Proposed new policy on issuing Investment Registration Certificates

The Ministry of Finance stated that the drafting and promulgation of the Investment Law (replacing the previous one) aims to institutionalize the Party's resolutions on perfecting the socialist-oriented market economy and developing the private economy; to promptly address institutional and legal difficulties and obstacles, to unlock and utilize resources for socio-economic development; to reduce and simplify procedures in investment and business, creating favorable conditions for people and businesses. It also aims to improve regulations on conditional investment and business sectors and investment conditions, while simultaneously cutting down on some unnecessary and unreasonable sectors to continue ensuring the full and consistent exercise of the freedom of business for people and businesses in sectors not prohibited by law or requiring specific conditions. In addition, it is necessary to improve the mechanism of decentralization of management between central and local agencies on the basis of ensuring the effectiveness and efficiency of state management of investment and business activities, creating a legal framework, promptly addressing practical issues, and removing institutional "bottlenecks".

One of the policies proposed by the Ministry of Finance is to improve and simplify investment and business procedures, and to further strengthen the decentralization of authority for approving investment projects. Specifically:

Regarding the procedures for approving investment policies and issuing investment registration certificates.The Ministry of Finance stated that the policy aims to create a new breakthrough in administrative procedure reform in investment activities, linked to innovation and improvement of the effectiveness and efficiency of state management of investment activities; perfecting the mechanism of investment management decentralization, contributing to overcoming difficulties and creating conditions for investors to carry out investment activities with simpler procedures and lower costs.

Content of the policy:Revise, improve, and simplify investment and business procedures, including: procedures for approving investment policies, selecting investors, procedures for issuing investment registration certificates, and procedures for investment in the form of establishing economic organizations by foreign investors, in order to simplify administrative procedures, remove bottlenecks, and accelerate the process of bringing projects into implementation and operation. Continue to promote the decentralization of authority to approve investment policies from the National Assembly and the Prime Minister, implementing the principle of "local authorities decide, local authorities act, local authorities are responsible."

The Ministry of Finance has proposed three options.

Option 1

Regarding the procedures for approving investment policies,The Ministry of Finance proposes that the procedure for approving investment policies should only apply to projects that have a significant impact on the environment or have the potential to seriously affect the environment, projects that affect national defense and security, projects that utilize the country's resources such as land, forests, seas, minerals, etc., and large-scale investment projects in important sectors such as seaports and airports.

Simplifying this procedure aims to address and overcome the obstacles and shortcomings of the current investment approval procedure, accelerate the implementation of this procedure, and unlock investment resources for socio-economic development in the following direction:

Promote decentralization and delegation of authority in approving investment policies, and narrow the scope of projects requiring investment policy approval. Accordingly:

The National Assembly only approves investment policies for projects requiring the application of special mechanisms and policies that need to be decided by the National Assembly. For other projects under the National Assembly's authority in investment policy, the authority is delegated to the Prime Minister, including: Investment projects requiring the conversion of land use from special-use forests, watershed protection forests, and border protection forests of 50 hectares or more; windbreak, sand dune protection forests and wave-breaking, land reclamation protection forests of 500 hectares or more; production forests of 1,000 hectares or more; Investment projects requiring the conversion of land use from paddy fields with two or more crops per year on a scale of 500 hectares or more; Investment projects requiring the resettlement of 20,000 or more people in mountainous areas, and 50,000 or more people in other regions.

Continue to delegate the authority to approve investment policies from the Prime Minister to provincial People's Committees for: Investment projects by foreign investors in the field of forest planting; Investment projects involving betting and casino businesses; Offshore wind power projects as regulated by the law on electricity.

Narrowing the scope of projects requiring investment policy approval by the Provincial People's Committee to projects already announced for investor selection through land use rights auction or investor selection bidding (such as housing construction projects, urban areas, social housing, projects requiring the determination of the number of interested investors according to the regulations of bidding law and specialized laws such as market projects, water supply construction projects, solid waste treatment construction projects...). Accordingly, the Provincial People's Committee approves the investment policy for the following projects:

The proposed project involves the use of resources such as land, forests, seas, and minerals (excluding projects that have already been announced for investor selection through land use rights auctions or investor selection tenders).

The project involves land use and sea areas in islands and border communes, wards, and towns; coastal communes, wards, and towns; and other areas that affect national defense and security.

This project is large-scale and important in the fields of seaports, airports, electricity, industrial zones, etc.

Eliminate or simplify certain aspects of the investment policy approval assessment that are broad in scope, overlap with assessment content in the project implementation stages, or are not truly necessary to consider at the investment policy approval stage, such as assessment content related to technology, housing, progress, etc.; identify the content for assessing the project's conformity with relevant planning directly related to the project implementation proposal (such as sectoral planning, provincial planning, etc.) in order to simplify the investment policy approval assessment.

In addition, regulations should be added regarding the method of selecting investors in cases of direct investor selection or investor selection in special circumstances as stipulated by the law on bidding.

Regarding the procedures for issuing Investment Registration Certificates,The Ministry of Finance has proposed regulations on the procedures for granting Investment Registration Certificates to projects that do not require investment policy approval and where foreign investors or economic organizations with foreign investment capital hold more than 50% of the charter capital.

Continue to revise and improve the regulations on determining the conformity of investment projects with planning, determining the fulfillment of conditions regarding investment per land area, number of laborers used, etc., in the guiding Decree.

Regarding the management of projects that do not require investment policy approval or the issuance of an Investment Registration Certificate,The Ministry of Finance proposes that projects not subject to investment policy approval and issuance of Investment Registration Certificates be managed according to the regulations of the law on planning, land, environment, construction, labor, fire prevention and fighting, and other relevant laws during the implementation of investment projects.

Regarding the procedures for establishing economic organizations by foreign investors,The Ministry of Finance has proposed allowing foreign investors to establish economic organizations without requiring a prior investment project.

Option 2

In this option, the Ministry of Finance proposes abolishing the procedure for approving investment policies in the Investment Law; and managing investment projects according to the provisions of specialized laws.

Amend and supplement regulations on the issuance of Investment Registration Certificates in a way that simplifies and eliminates some conditions related to planning, investment quotas, etc.

This allows foreign investors to establish economic organizations without requiring an investment project or going through the procedures for issuing or amending an Investment Registration Certificate.

Option 3

The Ministry of Finance proposes maintaining the current regulations.

The Ministry of Finance recommends choosing Option 1.

The Ministry of Finance is seeking opinions onInvestment Law policy(Replaced) at the Ministry's Electronic Information Portal./.