Decree 36/2020/ND-CP sanctioning of administrative violations in the fields of water resources and minerals

DECREE

Sanctioning of administrative violations in the fields of water resources and minerals

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

Pursuant to the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations dated June 20, 2012;

Pursuant to the Law on Water Resources dated June 21, 2012;

Pursuant to the Law on Minerals dated November 17, 2010;

Pursuant to the Law Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of Thirty Seven Laws Related to the Planning Law dated November 20, 2018;

At the proposal of the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment;

The Government hereby promulgates the Decree on sanctioning of administrative violations in the fields of water resources and minerals.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

1. This Decree prescribes acts of administrative violations, forms and levels of sanctions, remedial measures for administrative violations, the competence to impose sanctions of administrative violations and the competence to make written records of administrative violations in the field of water resources and minerals.

2. Administrative violations in the FIELD OF WATER RESOURCES specified in this Decree include: Violations of regulations on survey, planning, exploration, exploitation and use of water resources; violations of regulations on reservoirs and reservoir operation; violations of regulations on water resource protection; violations of regulations on prevention, control and remedy of harmful effects caused by water; violations of regulations on seeking opinions of residential communities and other violations in water resource management as specified in Chapter II of this Decree.

3. Administrative violations of regulations on minerals specified in this Decree include: Violations of regulations on mineral exploration and mining; violations of regulations on auction of the mining right; violations of regulations on use of data and information on geological investigation results of minerals, and mineral exploration; violations of regulations on benefits of localities and people in areas in which minerals are exploited; violations of regulations on protection of unexploited minerals; violations of regulations on mine safety techniques and other mineral-related violations, as specified in Chapter III of this Decree.

4. Other Government's Decrees on sanctioning of relevant administrative violations under the state management shall apply to administrative violations relating to water resources and minerals not specified in this Decree.

Article 2. Subjects of application

1. This Decree applies to domestic and foreign organizations and individuals committing administrative violations in the field of water resources and minerals within the territory, contiguous zones, exclusive economic zones and continental shelves of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; the persons that have the competence to make written records and the ones competent to impose sanctioning of administrative violations in the fields of water resources and minerals and relevant agencies, organizations and individuals.

2. Organizations sanctioned for administrative violations specified in this Decree include:

a) Economic organizations established under the Law on Enterprises and Law on Cooperatives, including: Sole proprietorships, joint-stock companies, limited liability companies, partnerships and their affiliates (including branches and representative offices), cooperatives, cooperative unions;

b) Foreign investors; foreign-invested Economic organizations; representative offices and branches of foreign traders in Vietnam; representative offices of foreign trade promotion organizations in Vietnam;

c) State agencies committing violations which are not within their assigned scope of management;

d) Socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, social organizations and socio-professional organizations;

dd) Public non-business units and other organizations established as prescribed by law.

Article 3. Interpretation of terms

In this Decree, the terms below shall be construed as follows:

1. Mineral exploration area means a space limited by permissible surface area and depth which are stated in a mineral exploration license and conformable with the exploration project already appraised by a competent state agency.

2. Mining area means a space within the boundary of a mine defined in the investment project/economic and technical report on mineral exploitation suitable for the permissible mineral reserves included in the mining design within the boundaries of coordinates, area and depth stated in the mineral mining license.

3. A monometallic mine means a mine with metallic minerals in which only metal reserves of one of the metallic minerals are approved: iron; manganese; titanium; tin; tungsten; chromite; gold; silver. Polymetallic mine means a mine with 02 types of metallic minerals that can be recovered during the exploitation and processing process and are approved or recognized by competent authorities as reserves specified in Appendix I (group 7 - types of other metal minerals) of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP dated July 31, 2019, of the Government, stipulating the calculation method and collection rate for granting mineral exploitation rights (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP). Valuable and recoverable minerals in polymetallic mines include two of the following metals: iron, copper, lead, zinc, tin, tungsten, nickel, cobalt, bismuth, antimony, gold, silver and platinum.

4. Stone slabs mean magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks with a monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.4 m³, including granite, gabbro, marble, white limestone, white marble; ornamental stones and fine art stones with monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.1 m³; minerals used as cement materials, including all types of stones used as cement raw materials: cement limestone, cement clay, stones used as cement additives and limestone, dolomite used as raw materials for production of industrial lime specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP.

Article 4. Forms of sanction of administrative violations and remedial measures

1. Principal sanctions:

Any organization or individual that commits administrative violations in the field of water resources and minerals shall be imposed any of the following principal sanctions:

a) A caution;

b) A fine.

The maximum fine for an administrative violation of regulations on water resources imposed on an individual is VND 250,000,000; that imposed on an organization is VND 500,000,000. The maximum fine for an administrative violation of regulations on minerals imposed on an individual is VND 1,000,000,000; that imposed on an organization is VND 2,000,000,000.

c) Deprivation of the right to use license to explore or exploit or use water resources, the license to discharge wastewater into water sources; the groundwater drilling practice license; the mineral exploration license or the mineral mining license from 01 month to 24 months.

2. Additional sanctions:

Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, the organization or individual who commits administrative violations may also be imposed one or several additional sanctions below:

a) Deprivation of the right to use license to explore or exploit water resources, the license to discharge wastewater into water sources; the groundwater drilling practice license; the mineral exploration license or the mineral mining license from 01 month to 24 months;

b) Suspension of the formulation or realization of water resources projects or schemes; suspension of the exploration or exploitation of water resources, exploration or mining of minerals from 01 month to 12 months;

c) Confiscation of the material evidences and/or specimens which are minerals, and means used for commission of administrative violations.

Additional sanctions shall be only applied in association with principal sanctions.

3. Remedial measures:

In addition to principal and additional sanctions, an organization or individual that commits administrative violations may be imposed one or some remedial measures as follows:

a) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against environmental pollution, degradation and depletion of water resources; forcible implementation of measures to prevent environmental pollution and adverse impacts on human health; forcible implementation of remedial measures against droughts, floods and water scarcity; forcible filling and sealing of drilled wells and implementation of measures to protect unexploited minerals and measures for environmental remediation of mining areas;

b) Forcible adoption of remedial measures against land subsidence or other emergencies;

c) Forcible compliance with reservoir operation procedures; forcible implementation of measures to lower the water level of reservoir to the water level before flood; measures to operate reservoirs to reduce floods hitting lowlands; measures to operate reservoirs to ensure annual low-water flow after operation of works during dry season; measures to operate reservoirs to maintain the minimum water level of reservoir during dry season; and remedial measures against water scarcity in lower reservoirs;

d) Forcible compensation for damage if violations cause floods influencing production and daily activities of the people in lowland of the reservoir;

dd) Forcible implementation of measures for land restoration and environmental remediation;

e) Forcible leveling of exploration works; implementation of measures for unmined mineral protection and environmental remediation, and transfer of mineral specimens and its related information to mineral authorities;

g) Forcible leveling of exploration works and environmental remediation within explored area beyond the licensed exploration area; forcible remediation of environment in the explored area; forcible performance of leveling, environmental improvement and remediation activities;

h) Forcible implementation of measures to bring mined areas beyond the licensed mining area to safe state; forcible restoration of land in conformity with mine closure project approved by the competent state agency;

i) Forcible mining of minerals using the mining methods specified in the mineral mining license; mine opening and preparation systems (for underground mining), opening systems (for open-cast mining); mining procedures; mining systems; parameters of a mining system, including bench height and bench face angle; forcible dumping of waste at designated locations specified in the approved mine design/economic and technical report; within mining time frame or in quantity or with mining equipment specified in the license or written permission granted by the competent state agency (regarding river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel);

k) Forcible implementation of measures to renovate environmental protection works, remedial measures against environmental pollution and/or infrastructure damage caused by the mining in excess of permitted mining output;

l) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against technical infrastructure damage; forcible upgrading, repair and maintenance, and construction of roads;

m) Forcible restoration of original condition which has been changed by violations;

n) Forcible transfer of mineral specimens and mineral-related information to mineral authorities;

o) Forcible leveling or demolition of illegally built works; forcible demolition or relocation of obstacles to flows; forcible movement of machinery, equipment and/or assets to out of the mineral exploration/mining areas;

p) Forcible correction of falsified information and data because of violations;

q) Forcible refund of charges for using mineral-related information as notified by competent State agencies, and late payment fines to state budget.

r) Forcible refund of illicit profits earned through the commission of administrative violations:

If an organization or individual exploits water for purposes of producing hydroelectric power, and producing and trading domestic water, the illicit profits earned through the commission of an administrative violation of regulations on water resources equals total value of water exploited minus (-) the exploitation cost. If an organization or individual exploits water for purposes of non-agricultural production other than those of production of hydroelectric power and production of and trading in domestic water, the illicit profits earned through the commission of an administrative violation equals (=) total quantity of water exploited multiplied by (x) prices of domestic water for production and trading in a province minus (-) the exploitation cost.

The illicit profits earned through the commission of an administrative violation of regulations on minerals equals the total value of minerals mined multiplied by (x) the unit price (VND/ton, m³, kg, etc.) applicable at the exploitation time minus (-) the mining cost.

If the organization or individual has paid money for grant of the right to exploit water resources or mining right, resource royalty, environmental protection fees and other fees and charges as prescribed due to its/her/his commission of violation, such payments shall be deducted upon calculation of the illicit profit.

s) Forcible payment of fees for expertise solicitation, inspection and measurement if any violation is committed;

t) Forcible implementation of measures to improve and remediate environment of the mined area, and measures to bring mining areas to the safe state.

Article 5. Fines in handling of administrative violations

1. The fines specified in Chapter II and Chapter III of this Decree are imposed for administrative violations committed by individuals. Fines imposed on household businesses are the same as those imposed on individuals. The fine imposed on an organization is twice as much as the fine imposed on an individual for the same violation.

2. The maximum fines imposed by persons specified in Articles 63, 64, 65, 66, 67 and 68 of this Decree are imposed on individuals. The maximum fines imposed on organizations are twice as much as the fines imposed on individuals.

Chapter II

ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATIONS IN THE FIELD OF WATER RESOURCES, SANCTIONING FORMS AND LEVELS AND REMEDIAL MEASURES

Section 1. VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON PLANNING, BASELINE SURVEY, EXPLORATION, EXPLOITATION AND USE OF WATER RESOURCES AND GROUNDWATER DRILLING PRACTICE

Article 6. Violations of regulations on capacity requirements for implementing baseline survey projects/schemes, or provision of consultancy to elaborate water resource master plans

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide sufficient information as required after being selected to implement a baseline survey project/scheme, or provide consultancy for formulation of a water resource master plans.

2. A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to send notification to a competent state agency as specified after being selected to implement a baseline survey project/scheme, or provide consultancy for formulation of a water resource master plans.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on the person in charge of technique of a baseline survey project/scheme or person providing consultancy for the formulation of a water resource master plan if, at the same time, he/she is in charge of technical issues of at least 03 baseline survey projects/schemes, or provides consultancy for the formulation of at least 04 water resource master plans.

4. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of including inaccurate information in the capacity profile for preparing a scheme/report in course of implementation of a baseline survey project/scheme, or for providing consultancy for formulation of water resource master plans.

5. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of the implementation of the baseline survey project/scheme or provision of consultancy for the formulation of the water resource master plan from 01 month to 06 months for violations specified in Clause 4 of this Article.

Article 7. Violations of regulations on capacity requirements for preparing schemes/reports in application dossiers for water resources licenses

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to include sufficient information about selection for preparing a scheme/report in the application dossier for water resources license.

2. A fine of between VND 2,000,000 and VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failure send a notification to a competent state agency as specified after being selected to prepare a scheme/report in the application dossier for water resources license.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of including inaccurate information in the capacity profile for preparing a scheme/report in the application dossier for water resources license.

4. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of the formulation of the scheme/report that constitutes the application dossier for water resources license from 01 to 06 months for the violations specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 8. Violations of regulations on monitoring and supervision of water resources during exploitation and use of water resources and discharge of wastewater into water sources

1. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit reports on water resources monitoring and supervision to the competent state agency according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 15,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to store monitoring and supervision data/data according to regulations;

b) Failing to conduct monitoring of less than 25% of parameters to be monitored according to regulations.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to conduct monitoring of from 25% to less than 50% of parameters to be monitored according to regulations.

4. A fine of between VND 25,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to conduct monitoring of from 50% to less than 75% of parameters to be monitored according to regulations.

5. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to conduct monitoring of at least 75% of parameters to be monitored according to regulations;

b) Failing to install monitoring equipment according to regulations;

c) Failing to conduct monitoring with the specified frequency;

d) Failing to conduct monitoring on time;

dd) Failing to conduct monitoring at designated locations;

e) Failing to connect and transmit monitoring and supervision data to competent State agencies according to regulations.

6. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to conduct monitoring and supervision of water resources during exploitation and use of water resources, and discharge of wastewater into water sources according to regulations;

b) Falsifying water resources monitoring and supervision data.

7. Violations of regulations on monitoring and supervision during discharge of wastewater into water sources

Regulations on sanctioning of administrative violations in the field of environmental protection shall apply to violations of regulations on monitoring and supervision during discharge of wastewater into water sources.

Article 9. Exploration, exploitation and use of water resources without registration or license as prescribed

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to register groundwater exploration/exploitation as specified by law in the cases where the groundwater exploration/exploitation requires registration.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license:

a) A fine of between VND 2,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license for a work including 01 drilled well;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license for a work including 02 drilled wells;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license for a work including 03 drilled wells;

d) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license for a work including 04 drilled wells;

dd) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting groundwater exploration without a license for a work including 05 drilled wells or more.

3. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume of more than 10 m³/24 hours but less than 30 m³/24 hours.

4. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 30 m³/24 hours to less than 50 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume of more than 0.1 m³/second but less than 0.2 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume of more than 100 m³/24 hours but less than 1,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity of more than 50 kW but less than 500 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume of more than 10,000 m³/24 hours but less than 30,000 m³/24 hours.

5. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 50 m³/24 hours to less than 100 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume from 0.2 m³/second to less than 0.3 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 1,000 m³/24 hours to less than 2,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 500 kW to less than 1,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 30,000 m³/24 hours to less than 50,000 m³/24 hours.

6. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 100 m³/24 hours to less than 200 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume from 0.3 m³/second to less than 0.5 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 2,000 m³/24 hours to less than 3,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 1,000 kW to less than 2,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 50,000 m³/24 hours to less than 100,000 m³/24 hours.

7. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 200 m³/24 hours to less than 400 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume from 0.5 m³/second to less than 1 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 3,000 m³/24 hours to less than 10,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 2,000 kW to less than 5,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 100,000 m³/24 hours to less than 200,000 m³/24 hours.

8. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 400 m³/24 hours to less than 800 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume from 1 m³/second to less than 1.5 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 10,000 m³/24 hours to less than 20,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 5,000 kW to less than 7,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 200,000 m³/24 hours to less than 300,000 m³/24 hours.

9. A fine of between VND 90,000,000 and VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 800 m³/24 hours to less than 1,000 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume from 1.5 m³/second to less than 2 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 20,000 m³/24 hours to less than 50,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 7,000 kW to less than 10,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 300,000 m³/24 hours to less than 400,000 m³/24 hours.

10. A fine of between VND 110,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 1,000 m³/24 hours to less than 1,500 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for agricultural production and aquaculture with a volume of at least 2 m³/second;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 50,000 m³/24 hours to less than 100,000 m³/24 hours;

d) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 10,000 kW to less than 20,000 kW;

dd) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 400,000 m³/24 hours to less than 500,000 m³/24 hours.

11. A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 1,500 m³/24 hours to less than 3,000 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 100,000 m³/24 hours to less than 200,000 m³/24 hours;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 20,000 kW to less than 30,000 kW;

d) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 500,000 m³/24 hours to less than 700,000 m³/24 hours.

12. A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 3,000 m³/24 hours to less than 5,000 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 200,000 m³/24 hours to less than 300,000 m³/24 hours;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 30,000 kW to less than 40,000 kW;

d) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 700,000 m³/24 hours to less than 1,000,000 m³/24 hours.

13. A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 230,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume from 5,000 m³/24 hours to less than 12,000 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume from 300,000 m³/24 hours to less than 800,000 m³/24 hours;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity from 40,000 kW to less than 50,000 kW;

d) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume from 1,000,000 m³/24 hours to less than 2,000,000 m3/24 hours.

14. A fine of between VND 230,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts of exploiting and using water resources without a license:

a) Exploiting and using groundwater for production, trading and service provision with a volume of at least 12,000 m³/24 hours;

b) Exploiting and using surface water for trading, service provision and non-agricultural production with a volume of at least 800,000 m³/24 hours;

c) Exploiting and using surface water for electricity generation with an installed capacity of at least 50,000 kW;

d) Exploiting and using sea water for inland production, trading and service provision with a volume of at least 2,000,000 m³/24 hours.

15. Fines imposed for exploration, exploitation and use of water resources with an unexpired license expired are the same as those imposed for corresponding acts without a license as specified in Clauses 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of this Article.

16. Remedial measures:

a) Forcible refund of the illicit profits obtained from the violations specified in this Article;

b) Forcible adaptation of remedial measures against environmental pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 10. Violations of regulations on licenses to explore, exploit and use water resources

1. A fine of between VND 2,000,000 and VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide sufficient and accurate data/information about water resources in areas where water resources are explored, exploited and used to the competent state agency as requested.

2. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit reports on exploration, exploitation and use of water resources to the competent state agency as specified by law;

b) Untruthfully and insufficiently submitting reports on exploration, exploitation and use of water resources to the competent state agency and failing to comply with reporting regimes;

c) Failing to provide explanation to the licensing agency if the amount of water actually exploited by the license holder is smaller than 70% of the licensed amount in a 12 consecutive month period.

3. If the amount of water exploited/used exceeds the licensed amount, fines specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 Article 9 of this Decree shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the amount of water exploited/used.

4. A fine of between VND 15,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Exploiting and using water resources for purposes other than the licensed ones;

b) Exploiting and using water resources against the regulations specified in the license;

c) Exploiting and using water resources at locations/co-ordinates other than those specified in the license;

d) Exploiting and using surface water from the water sources other than the licensed ones;

dd) Exploiting and using groundwater from the aquifers other than the licensed ones;

e) Constructing items serving groundwater exploration with a volume exceeding 10% of the approved volume.

5. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to implement measures to ensure safety, prevention and remedy against negative incidents occurred in course of water exploration, exploitation and use;

b) Exploiting and using groundwater with the rough water level higher than the licensed rough water level according to regulations.

6. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations against regulations of the license except for the violations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article.

7. A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exploring, exploiting and using water resources during the license suspension period.

8. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Committing any of the violations specified in Clauses 3, 4 and 5 of this Article upon exploitation, use and exploration of groundwater, resulting in subsidence, pollution or saltwater intrusion into aquifers or seriously affect operation of groundwater exploitation works by the people;

b) Committing any of the violations specified at Point a Clause 4, Point b Clause 4, Point d Clause 4 and Point b Clause 5 of this Article upon exploitation and use of surface water, affecting the exploitation and use of other types of water or resulting in floods, artificial waterlogging, droughts or water scarcity or increase in saltwater intrusion, thereby influencing production and daily activities of the people in the lowland.

9. Additional sanctions:

Deprivation of the right to use the license to explore or exploit water resources from 01 to 03 months if the violation specified in Clause 8 of this Article.

10. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against environmental pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in Clauses 4 and 5 of this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 11. Violations of regulations on groundwater drilling practice

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to carry out the registration as specified in case the groundwater drilling requires registration.

2. A fine of between VND 2,000,000 and VND 4,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit annual consolidated reports on groundwater drilling works according to regulations;

b) Failing to send written notification of location and scale of the groundwater drilling work, and expected time limit for construction thereof to a competent state agency according to regulations;

c) Failing to send written notification to a competent state agency if there is any change of the person in charge of technique, registered business lines or assigned tasks according to regulations.

3. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of committing any of following violations of regulations on drilling practice for the drilling work with the casing diameter smaller than 110 mm and the flow less than 200 m³/24 hours:

a) Lending or leasing out the license;

b) Practicing groundwater drilling without the license;

c) Practicing groundwater drilling with an unexpired license, except for the case where the application dossier for license renewal has been submitted according to regulations.

4. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to comply with the approved procedures and technical design when constructing a drilled well;

b) Failing to comply with technical procedure for drilled well filling and sealing according to regulations;

c) Using wastewater, dirty water or water contaminated with oil, toxic chemicals or additives containing pollutants used as drilling fluids or to mix with drilling fluids to pour them into drilled wells;

d) Failing to obtain a drilling license to conduct the filling and sealing of a drilled well which is constructed for the purpose of exploiting groundwater and has casing diameter larger than 60 mm or a depth of 30 m or more;

dd) Failing to practice drilling in the scale specified in the groundwater drilling practice license;

e) Providing groundwater exploration and/or exploitation drilling services to an organization or individual without obtaining the license to explore or exploit groundwater according to regulations.

5. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of committing any of following violations of regulations on groundwater drilling practice for the drilling work with the casing diameter smaller than 250 mm and the flow from 200 m³/24 hours to less than 3,000 m³/24 hours:

a) Lending or leasing out the license;

b) Practicing groundwater drilling without the license;

c) Practicing groundwater drilling with an unexpired license, except for the case where the application dossier for license renewal has been submitted according to regulations.

6. A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation of regulations on groundwater drilling practice with a scale other than that specified in Clause 2 and Clause 5 of this Article:

a) Lending or leasing out the license;

b) Practicing groundwater drilling without the license;

c) Practicing groundwater drilling with an unexpired license, except for the case where the application dossier for license renewal has been submitted according to regulations.

7. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Keep carrying out drilling activities when such drilling activities cause land subsidence or other emergencies which cause adverse impacts on construction works and life of the people in the area where drilling activities are conducted;

b) Failing to take remedial measures against the land subsidence or other emergencies which cause adverse impacts on construction works and life of the people in the area where drilling activities are conducted.

8. Additional sanctions:

a) Deprivation of the right to use the groundwater drilling practice license from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified at Point a Clause 3, Point a Clause 4, Point a Clause 5 and Point a Clause 6 of this Article;

b) Suspension of the groundwater exploration drilling from 03 to 06 months if the violation specified at Point e Clause 4 of this Article.

9. Remedial measures:

a) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against environmental pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in Points b and c Clause 3, Points b and c Clause 5, Points b and c Clause 6 and Clause 7 of this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against land subsidence or other emergencies if the violation specified in Clause 7 of this Article.

Article 12. Violations of regulations on transfer of right to exploit water resources and falsification of water resources license

1. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of the falsification of the water resources license.

2. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of transfer of the water exploitation right without the consent given by the licensing agency.

3. Additional sanctions:

a) Deprivation of the right to use the water resources license from 03 to 06 months if the violation specified in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Deprivation of the right to use the water resources license for 06 - 12 months if the violation specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 13. Violations of regulations on reservoirs and dams

1. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to transfer boundary markers of safety perimeters of water source to the Commune-level People’s Committee where the reservoir is located according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation if the reservoir capacity is less than 1,000,000 m³:

a) Using the surface area of the reservoir for aquaculture or provision of tourism and/or entertainment services without the written approval by the state agency managing water resources, if the reservoir is in the system of irrigation works, regulations on sanctioning of administrative violations of regulations on operation and protection of irrigation works shall apply;

b) Failing to comply with regulations on reporting of operation of works according to regulations.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Committing any of the violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article for a reservoir with a capacity from 1,000,000 m³ to less than 10,000,000 m³;

b) Failing to formulate the plan for planting of boundary markers of safety perimeters of reservoirs in case boundary markers have not yet been planted.

4. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Committing any of the violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article for a reservoir with a capacity from 10,000,000 m³ to less than 50,000,000 m³;

b) Failing to conduct or incorrectly conducting monitoring and observation of minimum flows as prescribed for reservoirs and dams;

c) Failing to plant boundary markers or failing to comply with the boundary marker planting plan approved by a competent state agency.

5. A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation specified in Clause 2 of this Article for a reservoir with a capacity from 50,000,000 m³ to less than 1,000,000,000 m³.

6. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation specified in Clause 2 of this Article for a reservoir with a capacity of 100,000,000 m3 or more.

7. A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to maintain the minimum flows as regulated with respect to reservoirs and dams;

b) Failing to implement or incorrectly implementing the annual plan for regulating water stored in the reservoir;

c) Failing to conduct the meteorological and hydrological monitoring, and calculation and forecasting of the reservoir or dam inflow to serve its operation;

d) Failing to formulate plans for prevention and control of floods, inundation, droughts and water shortage in lowlands;

dd) Failing to provide caution and notifications of reservoir/dam discharge;

e)) Failing to maintain the water levels as specified during flood season according to the reservoir operation procedure approved by a competent state agency;

g) Operating the reservoir/dam to discharge water with a volume in excess of that specified in the reservoir operation procedure under normal weather conditions.

8. A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 220,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to formulate the plan for response to dam failures and other incidents seriously threatening the safety of works, lives and property of the people in lowland of the reservoir/dam;

b) Failing to formulate the annual plan for regulating water stored in the reservoir;

c) Discharging water with a volume in excess of that specified in the reservoir operation procedure upon occurrence of flooding.

9. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to follow the reservoir operation order of the competent state agency in case of a flood, drought or water scarcity or in another emergency case;

b) Failing to comply with procedure for closing and opening valves of the discharge work as specified with respect to reservoirs and dams;

c) Failing to implement or incorrectly implementing the plan for regulating and distributing water sources in river basins promulgated by the competent state agency;

d) Committing any of the violations specified at Point g Clause 7 and Point c Clause 8 of this Article resulting in unexpected flash floods that cause adverse impacts on production activities and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir/dam.

10. Additional sanctions:

a) Deprivation of the right to use the license to exploit water resources from 01 to 03 months for the acts of violations specified at Points a and g Clause 7; Point c Clause 8; Point a Clause 9 of this Article results in unexpected flash floods that cause adverse impacts on production and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir/dam;

b) Suspension if the exploitation and use of water resources from 03 to 06 months if the violation specified at Point d Clause 9 of this Article.

11. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against the flood, inundation, drought or water shortage for the acts of violations specified at Point g Clause 7, Point c Clause 8 and Clause 9 of this Article results in unexpected flash floods that cause adverse impacts on production activities and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir/dam.

Section 2. VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON INTER-RESERVOIR OPERATION PROCEDURE

Article 14. Violations of regulations on monitoring, forecasting and provision of information and data as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of one of the following violations of regulations on provision of information/data:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly adopting methods of providing information/data according to regulations;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide information/data within specified time limit;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on the agency/unit that is obliged to provide information/data for its failing to provide accurate and sufficient information/data according to regulations;

d) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide accurate and sufficient information/data according to regulations;

dd) A fine of from VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide information/data according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly implementing regulations on monitoring and forecasting under normal weather conditions during flood season:

a) Incorrectly carrying out monitoring and calculation of reservoir water level, reservoir inflow, weir and plant overflow rate and intake flow rate within specified periods;

b) Issuing forecasts that fail to contain required contents.

3. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly implementing regulations on monitoring and forecasting during dry season:

a) Incorrectly carrying out monitoring and calculation of reservoir water level, reservoir inflow, weir and plant overflow rate, intake flow rate and upper and lower reservoir water levels within specified periods;

b) Issuing forecasts that fail to contain required contents.

4. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to carry out monitoring and forecasting activities under normal weather conditions during flood season according to regulations:

a) Failing to carry out monitoring and calculation of reservoir water level, reservoir inflow, weir and plant overflow rate and intake flow rate according to regulations;

b) Failing to issue reservoir flood forecasts according to regulations.

5. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to carry out monitoring and forecasting activities during dry season:

a) Failing to carry out monitoring of reservoir inflow, weir and plant overflow rate, intake flow rate and upper and lower reservoir water levels according to regulations;

b) Failing to forecast reservoir inflow according to regulations;

c) Failing to formulate and notify the plan to supply water to lowlands to the competent state agency according to regulations;

d) Failing to propose and notify the competent state agency of the plan to regulate water for lowlands in case of an emergency, drought or water shortage that influences the reservoir operation according to regulations.

6. A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of falsification of monitoring and/or forecasting information and data.

7. The fine for each violation specified in Clauses 1, 2 and 4 of this Article shall increase thrice in case a flood-producing rain may occur.

Article 15. Violations of regulations on maintaining water level before flood under normal weather conditions as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on maintaining water level before flood under normal weather conditions with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is less than 200 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by under 30% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by under 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

c) A fine of between VND 90,000,000 and VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by at least 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

d) A fine of between VND 110,000,000 and VND 130,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating reservoir, resulting in an increase in the reservoir water level which is equal to or higher than the retention water level.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on maintaining water level before flood under normal weather conditions with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 200 m³ to less than 300 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by under 30% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by from 30% to less than 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

c) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by at least 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

d) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating reservoir, resulting in an increase in the reservoir water level which is equal to or higher than the retention water level.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on maintaining water level before flood under normal weather conditions with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 300 million m³ to less than 500 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by under 30% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

b) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by from 30% to less than 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

c) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by at least 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

d) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to incorrectly operating reservoir, resulting in an increase in the reservoir water level which is equal to or higher than the retention water level.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on maintaining water level before flood under normal weather conditions with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is 500 million m³ or more:

a) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by under 30% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

b) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by from 30% to less than 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

c) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly operating the reservoir, resulting in an increase in reservoir water level which is higher than the water level before flood by at least 60% of the difference between the retention water level and the water level before flood;

d) A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to incorrectly operating reservoir, resulting in an increase in the reservoir water level which is equal to or higher than the retention water level.

5. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of this Article if such violation causes flood which adversely influences production activities and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir.

6. Remedial measures:

a) Forcible implementation of reservoir operation measures to lower the reservoir water level to the water level before flood;

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against damage caused by any of the violations specified in Clause 5 of this Article.

Article 16. Violations of regulations on reservoir operation for the purpose of reducing floods hitting lowlands as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of operating the reservoir to discharge water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow during operation of the reservoir for reducing flood hitting the lowland with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is less than 200 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is under 20% of the reservoir inflow;

b) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 20% to under 40% of the reservoir inflow;

c) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 40% to under 60% of the reservoir inflow;

d) A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 60% to under 80% of the reservoir inflow;

dd) A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 190,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is at least 80% of the reservoir inflow;

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of operating the reservoir to discharge water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow during operation of the reservoir for reducing flood hitting the lowland with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 200 million m³ to less than 300 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of operating the reservoir to discharge water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is under 20% of the reservoir inflow;

b) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 20% to under 40% of the reservoir inflow;

c) A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 40% to under 60% of the reservoir inflow;

d) A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 190,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 60% to under 80% of the reservoir inflow;

dd) A fine of between VND 190,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is at least 80% of the reservoir inflow.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of operating the reservoir to discharge water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow during operation of the reservoir for reducing flood hitting the lowland with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 300 million m³ to less than 500 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is under 20% of the reservoir inflow;

b) A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 20% to under 40% of the reservoir inflow;

c) A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 190,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 40% to under 60% of the reservoir inflow;

d) A fine of between VND 190,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 60% to under 80% of the reservoir inflow;

dd) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 210,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is at least 80% of the reservoir inflow.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of operating the reservoir to discharge water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow during operation of the reservoir for reducing flood hitting the lowland with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is 500 million m³ or more:

a) A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is under 20% of the reservoir inflow;

b) A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 190,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 20% to under 40% of the reservoir inflow;

c) A fine of between VND 190,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is from 40% to under 60% of the reservoir inflow;

d) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 210,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water if the exceeding volume is from 60% to under 80% of the reservoir inflow;

dd) A fine of between VND 210,000,000 and VND 220,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume exceeding the reservoir inflow if the exceeding volume is at least 80% of the reservoir inflow.

5. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Committing any of the violations specified in this Article resulting in flooding which adversely influences production activities and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir;

b) Discharging water with a volume that exceeds the reservoir inflow when the reservoir water level reaches the retention water level as specified in the inter-reservoir operation procedure.

6. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of measures to operate the reservoir to reduce flood hitting the lowland;

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against damage caused by the violations specified at Point a Clause 5 of this Article.

Article 17. Violations of regulations on operating reservoirs to reduce reservoir water level for flood preparedness and reduce reservoir water level to maximum water level before flood as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Reducing the reservoir water level for flood preparedness against regulations when having urgent news of storm, tropical depression or any other weather event that may cause rain and/or flood;

b) Reducing the reservoir water level to maximum water level before flood against regulations after the reduction of flood hitting the lowland is done.

2. A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to operate the reservoir to discharge an amount of water equal to the reservoir inflow with the aim of maintaining current reservoir water level after the reduction of reservoir water level for flood preparedness is done while conditions for reducing flood hitting the lowland are not satisfied.

3. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of reservoir operation measures to reduce reservoir water level for flood preparedness and reduce the reservoir water level to maximum water level before flood according to regulations;

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against damage caused by any of the violations in this Article which cause flooding affecting production activities and life of the people in lowland of the reservoir.

Article 18. Violations of regulations on maintaining annual low-water flow upon the completion of works during dry season as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume or total volume smaller than the regulated one with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is less than 200 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 110,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is less than 20% smaller than the regulated one;

b) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 130,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is from 20% to less than 50% smaller than the regulated one;

c) A fine of between VND 130,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is 50% or more smaller than the regulated one;

d) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge the required volume or total volume of water.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume or total volume smaller than the regulated one with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 200 million m³ to less than 300 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 130,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is less than 20% smaller than the regulated one;

b) A fine of between VND 130,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is from 20% to less than 50% smaller than the regulated one;

c) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is 50% or more smaller than the regulated one;

d) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge the required volume or total volume of water.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume or total volume smaller than the regulated one with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is from 300 million m³ to less than 500 million m³:

a) A fine of between VND 130,000,000 and VND 140,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is less than 20% smaller than the regulated one;

b) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is from 20% to less than 50% smaller than the regulated one;

c) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume or total volume of discharged water is 50% or more smaller than the regulated one;

d) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge the required volume or total volume of water.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of discharging water with a volume or total volume smaller than the regulated one with respect to the reservoir whose total capacity is 500 million m³ or more:

a) A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is less than 20% smaller than the regulated one;

b) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is from 20% to less than 50% smaller than the regulated one;

c) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of discharged water is 50% or more smaller than the regulated one;

d) A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge the required volume or total volume of water.

5. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water with the regulated volume resulting in serious water shortage in the lowland.

6. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of measures to maintain the annual low-water flow upon the completion of works during dry season;

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against droughts or water shortage for the acts of violations specified in this Article results water shortage in the lowland.

Article 19. Violations of regulations on daily water discharge period during dry season as specified in inter-reservoir operation procedure

1. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of less than 5 days.

2. A fine of between VND 90,000,000 and VND 110,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of from 05 days to less than 10 days.

3. A fine of between VND 110,000,000 and VND 130,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of from 10 days to less than 20 days.

4. A fine of between VND 130,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of from 20 days to less than 30 days.

5. A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 170,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of from 30 days to less than 60 days.

6. A fine of between VND 170,000,000 and VND 190,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water on a daily basis within a period of 60 days or more.

7. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to discharge water within the specified period resulting in serious water shortage in the lowland.

8. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against droughts or water shortage for the acts of violations specified in this Article results in serious water shortage in the lowland and serious influence on operation of other reservoirs in the river basin.

Section 3. VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON WATER RESOURCES PROTECTION

Article 20. Acts of discharging wastewater into water sources without license as specified

1. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of more than 5 m³/24 hours to less than 50 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of more than 10,000 m³/24 hours to less than 30,000 m³/24 hours.

2. A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of more than 50 m³/24 hours to less than 100 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 30,000 m³/24 hours to less than 50,000 m³/24 hours.

3. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 100 m³/24 hours to less than 500 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 50,000 m³/24 hours to less than 70,000 m³/24 hours.

4. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging wastewater containing toxic chemicals and/or radioactive substances into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume not exceeding 5 m³/24 hours.

5. A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 500 m³/24 hours to less than 1,000 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 70,000 m³/24 hours to less than 100,000 m³/24 hours.

6. A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 1,000 m³/24 hours to less than 2.000 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 100,000 m³/24 hours to less than 150,000 m³/24 hours.

7. A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 220,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 2,000 m³/24 hours to less than 3,000 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of from 150,000 m³/24 hours to less than 200,000 m³/24 hours.

8. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Discharging wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of at least 3,000 m³/24 hours, except for the case specified at Point b of this Clause;

b) Discharging aquaculture wastewater into water sources with a discharged wastewater volume of at least 200,000 m³/24 hours.

9. Fines imposed for the act of discharge of wastewater which requires a license into the centralized wastewater collection and treatment system that is yet to be licensed to discharge wastewater into water sources are the same as those for corresponding violations specified at Point a Clauses 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of this Article.

10. Fines imposed for the act of discharge of wastewater into water sources with an unexpired license are the same as those for discharge of wastewater into water sources without the license as specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of this Article.

11. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against environmental pollution and/or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality.

Article 21. Violations of regulations on license to discharge wastewater into water sources

1. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit reports on discharge of wastewater into water sources to the competent state agency as specified by law;

b) Failing to promptly submit a report on the water pollution caused by discharge of wastewater to the licensing agency and local competent state agency.

c) Submitting an untruthful or insufficient report on discharge of wastewater into water sources to the competent state agency according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to discharge wastewater at the locations/co-ordinates specified in the license;

a) Failing to discharge wastewater into water sources according to the regulations and methods specified in the license.

3. A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 130,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to collect wastewater according to the design specified in the license;

b) Failing to correctly operate the wastewater treatment system according to operating procedure specified in the license;

c) Failing to have human resources and equipment necessary to respond to water pollution incidents;

d) Giving permission to other organizations and individuals to discharge wastewater into the wastewater collection and treatment system in which the license holder is invested and which is managed and operated by the license holder inconsistently with regulations in the license.

4. If the discharged wastewater volume exceeds the licensed one, fines imposed for exceeding volumes are the same as fines for corresponding violations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 Article 20 of this Decree.

5. Fines imposed for the act of discharge of wastewater containing pollutants with concentration in excess of the licensed one into water sources shall be governed by regulations on sanctioning of administrative violations of regulations on environmental protection.

6. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations against regulations of the license except for the violations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 of this Article.

7. Additional sanctions:

Deprivation of the right to use the license to discharge wastewater into water sources from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article results in water pollution or serious damage to aquatic ecosystems and aquaculture within an area.

8. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 22. Violations of regulations on water resources protection

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit reports on drilled well filling and sealing to the competent state agency according to regulations;

b) Failing to promptly submit reports on any emergency that adversely influences the water quality and/or drilled well’s water level to the competent state agency according to regulations;

c) Failing to conduct the filling and sealing of drilled wells which are no longer used or are damaged (for each drilled well) in case where the license to explore or exploit groundwater is not required;

d) Failing to notify the date and place of drilled well filling and sealing to the competent state agency according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Managing and operating a work in the manner that causes water loss or water waste;

b) Installing drilled well mouth against regulations;

c) Using drilled well cleaning and disinfection chemicals which are not on the list of allowed chemicals.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to take remedial measures against operating activities-induced emergencies that affect quality and/or water level in the drilled well;

b) Failing to conduct the filling and sealing of drilled wells which are no longer used or are damaged (for each drilled well) in case where the license to explore or exploit groundwater is required.

4. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to cooperate with the People’s Committee of the district or commune where the water exploitation work is available and relevant authorities in determining boundary of the domestic water supply protection zone for the work on site after the approval or announcement thereof.

5. A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to comply with national technical regulations on safety and prevention of groundwater degradation and depletion upon carrying out exploitation of mineral or underground construction.

6. A fine of between VND 140,000,000 and VND 160,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to build the rainwater collection system separately from the wastewater collection system while constructing, improving or upgrading businesses;

b) Failing to build the wastewater treatment system while constructing, improving or upgrading businesses.

7. A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharging wastewater or transporting wastes into the domestic water supply protection zone.

8. A fine of between VND 180,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of construction of groundwater exploitation works in the area where the groundwater exploitation is restricted according to regulations.

9. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharge of wastewater into bowels of the earth through drilled wells, dug wells and in other forms with the aim of discharging wastewater into bowels of the earth.

10. Additional sanctions:

b) Suspension of manufacturing and trading activities from 03 to 06 months if the violation specified at Point b Clause 6 of this Article.

11. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of filling and sealing of the drilled well/well if the violation specified at Point c Clause 1 and Point b Clause 3 of this Article;

b) Forcible dismantlement of the works for the acts of violations specified in Clause 7 and Clause 8 of this Article;

c) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 23. Violations of regulations on prevention and control of pollution, degradation and depletion of water resources

1. A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to adopt measures to prevent leaks or spillage of wastewater storage pond, lake or area if the stored wastewater does not contain hazardous waste.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of use of agrochemicals, veterinary medicines and other chemicals in crop production, breeding and aquaculture against technical regulations resulting in the water pollution.

3. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to formulate plans for prevention and control of pollution, degradation and depletion of water resources upon building economic zones, industrial parks, export-processing zones, hi-tech zones, industrial clusters, urban areas, populated areas, tourism areas, recreational areas, waterway routes, roads, underground works, water supply and drainage works, mining works, power plants, wastewater storage areas, businesses and other works that may cause pollution, degradation and depletion of water resources;

b) Failing to have plans, equipment and human resources for preventing and reducing sea water pollution when carrying out activities at sea.

4. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to implement measures to ensure safety and prevent leaks or loss resulting in pollution of water sources of businesses, service providers, mining facilities and other production activities that use toxic chemicals;

b) Failing to implement measures to prevent leaks or spillage of the pond, lake or zone storing wastewater that contains hazardous waste.

5. A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 220,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Pumping water and draining in mining or construction resulting in decrease of underground water levels and water depletion;

b) Failing to adopt remedial measures as instructed by the state agency managing water resources when pumping water and draining in mining or construction resulting in decrease of underground water level and water depletion.

6. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of discharge of toxic gases directly into the water sources.

7. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of manufacturing and trading activities from 01 to 03 months if the violation specified at Point b Clause 4 of this Article.

8. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 24. Violations of regulations on response to water pollution incidents

1. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to formulate a water pollution incident response plan;

b) Failing to provide equipment necessary for response to the water pollution incident caused by an act of violation;

c) Failing to notify the competent state agency of the occurrence of a water pollution incident.

2. A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to implement measures to promptly respond to the water pollution incident caused by an act of violation.

3. A fine of between VND 220,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to implement measures to promptly respond to the water pollution incident caused by an act of violation resulting in serious water pollution.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against environmental pollution and/or degradation of water resources caused by any of the violations specified in Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article.

Article 25. Violations of regulations on maintenance of water flow and prevention of river bank and terrace erosion

1. A caution or a fine of between VND 100,000 and VND 500,000 shall be imposed for the act of laying obstacles or planting trees to block flood drainage, water flow on rivers, streams, ponds, canals or ditches.

2. A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of laying pipelines or cables across a river, stream or canal or laying cages or rafts against the technical regulations on flood control and relevant technical requirements as specified by law resulting in obstruction of water flow.

3. A fine of between VND 15,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of carrying out mineral mining or construction of a bridge/wharf or another river/stream/canal closure work or work across a river/stream/canal against the technical regulations on flood control and relevant technical requirements as specified by law resulting in obstruction of water flows.

4. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Building embankments, fortifying river bank, dredging or clearing channels to open inland channels and routes, building hydraulic works or exploiting sand, gravel and other minerals from rivers or lakes against the plan approved by the competent state agency;

b) Leveling a pond, lake or lagoon on the list of ponds, lakes and lagoons prohibited from leveling approved by a competent state agency.

c) Failing to suspend the dredging or clearing of channels to open inland channels and routes or exploitation of sand, gravel and other minerals from rivers or lakes if any sign of erosion appears.

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of leveling rivers, streams, canals or channels resulting in narrowing of the flow without approval by a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of narrowing less than 5% of the cross-section of a river, stream, channel or canal;

b) A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of narrowing from 5% to less than 20% of the cross-section of a river, stream, channel or canal;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of narrowing from 20% to less than 30% of the cross-section of a river, stream, channel or canal;

d) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of narrowing from 30% to less than 50% of the cross-section of a river, stream, channel or canal;

dd) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of narrowing at least 50% of the cross-section of a river, stream, channel or canal.

6. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Building embankments, fortifying river bank, dredging or clearing channels to open inland channels and routes, building hydraulic works or exploiting sand, gravel and other minerals from rivers or lakes against the plan approved by the competent state agency resulting in river bed, bank or terrace erosion or serious waterlogging in riparian zones;

b) Using the area of the encroached river for the purpose not approved by the competent state agency.

7. Violations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 5 of this Article in connection with channels or canals of irrigation work systems shall be handled in accordance with regulations on sanctioning of administrative violations of regulations on operation and protection of irrigation works.

8. Additional sanctions:

a) Suspension of the activities for 01 to 03 months if the violation specified in Clause 6 of this Article;

b) Suspension of the activity from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 5 of this Article.

9. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible restoration of the original condition which has been changed by any of the violations specified in this Article;

b) Forcible dismantlement of the works or remove or relocate the obstacles to the flow for the acts of violations specified in this Article.

c) Forcible dismantlement of the works or remove or relocate the obstacles on the area of the encroached river if the violation specified at Point b Clause 6 of this Article.

Article 26. Violations of regulations on safety perimeters of water resources

1. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on the facility operating inside the safety perimeter of water resources for its failing to adopt measures to treat, control and supervise quality of wastewater or waste before it is discharged into land or water sources.

2. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of carrying out mineral mining, drilling or construction of buildings or architectures inside the safety perimeter of water resources resulting in erosion on the banks of river, stream, channel, canal or reservoir.

3. A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of performance of any of the following acts without obtaining written consent from the Provincial-level Department of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the acts performed within the safety perimeters of irrigation works:

a) Building a warehouse, wharf, port, bridge, traffic route, underground work or another infrastructure;

b) Leveling or constructing embankments of a river, stream, channel, canal, irrigation reservoir, hydroelectric reservoir, natural or artificial reservoir, except for the construction of urgent works serving natural disaster management or erosion prevention or training works on rivers where disaster management works and dikes are available;

c) Carrying out drilling or digging to serve the geological surveys, exploration/mining of minerals, foundation handling or mine dewatering;

d) Mining minerals or building materials.

4. A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 180,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of construction of a hospital or health facility specialized in treatment of infectious diseases, cemetery, landfills, toxic chemical manufacturing establishment or manufacturing and processing establishment that have hazardous wastewater inside the safety perimeter of water resources.

5. Remedial measures:

a) Forcible dismantlement of the violating works specified in Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article;

b) Forcible implementation of remedial measures against pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Article 27. Violations of regulations on prevention and control of saltwater intrusion

1. A fine of between VND 6,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exploiting or using brackish water or saltwater for production or aquaculture outside the area reserved for aquaculture resulting in the movement of saline water into water sources.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to comply with technical procedures and regulations on management and operation of sluices constructed to prevent saline intrusion or storing fresh water, and reservoirs/flow regulation works resulting in movement of saline water into water sources.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to adopt measures to prevent saltwater intrusion into aquifers when carrying out the exploration and exploitation of groundwater in plains or coastal areas.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of remedial measures against pollution, degradation or depletion of water resources for the act of violations specified in this Article causes pollution and/or degradation of water quality and decrease in water quantity.

Section 4. VIOLATIONS AGAINST OTHER REGULATIONS ON WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

Article 28. Violations of regulations on land subsidence prevention and control

1. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to comply with technical regulations on safety, prevention and control of land subsidence when carrying out drilling activities for groundwater exploration and exploitation or drilling for dewatering of mine or foundation pit.

2. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to apply remedial measures upon the occurrence of land subsidence in course of drilling for groundwater exploration and exploitation;

b) Failing to immediately notify the nearest local authority of the occurrence of land subsidence in course of drilling for groundwater exploration and exploitation.

3. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of the groundwater exploration and exploitation from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified at Points a and b Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible restoration of the original condition which has been changed by the violation specified at Point a Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 29. Violations against other regulations on water resources management

1. A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Making untruthful statements to be offered incentives for economical and efficient use of water;

b) Using incentives for economical and efficient use of water for improper purposes.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 15,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of providing inaccurate information/data on water resources to the state agency managing water resources as requested.

3. A fine of between VND 15,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to publish sufficient information concerning the project’s exploitation and use of water resources or discharge of wastewater into water sources according to regulations;

b) Failing to adopt the specified methods of publishing information concerning the project’s exploitation and use of water resources or discharge of wastewater into water sources;

c) Failing to submit the application dossier for calculating fees for granting water exploitation rights within the specified time limit.

4. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 25,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of illegally accessing the water resources data and information systems.

5. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Providing inaccurate information about seeking of opinions from relevant residential communities, organizations and individuals according to regulations;

b) Failing to publish information concerning the project’s exploitation and use of water resources or discharge of wastewater into water sources according to regulations;

c) Including inaccurate information in the application dossier for calculating charge processing of application dossier for grant of water exploitation rights;

d) Failing to make full payment of fees for processing of application dossier for grant of water exploitation rights.

6. A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Including inaccurate information in the application dossier for license to explore or exploit water resources, or discharge wastewater into water sources;

b) Failing to seek opinions from relevant residential communities, organizations and individuals according to regulations;

c) Failing to pay fees for granting water exploitation rights;

c) Failing to submit the application dossier for calculating fees for granting water exploitation rights according to regulations;

dd) Failing to submit the application dossier for adjustment to fees for granting water exploitation rights if the adjustment is required;

e) Failing to submit the application dossier for adjustment or re-issuance of the license to explore or exploit water resources if the adjustment or re-issuance is required.

7. A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 250,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Building a reservoir, dam or water exploitation work inconsistently with the water resource master plans;

b) Failing to comply with the decision on restriction on groundwater exploitation issued by the competent state agency.

8. Additional sanctions:

a) Suspension of the exploitation or use of groundwater from 01 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified at Point b Clause 7 of this Article;

b) Deprivation of the right to use the license to exploit water resources for a period from 01 to less than 03 months if the violation specified at Point d Clause 5 of this Article is committed, or from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified at Points a, b and c Clauses 5 and 6 of this Article.

9. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible correction of falsified information/data resulted from the violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article;

b) Forcible dismantlement or forcible relocation of the works if the violation specified at Point a Clause 7 of this Article.

Chapter III

ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON MINERALS, SANCTIONING FORMS AND LEVELSS AND REMEDIAL MEASURES

Section 1. VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON RESPONSIBILITY OF ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS PERFORMING MINERAL ACTIVITIES AND MANAGING MINERALS

Article 30. Violations of regulations on field surveys and collection of samples from land surface to select the area for formulating mineral exploration project

1. A caution or a fine shall be imposed for the act of collecting mineral samples from the land surface in excess of the quantity, weight and sampling time approved by the provincial-level People’s Committee:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for collecting samples of minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 3,000,000 shall be imposed if the collection of mineral samples is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed if the collection of mineral samples is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of conducting field surveys and taking samples from land surface to select area for formulating the mineral exploration project without obtaining the written approval from the People’s Committee of the province where the minerals are available:

a) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 3,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for taking samples to formulate the project on exploration of minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed if the collection of mineral samples is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the collection of mineral samples is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Article 31. Violations of regulations on notification of the exploration plan, reporting of mineral exploration results, requirements for execution of mineral exploration projects, obligations to be fulfilled upon the expiry of mineral exploration license

1. A caution or a fine shall be imposed for the act of failing to send written notification of the mineral exploration plan to the People’s Committee of province where minerals to be explored are located:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for collecting samples of minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 3,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

2. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit a periodic report on mineral exploration within 30 days from February 1 of the year succeeding the reporting period or failing to the competent state management agency in charge of minerals.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of submitting a report containing inaccurate content that there is a difference of exceeding 10% between the actual volume of explored minerals and the volume specified in the mineral exploration plan approved by a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to apply for approval for mineral reserves after 30 days or more from the end of the exploration duration specified in the mineral exploration license:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit a report on mineral exploration results enclosed with the decision on approval for mineral deposit to be included in geological achieves within 90 days from the date on which the decision on approval for mineral reserves is issued by the competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

6. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to satisfy all eligibility requirements for practicing mineral exploration when executing the mineral exploration project or signing a contract with the organization that fails to satisfy all eligibility requirements for practicing mineral exploration:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

7. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to execute the mineral exploration project against the approved contents specified and failing to comply with regulations specified in the mineral exploration license:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

8. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to move all its assets and assets of relevant parties from the exploration area, or failing to conduct the leveling of exploration site and protect unexploited minerals as specified by law, or failing to provide specimens and information concerning collected minerals to the competent state management agency in charge of minerals as specified by law within 06 months from the expiry of the mineral exploration license;

b) Arbitrarily making a change to the exploration method or the exploration volumes which results in a change in the cost by more than 10% of the total estimated cost without approval by a competent state agency.

9. Remedial measures:

Forcible carrying out of leveling of exploration works; adopt measures to protect unexploited minerals and environmental remediation measures, and transfer mineral specimens and their related information to the competent state agency for the acts of violations specified in Clause 8 of this Article.

Article 32. Violations of regulations on mineral exploration areas

1. A caution shall be issued for any of the following violations:

a) Planting boundary markers at corner points of a licensed mineral exploration area inconsistently with required specifications or failing to plant sufficient boundary markers at corner points of a licensed mineral exploration area;

b) Exceeding the designed depth by less than 25% or 10 m in the appraised mineral exploration project without the permission of the authority issuing the mineral exploration license when exploring minerals while the exploration work (trench, well, drift or drilled well) is located within the licensed exploration area.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to plant boundary markers at corner points of the licensed mineral exploration area:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. Exceeding the designed depth by from 25% to less than 50% or from 10 m to less than 50 m in the appraised mineral exploration project without the permission of the authority issuing the mineral exploration license when exploring minerals while the exploration work (trench, well, drift or drilled well) is located within the licensed exploration area:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. Exceeding the designed depth by from 50% to less than 100% or from 50 m to less than 70 m in the appraised mineral exploration project without the permission of the authority issuing the mineral exploration license when exploring minerals while the exploration work (trench, well, drift or drilled well) is located within the licensed exploration area:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the designed depth by at least 100% or 70 m in the appraised mineral exploration project without the permission of the authority issuing the mineral exploration license when exploring minerals while the exploration work (trench, well, drift or drilled well) is located within the licensed exploration area:

a) A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 120,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

6. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploring minerals beyond the boundary of the licensed mineral exploration area:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

7. Additional sanctions:

a) Suspension of the mineral exploration if the exploration is carried out using at least 05 exploration works or the violation is recommitted: For from 01 to less than 03 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 3 is committed, from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 4 is committed and for 06 – 09 months for the act of violations specified in Clauses 5 and 6 of this Article;

b) Confiscation of the specimens that are minerals for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5 and 6 of this Article.

8. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of leveling the exploration works and adopt measures for environmental remediation in the exploration area beyond the licensed exploration area for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5 and 6 of this Article.

Article 33. Violations of regulations on transfer of mineral exploration rights

Fines shall be imposed for the act of transfer of mineral exploration rights or receipt of the transferred mineral exploration rights without obtaining a written approval from the competent state agency:

1. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials.

2. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Article 34. Violations of regulations on exploration of toxic minerals

1. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to implement or insufficiently implementing environmental pollution prevention measures specified in the mineral exploration project provided that the exploration is yet to cause environmental pollution.

2. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of insufficiently implementing environmental pollution prevention measures which are specified in the mineral exploration project resulting in environmental pollution caused by the exploration.

3. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of insufficiently implementing remedial measures against environmental pollution caused by the exploration.

4. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to implement remedial measures against environmental pollution caused by the exploration.

5. Additional sanctions:

Suspension the mineral exploration in case of recidivism or repeated administrative violation: For from 01 to less than 03 months if the violation specified in Clause 1 is committed, for from 03 to less than 06 months if the violation specified in Clause 2 is committed, for from 06 to less than 09 months if the violation specified in Clause 3 is committed and from 09 to 12 months if the violation specified in Clause 4 of this Article is committed.

6. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of measures to prevent the environmental pollution and adverse effects on human health if the violation specified in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Forcible implementation of all remedial measures against environmental pollution for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 2, 3 and 4 of this Article.

Article 35. Violations against other regulations on mineral exploration

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of conducting mineral exploration activities with an unexpired mineral exploration license or while applying for extension of the mineral exploration license without approval by a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 if the mineral exploration license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to obtain a mineral exploration license as specified when conducting exploration activities:

a) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified at Point d and dd of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

dd) A fine of between VND 600,000,000 and VND 800,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of constructing drilling works or furnaces intended for mineral exploration before the mineral exploration license is obtained:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in the case of from 01 to 04 drilled wells and drifts.

d) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in the case of at least 05 drilled wells and drifts.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of leveling the exploration works and adopt measures for environmental remediation in the area where the exploration has been carried out for the acts of violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 36. Violations of regulations on mine fundamental construction, reporting of mineral mining, payment of fees for granting mineral mining or exploration rights and upgrading of mineral reserves/resources category

1. A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to send a written notification of the date of commencement of mine fundamental construction or the date of commencement of exploration activities to the licensing agency and/or the People’s Committee at the place where the mine is located;

b) Failing to send notify the licensing agency of the case in which the exploitation is suspended for 01 year or more;

c) Failing to include sufficient information in the periodical report on mineral mining according to the template provided by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

d) Failing to submit the ad hoc report within 15 days from the date on which the written request is received or within the time limit required by the competent state management agency in charge of minerals.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to register the date of commencement of mine fundamental construction; failing to register the date of commencement of exploitation with the licensing agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 if the license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Submitting the periodical report on mineral mining to the competent state agency 15 - 29 days after the deadline, which is February 01 of the year succeeding the reporting period.;

b) Failing to retain results of mineral exploration carried out to upgrade mineral reserves/resources category within the licensed mining area.

4. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of submitting the periodical report on mineral mining to the competent state agency at least 30 days after the deadline, which is February 01 of the year succeeding the reporting period.

5. Fines shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation: Failing to notify the plan, volume and time for carrying out exploration to upgrade mineral reserves/resources category within the licensed mineral exploration area to the licensing agency before the exploration; failing to submit exploration results to the competent state agency for approval before termination of exploration carried out to upgrade mineral reserves category:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

6. Deprivation of the right to use mineral mining license from 01 to 03 months for failing to sufficiently pay fees for granting mining right in the case where, after the last period of the year in which such fees have to be paid but they have not been paid or the fees for the year preceding the time of inspection have not been paid as notified by the competent state agency; or from 03 to 06 months for failing to pay fees for granting mining right after the last period of the year in which such fees have to be paid and fees for the year preceding such year.

7. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit the application dossier for calculating fees for granting mining right to the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam (the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment) or provincial-level Department of Natural Resources and Environment (provincial-level People’s Committee) with respect to the areas licensed for exploitation before the effective date of the Government’s Decree No. 203/2013/ND-CP dated November 28, 2013.

8. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of submitting the application dossier for calculating fees for granting mining right against regulations on fees for granting mining right with respect to the poly-metallic mines that have at least 02 of the following metals: iron, copper, lead, zinc, tin, wolfram, nickel, cobalt, bismuth, antimony, gold, silver and platinum which are 2% in group 7 – other metallic minerals provided in the Appendix I enclosed with Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP.

Article 37. Violations of regulations on mining areas

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to plant boundary markers at corner points of the licensed mining area:

a) A fine of between VND 2,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 for planting boundary markers against the technical specifications or losing boundary markers although there are documents proving boundary markers have been planted at corner points of the licensed mining area.

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to plant boundary markers in full quantity as specified in the mineral mining license although the boundary markers are planted at corner points according to technical specifications in the licensed mining area; for failing to notify the local competent state agency or competent state management agency in charge of minerals of planting of boundary markers at corner points in the licensed mining area.

2. A caution or a fine shall be imposed for the act of failing to plant boundary markers at corner points of the licensed mineral exploration area:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploitation of minerals (other than river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel) with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area up to under 0.1 hectare (by surface); from 0.5 m to under 01 m (by depth or height) with an area of at least 0.1 hectare:

a) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploitation of minerals (other than river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel) with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area (by surface) from 0.1 hectare to under 0.5 hectare; from 01 m to under 02 m (by depth or height) with an area of at least 0.1 hectare:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploitation of minerals (other than river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel) with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area from 0.5 hectare to under 01 hectare (by surface); from 02 m to under 03 m (by depth or height) with an area of at least 0.1 hectare:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for exploring minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified at Point d of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 if minerals are gold, silver, platinum, precious stones or toxic minerals which are exploited under the license issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

6. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploitation of minerals (other than river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel) with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area (by surface) from 01 hectare to under 1.5 hectare; from 03 m to under 05 m (by depth or height) with an area of at least 0.1 hectare:

a) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified at Point c of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 if minerals are gold, silver, platinum, precious stones or toxic minerals which are exploited under the license issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

7. If the act of mining minerals (other than river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel) with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area at least 01 hectare (by surface) in case of the household business (at least 1.5 hectare in other cases); at least 05 m (by depth or height) with an area of at least 0.1 hectare is considered the act of mining minerals without obtaining the mineral mining license from a competent state agency, the corresponding maximum fines specified in Article 47 of this Decree shall be imposed.

8. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of exploiting river, stream or lake bed sand or gravel with a total exploitation area exceeding the boundary of licensed mining area (by surface) or exceeding the permissible depth:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exploiting sand or gravel with a total exploitation area exceeding the nearest point of the boundary of the licensed mining area up to under 100 m (by surface) or up to under 02 m (by depth);

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exploiting sand or gravel with a total exploitation area exceeding the nearest point of the boundary of the licensed mining area from 100 m to under 200 m (by surface) or from 02 m to under 05 m (by depth);

c) If the act of exploiting sand or gravel with a total exploitation area exceeding the nearest point of the boundary of the licensed mining area at least 200 m (by surface) or at least 05 m (by depth) is considered the act of exploiting sand or gravel without obtaining the mineral mining license from a competent state agency, the corresponding maximum fines specified at Point e Clause 1 and Point e Clause 2 Article 48 of this Decree shall be imposed.

9. Additional sanctions:

Deprivation of the right to use the mineral mining license in case of recidivism: For from 03 to less than 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 4 is committed, for from 06 to less than 09 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 5 and Point a Clause 8 is committed, for 09 – 12 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 6 and Point b Clause 8 is committed and for 12 - 15 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 7 and Point c Clause 8 of this Article.

10. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible improvement and remediation of the environment; adopt measures to bring the exploitation area beyond the licensed mining area to safe state. In case of exploitation of sand and gravel from river, stream or lake beds, compensate for and pay the costs of repairing damage caused by the violations to dams, other technical infrastructures or civil constructions;

b) Forcible refund of the illicit profits obtained from the administrative violations specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of this Article;

c) Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 of this Article.

Article 38. Violations of regulations on mine design

1. A caution or fine shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation: Formulating or giving approval for mine design whose contents are not conformable with the approved investment project and fundamental design, and the mineral mining license; making an adjustment or change to mining technology or mining capacity which is not conformable to the approved mine design without approval by a competent state agency:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 3,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

2. A caution or fine shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit the approved mine design to the competent state management agency in charge of minerals:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. Fines shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation: Failing to mine minerals using the mining methods specified in the mineral mining license; the mine opening and preparation systems (for underground mining) or opening system (for open-pit mining); the mining procedures; the mining system; one of the parameters of a mining system, including bench height and bench face angle; dumping waste at a location other than that specified in the approved mine design/economic and technical report without written approval by a competent state agency; failing to mine minerals within mining time frame or in quantity or with mining equipment specified in the license or written permission granted by the competent state agency with respect to river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives;

c) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives;

d) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals without formulating a mine design according to regulations:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

5. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 3 and 4 of this Article is re-committed.

6. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of mining minerals using the mining methods specified in the mineral mining license; the mine opening and preparation systems (for underground mining) or opening system (for open-pit mining); the mining procedures; the mining system; the parameters of a mining system, including bench height and bench face angle; dump waste at the location specified in the approved mine design/economic and technical report; mine minerals within mining time frame or in quantity or with mining equipment specified in the license (regarding river, stream and lake bed sand and gravel for the act of violation specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 39. Violations of regulations on mine executive director

1. Fines shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation of regulations on mine executive director, except for artisanal mining or mining of mineral water:

a) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to send written notification of professional qualification of the mine executive director to the licensing agency;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on an individual who possesses two valid executive manager contracts or more at the same time or for appointing a person as a mine executive director to manage mineral mining (at the same time) for two mineral mining licenses or more.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of appointing a person as a mine executive director against the specified standard:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause; mining peat;

d) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the cases specified at Points a and b of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified at Point e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals without a mine executive director:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 160,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

4. Additional sanctions:

a) Suspension of mining from 01 to 03 months for the acts of violations specified at Points a and b Clause 3 of this Article is re-committed.

b) Suspension of mining from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified at Points c, d and dd and Point e Clause 3 of this Article is re-committed.

Article 40. Violations of regulations on development of status quo maps and cross-section drawings of status quo of licensed mining areas; producing statistics and stocktaking of mined mineral reserves and mineral production

1. A caution shall be imposed for the act of failing to install cameras in warehouses and places where crude minerals are moved from mines to serve storage of relevant information.

2. A caution or fine shall be imposed for the act of failing to install weigh station and camera system in a warehouse or place where crude minerals are moved from the mine to serve storage of relevant information (excluding the household business’ mining of minerals which are used as common building materials; exploitation of river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel):

a) A caution shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials with a permissible mining capacity of less than 30,000 m³/year;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining toxic minerals.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to sufficiently manage and retain mine status quo map and cross-section drawing of the licensed mining area as specified by law:

a) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining toxic minerals.

4. A caution or fines shall be imposed for the act of developing a mine status quo map or cross-section drawing of the licensed mining area which contains inadequate or incorrect information about the mining situation (except for mining of river, stream, lake or sea bed sand and gravel or exploitation of hot water or mineral water); failing to prepare sufficient relevant books and documents to determine actual mineral production or for provision of inaccurate information; failing to comply with procedures and templates for producing statistics of actual mineral production in accordance with regulations laid down by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment:

a) A caution shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of developing or updating the mine status quo map within 06 months; failing to develop a cross-section drawing of the licensed mining area:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing open-pit mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals by employing underground mining methods, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and e of this Clause;

e) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

6. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to send or sending statistical/stocktaking results of the remaining mineral reserves in the licensed mining area to the provincial-level Department of Natural Resources and Environment if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee or to the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment 30 days after the deadline, which is the last day of the periodic reporting period; failing to retain or insufficiently and incorrectly retaining statistical data and documents for determining actual mineral production:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

7. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of preparing a statistical report or stocktaking report on remaining mineral reserves in the licensed mining area which fails to sufficiently contain information in the form promulgated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment:

a) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

8. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to produce statistics and carry out stocktaking of the remaining minerals in the licensed mining area; failing to produce statistics or calculate monthly actual mineral production; failing to prepare relevant books and documents to determine the annual actual mineral production:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

9. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of the mineral exploration in case of recidivism or repeated administrative violation: from 02 to 04 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 4 of this Article; from 04 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 5 of this Article.

10. Remedial measures:

Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 3, 4 and 5 of this Article.

Article 41. Violations of regulations on permissible mining capacity

1. A caution shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the annual permissible mining capacity specified in the mineral mining license by less than 15% upon mining.

2. A fine shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the annual permissible mining capacity specified in the mineral mining license by from 15% to less than 25% upon mining:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining mineral water; river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel; minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining other types of minerals, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c, dd, e, g and h of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals;

e) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 400,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks with a monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.4 m³, including granite, gabbro, marble, white limestone, white marble and ornamental stones, fine art stones with monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.1 m³;

g) A fine of between VND 400,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: minerals used as cement materials, including all types of stones used as cement raw materials: cement limestone, cement clay, stones used as cement additives and limestone, dolomite used as raw materials for production of industrial lime;

h) A fine of between VND 500,000,000 and VND 600,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining coal.

3. A fine shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the annual permissible mining capacity specified in the mineral mining license by from 25% to less than 50% upon mining:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining mineral water; river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel; minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining other types of minerals, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c, dd, e, g and h of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 400,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, platinum or toxic minerals;

e) A fine of between VND 400,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks with a monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.4 m³, including granite, gabbro, marble, white limestone, white marble and ornamental stones, fine art stones with monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.1 m³;

g) A fine of between VND 500,000,000 and VND 600,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: minerals used as cement materials, including all types of stones used as cement raw materials: cement limestone, cement clay, stones used as cement additives and limestone, dolomite used as raw materials for production of industrial lime;

h) A fine of between VND 600,000,000 and VND 700,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining coal.

4. A fine shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the annual permissible mining capacity specified in the mineral mining license by from 50% to less than 100% upon mining:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 400,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining mineral water; river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel; minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 400,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining other types of minerals, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c, dd, e, g and h of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 500,000,000 and VND 600,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals;

e) A fine of between VND 600,000,000 and VND 700,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks with a monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.4 m³, including granite, gabbro, marble, white limestone, white marble and ornamental stones, fine art stones with monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.1 m³;

g) A fine of between VND 700,000,000 and VND 800,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: minerals used as cement materials, including all types of stones used as cement raw materials: cement limestone, cement clay, stones used as cement additives and limestone, dolomite used as raw materials for production of industrial lime;

h) A fine of between VND 800,000,000 and VND 900,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining coal.

5. A fine shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the annual permissible mining capacity specified in the mineral mining license by 100% or more upon mining:

a) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 400,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining mineral water; river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel; minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 500,000,000 and VND 600,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining other types of minerals, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c, dd, e, g and h of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 600,000,000 and VND 700,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals;

e) A fine of between VND 700,000,000 and VND 800,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks with a monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.4 m³, including granite, gabbro, marble, white limestone, white marble and ornamental stones, fine art stones with monolithic recovery of ≥ 0.1 m³;

g) A fine of between VND 800,000,000 and VND 900,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining the minerals specified in Clause 5 Article 6 of Decree No. 67/2019/ND-CP: minerals used as cement materials, including all types of stones used as cement raw materials: cement limestone, cement clay, stones used as cement additives and limestone, dolomite used as raw materials for production of industrial lime;

h) A fine of between VND 900,000,000 and VND 1,000,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining coal.

6. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of the mineral exploration in case of recidivism: from 01 to 02 months, 02 - 03 months, 03 - 04 months, 04 - 05 months and 05 – 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 1, Clause 2, Clause 3, Clause 4 and Clause 5 of this Article is committed respectively.

7. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of measures to improve environmental protection works, remedial measures against environmental pollution and/or damage caused by the act of exceeding permissible mining capacity to technical infrastructures.

b) Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 Clause 5 of this Article.

Article 42. Violations of regulations on submission of application dossiers for adjustment to the mineral mining license

Fines shall be imposed for the act of carrying out mining without submitting the application dossier for adjustment to the mineral mining license according to regulations:

1. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed in case of change of name of the mining organization or individual.

2. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed in remaining cases, except for the case of increase in capacity and the case specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 43. Violations of regulations on mining of minerals used as common building materials which does not require mineral mining license

1. A caution or fine shall be imposed for the act of failing to use minerals used as common building materials mined from the area of land owned by a household or individual to build the works of such household or individual:

a) A caution shall be imposed if mined minerals are donated to another person;

b) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed if mined minerals are sold to another organization or individual.

2. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to register the mining area, capacity, volume, methods, equipment and plans with the People’s Committee of the province where the mined minerals are available in case minerals used as common building materials are mined from area of the land reserved for the construction project approved or licensed by a competent state agency and used for the construction; or for obtaining sand and gravel from the channel dredging and clearing project without registering the volume dredged or amount of sand exploited with the People’s Committee of province where channel dredging and clearing are carried out.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals used as common building materials from area of the land reserved for the construction project whose investment guidelines have been approved by a competent state agency but failing to use the mined minerals for the construction without approval by an authority that has the power to issue the mineral mining license:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if mined minerals are used by another organization or individual or reserved for another project/work;

b) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if mined minerals are sold to another organization or individual.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible refund of illicit profits obtained from the administrative violations specified in Clause 1 and 3 of this Article.

Article 44. Violations of regulations on mining minerals that are not minerals used as common building materials within scope of construction project

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals that are not the ones used as common building materials within the scope (area, depth) of the construction project whose investment guidelines have been approved by a competent state agency without obtaining the mineral mining license from a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if an application dossier for the mineral mining license has been submitted to the licensing agency but the mineral mining license has not yet been issued;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit an application dossier for the mineral mining license to the licensing agency according to regulations;

2. Additional sanctions:

Confiscation of all cash-equivalent minerals obtained from the administrative violations in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. Remedial measures:

Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

Article 45. Violations of regulations on transfer of mining rights

Fines shall be imposed for the act of transfer of mining rights or receipt of the transferred mining rights without obtaining a written approval from the competent state agency:

1. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials.

2. A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining of other minerals is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

3. A fine of between VND 260,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

Article 43. Violations of regulations on obligations of a mining right auction winner

1. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit an application dossier for the mineral mining license to the licensing agency within 06 months from the issuance date of the written certification of the mining right auction result according to regulations.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit an application dossier for the mineral mining license to the licensing agency within 12 months from the issuance date of the written certification of the mining right auction result according to regulations.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of transfer of the mining right auction result to another organization or individual for submitting the application dossier for the mineral mining license without obtaining a written approval from the competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 if the mineral mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee;

b) A fine of between VND 260,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 if the mineral mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. In addition to sanctions imposed for failing to pay hammer price for the mining right as notified by the competent state agency as regulated by the Law on Tax Administration, the violating organization or individual may face an additional penalty that is suspension of the mineral mining license from 04 to 06 months. If the mineral mining license has not been issued, the competent state agency shall invalidate the mining right auction winning result.

Article 47. Violations of regulations on mining of minerals (other than river, stream or river sand and gravel) without obtaining a mineral mining license from the competent state agency

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals used as common building materials without using industrial explosives:

a) A fine of between VND 1,000,000 and VND 3,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is less than 10 m³;

b) A fine of between VND 3,000,000 and VND 5,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 10 m³ to less than 20 m³;

c) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 20 m³ to less than 30 m³;

d) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 30 m³ to less than 40 m³;

dd) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 40 m³ to less than 50 m³;

e) A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is at least 50 m³.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives or mining other minerals, except for the cases specified in Clause 1 and Clause 3 of this Article:

a) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the cases specified at Point a of this Clause and Clause 3 of this Article;

c) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals:

a) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is less than 100 tons;

b) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is from 100 tons to less than 200 tons;

c) A fine of between VND 300,000,000 and VND 400,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is from 200 tons to less than 300 tons;

d) A fine of between VND 500,000,000 and VND 600,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is from 300 tons to less than 400 tons;

dd) A fine of between VND 700,000,000 and VND 800,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is from 400 tons to less than 500 tons;

e) A fine of between VND 800,000,000 and VND 1,000,000,000 shall be imposed if the volume of mined crude minerals is at least 500 tons.

4. Additional sanctions:

Confiscation of all cash-equivalent minerals; confiscation of means used for commission of administrative violations for the acts of violations specified in Clause 1, Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article.

5. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible implementation of environmental improvement and remediation measures within areas where the mining was carried out; forcible implementation of measures to bring such areas to safe state.

b) Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 1, 2 and 3 of this Article.

The maximum fines for the violations specified in Clauses 1, 2 and 3 of this Article shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals without mineral mining license within areas where the mining is prohibited or temporarily prohibited. Additional sanctions are the same for those specified in Clause 4 of this Article.

Article 48. Violations of regulations on mining of river, stream and lake sand and gravel without obtaining a mineral mining license from the competent state agency

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining sand and gravel within the safety perimeters of irrigation works; safety corridors of channels; safety perimeters of channels or inland waterway infrastructure works without obtaining the mineral mining license from a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is less than 10 m³;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 10 m³ to less than 20 m³;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 20 m³ to less than 30 m³;

d) A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 30 m³ to less than 40 m³;

dd) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 40 m³ to less than 50 m³;

e) A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is at least 50 m³.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of mining sand and gravel outside the safety perimeters of irrigation works; safety corridors of channels; safety perimeters of channels or inland waterway infrastructure works without obtaining the mineral mining license from a competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is less than 10 m³;

b) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 10 m³ to less than 20 m³;

c) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 20 m³ to less than 30 m³;

d) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 30 m³ to less than 40 m³;

dd) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is from 40 m³ to less than 50 m³;

e) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if, at the time of discovering the violation, the total volume of mined minerals is at least 50 m³.

3. Additional sanctions:

Confiscation of all cash-equivalent minerals; confiscation of means used for commission of violations for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 1 and Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Remedial measures:

 a) Forcible improvement and remediation of the environment; implementation of measures to bring areas where the mining was carried out to safe state; compensation for and payment the costs of repairing damage caused by the violations to dykes, other technical infrastructural constructions and civil constructions;

b) Forcible payment of the costs of expertise solicitation, verification and measurement for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article.

The maximum fines for the violations specified in Clause 1 of this Article shall be imposed for the act of mining minerals without mineral mining license within areas where the mining is prohibited or temporarily prohibited. Additional sanctions are the same for those specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 49. Violations of regulations on mine closure

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to failing to perform adequate volume of work items, sufficiently implement measures to bring a mining area to safe state or land restoration measures as defined in the mine closure project approved by the competent state agency, failing to request the licensing agency to inspect and give permission to partially close the mine before conducting environmental improvement and remediation in areas where minerals are mined in full; or closing the mine 90 days or more after the approved closure date without submitting a report on the closure:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 40,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to perform volume of work items, implement measures to bring a mining area to safe state or land restoration measures as defined in the mine closure project approved by the competent state agency:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to set up mine closure projects in the cases specified in Article 73 of the Law on Minerals:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit an application dossier for mine closure to the competent state agency as specified 12 months or more after the expiry date of the mineral mining license:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 80,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 80,000,000 and VND 150,000,000 shall be imposed if the mining is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

5. A fine of between VND 200,000,000 and VND 300,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of dismantling or destruction of structures or equipment used to protect the mine safety or surrounding environment when the mineral exploitation license expires.

6. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of sufficient measures to bring a mining area to safe state or land restoration measures as defined in the mine closure project approved by the competent state agency for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article;

Article 50. Violations of regulations on legitimate interests of local authorities and people in mining areas

1. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to perform adequate volume of road construction and upgradation items to serve mining activities as defined in the approved mining project or mine design.

2. A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to perform volume of road construction and upgradation items to serve mining activities as defined in the approved mining project or mine design.

3. Remedial measures:

Forcible implementation of adequate volume of road construction and upgradation items for the acts of violations specified in this Article.

Article 51. Violations of regulations on use of minerals-related information

1. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of using results of state-invested geological surveys of minerals or mineral exploration results which are not provided by the competent state agency to set up mineral exploration or mining projects.

2. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed on an organization or individual that is mining minerals for sufficiently reimbursing or failing to reimburse the costs of conducting the geological baseline survey of minerals or mineral exploration upon using minerals-related information to serve mining activities (excluding the geological baseline surveys of minerals or mineral exploration has been previously conducted by an organization as regulated).

3. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

4. Remedial measures:

Forcible payment of fees for using minerals-related information as notified by the competent state agency to state budget; payment of late payment fines as regulated by the Law on Tax Administration.

Article 52. Violations against other regulations on mining

1. A caution shall be imposed for the act of failing to report all types of minerals discovered in the area where the mineral survey, assessment or exploration is conducted to the licensing agency.

2. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to report types of discovered in the area where the mineral survey, assessment or exploration is conducted to the licensing agency.

3. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit a written report on new types of minerals discovered in course of mining to the licensing agency;

b) Keeping mining or using accompanied minerals or types of minerals newly discovered in course of mining, including minerals that are soil and rocks at the mine waste dump or using the licensed reserves without submitting an application dossier for permission to the competent state agency or without the competent state agency’s permission;

c) Using minerals for the purposes other than those specified in the mineral mining license without obtaining permission from the licensing agency;

d) Failing to implement or insufficiently implementing remedial measures at the request of the competent state agency for reasons other than force majeure events by the deadline specified in the inspection report (except for the cases where the license has to be revoked or invalidated in accordance with the Law on Minerals).

4. In case of failing to incur or insufficiently incurring penalties as specified in the sanctioning decision at least 30 days after the date on which the competent state agency's notification is sent, in addition to incurring fines in accordance with regulations of the Law on Tax Administration, the violating organization or individual has the mining suspended for at least 01 month until all penalties specified in the sanctioning decision have been incurred but for no more than 12 months (except for the case where the mining or mineral mining license has been suspended).

5. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of carrying out mining while applying for extension of the mineral mining license with an unexpired mineral mining license and without the competent state agency’s permission:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining peat or minerals which are used as common building materials without using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining mineral water; river, stream or lake bed sand and gravel; minerals which are used as common building materials by using industrial explosives, except for the case specified at Points a and b of this Clause;

d) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining other types of minerals, except for the cases specified at Points a, b, c and dd of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 100,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining gold, silver, precious stones, platinum or toxic minerals.

6. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 03 to 06 months for the act of violation specified at Point c Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 53. Violations of regulations on geological baseline surveys of minerals

1. A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to register the geological baseline survey of minerals with a competent state management agency in charge of minerals as specified by law before conducting it.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation committed in course of conducting a geological baseline survey:

a) Taking technological samples in excess of licensed volume;

b) Failing to level the opening works: trenches or drilled wells; failing to seal furnace door after the construction is done according to the design;

c) Failing to seal the drilled well with the materials stated in the project approved by the competent state agency.

3. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Revealing geological information and minerals-related information in course of conducting a geological baseline survey of minerals;

b) Failing to implement environmental protection solutions as specified in the project approved by the competent state agency;

c) Failing to submit a report on geological baseline survey of minerals and geological specimens to the competent state management agency in charge of minerals within 30 days;

d) Failing to obtain the written approval from a competent state agency when conducting the geological baseline survey of minerals.

4. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation:

a) Failing to submit a report on the geological baseline survey of minerals to a competent state agency for approval according to regulations;

b) Failing to submit a report on geological baseline survey of minerals and geological specimens to the competent state management agency in charge of minerals according to regulations.

Article 54. Violations against other regulations on mineral management

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of taking advantage of exploration activities for mining purposes:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the cases specified at Points a and d of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 120,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral exploration is licensed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, except for the case specified at Point d of this Clause;

dd) A fine of between VND 400,000,000 and VND 500,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of mining precious stones, gold, silver or platinum.

2. A caution or fine shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the limits on loss of minerals specified in the approved mining project or the approved mine design upon mining:

a) A caution shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the limits on loss of minerals by less than 5%;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the limits on loss of minerals by from 5% to less than 10%;

c) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 100,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of exceeding the limits on loss of minerals by at least 10%.

3. Fines shall be imposed for any of the following acts of violation: Failing to sufficiently provide documents, books and records to determine the actually mined mineral production, produce statistics and carry out stock takes of annually mined mineral reserves; enumerate actually mined mineral production of the reporting period, total production or reserves of mined minerals or remaining mineral reserves specified in the periodic report which are 10% less than actually mined mineral production specified in the resource royalty payment records; aggregate data through the weigh station; determine actually mined mineral production using the status quo maps and cross-section drawings of status quo; failing to store or protect unused mined minerals or minerals at waste dumps or accompanied minerals which are not yet collected in course of mining:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed on a household business for mining minerals used as common building materials;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the provincial-level People’s Committee, except for the case specified at Point a of this Clause;

c) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed if the mineral mining license is issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

4. A fine of between VND 150,000,000 and VND 200,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to collect accompanied minerals defined in the mining project or licensed for mining as specified in the mineral mining license.

5. Additional sanctions:

a) Confiscation of all cash-equivalent material evidences for the acts of violations specified in Clause 1 of this Article;

b) Deprivation of the right to use the mineral mining license for 06 - 12 months for the acts of violations specified at Points b, c and d Clause 1 of this Article is re-committed;

c) Suspension of the mineral mining from 03 to 06 months for the acts of violations specified in Clauses 2 and 3 of this Article is re-committed.

Section 2. VIOLATIONS OF REGULATIONS ON TECHNICAL SAFETY UPON MINING

Article 55. Violations of regulations on preparation of technical safety documents and technical instructions

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly or insufficiently preparing or failing to prepare technical safety documents upon mining according to regulations:

a) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly or insufficiently preparing technical safety documents upon mining;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to prepare technical safety documents upon mining.

2. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to carry out construction using the technical instructions or the approved construction methods.

Article 56. Violations of regulations on use of mining technologies or means of transport

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of use of mining systems, new construction technologies, advanced mining systems or construction technologies, or new materials which are used in a mine for the first time:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of producing a design without approval by a competent state agency;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of putting them into operation before obtaining the approval from the competent state agency.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on design and manufacturing of means of transport; new means of transport and those imported from foreign countries to be used at pits and diesel-powered means of transport:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of producing a design without approval by a competent state agency or violations of regulations on technical safety during use of means of transport;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of putting them into operation before obtaining the approval from the competent state agency.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on equipment, machinery and vehicles used in a mineral preparation plant:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly or insufficiently prepare documents intended for management of equipment, machinery and vehicles;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to prepare documents intended for management of equipment, machinery and vehicles;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on technical safety in course of operation, maintenance or repair of equipment, machinery and vehicles.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of putting potentially unsafe machinery, equipment and chemicals on the List of category 2 commodities; or machinery, equipment and materials subject to occupational safety requirements into operation when the satisfaction of technical safety conditions has not yet been inspected or verified or failing to prepare equipment management documents according to regulations:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of equipping or using personal self-rescue devices against regulations;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to inspect all technical parameters or failing to conduct first inspection or re-inspection on schedule; insufficiently or incorrectly preparing equipment management documents;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to conduct inspections of technical safety or failing to prepare equipment management documents.

5. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 01 to 03 months for the act of violation specified at Point b Clause 4 of this Article.

Article 57. Violations of regulations on methane-based classification of mines, mine ventilation, drainage and mine water irruption prevention

1. A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to submit an application dossier for methane-based classification of mines to the competent state agency according to regulations.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on mine ventilation:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on ventilation of blind drifts, mirrors and mine air control;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on installation and operation of ventilation works and local ventilation fans;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to provide sufficient wind rate and wind speed as requested to production locations;

d) A fine of between VND 70,000,000 and VND 90,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to formulate a mine ventilation plan or failing to make prompt amendments to the mine ventilation plan upon change of the production plan or failing to prepare a mine ventilation network diagram.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on mine drainage and mine water irruption prevention:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on safety of pumping stations serving drainage;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation against technical safety regulations on prevention of mine water irruption, including: Failing to formulate an exploratory drilling plan for water irruption prevention or plan to carry out exploratory drilling in front of excavating face; failing to work out methods of exploratory drilling for water irruption prevention or methods of carrying out exploratory drilling in front of excavating face; failing to carry out construction using the approved methods.

4. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 01 to 03 months for the acts of violations specified in Clause 1, Point d Clause 2 and Point b Clause 3 of this Article.

Article 58. Violations of regulations on mining power supply

1. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on power leakage prevention and regulations on protection of intensity of power supply network and electrical equipment.

2. A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on technical safety during the process of using electric cables, electric engines, electric equipment and electrical substations.

3. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to formulate or incorrectly drawing power supply diagrams for the entire mine and production areas, or the grounding diagram for the entire mine according to regulations.

4. A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 30,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of changing the structures and connection diagrams of electrical equipment, control, protection and inspection diagrams or re-graduating protective equipment used in mines without permission of the manufacturer or competent state agency.

Article 59. Violations of regulations on preparation of materials; loading, unloading and transport of materials in mineral preparation plants

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on preparation of materials:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on design and installation of protective structures intended for preventing objects from flying out of breakers or crushers causing danger to people;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violating procedures or regulations operation, maintenance and repair of breakers and crushers;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to work out solutions for removal of explosive dust generated from the ore crushing and breaking.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on loading, unloading and transport of materials:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violating regulations or procedures for loading, unloading and transport of materials;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to inspect or failing to comply with regulations on inspection of corrosion of pipelines used to transport materials;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violating regulations on technical safety in course of building and operating winches.

Article 60. Violations against other regulations on storage and use of flotation reagents, minerals warehouse, waste dumps and tailings ponds

1. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on storage and use of flotation reagents:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on equipment construction or installation in reagent preparation and storage areas;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on technical safety applied to persons working in reagent preparation and storage areas.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations against other regulations on technical safety in minerals warehouses, waste dumps and tailings ponds:

a) A fine of between VND 5,000,000 and VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to insufficiently report information and data on tailings dams to the competent state agency or reporting them within the specified time limit;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to report information and data on tailings dams to the competent state agency; failing to work out measures for firefighting and prevention in self-ignited minerals warehouses;

c) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed violations of regulations on construction and operation of tailings ponds;

d) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to work out measures for firefighting and prevention for dry waste dumps where self-ignited minerals are stored; or failing to work out measures for coping with breach or cracks in embankments of waste dumps or tailings ponds.

3. Additional sanctions:

Suspension of mining from 01 to 03 months for the act of violation specified at Point c Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 61. Violations of regulations on mining safety record preparation and safety management as specified

1. Fines shall be imposed for any of the acts of violation of regulations on preparation of mining safety management records as specified, including: occupational safety and health plans; assessment of occupational safety and health risks; emergency response plans:

a) A fine of between VND 20,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly or insufficiently preparing required safety management records;

b) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to prepare safety management records.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on mining safety management:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to make regulations on occupational safety and health management or failing to establish a hierarchy of occupational safety health management;

b) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to formulate either safety procedure or internal safety regulations.

3. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on organization of safety work:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of conducting shift handovers and receiving production orders at the beginning of each working shift against regulations

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to conduct shift handover and receive production orders at the beginning of each working shift.

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to inspect technical safety at the working place or technical safety of machinery and equipment before its operation or failing to promptly handle safety threats.

4. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of violations of regulations on daily orders, orders of a shift and production shift handover:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of incorrectly or insufficiently recording daily orders or orders of the shift, or incorrectly or insufficiently conducting shift handovers;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed for the act of failing to record measures for coping with safety threats discovered before or during the working shift in of production orders of the day.

Article 62. Violations of regulations on technical safety inspection and monitoring upon mining

1. A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 50,000,000 shall be imposed failing to make regulations or make insufficient regulations on delegation of responsibility for technical safety inspection and monitoring to the management, including Director, Deputy Directors, Department Managers, Foremen, Deputy Shift Foremen or equivalent.

2. The following fines shall be imposed for the act of failing to perform the inspection and monitoring of technical safety as specified by law:

a) A fine of between VND 10,000,000 and VND 20,000,000 shall be imposed on the doorkeeper at entrance to the mine for his/her failing to inspect persons who bring flammable or combustible substances and ignition sources into the mine;

b) A fine of between VND 30,000,000 and VND 40,000,000 shall be imposed on the shift leader or the holder of equivalent position for failing to carry out technical safety inspections;

c) A fine of between VND 50,000,000 and VND 60,000,000 shall be imposed on the department manager, foreman or their authorized persons for failing to conduct technical safety inspections;

d) A fine of between VND 60,000,000 and VND 70,000,000 shall be imposed on director and deputy directors for his/her failing to conduct technical safety inspections or insufficiently conducting technical safety.

Chapter IV

COMPETENCE TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS AND DISTRIBUTION OF COMPETENCE TO IMPOSE SANCTIONS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATIONS AND REMEDIAL MEASURES AGAINST ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATIONS IN THE FIELD OF WATER RESOURCES AND MINERALS

Article 63. Competence of natural resources and environment inspectors

1. Natural resources and environment inspectors and persons assigned to perform specialized inspection tasks of natural resources and environment in the performance of their duties may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 500,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which value must not exceed VND 500,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified at Points a, b, dd, g, h and m Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

2. Chief Inspectors of provincial-level Departments of Natural Resources and Environment, chiefs of inspectorates established by Directors or Chief Inspectors of provincial-level Departments of Natural Resources and Environment may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 50,000,000;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

3. Chiefs of inspectorates established by the General Director of the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam may impose the violations specified in Chapter III of this Decree:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 50,000,000;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

4. Chiefs of inspectorates established by the Minister of Natural Resources and Environment or Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 175,000,000 for administrative violations in the field of water resources; VND 250,000,000 for administrative violations of regulations on minerals;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed the fine specified at Point b of this Clause;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

5. The Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment may impose sanctions for administrative violations against regulations water resources and minerals specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree, the General Director of the General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam may impose sanctions for administrative violations against regulations minerals specified in Chapter III of this Decree:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,000,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

Article 64. Competence of Chairpersons of People’s Committees at all levels

Chairpersons of Provincial-level People’s Committees may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree:

1. Chairpersons of commune-level People’s Committees may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 5,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 5,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified at Points a, b, c, dd, g, h, k, m and o Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

2. Chairpersons of district-level People’s Committees may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 50,000,000;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

3. Chairpersons of provincial-level People’s Committees may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose a fine up to the maximum fine specified in Clause 1 Article 4 of this Decree;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in this Decree.

Article 65. Competence of industry and trade inspectors

Industry and trade inspectors may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Articles 36, 38 and 39 and Section 2 Chapter III of this Decree:

1. Industry and trade inspectors and the persons assigned as industry and trade inspectors in the performance of their duties may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 500,000;

c) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 6 Article 38 of this Decree.

2. Chief inspectors of provincial-level Departments of Industry and Trade; chiefs of inspectorates established by the Director of the Industrial Safety Techniques and Environment Agency or Directors or Chief Inspectors of provincial-level Departments of Industry and Trade shall may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Suspend mining activities as specified in this Decree;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 6 Article 38 of this Decree.

3. Chiefs of inspectorates established by the Minister of Industry and Trade or Chief Inspector of the Minister of Industry and Trade may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 250,000,000;

c) Suspend mining activities as specified in this Decree;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 6 Article 38 of this Decree.

4. The Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Director of Industrial Safety Techniques and Environment Agency may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,000,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 6 Article 38 of this Decree.

Article 66. Competence of Public Security Force

The Public Security Force may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Articles 8, 9, 10, 20, 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 41, 43, 44, 45, 47, 48 and 54 of this Decree:

1. Policemen who are on duty may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 500,000;

2. Station chiefs or team commanders of those specified in Clause 1 of this Article may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,500,000;

3. Chiefs of commune-level police offices, chiefs of police offices of border gates or export processing zones may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 2,500,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed the fine specified at Point b of this Clause;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified at Points a, b, dd, g, h and m Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

4. Chiefs of district-level police offices, heads of traffic police sections, heads of waterway police sections, chiefs of Environmental Police Divisions; chiefs of Corruption, Economy and Smuggling-related Crime Investigation Divisions; chiefs of Economic Security Divisions may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 25,000,000;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

5. Directors of provincial-level Police Departments may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 50,000,000;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

6. Director of Police Department for Environmental Crime Prevention and Combat; Director of Corruption, Economy and Smuggling-related Crime Investigation Department; Director of Economic Security Department; Director of Traffic Police Department may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,000,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

Article 67. Competence of the Border Guard

The Border Guard may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Articles 88, 9, 10, 20, 21, 24, 26, 27, 32, 34, 35, 37, 45, 47, 48 and Article 54 of this Decree in border regions under its management:

1. Border-guard soldiers who are on duty may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 500,000;

2. Station chiefs or team commanders of those specified in Clause 1 of this Article may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 2,500,000;

3. Chiefs of border-guard stations, captains of border-guard flotillas, commanders of border-gate guards at ports may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 25,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

4. Provincial-level border-guard commanders, captains of border-guard ship fleets under the Border-Guard Command Post may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,000,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

Article 68. Competence of the Marine police

The Marine police may impose sanctions for the violations specified in Articles 8, 9, 10, 12, 20, 21, 23, 24, 27, 29, 31, 34, 35, 36, 38, 39, 40, 45, 47, 48, 49 and 54 in regions under its management:

1. Marine policemen who are on duty may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,500,000;

2. Heads of professional operation teams of the Marine Police may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 5,000,000;

3. Heads of professional operation squads of the Marine Police and heads of marine police stations may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 10,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified at Points a, b, dd, g, h and m Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

4. Captains of marine police flotillas may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 25,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 25,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

5. Captains of marine police ship fleets may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 50,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 50,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

6. Coast Guard regional commanders may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 100,000,000;

c) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission, the value of which must not exceed VND 100,000,000;

d) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

7. The Coast Guard Commander may:

a) Impose caution;

b) Impose fines of up to VND 1,000,000,000;

c) Deprive of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates, or suspend the operation;

d) Confiscate the material evidences and means used for administrative violation commission;

dd) Apply the remedial measures specified in Clause 3 Article 4 of this Decree.

Article 69. The competence to make written records of administrative violations

1. Written records of administrative violations in the field of water resources and minerals shall be made as specified in Article 58 of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations and Government’s Decree detailing the implementation of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations.

2. The persons competent to make written records for administrative violations specified in Chapters II and III of this Decree include:

a) Persons on duty that have the power to impose sanctioning of administrative violations in the fields of water resources and minerals;

b) Inspection officials on duty of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Department of Water Resources Management, General Department of Geology and Minerals of Vietnam, provincial-level Departments of Natural Resources and Environment and district-level Departments of Natural Resources and Environment affiliated to district-level People’s Committees.

3. The persons competent to make written records on violations specified in Clause 2 of this Article may make written records of administrative violations within their jurisdiction using the specified forms and shall assume responsibility for such administrative violation records.

4. Only one record is made for an administrative violation.

If the violating organization or individual whose administrative violation has been recorded fails to terminate acts of violation upon the order of the person competent to impose sanctions as specified, the person competent to impose sanctions shall, when making decision on sanctioning of such violation, apply aggravating circumstances as specified at Point i Clause 1 Article 10 of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations.

5. If an organization or individual commits multiple acts of violation in the same case of violation or repeats acts of violation, all acts of violation or times of committing violation must be recorded in the administrative violation records.

Article 70. Deprivation of the right to use licenses, practicing certificates and operation;

1. Licenses, practicing certificates or operation shall be deprived in accordance with regulations in Chapter II and Chapter III of this Decree.

2. The period of deprivation of the right to use a license, practice certificate or period of suspension of specific activities for a violation specified in this Decree is the average of the time frame of deprivation or suspension of activities allowed. regulations for that behavior. If there are extenuating circumstances, the period of deprivation or suspension of operations may be below the average but not exceeding the minimum level of the time frame of deprivation or suspension of operations. If there are aggravating circumstances, the period of deprivation or suspension of operations may be above the average but not exceeding the maximum limit of the time frame of deprivation or suspension of operations.

3. The starting time to calculate the period of deprivation of the right to use licenses and practice certificates as follows:

a) In case at the time of issuing a decision to sanction an administrative violation, the person with the authority to sanction has temporarily seized the license or practice certificate of the violating individual or organization, then the time to start calculating the period of deprivation of use rights will begin. Using a license or practicing certificate is the time when the decision to sanction administrative violations takes effect;

b) In case at the time of making a decision to sanction an administrative violation, the person with sanctioning authority has not yet temporarily seized the license or practice certificate of the violating individual or organization, the person with sanctioning authority will still issue a decision. When sanctioning administrative violations according to regulations, the content of the sanctioning decision must clearly state the effective date of the additional sanction of deprivation of the right to use the license or practice certificate (the starting time of calculating the deprivation period) is from the time the violator presents the license or practice certificate to the person with authority to impose temporary detention;

c) When the license or practicing certificate is temporarily seized, the right to use is revoked according to the provisions of Point b of this Clause, and when the license or practicing certificate is returned, the right to use is revoked according to the provisions of Points a and b of this Clause. The person with sanctioning authority must make a record and keep a record of sanctioning administrative violations according to regulations.

4. During the period of deprivation of the right to use the license, suspension of mineral exploration and exploitation activities; exploration, exploitation and use of water resources, discharge of wastewater into water sources if individuals or organizations still conduct mineral exploration and exploitation; exploring, exploiting, and using water resources and discharging wastewater into water sources will be sanctioned as acts without a license.

5. During the period of deprivation of the right to use the license, suspension of mineral exploration and exploitation activities; exploration, exploitation and use of water resources, and discharge of wastewater into water sources. The provincial-level Department of Natural Resources and Environment and the commune-level People's Committee where activities on water and mineral resources are located are responsible for supervising compliance with regulations by organizations and individuals.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 71. Effect

1. This Decree takes effect from May 10, 2020.

2. This Decree replaces the Government’s Decree No. 33/2017/ND-CP dated April 03, 2017, on penalties for administrative violations against regulations on water and mineral resources.

Article 72. Transitional provisions

1. For administrative violations in the field of water resources and minerals that occurred before the effective date of this Decree but were later discovered or are being considered for settlement, if the regulations on handling of administrative violations in this Decree are beneficial to individuals and organizations committing administrative violations, then the provisions of this Decree shall be applied to handle them.

2. For decisions to sanction administrative violations that have been issued but have not been fully implemented before the effective date of this Decree, if the organization or individual sanctioned for administrative violations has a complaint, it shall be considered applying the beneficial provisions of this Decree for handling.

Article 73. Implementation organization and responsibility for implementation

1. The Minister of Natural Resources and Environment shall provide guidance and organize the implementation of this Decree.

2. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of Government-attached agencies and Chairpersons of People’s Committees of provinces and centrally run cities shall implement this Decree./.