Proposed regulations on highway toll collection
The Ministry of Transport is drafting a Decree regulating the collection of tolls for using expressways.
This draft proposes regulations on toll collection for vehicles traveling on expressways owned by the entire people, which are represented by the State as the owner and directly managed and operated.
Conditions for implementing highway toll collection
The draft clearly states that the expressways owned by the entire people, represented by the State and directly managed and operated by the State, are subject to toll collection, including:
1- The highway meets the following conditions:
- Designed and invested in construction according to technical standards and regulations on highways and other relevant technical standards and regulations;
- Complete handover and put into operation according to the provisions of the Road Law, provisions of the law on construction and other relevant legal provisions.
2- Expressways that have been decided on investment policies before the effective date of the Road Law, when put into operation but do not fully meet the requirements specified in Clause 1, Article 45, Clause 2, Article 47 of the Road Law, toll collection will be implemented upon completion of construction and installation of toll station infrastructure, software systems, equipment for toll collection; public service works at rest stops according to locations on the expressway approved by competent state agencies; technical infrastructure, technological equipment for traffic management and operation.
Time of implementation of highway toll collection
According to the draft, based on socio-economic conditions and the need to manage expressways that meet the prescribed conditions, the agency assigned to manage assets shall prepare a project to exploit assets for expressways that collect tolls and submit it to the competent authority for approval in accordance with the law on public assets and specialized laws.
Toll collection time, toll routes and toll rates are specifically determined in the asset exploitation project approved by competent authorities.
5 groups of subjects subject to fees
According to the draft, the subjects subject to highway usage fees are vehicles traveling on highways owned by the entire people, with the State representing the owner and directly managing and exploiting them. Subjects subject to highway usage fees are divided into 5 groups as follows:
- Group 1 includes the following types of vehicles: Vehicles with less than 12 seats, trucks with a load capacity of less than 2 tons; public passenger transport buses;
- Group 2 includes the following types of vehicles: Vehicles with 12 to 30 seats; trucks with a load capacity of 2 tons to less than 4 tons;
- Group 3 includes the following types of vehicles: Vehicles with 31 seats or more; trucks with a load capacity from 4 tons to under 10 tons;
- Group 4 includes the following types of vehicles: Trucks with a load capacity from 10 tons to less than 18 tons; trucks carrying goods in 20-foot containers;
- Group 5 includes the following types of vehicles: Trucks with a load capacity of 18 tons or more; trucks carrying goods in 40-foot containers.
The draft clearly states that organizations and individuals who own, use or manage vehicles subject to the above-mentioned highway usage fees must pay highway usage fees, except in cases where they are exempt from the fees.
Exempt subjects
According to the draft, subjects exempted from highway tolls when traveling on highways owned and directly managed and operated by the State include:
1- Ambulance.
2- Fire truck.
3- Specialized vehicles serving national defense include vehicles with license plates: Red background, embossed white letters and numbers with specialized equipment for national defense (including: tank trucks, crane trucks, vehicles carrying armed forces on the march are understood as passenger cars with 12 seats or more, covered transport vehicles with seats installed in the trunk, control vehicles, military inspection vehicles, specialized vehicles for transporting prisoners, rescue vehicles, satellite information vehicles and other specialized cars serving national defense).
4- Specialized vehicles serving security include vehicles of the Ministry of Public Security, Provincial and City Police, District and County Police:
- Traffic police patrol cars have the following characteristics: On the roof of the car there are rotating lights and on both sides of the car body there are printed the words: "TRAFFIC POLICE";
- Police car 113 has the words "POLICE 113" printed on both sides of the car body;
- Mobile police cars have the words "MOBILE POLICE" printed on both sides of the car;
- Vehicles of military, police and prosecutorial forces on emergency duty must use one of the priority signals prescribed by law in case of emergency;
- Covered transport vehicles with seats installed in the trunk to transport police on duty;
- Special vehicles transporting prisoners, rescue vehicles and ambulances must have identification signs according to the provisions of law on specialized vehicles.
5- Specialized vehicles for funeral services, including:
- Vehicles with specialized structures for funeral services (including: hearses, refrigerated trucks used to store and transport bodies);
- Funeral-related vehicles (including: passenger vehicles accompanying the hearse, flower trucks, and photo-carrying vehicles) are vehicles used only for funeral activities with a vehicle registration certificate bearing the name of the funeral service unit. The funeral service unit has a written commitment that these vehicles are only used for funeral activities and sent to the electronic payment service provider (specifying the number of vehicles and license plate numbers for each type).
6- The convoy has a traffic police car leading the way.
7- Police and defense force cars use National Road Tickets.
Toll amount, highway usage fee
According to the draft, the amount of highway usage fee to be paid is determined based on each type of vehicle, the actual distance traveled (km) and the fee corresponding to each type of vehicle (VND/km).
The proposed highway usage fee for vehicles traveling on the expressway owned by the entire people, represented by the State as the owner and directly managed and exploited under the management of the Ministry of Transport (management and exploitation) is as follows:
Unit: VND/vehicle.km
| Group | Chargeable vehicle | Level 1 | Level 2 |
| 1 | Vehicles with less than 12 seats, trucks with a load capacity of less than 2 tons; all types of public passenger transport buses; | 1,300 | 900 |
| 2 | Vehicles with 12 to 30 seats; trucks with a load capacity of 2 tons to under 4 tons; | 1,950 | 1,350 |
| 3 | Vehicles with 31 seats or more; trucks with a load capacity from 4 tons to under 10 tons; | 2,600 | 1,800 |
| 4 | Trucks with a load capacity from 10 tons to under 18 tons; trucks carrying goods in 20-foot containers; | 3,250 | 2,250 |
| 5 | Trucks with a load capacity of 18 tons or more; trucks carrying goods in 40-foot containers. | 5,200 | 3,600 |
The highway usage fee collected for vehicles traveling on the expressway owned by the entire people, represented by the State as the owner and directly managed and exploited by the locality (managed and exploited by the Provincial People's Committee) is prescribed by the Provincial People's Council.
Based on the above-prescribed fee levels, the fee level applied to each expressway route and section is specifically determined in the Asset Exploitation Project approved by the competent authority.
