AMENDMENTS TO CIRCULAR NO. 261/2016/TT-BTC DATED NOVEMBER 14, 2016 OF MINISTER OF FINANCE PRESCRIBING MARITIME FEES AND CHARGES, AND SCHEDULE OF MARITIME FEES AND CHARGES

1. Clause 3 Article 3 is amended as follows:

“3. Inland waterway vessels (except for those bearing VR-SB class notations of 500 GT or more) that involve in domestic transport operations; inland waterway vessels that operate on routes of waterway transport under the Agreement between the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Royal Government of Cambodia on Waterway Transportation shall, when entering or leaving maritime zones, incur fees and charges in accordance with the provisions of the Circular No. 248/2016/TT-BTC dated November 11, 2016 of the Minister of Finance.  Vessels operating on routes of waterway transport from mainland to islands shall incur fees and charges according to Chapter III of this Circular.”

2. Some Points and Clauses of Article 7 are amended as follows:

a) Point d and Point dd Clause 2 are amended as follows:

“d) Fees imposed on tankers transshipping oil at Van Phong - Khanh Hoa Bay shall be as follows:

dd) When entering or leaving ports located along Cai Mep - Thi Vai river, vessels of 50.000 GT, or more, carrying export, import or transshipment containers shall incur the following fees:

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. Tonnage fees shall be exempted in the following cases:

a) Vessels entering or leaving maritime zones for: (i) shelter from storm or bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of vessels, or access medical emergency services for patients without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers; (ii) disembark persons, property or ships rescued at sea without involving in any commercial transactions as verified by maritime administrations; (iii) participate in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters, or protection of sovereignty over territorial sea and islands according to dispatching calls or consent from regulatory authorities.

b) Vessels of foreign armed forces arriving in maritime zones for transporting purchased equipment, material, supplies and parts or aid goods for armed forces; paying official or courtesy visits at the invitation of Vietnam’s Government; vessels carrying foreign youths and teenagers to maritime zones for attending cultural or sports exchanges at the invitation of Ministerial or Ministry-level bodies of Vietnam’s Government.

c) Boats or canoes of passenger-carrying mother vessels anchored in waters for transporting passengers to or from ports.

d) Lash barges operating within maritime zones with Lash vessels.

dd) Vessels en route for Cambodia.

e) Vessels departing for Cambodia across Vinh Xuong – Thuong Phuoc border gate that the inland waterway port authority has cleared at the departure inland waterway port or terminal, and for which this authority has already collected applicable fees and charges at the departure inland waterway port or terminal in accordance with the Circular No. 248/2016/TT-BTC.

g) Vessels transporting to quarantine or isolation sites in other maritime zones (where quarantine requirements set by competent authorities are met) according to the dispatching calls of maritime administrations to serve the prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

3. Some Points and Clauses of Article 8 are amended as follows:

a) Point d and Point dd Clause 2 are amended as follows:

“d) Fees imposed on tankers transshipping oil at Van Phong - Khanh Hoa Bay shall be as follows:

dd) When entering or leaving ports located along Cai Mep - Thi Vai river, vessels of 50.000 GT, or more, carrying export, import or transshipment containers shall incur the following fees:

b) Clause 3 is amended as follows:

“3. Maritime safety assurance fees shall be exempted in the following cases:

a) Boats or canoes of passenger-carrying mother vessels anchored in maritime zones which are granted permission to carry passengers to or from seaports.

b) Vessels entering or leaving maritime zones for: (i) shelter from storm or bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of vessels, or access medical emergency services for patients without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers; (ii) disembark persons, property or ships rescued at sea without involving in any commercial transactions as verified by maritime administrations; (iii) participate in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters, or protection of sovereignty over territorial sea and islands according to dispatching calls or consent from regulatory authorities; (iv) vessels underway at sea that apply for permission to enter a seaport for sheltering from storms without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers.

c) Vessels operating within a maritime zone that have to move to another maritime zone according to the dispatching call of maritime administrations in case of emergency shelters:

- Where they have to sail back to the original maritime zone after sheltering from storms to resume their cargo handling activities, they shall be entitled to exemption from the maritime safety assurance fee for the entrance or departure movement at the maritime zone where they arrive to shelter from storms; for the departure movement made at the maritime zone where they depart to shelter from storms and the entrance movement in the original maritime zone where they return to resume their cargo handling activities.

- Where they do not have to sail back to the original maritime zone after sheltering from storms to resume their cargo handling activities, they shall be entitled to exemption from the maritime safety assurance fee for the entrance or departure movement at the maritime zone where they arrive to shelter from storms, and for the departure movement made at the maritime zone where they depart to shelter from storms.

d) Vessels of foreign armed forces arriving in maritime zones for paying official or courtesy visits at the invitation of Vietnam’s Government; vessels carrying foreign youths and teenagers to maritime zones for attending cultural or sports exchanges at the invitation of Ministerial or Ministry-level bodies of Vietnam’s Government.

dd) Vessels departing for Cambodia across Vinh Xuong – Thuong Phuoc border gate that the inland waterway port authority has cleared at the departure inland waterway port or terminal, and for which this authority has already collected applicable fees and charges at the departure inland waterway port or terminal in accordance with the Circular No. 248/2016/TT-BTC.

e) Vessels transporting to quarantine or isolation sites in other maritime areas (where quarantine requirements set by competent authorities are met) according to the dispatching calls of maritime administrations to serve the prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

4. Some Points and Clauses of Article 9 are amended as follows:

a) Point e Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“e) Fees imposed on tankers transshipping oil at Van Phong - Khanh Hoa Bay shall be as follows:

b) Point h Clause 1 is amended as follows:

“h) Vessels shall be entitled to exemptions from anchoring or berthing fees in the following cases:

- Wait tides within port waters before arrival to a port.

- Wait until dawn according to the command of a maritime administration under regulations on restriction on vessel underway at night.

- Shelter from storm, bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of their journey, or access medical emergency services for patients, or disembark persons rescued at sea, without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers as verified by a maritime administration.

- Vessels participating in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters according to the dispatching call or consent from regulatory authorities from the date on which they were mobilized to get involved in these cases to the date on which these cases come to an end.

- Vessels are anchored to wait for health quarantine before they are moved to wharfs for loading or unloading cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers, or vessels are compulsorily anchored at isolation sites designated by competent authorities to serve the prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

5. Clause 3 Article 12 is amended as follows:

“3. Tonnage fees shall be exempted in the following cases:

a) Vessels entering or leaving maritime zones for: (i) shelter from storm or bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of vessels, or access medical emergency services for patients without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers; (ii) disembark persons, property or ships rescued at sea without involving in any commercial transactions as verified by maritime administrations; (iii) participate in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters according to dispatching calls or consent from regulatory authorities.

b) Boats or canoes of passenger-carrying vessels anchored in waters for transporting passengers to or from ports.

c) Lash barges operating within maritime areas with Lash vessels.

d) Vietnam-flagged fishing vessels and sports vessels.

dd) Vessels have to move from a maritime zone to another maritime zone according to the dispatching call of maritime administrations to serve the performance of quarantine tasks or isolation at the request of competent authorities for the purposes of prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

6. Clause 3 Article 13 is amended as follows:

“3. Maritime safety assurance fees shall be exempted in the following cases:

a) Boats or canoes of passenger-carrying vessels anchored in waters for transporting passengers to or from ports.

b) Vessels entering or leaving maritime areas for: (i) shelter from storm or bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of vessels, or access medical emergency services for patients without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers; (ii) disembark persons, property or ships rescued at sea without involving in any commercial transactions as verified by maritime administrations; (iii) participate in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters, or protection of sovereignty over territorial sea and islands according to dispatching calls or consent from regulatory authorities; (iv) vessels underway at sea that apply for permission to enter a seaport for sheltering from storms without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers.

c) Vessels operating within a maritime area that have to move to another maritime area according to the dispatching call given by a port authority in case of emergency shelters:

- Where they have to sail back to the original maritime zone after sheltering from storms to resume their cargo handling activities, they shall be entitled to exemption from the maritime safety assurance fee for the entrance or departure movement at the maritime zone where they arrive to shelter from storms; for the departure movement made at the maritime zone where they depart to shelter from storms and the entrance movement in the original maritime zone where they return to resume their cargo handling activities.

- Where they do not have to sail back to the original maritime zone after sheltering from storms to resume their cargo handling activities, they shall be entitled to exemption from the maritime safety assurance fee for the entrance or departure movement at the maritime zone where they arrive to shelter from storms, and for the departure movement made at the maritime zone where they depart to shelter from storms.

d) Vessels have to move from a maritime zone to another maritime zone according to the dispatching call of maritime administrations to serve the performance of quarantine tasks or isolation at the request of competent authorities for the purposes of prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

7. Clause 6 Article 14 is amended as follows:

“6. Vessels shall be entitled to exemptions from anchoring or berthing fees in the following cases:

a) Wait tides within port waters before arrival to a port.

b) Wait until dawn according to the command of a port authority under regulations on restriction on vessel underway at night.

c) Shelter from storm, bad weather conditions that may threaten the safety of their journey, or access medical emergency services for patients, or disembark persons rescued at sea, without handling cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers as verified by a port authority.

d) Vessels participating in search and rescue, prevention and control of floods, hurricanes or natural disasters according to the dispatching call or consent from regulatory authorities from the date on which they were mobilized to get involved in these cases to the date on which these cases come to an end.

dd) Vessels are anchored to wait for health quarantine before they are moved to wharfs for loading or unloading cargoes, picking up or dropping off passengers, or vessels are compulsorily anchored at isolation sites designated by competent authorities to serve the prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities.”

1. This Circular comes into force from October 12, 2021. Regulations on fee exemptions (tonnage fee, maritime safety assurance fee, anchoring or berthing fee) applicable to vessels during their anchoring or berthing period or moved to quarantine or isolation sites to serve the prevention and control of epidemics during the epidemics period announced by competent authorities as prescribed in Point b Clause 2, Point b Clause 3, Point b Clause 4, Clause 5, Clause 6 and Clause 7 Article 1 of this Circular shall be implemented from August 27, 2021.

2. Point b Clause 2, Clause 4, Clause 5, Point a Clause 6, Clause 7, Point b Clause 8 Article 1 of the Circular No. 90/2019/TT-BTC dated December 31, 2019 of the Minister of Finance providing amendments to the Circular No. 261/2016/TT-BTC dated November 14, 2016 of Minister of Finance on maritime fees and charges, and schedule of maritime fees and charges, and the Circular No. 17/2017/TT-BTC dated February 28, 2017 of Minister of Finance on collection, transfer, management and use of maritime fees and charges are abrogated.

3. If any legislative documents referred to in this Circular are amended, supplemented or superseded, the new ones shall apply.

4. Difficulties that arise during the implementation of this Circular should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Finance for consideration./.