Guidance on management of exhibits and means illegally owned or used for administrative violations in cases of confiscation in Vietnam

Guidance on management of exhibits and means illegally owned or used for administrative violations in cases of confiscation in Vietnam (Image from the Internet)

1. Limitation periods for issuance of administrative sanction decisions in Vietnam

Article 66 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012 (amended by Clause 34, Article 1 of the Law amending the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2020) stipulates the limitation periods for issuance of administrative sanction decisions in Vietnam:

- For cases not covered by point b and point c, Clause 1, Article 66 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012, the time limit for issuing a decision is 7 working days from the date of drafting the administrative violation minutes. For cases requiring the transfer of documents to a competent person for handling, the time limit for issuing a decision is 10 working days from the date of drafting the administrative violation minutes, except for cases stipulated at Clause 3, Article 63 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012;

- For cases where an individual or organization requests clarification or requires verification of relevant details as stipulated in Article 59 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012, the time limit for issuing a decision is 1 month from the date of drafting the administrative violation minutes;

- For cases covered under point b, Clause 1, Article 66 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012 that are particularly serious, with many complex details, requiring additional time for verification and evidence collection, the time limit for issuing a decision is 2 months from the date of drafting the administrative violation minutes.

The competent authority handling administrative violations, individuals, and related organizations will be subject to legal consequences if they fail to issue a decision within the specified time limit.

2. Guidance on management of exhibits and means illegally owned or used for administrative violations in cases of confiscation in Vietnam

Article 23 of Decree 118/2021/ND-CP guides the management of exhibits and means illegally owned or used for administrative violations in cases of confiscation in Vietnam as follows:

- For objects and means temporarily seized due to illegal seizure and usage to commit administrative violations subject to confiscation, the process follows Clause 1, Article 126 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012. In this scenario, violating individuals or organizations must pay an amount equivalent to the value of the violated objects or means into the state budget.

If an amount equivalent to the value of violated objects or means needs to be paid in cases involving multiple individuals or organizations, all violators are responsible for paying the equivalent amount into the state budget based on a ratio determined by the competent authority, unless there is a written agreement among violators submitted to the competent authority within the decision issuance time specified in Article 66 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012.

- For objects and means of administrative violations subject to confiscation that have been registered as security collateral according to civil law regulations, the resolution is as follows:

+ The mortgagee receives the objects, means, or an equivalent value according to the secured obligation; violators must pay an amount equivalent to the value of violated objects or means into the state budget;

+ The mortgagee is obliged to notify the result of secured asset disposal to the competent authority in writing within 3 working days of the disposal result concerning the administrative violation assets subject to confiscation. If the disposed assets value exceeds the secured obligation value, and the violators have not fully paid the equivalent amount to the state budget, the mortgagee must transfer the surplus value of the secured assets to the state budget within 5 working days from the notification of the disposal result;

+ The mortgagee failing to transfer the surplus value of the secured assets subject to confiscation within the prescribed time shall be fined according to the monetary and banking administrative sanction regulations or other relevant fields.

- Depending on the specific type of objects and means, determining their value to calculate the fine equivalent to their value shall be based on one of the bases prescribed in Clause 2, Article 60 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012. The authority handling the case shall determine the value of violated objects and means.

If the bases stipulated in Clause 2, Article 60 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012 cannot be applied, the handling authority must establish a Valuation Council. The formation of the Valuation Council is implemented according to Clause 3, Article 60 of the Law on Handling Administrative Violations 2012.

- The forms and procedures for collecting and submitting an equivalent amount to the state budget for violated objects or means value are implemented according to Article 21 of Decree 118/2021/ND-CP.

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