Legal Document Updates in English (49/2021)

THE INTEREST RATE FOR OUTSTANDING HOUSING SUPPORT LOANS
IN 2022 IS 4.8%/YEAR

This content is prescribed in the Decision No. 1956/QD-NHNN dated December 03, 2021 of the State Bank of Vietnam on the interest rate of commercial banks for outstanding housing support loans in 2022 in accordance with the Circular No. 11/2013/TT-NHNN dated May 15, 2013, Circular No. 32/2014/TT-NHNN dated November 18, 2014 and Circular No. 25/2016/TT-NHNN dated July 29, 2016.

To be specific, the interest rate of commercial banks for outstanding housing support loans in 2022 in accordance with the Circular No. 11/2013/TT-NHNN dated May 15, 2013, Circular No. 32/2014/TT-NHNN dated November 18, 2014 and Circular No. 25/2016/TT-NHNN dated July 29, 2016 shall be 4.8% per annum.

The Decision takes effect from January 01, 2022.

LABEL OF GOODS WITH UNIDENTIFIED ORIGIN
MUST SHOW THE PLACE OF COMPLETING THE FINAL STAGE TO FINISH GOODS

On December 09, 2021, the Government issues the Decree No. 111/2021/ND-CP amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 43/2017/ND-CP of April 14, 2017, on goods labeling.

Accordingly, manufacturers, importers or exporters shall themselves identify and show the origin of their goods and ensure truthfulness, accuracy and compliance with the law on origin of exports, imports and domestically manufactured goods or treaties to which Vietnam has acceded. In case the origin of goods cannot be identified under the above regulations, the label must show the place where the final stage to finish goods is completed.

The place of completing the final stage to finish goods shall be presented with one of the following phrases or combined phrases showing the stage of finishing goods “assembled in”,

“bottled in”, “mixed in”, “finished in”, “packed in” or “labeled in” followed by the name of the country or territory where the final stage to finish goods is completed.

Additionally, labels of goods being health equipment manufactured in the country or imported for circulation in Vietnam must show the name and address of the health equipment owner or the name and address of the owner of the health equipment circulation registration number. In case the health equipment does not have a circulation registration number, the import permit must show the name and address of the health equipment owner and the name and address of the organization or person.

This Decree takes effect on February 15, 2022.

PEOPLE ON ENTRY NOT RECEIVED FULL DOSES OF COVID-19 VACCINES
ARE SUBJECT TO 7-DAY HOME QUARANTINE

This remarkable content is specified in the Official Dispatch No. 10688/BYT-MT dated December 16, 2021 of the Ministry of Health on COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control for people entering Vietnam.

Specifically, before entry, people entering Vietnam must have a certificate of a negative SARS-CoV-2 test result (by RT-PCR/RT-LAMP technique) issued within 72 hours before entry by the competent agency of the country where the person on entry was tested (except for children under the age of 2) and make health declaration. When entering Vietnam, they must install and use the health declaration application (PC-COVID) to make health declaration and monitor the health in accordance with Vietnam's regulations.

In case the persons on entry that are Vietnamese citizens, overseas Vietnamese and their relatives (including their spouses and children) have not been vaccinated or have not

received full doses of COVID-19 vaccines, they shall be vaccinated free in their quarantine period (if eligible). Also, they must pay testing costs, expenses for quarantine, medical examination and treatment and other related expenses (if any) in Covid-19 pandemic prevention and control according to the Resolution No. 16/NQ-CP dated February 08, 2021 of the Government.

Besides, people entering Vietnam who have not been vaccinated or have not received full doses of COVID-19 vaccine shall comply with at-home quarantine for 7 days from the date of entry and get tested for SARS-CoV-2 by RT-PCR technique on third and seventh days.

Measures to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic for people entering Vietnam according to this Official Dispatch shall be carried out from January 01, 2022.

3 CONDITIONS FOR HEALTH ESTABLISHMENTS DETERMINING THE STATE OF DRUG ADDICTION

Such conditions are defined in the Decree No. 109/2021/ND-CP dated December 08, 2021 of the Government prescribing regulations on health establishments qualified for the determination of state of drug addiction and dossiers, order and procedures for the determination of state of drug addiction.

Firstly, health establishments conducting the determination of state of drug addiction must be medical examination and treatment establishments that have the license to conduct medical examination and treatment within the scope of professional medical examination and treatment in internal medicine or psychiatry, or drug addiction treatment or treatment of addiction to opiate substances with alternative medicine; forensic mental health establishments. Secondly, facilities and equipment must be ensured to be able to carry out the professional process of determining the state of drug addiction, suitable with the organizational form and scope of professional practices of the specialties as specified.

Additionally, doctors who determine the state of drug addiction must have the certificate of medical examination

and treatment in psychiatry or general medicine or internal medicine or traditional medicine. In cases where doctors have the certificate of practice in medical examination and treatment in general or in internal medicine or traditional medicine, they must obtain the certificate of completion of a training course on the determination of state of drug addiction issued by a functional training establishment.

Besides, persons who are willing to have their state of drug addiction determined shall choose a qualified health establishment by themselves to conduct the determination of state of drug addiction. The locations for the determination of state of drug addiction shall be the administrative detention places for persons who are kept in custody in accordance with the administrative procedures; or qualified health establishments or locations requested by the public security agencies to determine the state of drug addiction as agreed with the health establishments for persons who are not kept in custody in accordance with the administrative procedures.

This Decree takes effect from January 01, 2022.

PLANS FOR CASES OF RECORDING F0 CASES IN SCHOOLS

In order to ensure safety in the prevention and control of COVID-19 in schools on the principle of “safe and flexible adaptation to, and effective control over the COVID-19 pandemic”, on December 03, 2021, the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Training issue the Inter-Sectoral Guidance No. 21306/HDLN-YT-GDDT on the COVID-19 prevention and control plans when detecting COVID-19 confirmed cases (F0), COVID-19 suspected cases, contacts of confirmed cases (F1), contacts of F1 cases (F2).

Accordingly, when F0 cases are recorded in a school, the school's pandemic prevention and control plans in case of recording COVID-19 infected cases shall be immediately activated; and such cases shall be reported to the local Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

13 DECREES ARE ANNULLED BY THE GOVERNMENT

The Decree No. 110/2021/ND-CP on annulling a number of legal documents of the Government is promulgated by the Government on December 09, 2021.

To be specific, some decrees related to the industrial property cease to be effective such as: Decree No. 63/CP dated October 24, 1996, detailing the industrial property; Decree No. 06/2001/ND-CP dated February 01, 2001, amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 63/CP dated October 24, 1996; Decree No. 42/2003/ND-CP dated May 02, 2003, on protection of industrial property rights for layout-designs of semiconductor integrated circuit; etc.

Regarding to the field of taxation, the Decree No. 92/2013/ND-CP dated August 13, 2013, detailing a number

of articles, which take effect on July 01, 2013, of the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Enterprise Income Tax and the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of the Law on Value-Added Tax is annulled.

Besides, to annul the Decree No. 60/2000/ND-CP dated October 30, 2000, stipulating the execution of the non-custodial reform penalty; Decree No. 61/2000/ND-CP dated October 30, 2000, stipulating the execution of suspended sentences; Decree No. 53/2001/ND-CP dated August 23, 2001, guiding the enforcement of the residence prohibition and probation penalties; etc.

The Decree takes effect on December 15, 2021.

CHROMIUM CONTENT OF STAINLESS STEEL MUST NOT BE LESS THAN 10.5%

The Circular No. 09/2021/TT-BKHCN on Amendment 1:2021 of QCVN 20:2019/BKHCN National technical regulation on stainless steel is issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology on November 01, 2021.

According to this Circular, stainless steel manufactured domestically, imported and circulated on the market to be assessed as the one in conformity with this Technical regulation must have a chemical composition under the requirements of the steel grade in the announced applicable standards, but must ensure that its chromium content is not less than 10.5% and its carbon content is not more than 1.2%.

Besides, labels of stainless steel shall be clearly marked, legible, indelible by hand, inscribed/affixed/tied on bundles, coils, plates, rods, tubes. For stainless steel circulated in

Vietnam, a goods label is required to show the following contents in Vietnamese: Name of goods; Name and address of the organization or individual in charge of the goods; origin of goods; Nominal dimensions, weight and measurement units of goods; etc.

Additionally, for domestically manufactured stainless steels, the conformity assessment shall be carried out according to Method 5 (testing of typical samples and assessment of the manufacturing process; supervision by testing of samples taken at the manufacturing site or on the market in conjunction with assessment of the manufacturing process) at the manufacturing facility.

This Circular takes effect from January 01, 2022.