Architectural plan contests in Vietnam in 2020: Notable contents

According to Article 17 of the Law on Architecture 2019 of Vietnam, regulations on architectural plan contests are as follows:

1. Architectural plan contest refers to a test designed to select the best architectural plan that meets requirements concerning planning, architecture, culture, socio-economic efficiency, national defense, security and environmental protection.

2. The following construction projects shall be subject to the compulsory requirement for participation in the architectural plan contest, including:

a) Special-class or class-I public construction works;

b) Provincial-level central train terminals and civil aviation terminals; bridges inside class-II or higher-level urban areas and inner-city railway stations; statues and construction projects symbolic of tradition, culture and history at localities; important construction projects and landmarks located inside urban areas and along main streets that are specified in urban planning and design schemes and regulations on management of architecture approved by competent authorities.

3. Architectural plan contests may be proposed in the investment policy or pre-feasibility study report.

4. Persons having competence in making investment decisions shall be accorded authority to decide on the forms of architectural plan contest and decide to establish the architectural plan contest council.

5. Costs incurred from such contests shall be calculated as part of total investment in a project.

6. Based on the architectural plan successfully passing the test, entities and persons owning such plan can take further steps in a project if they meet requirements stipulated in the law on construction and procurement law.

7. Information about the test, the architectural plan contest council and marking results must be made publicly on mass media by the project owner.

8. The Government shall issue specific provisions of this Article.

Thus, on July 17, 2020, the Government of Vietnam issued Decree No. 85/2020/ND-CP, which elaborates this Article as follows:

1. Forms of architectural plan contests

There are 02 forms of architectural plan contests, which are open contests and restricted contests. An open contest shall be held without any limitation on the number of contestants. A restricted contest is the form that is applied to certain participants.

2. Requirements for holding a contest

- There is a design task in conformity with the construction planning, urban planning, urban design and regulations on management of architecture approved and promulgated by the competent authority.

- A contest council is established.

- The investment decision maker, investor, agency or organization assigned to hold a contest (hereinafter referred to as "the organizer") establishes a technical team to assist the contest council.

- Within 30 days, information about the contest and contest council and contest results shall be published on one or more mass media or web portals or websites of the central or local architecture agency in the area where the contest is held.

3. Organization of the contest

Decree No. 85/2020/ND-CP stipulates contents of the organization of the contest as follows:

- Preparatory actions taken before holding a contest:

+ Complete procedures and collect data, legal documents, information about the architecture and planning related to the land reserved for construction of works.

+ Prepare and approve the plan and funding for holding the contest, contest rules and design tasks.

+ Establish a contest council and a technical team.

- Upon performing design tasks, it is required to provide sufficient legal information about the building site, drawing of the current status, planning criteria, information about the land, purposes, nature and scale of the works; expected total investment; requirements on architecture, functions, technical requirements, connection with the general landscape and other relevant requirements.

- Contest rules shall contain at least:

+ Form, scale, nature, purposes and requirement of the contest;

+ Regulations on conditions for competing in the contest; criteria, contents and sequence of holding the contest; time and place of the contest; application for the contest and validity of such application;

+ Composition of the contest council and basic information about expertise and experience of the council's members;

+ Costs of holding the contest and bases for calculating costs of design of works;

+ Structure and value of prize (if any);

+ Rights and responsibilities of relevant parties, and copyright;

+ Contest entry forms;

+ Other issues required by each contest: type of the contest (contest for architectural ideas or for an architectural plan); regulations on contest rounds; actions taken if no optimal plan is found at the end of a contest round; rules for calculating the design costs of the project.

- An application for the contest is composed of a description, architectural drawings, technical solutions, films, photos and models and financial proposals. There must be regulations on uniform language for the application, regulations on units of measurement and monetary units, and principles of anonymity which do not allow names and logos of consultancy units or authors to be shown on drawings or descriptions.

4. Architectural plan contest council

- Composition of the contest council:

+ The council must have an odd number of members and there must be at least 09 members.

+ The council must have 01 Chair and other members.

+ At least two-thirds of the council's members must be architects who have knowledge and experience regarding the type of works in the contest. There must be 01 representative from the regulatory agency for planning and architecture and 01 representative from the social or professional organization in practice of architecture.

+ The Chair of the council must be an expert having experience in designing architecture of multiple works which have been built and must have a reputable career in the architecture field. The Chair shall be appointed by the council or invited by the investor.

+ Members of the council must be persons who have expertise and experience in the fields of planning, architecture, construction and other relevant fields and work in an objective and upright manner. The organizer may invite foreign experts to join the council (if necessary).

- Working rules of the council:

+ The council shall work in accordance with the regulations issued by the council.

+ The council shall only assess and rank the submitted plans if at least three quarters of the members are present.

- The Chair, members and secretaries shall not publish and provide to organizations and individuals not joining the council the information about the issues discussed and conclusions given by the contest council during the assessment and ranking of the submitted plans.

- Within 03 days after the point awarding is done, the contest council must send the contest results to the investor so that the investor considers recognizing the results.

- Responsibilities of the council:

+ The Chair shall provide instructions on making of the council regulations; and preside over the council during the working time of the council.

+ Members of the council shall adhere to the working regulations of the council.

5. Assessing and ranking submitted plans and announcing results

According to Article 20 of Decree No. 85/2020/ND-CP, assessing and ranking submitted plans and announcing results are prescribed as follows:

- Submitted designs shall be assessed and ranked in accordance with the methods and criteria set out in the council regulations and the principle of a secret ballot to select a plan in a priority order of 1 - 3. The first-ranked plan is the architectural plan which wins the contest.

- The assessment and ranking report must be signed by all participating members of the council and sent to the contest organizer, which will submit a consolidated report to the investment decision maker for approval.

- If no plan satisfies the objectives and requirements set out in the contest rules, the contest shall be re-held.

- The organizer shall make the results publicly available, award prizes after the contest and send the results to the specialized architecture agency affiliated to the provincial People’s Committee.

Moreover, Decree No. 85/2020/ND-CP also specifies the costs of holding a contest; rights and responsibilities of organizations and individuals participating in the architectural plan contest.

View more details at Decree No. 85/2020/ND-CP of Vietnam’s Government, effective from September 07, 2020.

Thanh Thao

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