Maximum prices for maximum prices for maritime pilotage services for domestic vessels effective in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

Maximum prices for maximum prices for maritime pilotage services for domestic vessels effective in Vietnam from July 1, 2024 (Internet image)

From July 1, 2024, the Minister of Transport (Hanoi, Vietnam) issued Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT on the issuance of prices for maritime pilotage services at Vietnamese sea ports in Vietnam.

Maximum prices for maximum prices for maritime pilotage services for domestic vessels effective in Vietnam from July 1, 2024

According to Article 4 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT 2024, the maximum price for maritime pilotage services for domestic vessels is stipulated as follows:

• Based on unit price: The maximum price for one pilotage service is the product of the maximum unit price stipulated in Sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7 of the table below and the pilotage distance with the total tonnage of the vessel.

For Section 6 below, it is calculated as the product of the maximum unit price stipulated in Section 6 below with the total tonnage of the vessel.

• Based on pilotage trip: The maximum price for domestic maritime pilotage service based on a pilotage trip is 2,000,000 VND/trip.

• In cases where the maximum price for maritime pilotage service calculated based on unit price is lower than the maximum price based on a pilotage trip, the maximum price for maritime pilotage service based on a pilotage trip is 2,000,000 VND/trip.

Note: The above prices do not include value-added tax (VAT).

Cases for calculating specific prices in Vietnam

• In cases where there is a change in the pilot request time or cancellation of the pilot request that the notification time to the pilot organization is less than 03 hours for domestic operations and less than 08 hours for offshore petroleum ports, the person requesting the pilot must pay a waiting fee of 30,000 VND/person/hour for domestic operations and 10 USD/person/hour for international operations.

For cases including both the pilot and the means of transport, the fee is 200,000 VND/person and means/hour for domestic operations and 20 USD/person and means/hour for international operations.

If the pilot has not yet started, the waiting time is counted as 01 hour; once the pilot has left the starting position, the waiting time is counted from the time of departure to the time the pilot returns to the original position, with a minimum charge of 01 hour. The pilot waits at the boarding location for no more than 04 hours beyond the requested pilotage time; after this time, the pilotage request is considered canceled, and the requester must pay 80% of the pilot service fee based on the requested pilotage distance and the rates specified in Article 3, Article 4 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT.

• In cases where the pilot has already boarded the vessel but the vessel cannot operate due to force majeure, confirmed by the regional maritime port authority, the pilotage service fee must not exceed the maximum rate per trip as stipulated in Section 2 of Article 3 for domestic maritime operations and Section 4 of Article 4 for international maritime operations of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT.

• If a vessel does not directly reach the destination port but requests to anchor along the way (except for routes where night sailing is not permitted), the requester of the pilot must pay additional costs for the transport means used to transfer the pilot. The transport service fee for pilot boarding and disembarking must not exceed 300,000 VND/ship/trip for domestic operations and 30 USD/ship/trip for international operations.

• If a vessel arrives at the pilot boarding position at the requested time and is accepted by the regional maritime port authority and the pilot organization, but the pilot has not yet arrived, causing the vessel to wait, the pilot organization must pay a waiting fee to the vessel owner. The waiting fee is 250,000 VND/hour for domestic operations and 100 USD/hour for international operations, calculated based on the actual waiting time.

• For vessels (except passenger ships) entering and leaving a maritime area at least 04 trips/month/area or more, from the fourth trip onwards in the month, 80% of the maximum pilot service price stipulated in Article 3, Article 4 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT or a maximum of 2,000,000 VND for domestic operations and 300 USD for international operations is applicable.

• For passenger vessels entering and leaving a maritime area at least 4 trips/month/area, from the fourth trip onwards in the month, 50% of the maximum pilot service price stipulated in Article 3, Article 4 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT or a maximum of 2,000,000 VND for domestic operations and 300 USD for international operations is applicable.

• For passenger vessels engaged in international operations with a gross tonnage of 50,000 GT or more entering or leaving a maritime area, 40% of the pilotage service price stipulated in Article 3, Article 4 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT or a maximum of 300 USD, is applicable.

(Article 5 of Decision 814/QĐ-BGTVT)

Nguyen Ngoc Que Anh

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