The Procurement Law of 2023, enacted by the National Assembly on June 23, 2023, will be effective from January 1, 2024 (“Procurement Law 2023“).

The Procurement Law 2023 supplements and details certain prohibited behaviors in the procurement activities.

Below, let’s delve into the details:

• Collusion includes the following behaviors:

• Colluding, agreeing, or coercing one or more parties to prepare bidding documents or withdraw bidding documents to favor a specific winning bidder.
• Colluding or agreeing to refuse the supply of goods or services, not signing subcontracting contracts, or engaging in other forms of agreements to limit competition for a particular winning bidder.
• Contractors or investors with capacity and experience who participate in the tender and meet the requirements of the bidding documents but deliberately do not provide documents to prove their capacity and experience when requested by the inviting party to clarify the bidding documents or when asked to compare documents to facilitate a specific winning bidder.

• Obstruction includes the following behaviors:

• Destroying, deceiving, altering, concealing evidence, or reporting false facts; threatening or suggesting to any party to prevent the clarification of behaviors related to bribery, fraud, or collusion with authorities responsible for monitoring, inspecting, auditing, or conducting procurement activities.
• Obstructing authorities with jurisdiction to monitor, inspect, audit, or investigate procurement activities.
• Intentionally filing complaints, accusations, or false recommendations to obstruct procurement activities.
• Violating laws on safety, cybersecurity to intervene and obstruct online procurement activities.

This news bulletin is intended solely for informing about newly enacted legal regulations and is not intended for specific cases or advisory purposes.

We hope this information is beneficial to our valued readers.

Bizlawyer is honored to accompany our esteemed readers!

Circular No. 61/2023/TT-BTC, issued by the Ministry of Finance on September 28, 2023, stipulates the latest schedule of fees for security transaction registration (“Circular 61”).

Let’s delve into the details together with Bizlawyer!

1. Security Transaction Registration Fees:

1. Initial registration of security measures with real estate (excluding securities registered centrally at the Vietnam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation, aircraft), ships, perennial trees, temporary constructions: 80,000 VND/document;
2. Registration of changes in registered security measure details: 60,000 VND/document;
3. Registration of notices regarding the handling of secured assets, registration of changes in notices regarding the handling of secured assets: 30,000 VND/document;
4. Removal of security measure registrations, removal of notices regarding the handling of secured assets: 20,000 VND/document;
5. Issuance of certified copies of registration content: 20,000 VND/case;

1. Information Provision Fees for Security Transactions involving Real Estate (excluding securities registered centrally at the Vietnam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation, aircraft), ships, perennial trees, temporary constructions: 30,000 VND/document;
2. Fees for Issuing User IDs for the Database on Security Transactions
   1. Issuing user IDs for one-time self-search

• Data retrieval based on basic criteria: 10,000 VND/time;
• Data retrieval based on basic and advanced criteria and requested by the registration agency to extract data: 2,000 VND/transaction;

1. Issuing user IDs for regular self-search

• Data retrieval based on basic criteria: 300,000 VND/customer/year for requests submitted before July 1 each year and 150,000 VND/customer/year for requests submitted from July 1 each year;
• Data retrieval based on basic and advanced criteria and requested by the registration agency to extract data: 2,000 VND/transaction.

Circular 61 and the new regulations on the Registration Fees for Security Transactions mentioned above will take effect from November 15, 2023.

This news bulletin is intended solely for informing about newly enacted legal regulations and is not intended for specific cases or advisory purposes.

We hope this information is beneficial to our valued readers.

Bizlawyer is honored to accompany our esteemed readers!

SHORTENING THE MANAGEMENT PERIOD FOR PETROLEUM PRICES

The government has issued Decree No. 80/2023/ND-CP on November 17, 2023, amending and supplementing certain provisions of Decree No. 95/2021/ND-CP dated November 1, 2021, and Decree No. 83/2014/ND-CP dated September 3, 2014, regarding petroleum business (“Decree 80“).

Decree 80 is considered a new advancement in the petroleum supply chain. One noteworthy point in Decree 80 is the shortening of the management period for petroleum prices.

Here, let’s explore the details together with Bizlawyer!

Decree 80 stipulates a reduction in the management/publication period for petroleum prices to 7 days instead of the previous 10 days as per earlier decrees. Specifically, whereas previously the management of petroleum prices occurred on the 1st, 11th, and 21st of every month, under Decree 80, the price management is fixed to occur every Thursday. Except for specific cases:

If the management day falls on certain special days in the year, it will be executed as follows:

If Thursday coincides with the last day of the lunar calendar (29th or 30th of Tet holiday), the petroleum price management will be conducted on the preceding Wednesday;

If Thursday falls on the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd day of Tet holiday, the price management will be conducted on the 4th day of Tet;

In cases where the management time coincides with designated holidays, it will be handled as follows: If Thursday aligns with the first day of a holiday, the price management will be conducted on the preceding Wednesday. If Thursday aligns with other holiday days, the price management will be carried out on the first working day after the holiday period.

In case petroleum products experience abnormal fluctuations affecting socio-economic development and people’s lives, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is responsible for reporting to the Prime Minister to review and decide on an appropriate petroleum price management period.

The shortening of the management period for petroleum prices under Decree 80 has the potential to address the “phase lag” between domestic petroleum prices and global prices, contributing to better control of consumer price indices and balancing the interests between petroleum business enterprises, users of petroleum products, and consumers.

The above constitutes the entire content of the news: Shortening the management period for petroleum prices under Decree 80. Decree 80 will take effect from November 17, 2023.

This news is solely intended to inform about newly issued legal regulations and is not meant for specific advisory or application purposes.

We hope this information is beneficial to our readers.

on June 12, 2022, the Government issued Decree 38/2022/ND-CP regulating the minimum wages for employees working under labor contracts (“Decree 38”). Decree 38 stipulates the monthly minimum wage and the hourly minimum wage applied to employees working under labor contracts; Effective from July 1, 2022; Replace Decree No. 90/2019/ND-CP dated November 15, 2019.

Here, let’s find out with Bizlawyer how to determine the region for the latest minimum wage under Decree 38!

–        An employer located in a specific region shall apply the respective statutory minimum wage applied thereto.

–        In the event that an employer has its affiliates and/or branches located in different regions to which different statutory minimum wages apply, such affiliates and/or branches must apply the respective statutory minimum wages applied thereto.

–        If an employer is located in an industrial park or export processing zone located in the territory containing two or more regions to which different statutory minimum wages apply, the highest statutory minimum wage shall apply.

–        If an employer is located in a region which is renamed or divided, the statutory minimum wage applied to that region before it is renamed or divided shall still apply until new regulations promulgated by the Government come into force.

–        If an employer is located in a region which is converted or established from a region or by consolidation of two or more regions to which different statutory minimum wages apply, it shall apply the highest statutory minimum wage.

–        In case an employer is located in a provincial city which is established from one or more regions in the region IV, it shall apply the statutory minimum wage applied to the remaining provincial cities as prescribed in Clause 3 of the Appendix enclosed Decree 38.

* This newsletter is only for informational purposes about newly issued legal regulations, not used to advise or apply to specific cases.

Hope the above information is helpful to The Esteemed Readers.

Bizlawyer is pleased to accompany The Esteemed Readers!