Legal Document Updates in English (17/2011)

NO DISCOUNT PROMOTION FOR TELECOMMUNICATION
SERVICES UNDER RATE RANGE
 

On April 06, 2011, Government issued the Decree No. 25/2011/ND-CP detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of Articles of the Telecommunications Law, the Government especially focuses on regulations on discount promotion for telecommunication services and specialized telecommunication goods.

Specifically, Telecommunication enterprises are not allowed to conduct promotion with purposes of unfair competition in the telecommunications market, dumping telecommunications service, specialized telecommunication goods and to conduct promotion by reducing charges of telecommunication services, reducing the price of specialized telecommunication goods with respect to telecommunication services, specialized telecommunication goods evaluated specifically by the State. Telecommunication enterprises are not allowed to conduct promotion by reducing charges of telecommunication services, reducing the price of specialized telecommunication goods to below the minimum level of specialized telecommunication services, telecommunication goods that the State prescribes a price range or a minimum price.

The material value used for promotion for the unit of specialized telecommunication goods or services must not exceed 50% of the price of the units of specialized telecommunication goods or services promoted before promotion period except customer free of charge; customers free of charge; participation in promotions of chance.

As also according to this Decree, enterprises investing in telecommunication services have to ensure the legal capital under regulation. Within that, enterprises applying for a license for establishing fixed telecommunication network that uses wireless electric frequency band, number of telecommunication subscribers must meet the conditions for legal capital and commitment amount for investment: establishment of networks within a region (from 15 to 30 provinces and centrally-affiliated cities): Legal capital: 100 billion VND; investment commitment amount: At least 300 billion VND for first 3 years; establishing a nationwide network of (over 30 provinces and centrally-affiliated cities): Legal capital: 300 billion VND; investment commitment amount: At least 1,000 billion VND for the first 3 years and at least 3,000 billion VND in 15 years.

This Decree takes effect as from June 1, 2011 and replaces Decree No. 160/2004/NĐ-CP September 3, 2004 by the Government detailing the implementation of some articles of the Ordinance on Post and Telecommunications of telecommunications; regulations on investment in telecommunications in Decree 121/2008/ND-CP of December 3, 2008 by the and telecommunications regulations in Decree 97/2009/ ND-CP on the management of Internet services, management of the content of information on the Internet.

3,000 BILLION U.S DOLLARS FOR BEING A STRATEGIC SHAREHOLDER
 

On April 22, 2011, the State Bank of Vietnam issued the Circular No. 10/2011/TT-NHNN stipulating the criteria for selecting strategic shareholders to the Equitized State-owned Commercial Banks.

Accordingly, The strategic shareholders of the equitized state-owned commercial banks must having strategic interests suitable to the development strategy of equitized state-owned commercial banks; having no a creation of conflict of interest; having no a creation of a monopoly in unfair competition for customers, other investors of the equitized state-owned commercial banks and for other credit institutions.

To set up criteria for selecting the strategic shareholders, for the foreign strategic shareholders: being a foreign credit institution or foreign financial institution with total assets equivalent to at least 20 (twenty) billion U.S. dollars; having over 05 (five) years experience in international activities; being not a strategic shareholder, major shareholder, founding shareholder of any credit institution in Vietnam and so on.

For the domestic strategic shareholders: being enterprises with experience, good governance capacity; having total assets equivalent to at least 3,000 (three

thousand) billion U.S dollars in the preceding year of the year of enrollment to be strategic shareholders; having sufficient contributed capital resources: equity minus any long-term investment amount by equity and short-term assets minus short-term debts, the minimum remaining equal to the contributed capital upon the registration to be strategic shareholders; having profit rates on equity (ROE) more than 15%, the profit rate on assets (ROA) more than 1% of the preceding year of the year of enrollment to be strategic shareholders, having a positive net profit for three consecutive years before the year of enrollment to become strategic shareholders; having no bad debt in the credit institutions and so on

For the domestic strategic shareholders being credit institutions, besides the conditions referred as above must satisfy the following criteria: maintaining the limitations to ensure the safe in operations of credit institutions according to provisions of the State Bank; having capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of preceding year of the year of enrollment to be strategic shareholders over 10%; having bad debt ratio of preceding year of the year of enrollment to be strategic shareholders under 2%; credit institutions are not entitled to buy shares of equitized state-owned commercial banks.

This Circular takes effect on June 01, 2011.

CAPITAL LOAN IS ALLOWED FOR NOT HAVING
CERTIFICATE OF RICE EXPORT
 

The State Bank of Vietnam issued the Circular No. 08/2011/TT-NHNN dated April 08, 2011, detailing on credit of rice import business according to Decree No.109/2010/ND-CP dated 4/11/2010 of the Government.

Accordingly, the commercial banks actively balance to ensure capital sources to lend for the traders doing business paddy, merchandise rice export according to the expected plan to be balanced in accordance with plan.

Trader’s loan capital for paddy, merchandise rice export business, besides the satisfying of the conditions of capital loan under current regulations, must also be granted the certificate of sufficient condition for rice export business by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce according to provision in Article 6 of Decree

109/2010/ND-CP. In case traders have not got the certificate of sufficient condition for rice export business since the effective date of Decree 109/2010/ND-CP shall still be loaned by banks to do business rice export according to provision on Article of transferring in Article 28 Decree 109/2010/ND-CP.

In case of paddy and merchandise rice prices on the market below the paddy and merchandise rice prices oriented, commercial banks loan to traders to purchase paddy, rice under the steering of the Prime Minister and guidelines of the State Bank of Vietnam in each period.

This Circular takes effect on May 22, 2011. The Official Dispatch No.2311/NHNN-TD dated 12/3/2008 and the Official Dispatch No.1671/NHNN-TD dated 4/3/2010 are invalid.

DOSSIER REQUESTING FOR C/O DECLARED VIA INTERNET SYSTEM
SHALL BE CONSIDERED TO SOLVE BEFORE
 

The Ministry of Industry and Trade issued the Circular No. 06/2011/TT-BCT dated March 21, 2011 provides procedures of issuance of referential certificate of origin (C/O) in the Agreements of free trade region, Agreements of all-sided economic partner and Agreements with two or more parties providing the tariff reduction between Vietnam with one or more countries or territories.

Accordingly, the applicants for C/O must register trader dossier with the organization of issuing C/O when requesting for so for the first time and shall be considered only when trader dossier registered. If trader would like to be issued C/O at the place where is different from the one previously registered trader dossier due to force majeure or legitimate reason, applicants for C/O must register trader dossier and hand in dossier to the Organization of issuing new C/O.

Time of issuing C/O from the time that the C/O applicants apply complete and regular dossier in case of exporting by air traffic not more than four hours; from the time that the C/O applicants apply complete and regular dossier in case of exporting by other means not more than eight hours; time to issue C/O is one working day since the date of receipt written on the envelope for the cases traders filed dossier by post.

Traders make the declaration of data as required by the eCOSys at www.ecosys.gov.vn electronic information website based on available, factual information, on dossier requesting for C/O. Traders conduct electronic signatures and transmit this data to the Organization of issuing C/O.

Within one working day since the date of receiving electronic data transmitted by traders, the Organization of issuing C/O reviews information of electronic declaration of traders and informs to the traders of the results of reviewing this information through the Internet at the website www.ecosys.gov.vn. After receiving the notification by the Organization of issuing C/O that they agree to issue C/O via the Internet, traders submit a set of dossier requesting for C/O at the Organization of issuing C/O. The application can be carried out directly or by post.

This Circular takes effect on May 04, 2011. The contents on procedures for C/O issuance in this Circular shall replace the correlative contents on procedures for C/O issuance in the concerned Circulars of origin.

RADIO OPERATION LICENSE AND TELEVISION OPERATION
LICENSE TAKE EFFECT 10 YEARS
 

On March 01, 2011, the Ministry of Information and Communications issued the Circular No.07/2011/TT-BTTTT regulating in detail and guiding on issuing the license for press activities in the field of radio and television.

Accordingly, the Minister of Information and Communications issues licenses for the radio operation, licenses for television operation, licenses for broadcast program channel production under Law and regulations in this Circular. The Director of Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information grants license of special program production under Law and regulations in this Circular.

Organizations that being granted radio operation license and television operation license, shall meet all suitable conditions with television activities and satisfy all material, financial and human resources conditions. Within that, persons anticipated as a general manager, a deputy general manager or a director, a deputy director, an editor in-chief, a deputy editor must graduate from University or higher; have advanced political theory level or higher; have a certificate of Press management knowledge; have a valid journalist’s card granted and have no during discipline implementing from reprimand or more.

At the same time, Identify clearly the name of the organization anticipated to be licensed in radio and television operation; the purpose of press operation, principles, service objects and purpose, display language of the first broadcast radio and television program channel associated with the establishment of that organization.

Radio Operation License and Television Operation License take effect ten (10) years from the signing date. Validity of licenses of special program production and auxiliary program production are directly written in the granted license without exceeding the valid period of the broadcast program channel producing license of licensed organization. After ninety (90) days meanwhile the radio operation license and television operation license, license of broadcast program channel production take effect; if the licensed organization does not work under content provided in the license, that license shall be invalid.

This Circular takes effect from May 1, 2011. Organizations that are operating radio and television before the effective date of this Circular within one (01) years from the effective date of this Circular must make the procedure of application for re-granting radio operation license, television operation license, production license of broadcast program channel.