From January 1, 2018 (New Year's Day), many new policies come into effect. Thu Ky Luat would like to send to our readers four notable policies that need attention. They are as follows:
Article table of contents
1. Passengers in cars not wearing seat belts will be fined.
According to Clause 7, Article 80 of Decree 46/2016/ND-CP, as of January 1, 2018, the following two acts will be subject to fines:
- Not wearing a seat belt (in a position equipped with a seat belt) while the car is in motion;
- Carrying passengers in a car who are not wearing seat belts (in positions equipped with seat belts) while the car is in motion.
The fine for each of these acts ranges from 100,000 VND to 200,000 VND, as stipulated in Article 5 of this Decree.
2. Attorneys will be "on par" with Prosecutors in criminal trials.
Circular 01/2017/TT-TANDTC regulating the courtroom of the Supreme People’s Court will take effect from January 1, 2018.
Notably, in criminal courtrooms, the seating position of the Representative of the Procuracy and the position of the Defense Counsel, who protects the legitimate rights and interests of the victim and the parties, will be placed "on par" with each other.
To be specific: as follows:
3. There is a significant change in the monthly pension rate for female workers.
According to Article 56 of the 2014 Social Insurance Law, from January 1, 2018, the monthly pension rate for female workers will be calculated as follows:
- 45% corresponding to 15 years of compulsory social insurance contributions.
- After that, for each additional year, 2% will be added (before January 1, 2018, each additional year of contribution was calculated at 3%), with the maximum rate being 75%.
This regulation results in the consequence that to enjoy the maximum 75% pension rate, female workers must have 30 years of social insurance contributions (previously only required a maximum of 25 years).
4. Attorneys will be required to "denounce" their clients.
From January 1, 2018, the 2015 Penal Code and the 2017 Amended Penal Code will officially take effect. Many provisions have been amended compared to the 1999 Penal Code, notably Clause 3, Article 19 of the 2015 Penal Code, which was amended by the 2017 Amended Penal Code.
To be specific, defense counsels will bear criminal liability if they do not denounce crimes committed by the person they are defending, including:
- Crimes infringing upon national security;
- Especially serious crimes.
Defense counsels have the responsibility to denounce these crimes during the preparation, committing, or after committing the criminal act that they clearly know while performing their defense duties.
