Vietnam: Administrative penalties of up to VND 20,000,000 to be applied for failing to approve a written notice of commencement of construction to the state management agency?
- What are the conditions for commencement of construction of works in Vietnam?
- Is starting construction when the conditions therefor prescribed in this Law are not fully met considered as a prohibited acts in Vietnam?
- What are the penalties for failing to send a written notice of commencement of construction to the state management agency in Vietnam?
What are the conditions for commencement of construction of works in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 107 of the Law on Construction in 2014 (amended by Clause 39, Article 1 of the Law on Amendments to the Construction Law in 2020) stipulates as follows:
“Article 107. Conditions for commencement of construction of works
1. The commencement of construction of a work must satisfy the following conditions:
a) The construction grounds are available for entire or partial handover according to the construction schedule;
b) The construction permit has been granted for the work subject to the provisions of Article 89 of this Law;
c) The construction drawing design of the work item or the work to be constructed has been approved;
d) The project owner has signed a construction contract with the contractor performing construction activities related to the constructed work as prescribed by law;
dd) Measures have been developed to ensure safety and environmental protection in the course of construction;
e) The project owner has sent the written notification of the construction starting date to the local construction management agency at least 03 working days before the commencement of construction.
2. The commencement of construction of separate houses must meet only the condition prescribed at Point b, Clause 1 of this Article.”
Thus, when starting construction, it is necessary to ensure the conditions and requirements as prescribed above.
Vietnam: Administrative penalties of up to VND 20,000,000 to be applied for failing to send a written notice of commencement of construction to the state management agency?
Is starting construction when the conditions therefor prescribed in this Law are not fully met considered as a prohibited acts in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 12 of the Law on Construction in 2014 stipulates as follows:
"Article 12. Prohibited acts
1. Deciding on construction investment in contravention of this Law.
2. Starting construction when the conditions therefor prescribed in this Law are not fully met.
3. Constructing works in non-construction zones ; constructing works in encroachment upon the protection corridors of national defense, security, traffic or irrigation works, dykes, energy facilities, historical-cultural relic areas and protection zones of other works prescribed by law; constructing works in areas prone to landslide, sweeping flood or flash flood, except works built to overcome these phenomena.
4. Constructing works at variance with construction master plan, except cases with construction permits with a definite term; in encroachment of construction boundaries or construction levels; constructing works at variance with granted construction permits.
5. Formulating, appraising and approving designs and cost estimates of construction works using state funds in contravention of this Law.
6. Contractors participating in construction activities when failing to fully satisfy the capacity conditions for carrying out construction activities.
7. Project owners selecting contractors that fail to fully meet the capacity conditions for conducting construction activities.
8. Constructing works not in compliance with the selected standards and technical regulations to be applied to works.
9. Manufacturing and using building materials which cause harms to community health and environment.
10. Violating regulations on labor safety and assets, fire and explosion prevention and fighting, security, order and environmental protection in construction.
11. Using works against their purposes and utility; building annexes or lean-tos encroaching upon areas and spaces lawfully managed or used by other organizations or individuals or upon public areas and common-use areas.
12. Giving and taking bribe in construction investment activities; abusing other legal persons to participate in construction activities; committing manipulation and collusion to falsify the results of project formulation, surveys, designs or supervision of construction.
13. Abusing positions and powers to violate the law on construction; covering up and handling late acts in violation the law on construction.
14. Obstructing lawful construction investment activities."
Accordingly, the act of starting construction when the conditions therefor prescribed in this Law are not fully met is a prohibited acts in Vietnam.
What are the penalties for failing to send a written notice of commencement of construction to the state management agency in Vietnam?
Pursuant to Article 15 of Decree 16/2022/ND-CP stipulates as follows:
“Article 15. Violation of regulations on construction commencement
1. A fine ranging from VND 5.000.000 to VND 10.000.000 shall be imposed on:
a) Failing to submit notice on commencement date (together with copies of construction permit, construction design dossiers) to local construction authorities where the structure is built and construction agencies as per the law;
b) Failing to notify local construction authorities in a timely fashion about the commencement date or failing to attach construction design dossiers with the notice for cases where construction permit is not required;
c) Failing to submit reports that contain all of the following information to construction agencies: name, address, name of structure, construction location, construction scale, expected progress after commencement or failing to submit commencement notice using the right form.
2. A fine ranging from VND 30.000.000 to VND 50.000.000 shall be imposed on commencing construction without (except for commencing construction of detached houses):
a) Construction premise for total or partial transfer depending on project progress;
b) Construction contract signed by project developers and the contractors;
c) Safety and environmental protection measures for construction process.
3. A fine ranging from VND 60.000.000 to VND 80.000.000 shall be imposed on commencing construction without the approved construction drawing of the structure or work items.
4. Commencement of construction without construction permit will be met with penalties in accordance with Clause 7 Article 16 hereof.
5. Remedial measures:
a) Mandated transfer of construction premises depending on project progress for violations under Point a Clause 2 of this Article;
b) Mandated signing of construction contracts between project developers and contractors for violations under Point b Clause 2 of this Article;
c) Mandated adoption of safety and environmental protection measures during construction process for violations under Point c Clause 2 of this Article.”
Accordingly, based on violations of regulations on starting construction of works to determine the level of administrative sanction according to the above provisions.
In addition, based on violations to determine corresponding remedial measures according to the above provisions.
Note, the level of administrative sanction as prescribed above only applies to the violating organization. In case of individual violations, the fine will be 1/2 of the fine level of the organization.
Accordingly, the act of failing to approve a written notice of the commencement date (enclosed with a copy of the construction permit and construction design dossier) to the state management agency in charge of construction in the locality and the specialized construction agency will be fined up to 10 million VND for organizations.
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