Violations will be classified after the case of 'exchanging 100 USD and being fined 90 million VND'

On the sidelines of the National Assembly on October 26, Governor Le Minh Hung said that after receiving information about the case of a resident in Can Tho exchanging 100 USD and being fined 90 million VND, he assigned the Director of the State Bank of Vietnam's Southern Branch to approach and check the case file. "After this process, the leaders of the State Bank of Vietnam's Southern Branch will advise the People's Committee of Can Tho City on appropriate handling," he said.

Governor Hung also said that the State Bank is planning to amend Decree 96/2014 regulating administrative sanctions in the banking and currency sector. "Classifying the level of violations is also a way to amend this decree," he said.

According to delegate Truong Trong Nghia, illegal foreign currency trading happens a lot, but "fighting" needs to be focused and targeted. "Exchanging 100 USD and being fined 90 million VND is too harsh and unreasonable," he said.

Specifically speaking about the case, Mr. Nghia analyzed that with gold shops, if they observe that the business has been in violation for a long time, the authorities can consider handling it, even criminally, and this is a different case. But from a value that is too small for an individual when they are given 100 USD to exchange at a gold shop and are fined 90 million VND, it is too heavy, unreasonable for the low income of workers.

The HCMC delegate added that if there is a case of people coming to exchange 100 USD, then only a record needs to be drawn up to confiscate the money exchanged. Some people will ask, if there are many bigger cases that the authorities have missed, who will be held responsible?

“Previously, there were cases like stealing chickens, ducks or bread that were criminally prosecuted, causing many conflicting opinions. As for this case, in my opinion, the law stipulates that if the impact and level of danger are too small, the individual behavior will be prosecuted, but only lightly,” said Mr. Nghia.

Delegate Bui Van Xuyen - Standing Member of the National Assembly's Law Committee also said that the fine of up to 90 million USD for exchanging 100 USD by a citizen is "in accordance with regulations but not reasonable".

He said that according to Decree No. 96/2014, the penalty for Mr. Ca Re was in accordance with the regulations. However, in reality, most people, even civil servants, do not know about the above mentioned penalty Decree.

If the person exchanging money is professional and the amount is up to several thousand or tens of thousands of USD, or even more, it can be considered illegal business and trading and the violator must be severely punished. The 100 USD that the worker exchanged in the incident is not much and is their property, not appropriated or used for other people's money. Not to mention, the exchange is only for consumption purposes, so the fine of 90 million is not reasonable at all.

According to the Standing Member of the National Assembly's Law Committee, the Decree is meant to be a deterrent and educational measure, showing the strictness of the law, but the case of exchanging 100 USD and being fined 90 million will create an impression or something bad.

"Many people may question that such punishment is unfair and confusing to people. How many major violators cannot be punished, but instead people who accidentally exchanged a small amount of money are punished. The law is strict and standard, but when it is issued, it takes time to prepare and disseminate to the people. When the violation is the first time and does not cause harm, it should be handled leniently and educationally, but if it is repeated, it should be severely punished," Mr. Xuyen emphasized.

Earlier this week, the People's Committee of Can Tho City decided to impose an administrative fine of VND90 million on Mr. Nguyen Ca Re (38 years old, living in An Hoa ward, Ninh Kieu district) for exchanging USD100 at a gold shop. Mr. Re also had nearly VND2.3 million that he had exchanged confiscated.

The 2005 Foreign Exchange Ordinance stipulates that, within the territory of Vietnam, all transactions, payments, listings, and advertisements cannot be made in foreign currency, except for transactions with credit institutions or payments through intermediaries including collection, entrustment, and agency. Therefore, Mr. Re's actions are considered a violation of the law and subject to administrative penalties, according to Decree 96/2014, from 80 to 100 million VND.

Hoai Thu - Vo Hai