AMENDMENTS TO SOME ARTICLES OF THE CIRCULAR NO. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT DATED JANURARY 10, 2018 ON TECHNICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY INSPECTION OF IMPORTED MOTOR VEHICLES REGULATED BY DECREE NO. 116/2017/ND-CP

1. Clause 11 of Article 3 is amended as follows:

“1. “certificate of quality” means any of the documents provided in the Forms 01 through 03 in the Appendix hereof”.

2. Point dd Clause 2 of Article 4 is amended as follows:

“dd) Copies of unexpired documents about assessment of the motor vehicle quality assurance conditions issued by inspecting authorities in conformity with type of products imported from the foreign manufacture or assembler (if the imported motor vehicle is manufactured by the country that applies the type approval method specified in the Form No. 05 hereof).”.

3. Clause 2 of Article 5 is amended as follows:

“2. Every shipment of new motor vehicles must undergo inspection by a quality control authority. To be specific:

a) Sample vehicle inspection method

The sample vehicle inspection method applied to motor vehicles imported into Vietnam for the first time and frequency of inspection of the next sample motor vehicles imported from the country applying the type approval system are provided in the Form No. 06 in the Appendix hereof and the frequency of inspection of motor vehicles imported from the country applying the self-certification system is 36 months. An inspection shall be carried out as follows:

- Inspect the consistency of contents of the finished vehicle quality inspection checklist and the consistency of vehicles of the same type in the shipment; compare the chassis number and engine number of each vehicle in the shipment with those in the application for inspection; select random vehicles of each type in the shipment and compare their specifications with those in the application;

- The inspecting authority will randomly choose 1 or 2 sample vehicles (if the importer wishes to have 01 vehicle undergoing safety inspection and 01 vehicle undergoing emission test) of each type in the shipment and the importer will deliver them to the testing facility. The sampling must be recorded using the form in the Appendix hereof, which will be presented to the testing facility. The emission test shall be carried out in accordance with QCVN 86: 2015/BGTVT (except for evaporation test). Technical safety test shall be carried out in accordance with QCVN 09:2015/BGTVT, QCVN 10:2015/BGTVT and QCVN 82:2019/BGTVT and effective regulations of law (except for rearview mirrors, windshield, front lamps, tires, rims, flameproof materials and structures).

b) Probability-based inspection method

The probability-based inspection method applied to shipments of motor vehicles is not specified in the sample vehicle inspection method. A probability-based inspection shall be carried out as follows:

Inspect the consistency of contents of the finished vehicle quality inspection checklist; compare the chassis number and engine number of each vehicle in the shipment with those in the application for inspection; randomly select 01 vehicle of each type to its specifications and structure with those in the test and emission test report in accordance with the Prime Minister's Decision No. 16/2019/QD-TTg dated March 28, 2019.

c) Instead of comparing the sample vehicle’s structure with that in the test report as prescribed in Point b of this Clause, the structure may be compared with that of the vehicle whose structure has been compared with that in the test report using the manufacturer’s software. If the sample vehicle’s specifications or structure are/is different from those/that in the test report and unconformable with the rules for determining motor vehicles of the same type provided in the Appendix II hereof, the sample vehicle inspection method shall be adopted. If the emission composition is different from that in the emission test report but conformable with the rules for determining motor vehicles of the same type provided in the Appendix II hereof, it is required to undergo an emission test except for the case in which there is any change to the part code in connection with the emission but the document issued by the manufacturer of the motor vehicle or part states that the change does not affect the functions and composition of the emission.

d) The inspection of COP at a foreign manufacturer or assembler regarding the production plant shall be carried out as follows:

The quality control authority shall carry out COP inspections according to the criteria specified in the IATF 16949 “Quality Management System Requirements for Automotive Production and Relevant Services Parts Organizations”. To be specific:

- Inspect the adequacy and conformity of manufacturing and assembly processes, professional guidance on quality and conformity inspection of types of motor vehicles from the parts quality control testing and quality control in each stage to finished vehicle quality inspection; defect rectification and prevention procedures; procedures for archiving documents and controlling motor vehicle quality inspection dossier. The assessment of inspected items and finished vehicle quality inspection standard shall be carried out in accordance with the foreign motor vehicle manufacturer to ensure that mass-manufactured vehicles are conformable with the test samples;

- Inspect the actual operation of the quality control system during the manufacture, assembly and inspection of quality of motor vehicles; the traceability of materials and parts, date of manufacture and release date;

- Inspect the motor vehicle quality inspection and use of the assigned finished vehicle quality inspection equipment by technicians.

After the inspection is done, the inspecting authority shall send a notification of COP inspection result and date of follow-up inspection to the importer and manufacturer. The follow-up inspection shall be carried out within 36 months from the date on which the notification of satisfactory COP inspection result is sent.

The exemption of COP inspection will be granted if the imported motor vehicle type is manufactured and assembled at the same production plant of the foreign manufacturer that has undergone COP inspection and the technology and inspection procedures are not fundamentally changed or reduced;

dd) For the motor vehicle type that is manufactured by the country applying the self-certification method provided in the Form No. 05 in the Appendix hereof, at the 36-month interval, the inspecting authority shall take charge and cooperate with the importer in taking random samples at the agent or warehouse of the importer (from the shipments that have undergone import procedures) to carry out an technical and environmental safety inspection of each motor vehicle type. The sampling must be recorded using the Form No. 04 in the Appendix hereof, which will be presented to the testing facility. If the testing result is unsatisfactory, the importer is required to carry out the recall as prescribed, shipments of motor vehicles of the same type must comply with Point h Clause 2 of this Article.

e) Regarding the imported motor vehicles that have been recognized for quality compliance by countries or territories with which Vietnam has concluded a mutual agreement on certification of vehicle quality, such agreement shall be complied with.

g) If the imported motor vehicle type is manufactured by the country applying the type approval method but has not undergone COP inspection as prescribed in Point d of this Clause or the imported motor vehicle type is manufactured by the country not applying the type approval method or self-certification method, the sample vehicle inspection method shall be applied to each shipment.

h) If the motor vehicle type has undergone the sample vehicle inspection but the result is unsatisfactory, the sample vehicle inspection method shall be applied to 03 next shipments of motor vehicles of the same type. If the inspection is satisfactory, the frequency of the sample vehicle inspection of the next shipments is provided in the Form No. 06 in the Appendix hereof.

i) If any complaint about technical and environmental safety inspection arises, the quality control authority shall adopt the sample vehicle inspection method applied to the next shipments of motor vehicles of the same type. If the inspection is satisfactory, the frequency of the sample vehicle inspection of the next shipments is provided in the Form No. 06 in the Appendix hereof. If the inspection result is unsatisfactory, the regulations laid down in Point h Clause 2 of this Article shall be applied to the next shipments of motor vehicles of the same type.”

4. Clauses 1 and 5 of Article 6 are amended as follows:

a) Clause 1 of Article 6 is amended as follows:

“1. Submission of the application for inspection

a) The importer shall prepare an application as prescribed and submit it to the inspecting authority, whether directly or electronically. The importer must provide the documents mentioned in Point a through e of Clause 1 Article 4 (for used vehicles). The copy of the import declaration (if the application is submitted in person) or number and date of the import declaration (if the application is submitted online) must be submitted when applying for inspection; the other documents must be submitted before the certificate of quality is issued.

b) An electronic copy of the manufacturer’s finished vehicle quality inspection checklist for each type shall be submitted online, and the physical copy shall be submitted to the inspecting authority before the inspection.

c) The importer whose motor vehicle type has been issued with the Certificate of conformity from inspection of technical safety quality and environmental protection for imported motor vehicle as prescribed in this Circular shall be exempted from submitting the documents mentioned in Points c and i Clause 2 of Article 4 and the copy of the document stating the COP inspection results prescribed in Point dd Clause 2 Article 4 of this Circular. The importer shall provide number of the Certificate of conformity from inspection of technical safety quality and environmental protection for imported motor vehicle included in the application for first inspection and sufficient documents as prescribed to serve the inspection by the inspecting authority.”.

b) Clause 5 of Article 6 is amended as follows:

“5. Issuance of certificate of quality

Within 04 working days from the end of the inspection and receipt of adequate documents, the inspecting authority shall issue the physical or electronic certificate of quality as follows:

a) Issue the Certificate of conformity from inspection of technical safety quality and environmental protection for imported motor vehicle to each vehicle in the shipment using the Form No. 01 in the Appendix hereof. The Certificate of conformity from inspection of technical safety quality and environmental protection for imported motor vehicle issued to the sample vehicle shall have the text “Chiếc xe này đã dùng để thử nghiệm tại Việt Nam” (“This vehicle was used for testing in Vietnam”).

c) Issue a notice of non-conformity using the Form No. 02 in the Appendix hereof and send it to the customs authority if either the emission test or safety test fails, the used vehicle fails to pass the test or is not registered in an EU country, G7 country or a country whose emission standards are equivalent to or higher than those of Vietnam.

d) Issue a notice of imported motor vehicles on the list of prohibited import motor vehicles using the Form No. 03 in Appendix hereof and send it to the customs authority.”.

5. Clause 4 of Article 7 is amended as follows:

“During the inspection, if a vehicle is found to be on the list of prohibited import motor vehicles specified in Decree No. 69/2018/ND-CP, the inspecting authority shall collect evidence and issue a notice using the Form No. 03 in the Appendix hereof. The inspection, classification and sampling of other vehicles in the shipment shall be carried out as usual”.

6. Points 11.2 and 11.3 in the Appendix IV are amended as follows:

“Conduct an emission test in accordance with regulations of the Prime Minister's Decision No. 16/2019/QD-TTg dated March 28, 2019.”

7. The Appendices V, VI, VII and VIII of the Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT are replaced with the Forms No. 01, 02, 03 and 04 in the Appendix hereof; Forms No. 05 and 06 are added to the Appendix hereof.

Article 2. Clause 12, Clause 13 Article 3 and Point b Clause 2 Article 4 of the Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT are repealed.

This Circular comes into force from April 15, 2020.

1. Imported motor vehicles whose import declarations are made before February 05, 2020 and that arrive at Vietnam’s ports or checkpoints before February 05, 2020 shall apply regulations on inspection and issuance of the certificate of quality of Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT.

2. Imported motor vehicles whose import declarations are made before February 05, 2020 or that arrive at Vietnam’s ports or checkpoints before February 05, 2020 shall apply regulations on inspection and issuance of the certificate of quality of Circular No. 17/2020/ND-CP and this Circular.

3. The probability-based inspection method shall be applied to the shipments of types of imported motor vehicles that have been inspected and satisfied with requirements of the Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT. The frequency of inspection of the next shipments of motor vehicles imported from the country applying the type approval system is provided in the Form No. 06 in the Appendix hereof and the frequency of inspection of motor vehicles imported from the country applying the self-certification system is 36 months. The inspection frequency is set according to the issuance date of the latest Certificate of conformity from inspection of technical safety quality and environmental protection for imported motor vehicle as prescribed in the Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT to the shipment of motor vehicles of the same type.

4. The copy of the document stating the COP inspection results specified in Clause 2 Article 1 of this Circular is not required for 06 months from February 05, 2020.

5. Certificates of quality that are issued under the Circular No. 03/2018/TT-BGTVT are still valid when following customs procedures, paying registration fee, applying for vehicle registration, first inspection or other procedures requested by competent authorities.

1. Chief of the Ministry Office, Ministerial Chief Inspector, Director of Vietnam Register, Directors of other Departments and heads of relevant organizations are responsible for implementation of this Circular.

2. In the cases where any of the legislative documents referred to in this Circular is amended or replaced, the newest one shall apply.

3. Difficulties that arise during the implementation of this Circular should be reported to the Ministry of Transport for consideration./.