The Law on Promulgation of legislative documents 2015 of Vietnam came into force from July 01, 2016 with several new points compared to previous regulations, of which one of the notable contents is the regulation on effective dates of legislative documents.
Article table of contents
Re-system of the effective dates of legislative documents
Legislative documents promulgated under usual procedures
- The effective date of the whole or part of a legislative document shall be specified in the document. Nevertheless, the effective date is not sooner than 45 days from the day on which it is ratified or signed if it is promulgated by a central regulatory agency;
- The effective date is not sooner than 10 days from the day on which it is signed if it is promulgated by the People’s Council or the People’s Committee of a province;
- The effective date is not sooner than 07 days from the day on which it is signed if it is promulgated by the People’s Council or the People’s Committee of a district or commune.
Legislative documents promulgated under simplified procedures
A legislative document promulgated under simplified procedures may come into force from the day on which it is ratified or sign and must be immediately published on information portal of the promulgating agency and posted on the media; such document must be published on Official Gazette of Socialist Republic of Vietnam or the province within 03 days from the day on which it is announced or signed.
Retrospective effect of legislative documents
- A law, resolution of the National Assembly, or legislative document of a central regulatory agency may have a retrospective effect if it is necessary for assurance of common interests, rights and interests of the entities regulated by the document.
- The legislative document is promulgated by the People’s Councils, the People’s Committee, or local government of an administrative - economic unit.
- A document must not have retrospective effect in the following cases:
+ The document imposes a new legal liability upon an act which does not incur such legal liability when it is committed.
+ The document imposes a heavier legal liability.
Defining the documents detailing the implementation to expire
A legislative document expires in part or in full in the following cases:
- The document expires on the expiration date written therein;
- The document is amended by or replaced with another legislative document which is promulgated by the same regulatory agency;
- The document is annulled by another document of a competent authority;
- When a legislative document expires, the documents elaborating it also expire.
The provision that when a legal document expires, the legal document detailing its implementation will also expire is a new point specified in the Law on Promulgation of legislative documents 2015 of Vietnam. The determination of the document detailing the expiration of its validity shall be carried out as follows:
- When a legal document expires, the legal document detailing the implementation of the assigned articles, clauses and points detailing the implementation of that document shall also cease to be effective;
- In case a legal document specified in detail is partially invalidated, the contents detailing that expired part shall be invalidated. In case it is not possible to determine the invalid content of a document detailing the implementation, such document shall cease to be effective in its entirety;
- In case a document detailing many legal documents, of which only one or a number of documents specified in detail is invalidated, the content of the document detailing the implementation will cease to be effective at the same time as one or several documents specified in detail expires. In case it is not possible to determine the invalid contents of a document detailing implementation, such document shall cease to be effective in its entirety.
