From July 2024, what are policies for cooperatives in Vietnam?

Hello, Lawnet would like to answer as follows:

Collective economies, typically Cooperatives, have made significant contributions to the national economy in recent years, playing an important role in social security. The Law on Cooperatives 2023 was passed by the National Assembly on June 20, 2023, taking effect on July 1, 2024, creating a favorable legal corridor for Cooperatives in general and Agricultural Cooperatives to develop.

1. What is an agricultural cooperative?

Clause 7, Article 4 of the Law on Cooperatives 2023 stipulates that ""cooperative” means an organization that has the status of a juridical person, is voluntarily established by at least 05 official members who cooperate with and assist each other in production, business, and job creation with the aim of meeting the general economic, cultural, and social demands of its members, making contributions to sustainable community and social development, and adhering to the principles of autonomy, equality, and democracy.”

Thus, it can be understood that agricultural cooperatives are cooperatives operating in the agricultural sector

2. What are policies for cooperatives in Vietnam?

Policy to support the development of agricultural cooperatives is prescribed from Article 20 to Article 27 of the Law on Cooperatives 2023, taking effect on July 1, 2023. Specifically:

First, policies for development of human resources, information provision and consultancy

- Formulate and include training contents in collective economy in training programs of certain higher education institutions, and training programs in political theory and state management.

- Formulate and provide training and re-training programs for members and employees of artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions, regulatory authorities, representative bodies, and relevant authorities and organizations.

- Pay salaries and bonuses and provide other benefits to attract highly-skilled human resources to artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions.

- Formulate and implement communications programs for increasing awareness and knowledge of administration, production and business of artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions.

- Provide information and legal counseling for, and assist in access to funding sources and other matters during the establishment, operation, reorganization, dissolution and bankruptcy of artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions;

- Develop a network of providers of legal counseling services for artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions.

- Develop effective operating models of cooperatives and cooperative unions on a large scale.

- Promote international cooperation in providing full-time training programs in the collective economy.

Second, Land policies

- In their land use plannings and plans, local governments should prioritize the leasing of land areas to artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions; give incentives regarding land rents and leasing period to artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions that do not receive land leasing assistance as prescribed in the land law and relevant laws.

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be eligible for lent exemption/reduction when using land/land areas containing water surface leased directly by the State or receive the State subsidies for paying rents on land/land areas containing water surface leased or sub-leased by other organizations, family households or individuals in accordance with regulations of the land law.

- The State shall enable artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions to use land stably during their business in accordance with regulations of the land law.

Third, Policies on taxes, fees and charges

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be entitled to the most favorable tax, fee and charge incentives for the same business line and in the same area in accordance with regulations of law on taxes, fees and charges.

- Artel registration charges and fees for disclosing registration information on electronic information systems of business registration authorities shall not be collected.

- Corporate income tax (CIT) shall be exempted and reduced in accordance with regulations of the CIT Law in the following cases:

+ Incomes earned from internal transactions of a cooperative or cooperative union;

+ Incomes earned by an artel, cooperative or cooperative union when cooperating with other organizations and individuals in establishing value chains/sectoral business clusters associated with green economy, circular economy and knowledge economy for sustainable development;

+ Other cases as prescribed in the CIT Law.

- CIT on incomes forming undistributed funds and assets of cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be exempted in accordance with regulations of the CIT Law.

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be entitled to exemption and reduction of license fees as prescribed by the law on fees and charges.

- Organizations and individuals shall be exempted from payment of registration fees when following procedures for transfer of land use rights or ownership of assets which they contribute to cooperatives and cooperative unions in accordance with regulations of law on fees and charges.

Forth, Policies on access to funding and insurance

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be entitled to:

+ Apply for concessional loans from credit institutions as prescribed by laws;

+ Apply for concessional loans, post-investment interest rate incentives and investment credit guarantee of cooperative development assistance funds in accordance with the Government's regulations;

+ Be given priority to access funding of science and technology development fund, environmental protection fund, climate change adaptation fund and other financial institutions for the purpose of sustainable development as prescribed by laws;

+ Cooperatives and cooperative unions operating in financial and banking sector shall receive assistance in increasing their financial capability;

+ Be given priority and assistance to participate in investment promotion activities of ministries, regulatory authorities and local governments.

- When purchasing insurance for their undistributed assets, artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be entitled to insurance premium subsidies as prescribed by the Law on insurance business.

- When purchasing voluntary social insurance, members of artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be entitled to insurance contribution subsidies granted by the State in accordance with regulations of the law on social insurance.

Fifth Policies for application of science and technology, innovation and digital transformation

Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be given assistance in:

- Adopting innovations and improving their productivity on the basis of science and technology and innovations; developing models of green economy, circular economy, and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; adopting technological innovations, accessing, promoting, developing and owning technologies through research, provision of training and consultancy, searching for technologies, reverse engineering and technology transfer; establishing, managing, using, protecting and developing intellectual property.

- Adopting digital transformation and applying e-commerce to their production and distribution of products by means of development of information technology infrastructure and provision of shared terminal devices, software programs and applications.

- Building and connecting their own websites to the National cooperative information system.

- They will be provided with funding for using technology transfer consulting services according to their requests and under specific service contracts signed with relevant service providers.

Sixth, Policies on market access and research

Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be given assistance in:

- Accessing legal and economic information; doing market surveys and research; accessing forecasts and warnings of trade remedies against Vietnam’s exports.

- Establishing raw material areas, producing and selling products, applying and obtaining certificates of conformity to relevant quality standards for market development.

- Building and registering brands and origin of their products; registering and adopting marketing strategies for their products.

- Developing products, goods and services of local origin and with typical economic and cultural values and advantages of their local areas.

- Organizing or participating in domestic and foreign trade fairs and exhibitions; building, developing and participating in e-commerce trading floors.

- Participating in trade promotion activities of ministries, regulatory authorities and local governments.

Seventh, Policies for investment in development of infrastructure and equipment

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be given assistance in investing in development of infrastructure and equipment serving their production and business, social security, environmental protection and climate change adaptation.

- Some State infrastructure structures serving public interests of communities shall be transferred to local artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions for management, operation, repairing and maintenance as prescribed by laws.

- Some public works and other infrastructure systems shall be transferred to artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions for use as their head offices, warehouse facilities, stores/showrooms selling, displaying and introducing products or for serving their business as prescribed by laws.

- Artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions shall be provided with financial assistance for making investment in and construction of infrastructure for establishing chains of production, supply of processing services and consumption of their products.

Eighth, Policies for assistance in financial consultancy and risk assessment

- Micro and small cooperatives shall be granted audit fee subsidies when they are eligible for the State’s assistance policies as prescribed.

- Representative bodies and the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance system shall be given assistance in carrying out risk assessment and financial consultancy; conducting their internal control and providing internal control consulting for artels, cooperatives and cooperative unions.

3. What are policies for assistance in agricultural operations in Vietnam?

According to Article 28 of the Law on Cooperatives 2023, in addition to the policies above, cooperatives and cooperative unions operating in agricultural sector shall be also entitled to:

- Agricultural insurance subsidies as prescribed in the Law on insurance business;

- Assistance in accessing to funding sources, plant varieties, animal breeds, science and technology applications when they adopt sustainable production, organic agriculture and climate change adaptation;

- Financial assistance for building infrastructure of raw material areas when they establish concentrated raw material areas using land use rights that they receive as capital contribution or land/land areas containing water surface leased by other organizations, family households and individuals.

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