Circular No. 73/2003/TT-BNN guiding the implementation of domestic plant quarantine work

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for the Implementation of Domestic Plant Quarantine Work

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To implement the Plant Protection and Quarantine Law No. 36/2001/PL-UBTVQH10 promulgated by the President on August 8, 2001, and the Plant Quarantine Regulations issued together with Decree No. 58/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002 of the Government, to ensure effective and consistent domestic plant quarantine work, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development hereby provides guidelines for the implementation of domestic plant quarantine work at provinces and centrally governed cities throughout the country as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS:

Domestic plant quarantine work is an inseparable component of import-export plant quarantine work aimed at managing harmful organisms within the scope of plant quarantine objects in Vietnam and beneficial organisms; identifying and proposing measures to address outbreaks of plant quarantine objects that appear locally.

II. SCOPE AND APPLICABLE SUBJECTS:

1. Scope: This Circular applies to domestic plant quarantine activities nationwide.

2. Applicable subjects: Organizations and individuals, both domestic and foreign, operating in Vietnam and involved in domestic plant quarantine work must comply with the contents stipulated in this Circular.

III. CONTENTS OF DOMESTIC PLANT QUARANTINE WORK

Domestic plant quarantine work is carried out by state agencies authorized for plant protection and quarantine, namely the Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally governed cities, according to the following contents:

1. Management of harmful organisms concerning plant resources used as seeds and beneficial organisms imported for use outside fields, in warehouses, nurseries, and seed production facilities at research and commercial seed establishments:

a. For crop seeds and beneficial organisms imported: Post-import monitoring is conducted in accordance with Decision No. 89/2002/QĐ-BNN dated October 8, 2002, issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development regarding plant quarantine regulations for imported crop seeds and beneficial organisms.

b. For beneficial organisms and plant resources imported for use as seeds or potentially used as seeds transported from other places to localities, the local plant quarantine agency shall perform the following tasks:

- Conducting quarantine inspections on the owners of the transported beneficial organisms and plant resources intended for use as seeds, including:

+ Plant quarantine certificates for crop seeds and beneficial organisms issued by competent Vietnamese authorities, such as Import Plant Seed Quarantine Permits; Import Plant Quarantine Certificates, Transit Certificates, and Inland Transport Certificates.

+ If the required certificates are not present during inspection, plant quarantine officers shall prepare violation records and transfer them to specialized plant protection and quarantine inspectors for handling. Subsequently, plant quarantine procedures will be carried out on the non-compliant consignment.

- Monitoring planting sites as reported by border plant quarantine agencies.

- Regularly inspecting and monitoring the development of beneficial organisms and harmful organisms on imported crop seeds at localities.

- Upon discovering harmful organisms within the scope of Vietnamese plant quarantine objects on imported crop seeds at localities and abnormal signs in imported beneficial organisms, the Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally governed cities must report to the Regional Plant Quarantine Departments and the Plant Protection Department for timely measures. Simultaneously, they shall directly guide and supervise the owners of the objects in implementing control measures.

2. Management of harmful organisms concerning imported agricultural and forestry products and their storage in warehouses:

a. When imported agricultural and forestry products arrive at localities, the local plant quarantine agency shall check the Import Plant Quarantine Certificates, Transit Certificates, and Inland Transport Certificates of the consignment. If these certificates are missing, plant quarantine officers shall prepare violation records and transfer them to specialized plant protection and quarantine inspectors for handling; subsequently, plant quarantine procedures will be carried out on the non-compliant consignment.

b. Regularly investigating, monitoring, and supervising the situation of harmful organisms on imported agricultural and forestry products stored in warehouses and at production, processing, and manufacturing facilities to detect harmful organisms within the scope of Vietnamese plant quarantine objects.

c. Upon detecting harmful organisms within the scope of Vietnamese plant quarantine objects and other unknown harmful organisms, the Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally governed cities must report to the Regional Plant Quarantine Departments, the Plant Protection Department, and relevant authorities for prompt handling.

3. Management of imported plant quarantine objects that have been treated at border checkpoints:

Continuously monitoring and closely tracking those imported plant quarantine objects when they are brought into use at localities according to notifications from border plant quarantine agencies.

4. Management of outbreaks of harmful organisms within the scope of Vietnamese plant quarantine objects:

a. When outbreaks of harmful organisms within the scope of plant quarantine objects occur at localities, the Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally governed cities must promptly inform higher-level plant quarantine agencies, then decide on measures and guide and supervise the owners of the objects in implementing control measures.

b. In areas where multiple outbreaks occur, posing a risk of spreading into epidemic zones, the Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally governed cities must immediately report to competent authorities to declare an epidemic in accordance with Articles 11 and 12 of the Plant Protection and Quarantine Law.

5. Management of epidemic zones within the scope of plant quarantine objects:

a. The Plant Protection Departments of provinces and centrally-administered cities must promptly determine the boundaries of the infected area, report to the competent authority for disease declaration; specify domestic plant quarantine locations, implement plant quarantine procedures for objects subject to plant quarantine transported from infected areas to non-infected areas, and notify the Plant Protection Departments in adjacent regions.

b. Inspect and supervise consignments of agricultural and forestry products originating from or passing through infected areas to localities. In cases where these consignments have not been quarantined and issued with a Plant Quarantine Certificate for import, transit, and domestic transport, the Plant Protection Department of the province or centrally-administered city shall proceed to carry out the plant quarantine procedures as prescribed.

6. Management and implementation of fumigation disinfection at the local level:

Implement according to the state management regulations on fumigation disinfection of objects subject to plant quarantine issued together with Decision No. 84/2002/QĐ-BNN dated September 24, 2002 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

7. Quarantine of objects subject to plant quarantine for export, import, and transit:

Only carried out when authorized in writing by the Central Plant Quarantine Department.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION.

1. The Director of the Plant Protection Department is responsible for assisting the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development in directing, guiding, and inspecting the Provincial Plant Protection Departments, units under the Department, organizations, and individuals related to organizing and implementing domestic plant quarantine work in accordance with the contents stipulated in this Circular.

2. The Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the province or centrally-administered city within their scope and authority is responsible for assisting the provincial People's Committee in inspecting, supervising, and guiding the implementation of the provisions of this Circular.

3. Provincial Plant Protection Departments:

a. Depending on the actual situation of each province or city, the Director of the Provincial Plant Protection Department may propose to the People's Committee of the province or the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to establish a station or office under the Department for plant quarantine purposes. The station or office for plant quarantine has the responsibility to assist the Director in organizing and managing the implementation of domestic plant quarantine work.

b. Plant quarantine officers must wear uniforms, insignia, badges, and plant quarantine cards while performing their duties. The issuance and usage regulations for plant quarantine officers are issued together with Decision No. 192/BNN dated March 31, 1994 of the Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), Circular No. 92 TT/LB jointly issued by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on December 13, 1995 guiding the implementation of uniform regulations for plant quarantine officers, animal quarantine officers, specialized plant protection inspectors, and veterinary inspectors.

c. The Provincial Plant Protection Departments may only collect fees and charges for plant quarantine in the following situations:

- When processing plant quarantine procedures for consignments that have not completed plant quarantine procedures at the border gate (as stipulated in Section b-1, Section a-2 Part III of this Circular);

- When transporting consignments from infected areas to other localities without completing plant quarantine procedures at the place of origin;

- When implementing treatment of objects;

- When monitoring the treatment of diseased objects.

The collection and use of plant quarantine fees and charges shall be implemented in accordance with current regulations.

4. Organizations and individuals who violate domestic plant quarantine regulations shall be subject to administrative penalties according to the level of violation as prescribed in Decree No. 26/2003/NĐ-CP dated March 19, 2003 of the Government on administrative penalties for violations in the field of plant protection and plant quarantine.

V. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

- This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

- This Circular replaces Circular No. 63/1999/TT-BNN-BVTV dated April 9, 1999 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

- Any difficulties encountered during implementation should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.