 2, Point a Clause 3 of Article 46, and Article 47 of this Decree;"

36. Supplement Clause 4 of Article 55 as follows:

"4. For acts of administrative violations subject to remedial measures requiring the establishment, re-establishment of environmental impact assessment reports, registration of environmental protection plans, submission of applications for confirmation of completion of environmental protection works, submission of applications for hazardous waste treatment permits, submission of applications for confirmation of compliance with environmental protection conditions for importing scrap materials for production, or requiring improvement and upgrading of environmental protection works to meet technical requirements and reissuance of certificates confirming completion of such works, the inspection, audit, and confirmation procedures for the completion of administrative violation consequences shall be integrated into the process of reviewing and approving environmental impact assessment reports, confirming environmental protection plans, issuing hazardous waste treatment permits, issuing certificates of compliance with environmental protection conditions for importing scrap materials for production, issuing and reissuing certificates of completion of environmental protection works by competent state authorities. The results of these administrative procedures shall replace the conclusions of inspections and audits on the completion of environmental protection violation consequences for individuals and organizations as stipulated herein."

37. Amend Clause 1 and supplement Clause 4 of Article 56 as follows:

a) Amend Clause 1 of Article 56 as follows:

“1. Administrative violation records in the field of environmental protection shall be established in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations.”

b) Supplement Clause 4 of Article 56 as follows:

“4. The authorized authority to impose administrative penalties may apply the administrative penalty procedure without establishing a record in cases of warning penalties under Articles 8, 13a, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 28, 30, 31, 39, 40, 42, 43, 44, and 45, or monetary penalties up to VND 250,000 for individuals and VND 500,000 for organizations for violations specified in points a and b of Clause 1 of Article 20 of this Decree, except in cases where administrative violations are discovered through the use of technical equipment or investigative methods.”

Article 2. Implementation clause

This Decree takes effect from July 10, 2021.

Article 3. Transitional Provisions

1. For administrative violations concerning environmental protection occurring before the effective date of this Decree but discovered or considered for penalty decisions after its effective date, if this Decree does not provide for legal liability or provides for lighter legal liability, then the provisions of this Decree shall apply.

2. For administrative penalty decisions issued before the effective date of this Decree, if individuals or organizations subject to administrative penalties still have objections, the provisions of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations shall apply.

Article 4. Responsibilities for Implementation

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of agencies under the Government, Chairpersons of People's Committees at all levels, and related organizations and individuals are responsible for implementing this Decree./.