Decree No. 65/2017/NĐ-CP on special policies regarding seeds, capital, and technology in the development of medicinal plant cultivation and harvesting

DECREE

Special Policy on Seed, Capital, and Technology for Developing and Exploiting Medicinal Plants

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Pursuant to the Law on the Organization of the Government dated June 19, 2015;

At the request of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural DevelopmentFrom 100 million VND to less than 300 million VNDAt the proposal of the Director of the Plant Protection Department, the General Director of the Fisheries General Department, and the Director of the Livestock Production Department;

The Government promulgates this Decree on special policies regarding seed, capital, and technology for developing and exploiting medicinal plants.No.ng, vNo.n and technology in developing and exploiting medicinal plants.Number of employees and workers directly involved in the joint venture and association activities of the organization over the last 03 yearsredients.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

1. This Decree stipulates certain special policies on seed, capital, and technology for developing and exploiting medicinal plants derived from plant and animal sources.

2. This Decree applies to organizations and individuals involved in developing and exploiting medicinal plants within the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

In this Decree, the following terms are understood as follows:

1. Medicinal plant seed includes crop seeds and livestock breeds developed from parts of plants or animals for the production of medicinal plants.

2. Original medicinal plant seed for perennial plants refers to mother plants and mother plant gardens, superior plants (mother plants); for annual plants, it refers to seeds and rootstocks propagated and domesticated from nature or production. Original medicinal livestock seed refers to grandparent, great-grandparent, parent, and nucleus stock.

3. Commercial medicinal plant seed is seed used for cultivation to produce medicinal products without being used for propagation.

4. Local medicinal plant seed is seed formed through natural evolution and existing and developing in local areas.

Article 3. Principles of Application of Policies

1. Direct support shall be provided to organizations and individuals with projects for cultivating and exploiting medicinal plants, ensuring transparency, fairness, and correct target groups. Recipients of special policy benefits must use funds for their intended purposes.

2. At the time when organizations and individuals with medicinal plant investment projects meet the conditions to enjoy policies with different levels of incentives and support contents, they may choose to apply the highest level of incentives and support for investment.

3. Allocation of support funds shall be made according to the provisions of the policy and the budget's balancing capacity.

Chapter II

SPECIAL POLICY

Article 4. Priority Recognition of Medicinal Plant Seeds

1. Local medicinal plant seeds may be considered for inclusion in the List of Permitted Medicinal Plant Seeds for Production and Trade in Vietnam without having to undergo trial and recognition as new varieties under the Plant Variety Law 2004, Animal Breeding Law 2004, and related guiding documents.

2. New medicinal plant seeds researched and developed by organizations and individuals: For crop seeds, they may be considered for special recognition under the Plant Variety Law 2004 and related guiding documents; for livestock seeds, they shall be recognized as new varieties under the Animal Breeding Law 2004 and related guiding documents.

Article 5. Support for Producing Medicinal Plant Seeds

1. One-time support at 50% of the total investment cost for infrastructure construction (land improvement, irrigation, internal farm roads, net houses, greenhouses, livestock sheds, storage facilities, environmental treatment) for centralized seed production bases with a scale of 2 hectares or more for medicinal plants, 0.5 hectares or more for medicinal livestock, not exceeding 2 billion VND per base. For high-tech medicinal seed production bases meeting criteria set by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the maximum support amount does not exceed 3 billion VND per base.

2. One-time support at 60% of the cost of producing original seeds and 30% of the cost of producing commercial seeds according to economic and technical norms established by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development. In cases where high-tech is applied in production, the corresponding support rates are 80% and 50%.

3. Full support for training costs for those directly involved in seed production according to the content and cost standards specified in Government Decree No. 02/2010/NĐ-CP dated January 8, 2010, on agricultural extension and related guiding documents.

Article 6. Support for the application of technology in the cultivation and harvesting of medicinal herbs in accordance with Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP)

1. Building models for applying technology in the cultivation and harvesting of medicinal herbs in accordance with GACP: Supporting 100% of seed costs, fertilizer costs, and plant protection chemical costs for cultivation models; supporting 100% of seed costs, feed costs, and veterinary drug costs for livestock breeding models, according to economic and technical norms issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. Supporting once 100% of the cost for certification of cultivation and harvesting of medicinal herbs in accordance with GACP.

3. Supporting 100% of the cost for technical training for individuals directly involved in cultivation and harvesting in accordance with the content and cost standards specified in Government Decree No. 02/2010/ND-CP dated January 8, 2010 on agricultural extension and related guiding documents.

Article 7. Support for concentrated cultivation of medicinal herbs

Supporting once 15 million dong per 1 hectare for infrastructure construction and purchasing herb seeds for concentrated medicinal herb planting projects with a scale of 5 hectares or more, or for concentrated livestock breeding projects with a scale of 2 hectares or more.

Article 8. Preferential policies regarding land

Organizations and individuals with projects for researching, breeding, and cultivating medicinal herbs shall enjoy preferential policies regarding land as follows:

1. In cases where the State leases land or water surfaces for cultivation and construction of factories and warehouses for storing medicinal herbs, they shall be exempted or granted reductions in land and water surface rental fees in accordance with laws on land.

The annual land rental price is calculated as follows: The annual land rental price equals the percentage rate multiplied by the land price for calculating rental fees. In this calculation:

The percentage rate for calculating the land rental price is 0.5%.

The land price for calculating rental fees equals the land price according to the corresponding use purpose in the Land Price Table multiplied by the land price adjustment coefficient.

In cases where the leased land area spans multiple regions with different land prices and adjustment coefficients, the land price for calculating rental fees shall be determined based on the weighted average price for the entire leased area.

2. Support for land consolidation and concentration

a) In cases where land or water surfaces are leased from households or individuals, the State shall provide support up to a maximum of 40% of the land and water surface rental fees for the first five years from the date the project commences operations; the level of support shall be calculated according to the land rental price stipulated in Clause 1 of Article 8 of this Decree.

b) In cases where the right to use agricultural land is transferred from households or individuals, the fee for issuing certificates of land use rights shall be waived or reduced in accordance with the law.

Article 9. Conditions for receiving investment support

Projects benefiting from special policies stipulated in Articles 5, 6, 7, and 8 of this Decree must meet the following conditions:

1. The medicinal herb seeds must be included in the list of permitted medicinal herb seeds for production and trade in Vietnam or recognized as new varieties by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

2. Projects for the cultivation of medicinal herbs by non-public organizations and individuals as stipulated in Article 7 of this Decree must be approved for investment by the Provincial People's Committee. Other cases must have projects approved by competent authorities.

3. The cultivation areas for medicinal herbs must be within the scope of planning and development plans that have been approved by competent state agencies, or must be approved by the Provincial People's Committee if there are no approved plans.

4. The investor must commit to investing their own capital to implement the approved project components (excluding the portion supported by the state budget). In cases where bank loans are used to contribute to the project, a loan agreement or proof document must be provided.

Chapter III

SOURCES OF FUNDS AND SUPPORT MECHANISMS

Article 10. Sources of Capital

1. State budget support includes the central budget and local budgets.

2. State credit capital for investment and development.

3. Self-owned capital, counterpart capital of organizations and individuals, and other sources of capital as prescribed by law.

Article 11. Support Mechanism

1. State Budget

a) The central budget supports the contents stipulated in Articles 5, 6, 7, and 8 of this Decree for projects implemented by central agencies; projects carried out in economically and socially disadvantaged areas; targeted support to local budgets for regions that cannot balance their budgets.

b) Local budgets support the contents stipulated in Articles 5, 6, 7, and 8 of this Decree for projects implemented by organizations and individuals at the local level, except for regions supported under point a of Clause 1 of this Article.

2. Projects for developing cultivation and exploitation of medicinal herbs listed in the catalog of projects borrowing state investment credit may borrow state investment credit according to current regulations.

Article 12. Documents, Procedures, and Formalities

a) Documents include a request letter; a technical form describing the origin, place of origin, characteristics of the variety, history of exploitation and cultivation, cultivation area and scale, production process (according to Model No. 01 attached to this Decree).

b) Procedures and formalities

The People's Committee of the province sends a request letter to supplement medicinal herb varieties into the list of permitted medicinal herb varieties for production and business in Vietnam to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development assigns subordinate units to receive the documents. Within thirty days from the date of receiving valid documents, the unit receiving the documents establishes a Scientific Council for review and submits to the Minister for a decision to supplement medicinal herb varieties into the list of permitted medicinal herb varieties for production and business in Vietnam. The procedures and regulations for establishing and operating the Scientific Council comply with current regulations on recognizing crop and livestock varieties.

In case the documents do not meet the conditions, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development informs the entity submitting the documents to complete them.

2. Organizations and individuals eligible for investment support as prescribed in Articles 5 and 6 of this Decree implement investment support according to the project schedule. Procedures and formalities for proposing, reviewing, and approving projects follow the provisions of the Public Investment Law, the State Budget Law, and guiding documents.

3. Organizations and individuals eligible for post-investment support as prescribed in Article 7 of this Decree implement post-investment support. Documents, procedures, and formalities are as follows:

a) Documents include: A support request letter from the organization or individual (according to Model No. 02 attached to this Decree). An investment project report.

b) Procedures and formalities

Before implementing the project, the organization or individual sends three sets of documents to the Provincial Department of Planning and Investment where they have registered for production.

Within ten working days, the Provincial Department of Planning and Investment issues a review document (according to Model No. 03 attached to this Decree) sent to the People's Committee of the province for consideration and decision on committing to provide capital support to the organization or individual (according to Model No. 04 attached to this Decree). In cases using the central budget, the People's Committee of the province sends all documents along with a project implementation request letter (according to Model No. 05 attached to this Decree) to the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Within twenty working days, the Ministry of Planning and Investment seeks opinions from the Ministry of Finance, based on the ability to balance funds, and considers issuing a commitment to provide capital support to the organization or individual (according to Model No. 06 attached to this Decree) sent to the People's Committee of the province and the requesting organizations and individuals.

After completing the first year's infrastructure investment phase and medicinal herb cultivation activities according to the plan, the organization or individual requests the People's Committee of the province to inspect and accept the results.

Within ten working days, the People's Committee of the province organizes the inspection of the project. The inspection record volume (according to Model No. 07 attached to this Decree) serves as the basis for disbursing support capital to the organization or individual.

Support receipt procedure: After obtaining the inspection record, the organization or individual sends a disbursement support request letter (according to Model No. 08 attached to this Decree), the inspection record, and the capital support decision from the competent authority to the provincial Treasury to be disbursed.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 13. Responsibilities of central ministries and sectors

To take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and relevant ministries and sectors to urge, inspect, supervise, and resolve issues arising during the implementation of this Decree.

a) Receive and review supplementary files and recognize new medicinal plant varieties and supplement medicinal plant varieties into the list of medicinal plant varieties permitted for production and trade in Vietnam;

b) Approve scientific tasks and projects supported by the central budget managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development;

c) Compile the budget estimate for the annual state budget of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and submit it to the competent authority for approval;

d) Issue economic and technical standards for seed breeding; develop models applying cultivation and harvesting technology in accordance with Good Agricultural Practices for Medicinal Plants.

2. The Ministry of Health

a) Lead in drafting and promulgating national technical regulations on the quality of crop and livestock varieties used as medicinal plants;

b) Approve scientific tasks and projects supported by the central budget managed by the Ministry of Health;

c) Compile the budget estimate for the annual state budget of the Ministry of Health and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

3. The Ministry of Science and Technology

a) Prioritize the inclusion of scientific and technological tasks related to medicinal plant varieties, cultivation, and harvesting;

b) Strengthen investment in developing scientific and technological capacity for organizations to promote medicinal plants;

c) Approve scientific tasks and projects supported by the central budget managed by the Ministry of Science and Technology;

d) Compile the budget estimate for the annual state budget of the Ministry of Science and Technology and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

4. The Ministry of Education and Training

a) Approve scientific tasks and projects supported by the central budget managed by the Ministry of Education and Training;

b) Compile the budget estimate for the annual state budget of the Ministry of Education and Training and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

5. The Ministry of Planning and Investment

a) Allocate capital investment according to its assigned functions in line with the current state budget classification;

b) Commit to supporting organizations and individuals engaged in concentrated medicinal plant cultivation in accordance with the provisions of point b, Clause 3, Article 12 of this Decree.

6. The Ministry of Finance Allocate capital for public services according to its assigned functions and tasks in line with the current state budget classification.

7. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment

a) Coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Health to manage the importation of medicinal plant genetic resources in accordance with the relevant regulations;

b) Approve scientific tasks and projects supported by the central budget managed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment;

c) Compile the budget estimate for the annual state budget of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

Article 14. Responsibilities of the Provincial People's Committees

1. Prepare and submit supplementary files to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development for reviewing the inclusion of local medicinal plant varieties into the list of medicinal plant varieties permitted for production and trade in Vietnam.

2. Develop and approve plans for regions producing medicinal plant varieties and concentrated medicinal plant cultivation areas.

3. Balance local government budget sources to ensure the implementation of investment support as prescribed in this Decree.

4. Approve scientific tasks and investment projects from the local budget.

5. Submit to the Provincial People's Council for decision on specific land use fee rates in accordance with point b, Clause 2, Article 8 of this Decree.

Article 15. Effective Date

1. This Decree takes effect from July 5, 2017.

2. This Decree replaces the content on supporting the planting of medicinal plants prescribed in Article 12 of Decree No. 210/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 19, 2013 of the Government on encouraging enterprises to invest in agriculture and rural areas.

3. Enterprises with approved medicinal plant planting projects that meet the conditions for support under this Decree and have not yet received support under Decree No. 210/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 19, 2013 shall enjoy support under this Decree. In cases where they have already been receiving support under the provisions of Decree No. 210/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 19, 2013, they shall continue to enjoy support under Decree No. 210/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 19, 2013.

4. The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of governmental agencies, Chairpersons of People's Councils, Chairpersons of People's Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities, and related agencies are responsible for implementing this Decree.