Circular 10/2024/TT-BXD quality management of products and goods as building materials

CIRCULAR

On quality management of products and goods as building materials^[1]

Pursuant to November 21, 2007 Law No. 05/2007/QH12 on Product and Goods Quality;

Pursuant to June 29, 2006 Law No. 68/2006/QH11 on Standards and Technical Regulations;

Pursuant to Law No. 50/2014/QH13 on Construction, which has a number of articles amended and supplemented under Law No. 03/2016/QH14, Law No. 35/2018/QH14, Law No. 40/2019/QH14, and Law No. 62/2020/QH14;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 52/2022/ND-CP of August 8, 2022, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP of February 9, 2021, on management of building materials;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008, detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality, which is amended and supplemented under the Government’s Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP of May 15, 2018, and the Government’s Decree No. 13/2022/ND-CP of January 21, 2022, amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 107/2016/ND-CP of July 1, 2016, specifying conditions for commercial provision of conformity assessment services;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP of November 9, 2018, amending, supplementing or annulling a number of provisions on investment and business conditions in the fields under state management by the Ministry of Science and Technology and a number of provisions on specialized inspection;

At the proposal of the Director of the Building Materials Department,

The Minister of Construction promulgates the Circular on quality management of products and goods as building materials.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Circular provides the quality management of products and goods as building materials.

Article 2. Subjects of application

1. State management agencies in charge of building materials.

2. Organizations and individuals engaged in producing, trading in, importing, exporting and using products and goods as building materials.

3. Conformity assessment organizations (certification organizations, testing organizations, inspection organizations and assessment organizations) and judicial assessment organizations in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials.

Article 3. Products and goods as building materials

1. Groups of products and goods as building materials are provided in Appendix I to this Circular.

2. Likely unsafe products and goods as building materials are products and goods as building materials that, under rational and proper transportation, storage, preservation and use conditions, are still likely to cause harms to humans, animals, plants, assets and the environment (group-2 products and goods as building materials), and are under the management responsibility of the Ministry of Construction as provided in Appendix II to this Circular.

3. Unlikely unsafe products and goods as building materials are products and goods as building materials that, under rational and proper transportation, storage, preservation and use conditions, do not cause harms to humans, animals, plants, assets and the environment (group-1 products and goods as building materials).

4. For exported or imported goods as building materials for which HS codes have yet to be listed and determined, or for which there are differences or inconsistencies in the classification and determination of HS codes, the determination of HS codes must comply with the customs law. After customs clearance, organizations and individuals engaged in export and import shall send relevant documents to the Ministry of Construction for the latter to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance in considering for updating to and supplementing the list of HS codes.

Article 4. Labeling of goods as building materials

1. The labeling of goods as building materials must comply with the Government’s Decree No. 43/2017/ND-CP of April 14, 2017, on goods labels (below referred to as Decree No. 43/2017/ND-CP); the Government’s Decree No. 111/2021/ND-CP of December 9, 2021, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 43/2017/ND-CP of April 14, 2017, on goods labels; and the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 18/2022/TT-BKHCN, providing in detail a number of mandatory contents to be electronically shown on labels of a number of commodity groups.

2. In case contents to be shown on labels of goods as building materials are separately provided in standards or national technical regulations and legal documents, such goods must, in addition to complying with Clause 1 of this Article, be subject to labeling in conformity with such standards or national technical regulations and legal documents.

Article 5. General requirements on quality management of products and goods as building materials

1. Products and goods as building materials must meet the quality requirements specified in Clause 1, Article 7, and Article 10, Chapter III of the Government’s Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP of February 9, 2021, on management of building materials (below referred to as Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP); and comply with regulations on declaration of applicable standards in accordance with the law on product and goods quality; and regulations on traceability in accordance with the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 02/2024/TT-BKHCN of March 28, 2024, on the management of traceability of products and goods.

2. For group-1 products and goods as building materials:

a/ To apply the quality management system so as to ensure that the quality of products conforms to relevant technical standards and products are labeled under Article 4 of this Circular before being marketed.

b/ To declare on a voluntary basis the conformity of products and goods with relevant standards. The declaration of standard conformity must comply with Chapter II
of the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN of December 12, 2012, on declaration of standard conformity, declaration of regulation conformity and methods of assessment of conformity with standards and technical regulations (below referred to as Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN); and the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BKHCN of March 31, 2017, amending and supplementing a number of articles of Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN (below referred to as Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BKHCN), and Article 11 of this Circular.

3. For group-2 products and goods as building materials:

a/ To apply the quality management system so as to ensure that the quality of products conforms to relevant technical regulations and products are labeled under Article 4 of this Circular before being marketed.

b/ To declare on a mandatory basis the conformity of products and goods with relevant technical regulations. The declaration of regulation conformity must comply with Chapter II of Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN, Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BKHCN, and Article 12 of this Circular.

Chapter II

QUALITY MANAGEMENT OF PRODUCTS AND GOODS AS BUILDING MATERIALS

Article 6. Quality management of products as building materials in production

1. The quality management of products as building materials in production must comply with Section 2, Chapter III of the Law on Product and Goods Quality and Section 1, Chapter II of the Government’s Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP of December 31, 2008, detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Product and Goods Quality (below referred to as Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP), and Clause 2, Article 10, Chapter III of Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP.

2. Establishments producing building materials must be fully capable in terms of equipment, technical personnel and material quality and sources as specified by law.

Article 7. Quality management of exported goods as building materials

The quality management of exported goods as building materials must comply with Section 3, Chapter III of the Law on Product and Goods Quality; Section 3, Chapter II of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP; and regulations of importing countries.

Article 8. Quality management of imported goods as building materials

1. The quality management of imported goods as building materials must comply with Section 4, Chapter III of the Law on Product and Goods Quality; and Section 2, Chapter II of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP, which is amended and supplemented under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP and Clause 3, Article 10, Chapter III of Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP.

2. For group-2 goods as building materials, importers shall:

a/ Register for state inspection of the quality of imported goods as building materials at the provincial-level Department of Construction of one of the following localities (agency in charge of inspecting the quality of products and goods as building materials, below referred to as inspection agency):

- The locality where the concerned enterprise makes business registration (or the locality where the enterprise’s representative office, branch or factory is located);

- The locality having the border gate through which the enterprise imports goods;

- The locality where the enterprise carries out customs procedures for the shipment.

b/ When registering for state inspection, it is required to determine the name of the conformity certification organization and the name of the testing organization conducting the testing and assessment for quality certification of imported goods in registration form No. 01 provided in the Appendix to Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP, which is amended and supplemented under Clause 9, Article 4 of Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP, and the following documents: copy of contract, list of goods (if any); a copy (certified by the importer) of the bill of lading, invoice and imported goods declaration form (if any); the exporting country-issued quality certificate (quality certificate, test result) (if any); certificate of origin (if any), image or description of goods with mandatory contents to be shown on the primary label and secondary label (if the primary label does not have enough contents as specified by law); and certificate of free sale (CFS) (if any).

c/ For imported goods as building materials that are subject to quality-related state inspection before customs clearance: The importer shall comply with Point 2c, Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP, submit a true copy (bearing the importer’s signature and seal) of the certificate of conformity and the notice of results of quality inspection of imported goods issued by the inspection agency to the customs office for obtaining permission for customs clearance.

d/ For imported goods as building materials that are subject to quality-related state inspection before customs clearance: The importer shall comply with Point 2b, Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP and submit a registration form certified by the inspection agency to the customs office for obtaining permission for customs clearance. Within 15 working days (or 35 days for cement, cement additives, concrete and mortar) from the date of customs clearance, the importer shall submit a true copy (bearing the importer’s signature and seal) of the certificate of conformity and results of quality inspection (conducted by the conformity certification organization and the testing organization named in the registration form) to the inspection agency.

dd/ In case goods as building materials have been assessed by the certification organization in the exporting country, within 3 working days from the date of customs clearance, the importer shall submit a true copy (bearing the importer’s signature and seal) of the certificate of conformity to the inspection agency.

e/ In case of registering for quality inspection of goods as building materials on the Vietnam National Single Window, the importer shall register for inspection and notification of inspection results through the Vietnam National Single Window.

3. For group-2 goods as building materials, the inspection agency shall apply the measure of inspection before customs clearance or inspection after customs clearance as provided in Appendix II to this Circular. For goods subject to inspection before customs clearance, grounds for state inspection are certification results given by the designated certification organization. For goods subject to inspection after customs clearance, grounds for state inspection are certification results given by the certification organization registered or recognized in accordance with law.

4. To apply the measure of exemption from or reduction of quality inspection of imported goods as building materials under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP and Clause 3, Article 4 of Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP.

5. The processing of import dossiers and the conclusion on whether the quality of imported goods as building materials conforms to technical regulations must comply with Clause 3, Article 6, and Article 9, of Circular No. 06/2020/TT-BKHCN.

Article 9. Quality management of marketed goods as building materials

The quality management of marketed goods as building materials must comply with Section 5, Chapter III of the Law on Product and Goods Quality; Section 4, Chapter II of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP; Clause 2, Article 10, Chapter III of Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP; and the Minister of Science and Technology’s Circular No. 01/2024/TT-BKHCN of January 18, 2024, providing state inspection of the quality of marketed goods.

Article 10. Quality management of goods as building materials during use

The quality management of goods as building materials during use must comply with Section 6, Chapter III of the Law on Product and Goods Quality; Section 5, Chapter II of Decree No. 132/2008/ND-CP; and Clause 1, Article 7, Chapter III of Decree No. 09/2021/ND-CP.

Chapter III

MANAGEMENT OF STANDARD AND REGULATION CONFORMITY FOR PRODUCTS AND GOODS AS BUILDING MATERIALS

Article 11. Declaration of standard conformity

1. Subject to declaration of standard conformity are products and goods as building materials.

2. Organizations and individuals shall declare the conformity of products and goods as building materials with relevant standards based on results of standard conformity certification given by conformity certification organizations or results of their own conformity assessment.

3. Organizations and individuals that declare standard conformity shall register standard conformity declaration forms at inspection agencies.

Article 12. Declaration of regulation conformity

1. Subject to declaration of regulation conformity are group-2 products and goods as building materials as specified in the national technical regulation promulgated by the Ministry of Construction and provided in Appendix II to this Circular.

2. The declaration of regulation conformity is based on:

a/ Certification results given by the certification organization that has registered the relevant field of operation or has been recognized in accordance with law; or,

b/ Certification or inspection results given by the certification organization or inspection organization designated by the Ministry of Construction.

3. In case of using conformity assessment results given by foreign conformity certification organizations and testing organizations, these organizations must be those recognized in accordance with Vietnam’s law or designated by competent state management agencies.

4. Domestically produced products and goods as building materials are subject to regulation conformity declaration at the inspection agency where business registration is made based on certification results given by the registered certification organization or the organization recognized or designated in accordance with law. Dossiers, order and procedures for regulation conformity declaration must comply with Articles 14 and 15 of Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN, which is amended and supplemented under Circular No. 02/2017/TT-BKHCN and Circular No. 06/2020/TT-BKHCN.

Article 13. Certification of regulation conformity

1. The assessment of regulation conformity for group-2 products and goods as building materials shall be carried out by Method 1, Method 5 or Method 7 (provided in Circular No. 28/2012/TT-BKHCN), which is specified in Appendix II to this Circular.

2. Sampling methods, specifications and quantity of samples for assessment testing

a/ Methods of taking typical samples and representative samples must comply with the current national standard on sampling methods and preparation of test samples for products.

b/ Specifications and quantity of typical samples and representative samples for each batch of products and goods must comply with the national technical regulation on products and goods as building materials.

c/ For goods as building materials imported at variance with the law-specified specifications, the importer shall, in coordination with the certification organization, work with the overseas producer and exporter in sending representative samples of the imported shipment to serve the quality certification under regulations. The number of samples must be sufficient for testing and storage under regulations.

Article 14. Conformity assessment organizations and judicial assessment organizations in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials

1. Conformity assessment organization shall register the operation of conformity assessment for products and goods as building materials in accordance with Decree No. 107/2016/ND-CP.

2. Conformity assessment organizations evaluated and designated by the Ministry of Construction shall comply with Clause 8, Article 1 of Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP and Clauses 4, 5, 6 and 7, Article 4 of Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP.

3. Conformity assessment organizations that have registered their operations or are designated by the Ministry of Construction shall comply with regulations on conformity assessment activities and submit to inspection and supervision by the Ministry of Construction. The List of conformity assessment organizations that have registered their operations and the List of conformity assessment organizations designated by the Ministry of Construction shall be posted on the website of the Ministry of Construction.

4. An overseas conformity assessment organization that carries out the certification and testing of products and goods as building materials in accordance with law shall be considered and recognized by the Ministry of Construction when a mutual recognition agreement is concluded.

5. Judicial assessment organizations in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials shall comply with the Minister of Construction’s Circular No. 17/2021/TT-BXD of December 22, 2021, providing a number of contents on judicial assessment activities in the field of construction, and this Circular.

Chapter IV

ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 15. Responsibilities of the Ministry of Construction

1. To guide, urge and inspect the implementation of this Circular.

2. To grant certificates of registration of testing operation, certificates of registration of certification operation, and decisions designating conformity assessment organizations concerning quality of products and goods as building materials; and inspect, supervise and handle violations in the operation of, these organizations.

Article 16. Responsibilities of provincial-level People’s Committees

1. To assign responsibilities and tasks to state inspection agencies in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials in their localities.

2. To organize the receipt of dossiers of registration and management of dossiers of declaration of regulation conformity; to cancel or suspend results of receipt of dossiers of declaration of regulation conformity of organizations and individuals for domestically produced products and goods as building materials; to organize the receipt and processing of dossiers of registration for state inspection of imported goods as building materials.

3. To organize the receipt and certification or give written refusals of dossiers of request for exemption from or reduction of quality inspection for imported goods as building materials; to notify in writing the suspension of the application of the inspection exemption or reduction regime as specified in Clause 3, Article 4 of Decree No. 154/2018/ND-CP.

4. To organize the management and inspection of regulation conformity certification and regulation conformity declaration for products and goods as building materials in their localities; to coordinate with local inspection agencies at border gates to inspect the registration for state inspection and conformity assessment of the quality of imported goods as building materials.

5. To sum up regulation conformity certification and conformity declaration activities, and results of the state inspection of products and goods as building materials; the situation of inspection exemption or reduction for imported goods as building materials and send reports thereon to the Ministry of Construction before December 25 every year or at the request of the Ministry of Construction. Such a report shall be made according to the form provided in Appendix III to this Circular.

6. To organize inspection and handle violations related to the compliance with regulations on quality management of products and goods as building materials in their localities.

Article 17. Responsibilities of conformity assessment organizations and judicial assessment organizations in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials

1. To exercise the rights and perform the obligations specified in this Circular; to comply with the law on product and goods quality and relevant regulations.

2. Before December 15 every year or upon requests, to send reports on conformity assessment activities, made according to Form No. 11 provided in the Appendix to Decree No. 74/2018/ND-CP, to inspection agencies based in their localities (where they conduct conformity assessment activities) and the Ministry of Construction.

3. To notify the Ministry of Construction of any changes that affect the capacity of conformity assessment of the quality of products and goods as building materials which they have registered or are designated to assess, within 15 days from the date of occurrence of the changes.

Chapter V

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 18. To amend and supplement a number of contents of National Technical Regulation QCVN16:2023/BXD promulgated together with the Minister of Construction’s Circular No. 04/2023/TT-BXD of June 30, 2023

1. To annul Section 1.4.3 of Part 1, and Parts 3, 4 and 5, of National Technical Regulation QCVN16:2023/BXD.

2. The names of products and goods and HS codes provided in Appendix II to this Circular replace the names of products and HS codes provided in Table 1 - List of products and goods as building materials of National Technical Regulation QCVN16:2023/BXD.

Article 19. Effect

This Circular takes effect on December 16, 2024.

Article 20. Transitional provisions

1. For organizations and individuals engaged in producing or importing goods as building materials that have been granted certificates of conformity with National Technical Regulation QCVN16:2023/BXD and such certificates remain valid, they may use the certificates of conformity and seals of conformity until such certificates expire.

2. For shipments of goods as building materials for which export procedures have been completed in exporting countries (for import into Vietnam) before the effective date of this Circular, the previous regulations shall apply.

Article 21. Implementation responsibility

1. State management agencies, organizations and individuals engaged in producing, trading, importing or using products and goods as building materials; conformity assessment organizations and judicial assessment organizations in charge of quality of products and goods as building materials shall implement this Circular.

2. In case the legal documents referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or replaced, the amending, supplementing or replacing documents shall prevail.-

For the Minister of Construction
Deputy Minister
NGUYEN VAN SINH

* The Appendices to this Circular are not translated.