Dossier for extension of Investment Registration Certificate

Term of the Investment Registration Certificate in Vietnam

The term of the Investment Certificate is also the operating term of the investment project. The term of the Investment Registration Certificate is considered and decided by the Investment Certificate Issuing Agency based on the objectives, scale, location, and operational requirements of the investment project. Accordingly, the maximum term of the Investment Certificate is specified as follows:

• The term of operation of an investment project in an economic zone must not exceed 70 years.
• The operating term of an investment project outside an economic zone must not exceed 50 years.
• Investment projects implemented in areas with difficult socio-economic conditions, areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions or investment projects with large investment capital but slow capital recovery are required the operation term of an investment project may be longer but must not exceed 70 years.

The operating term of an investment project as prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2, Article 44 of the Investment Law 2020 is calculated from the date the investor is issued a Decision on investor approval, a Decision on approval of joint investment policy with the investor approval or the initial Investment Registration Certificate. For investment projects that are allocated land, leased land, or changed land use purpose by the State, the project’s operating term is calculated from the date the investor is given the decision to allocate land, decide to lease land, or decide to lease land, intend to change the land use purpose. In cases where the investor has had a decision to allocate land, a decision to lease land, or a decision to change the purpose of land use but is late in handing over the land, the operating term of the investment project is calculated from the above date of land handover in the field.

Dossier for extension of Investment Registration Certificate

• A text request for an extension of the operation term of the investment project;
• Decision on approval of investment policy (if the project requires policy approval);
• Investment Registration Certificate is about to expire;
• Decision on investor approval or equivalent legal documents;
• Certificate of land use right or papers of equivalent legal value;
• Documents proving the investor’s financial capacity include one of the following documents: the investor’s most recent 2-year financial statements; commitment to financial support from the Parent company;
• Commitment to financial support of financial institutions;
• Guarantee on the financial capacity of the investor;
• Other documents proving the financial capacity of the investor.

Conditions for extension of Investment Registration Certificate in Vietnam

Based on the objectives, scale, location, and operation requirements of the investment project, if the investor wishes to continue implementing the investment project at the end of the operation term, the competent authority shall approve the investment policy project, the investment registration agency considers and decides to extend the operation term of that project if the following conditions are satisfied:

• In accordance with national planning, regional planning, provincial planning, urban planning, and special administrative-economic unit planning (if any); consistent with urban development goals and orientations, housing development planning programs (for investment projects to build housing and urban areas);
• Meet the conditions for land allocation and land lease according to the provisions of land law (in case of a request to extend land use).

Cases where Investment Registration Certificates cannot be extended

The project is outdated, has the potential to cause environmental pollution, and is resource-intensive

Investment projects use outdated technology, potentially causing environmental pollution and being resource-intensive.

• Projects using technological lines when their operation does not meet the provisions of the National Technical Regulations on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection; or the capacity (calculated by the number of products produced by the technological line in a unit of time) or the efficiency of the remaining technology line is less than 85% of the designed capacity or efficiency, or the consumption of raw materials and energy exceeds 15% of the design.
• In case there is no national technical regulation on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection related to the project’s technology line, technical standards of Vietnam’s national standards or national standards of Vietnam or national standards of one of the G7 countries on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection.
• Projects using machinery and equipment for production with commodity codes (HS codes) of Chapters 84 and 85 of the List of Vietnam’s import and export goods whose age exceeds 10 years or when the operation does not meet the regulations of National Technical Regulations on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection. In case there is no national technical regulation on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection related to the project’s machinery and equipment, the technical criteria according to Vietnam’s national standards or one of the G7 countries on safety, energy saving, and environmental protection.
• The Ministry of Science and Technology guides the identification of machinery and equipment in some fields that are older than 10 years but are not of outdated technology, potentially causing environmental pollution and being resource-intensive.

Identifying investment projects using outdated technology, potentially causing environmental pollution, and consuming resources is carried out as follows:

• The Ministry of Science and Technology shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with relevant agencies in, organizing the identification of technologies of investment projects falling under the competence of the National Assembly and the Prime Minister to approve investment policies;
• The specialized agency in science and technology under the People’s Committee of the province shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the concerned agency in, organizing the determination of the technology of the investment project that does not fall into the cases specified at Point a of this Clause.
• Expenditures for the implementation are allocated from the state budget. In case the investment project is extended for operation duration, the entire implementation cost shall be paid by the investor;
• Documents, orders, and procedures for identifying investment projects using outdated technology, potentially causing environmental pollution, or consuming too many resources shall comply with the Prime Minister’s regulations.

Investment projects in cases where the investor must transfer assets without compensation to the Vietnamese State or Vietnamese party.

Procedures for extension of Investment Registration Certificates

Step 1: Prepare and submit your application

• For investment projects that have been approved for investment policy, the investor submits 04 sets of dossiers to the Ministry of Planning and Investment or the Investment Registration Authority corresponding to the authority to approve the investment policy of the project.
• For investment projects that have been granted an Investment Registration Certificate and are not subject to investment policy approval, the investor submits 04 sets of documents including all of the above documents, and submits them to the Investment Registration Authority.
• For an investment project using land, within at least 06 months before the expiry of the operation term of the investment project, the investor shall prepare a dossier containing all the above documents and submit it to the competent authority.

Step 2: Within 03 working days from the date of receiving the valid documents specified in point a of this Clause, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the investment registration agency send the documents to the land management agency and relevant agencies to get opinions on meeting the conditions specified in Clause 4, Article 44 of the Investment Law 2020 and Clause 4, Article 27 of Decree 31/2021/ND-CP.

Step 3: Within 10 days from the day on which the valid application is received, the consulted agency shall give opinions on the satisfaction of the conditions specified in Clause 4, Article 44 of the Investment Law 2020 and Clause 4, Article 27 of the Decree No. 31/2021/ND-CP.

Step 4: Within 15 days from the date of receipt of valid documents, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the investment registration agency shall consider the conditions for extending the operation term of the investment project specified in Clause 1 of this Article. 4 Article 44 of the Investment Law 2020 and Clause 4, Article 27 of Decree 31/2021/ND-CP to prepare an appraisal report and submit it to the agency approving the investment policy.

Step 5: Within 03 working days from the date of receiving the report from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the investment registration agency and investment policy approval agency shall decide to extend the project’s operating term of the investment project.

Service related to Investment Registration Certificate of Viet An Law Firm

• Consulting on preparing documents for extension of Investment Certificate;
• Consulting on conditions for extending Investment Certificate;
• Consulting and drafting documents to extend Investment Certificates for businesses according to the provisions of law;
• Authorized representative submits documents and works with competent state agencies to extend the Investment Certificate for the enterprise;
• Return the results and the Investment Certificate is extended to the enterprise;
• Consulting businesses to carry out investment reporting activities and activity reports for businesses after the Investment Certificate is extended;
• Comprehensive consulting on legal issues arising in business operations such as investment, capital transfer, foreign loans, labor, finance, accounting services, legal advice on intellectual property, etc.

Clients wishing to draft dossier for extension of Investment Registration Certificate, please contact Viet An Law Firm for the fastest support!