CIRCULAR

REGULATIONS ON MARINE FEES, CHARGES AND SCHEDULES OF MARINE FEES AND CHARGES

Pursuant to Vietnam Maritime Code dated June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to the Ordinance on Fees and Charges dated August 28, 2001;

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 215/2013/ND-CP defining the functions, tasks, entitlements and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance dated December 23, 2013;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 57/2002/ND-CP detailing the implementation of the Ordinance on Fees and Charges  dated June 03, 2002 and the Government’s Decree No. 24/2006/ND-CP amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 57/2002/ND-CP dated June 03, 2002.

Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 21/2012/ND-CP on management of seaports and navigable channels;

At requests of the Directors of the Agency for Corporate Finance,

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Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope and regulated entities

1. Scope: This Circular stipulates regulations on marine fees, charges and schedules of marine fees and charges.

Marine fees and charges prescribed hereof include: tonnage charges; pilotage charges; maritime security charges; fees for anchoring in waters (hereinafter referred to as “mooring fees”); fees for the use of wharves and jetties within maritime zones (hereinafter referred to as “whafage charges”); charges for entrance to and exit from seaports (hereinafter referred to as “passing charge” and fees for certification of marine protest (hereinafter referred to as “certification fee”).

2. Regulated entities: This Circular applies to entities engaging in the collection and payment of marine fees and charges

Article 2.Interpretation

For the purpose of this Circular, terms herein shall be construed as follows:

1. Watercraft covers a range of sea-going ships, naval ships, ships for official duties, fishing vessels, inland waterway vessels, seaplanes and other types of watercrafts.

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3. Waters covers every pilot embarkation/disembarkation area, phytosanitary inspection area, storm shelter, transshipment area, anchorage and turning basin within the seaport water area.

4. Maritime zone means a conceptual division of a water area under the administration of a Port authority. There may be more than one maritime zone in a seaport. The list of maritime zones is presented in the Annex hereof.

5. Cargo means goods carried in the watercraft including both full and empty container ships.

6. Exports means every cargo that is shipped to a foreign country from Vietnam.

7. Imports means every cargo that is shipped to a Vietnam from a foreign country.

8. Cargo in transit means a cargo that is consigned by a foreign country to another foreign country outside the territory of Vietnam and is carried through or unloaded or temporarily stored in Vietnamese warehouses before it is shipped to the designated destination.

9. Transshipped cargo means a cargo that” is shipped from a foreign country to a seaport of Vietnam as an intermediate place and is stored at an transshipment area of such seaport for a certain period of time, and is loaded to be shipped out of the territory of Vietnam thereafter.

10. Specialized watercraft means a type of vessels designed for uses in exploratory offshore drilling of new oil or gas wells (known as “drillship”), research vessels, training ships, coastal defence ships and construction vessels.

11. Lighter Aboard Ship (Lash) means a type of specialized watercraft designed for carriage of barges that is used for carrying cargoes.

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13. Carrier means every person who uses his/her own watercraft or other’s to transport cargoes or passengers.

14. Arrival/departure is determined as the watercraft enters the maritime zone after getting the permission for entrance from a competent State authority or as the watercraft leaves the maritime zone after getting the permission for leaving from a competent State authority.

15. Trip means 01 arrival at a maritime zone and 01 departure from the same maritime zone.

16. Mainland- island shipping route means a shipping route from the mainland to an island within the territorial sea of Vietnam announced by the Ministry of Transport.

17. Vietnam seaport area is divided into 03 zones:

a) Zone I: from parallel 20 to the North;

b) Zone II: from parallel 11.5 to parallel 20;

c) Zone III: from the parallel 11.5 to the South.

Article 3.Entities incurring marine fees and charges

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a) Any watercraft that enters, exits, transits or anchors in maritime zones (including export-processing zones); and any foreign watercraft operating within Vietnam’s territorial sea outside seaport water areas;

b) Any watercrafts carrying imports, exports, transshipped cargoes and cargoes in transit within maritime zones including export-processing zones;

c) Any watercraft carrying passengers from Vietnam to foreign countries or vice versa; watercraft used for international maritime activities sailing across international shipping routes or anchoring in Vietnam’s maritime zones.

d) Imports, exports, cargoes in transit, transshipped cargoes or cargoes transported from or to export-processing zones that are loaded or unloaded, preserved  or stored in Vietnam’s maritime zones;

dd) Passengers on foreign passenger ships to Vietnam (or vice versa) or to maritime zones of Vietnam by sea or internal waterways;

2. The following entities shall pay marine fees and charges according to the Schedule of fees and charges for domestic maritime activities.

a) Any watercraft that operates domestic maritime activities entering, leaving, crossing or anchoring in maritime zones.

b) Any inland waterway watercraft that carries passengers or cargoes within the territory of Vietnam entering, leaving, crossing or anchoring in maritime zones.

c) Any watercraft traveling through mainland-island shipping routes;

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dd) Naval ships, any watercraft of Vietnam’s customs authorities or port authorities, rescue and salvage ships, and other types of watercraft serving official duties shall not be governed by this Circular. The watercraft operating in Vietnam for commercial purposes shall be imposed maritime fees and charges under provisions in Chapter III hereof.

Article 4.Payers of marine fees and charges

1. For watercraft: ship-owners, carriers or payment-making trustees.

2. For cargoes and passengers: carriers or payment-making trustees.

Article 5.Authorities in charge of collecting marine fees and charges

1. Port authorities shall collect the following marine fees and charges:

a) Tonnage charges;

b) Marine security charges and navigable channel fees collected by the Southern and Northern Vietnam Maritime Safety Corporations;

c) Mooring fees

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dd) Certification fees;

e) Wharfage charges for uses of wharves or jetties within maritime zones where port authorities are authorized to mange and run piers, berths, wharves and jetties.

2. marine pilotage organization shall directly collect pilotage charges.

3. Marine enterprises that operate seaports or waters; and enterprises that operate their own navigable channels are entitled to collect marine fees and charges prescribed hereof. The aforesaid marine fees and charges are inclusive of VAT.

Article 6.Rules for calculation of marine fees and charges

1. GT: a function as the basis for calculation of marine fees or charges, where:

a) For liquid cargo tankers: the GT equals 85% of the gross register tonnage (GRT) (GT= 85%.GRT), regardless of with or without ballast tanks.

b) For passenger ships: the GT equals (=) 50% of the GRT (GT = 50%.GRT)

c) For any watercraft with unknown GT, their GT is determined as follows:

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- For barges: 01 DWT=01 GT;

- For tugs, pusher crafts, passenger ships (including seaplanes) and floating cranes: 01 HP =0.5.GT; 01KW =0.7.GT;

Lifting capacity (Q) of a floating crane: 1 tonne =6.GT;

- For passenger ships with unknown capacity, a passenger’s seat = 0.67 GT; a bed = 4GT.

- For tugboats, the GT shall be the total tonnage of the whole tugboat including their barges, tractors, and pushers.

GT converted as prescribed in point 1, clause 1 of this Article shall be determined by the maximum GT.

2. Unit of engine capacity: the capacity of main engines is expressed by HP (horsepower), CV (chevaux vapeur) or KW (kilowatt); the capacity of under 01HP or 01 KW shall be rounded to 1 HP or 01KW or 01 CV.

3. Unit of time:

a)  01 day means 24 consecutive hours; a period of 12  hours or less shall be expressed as a half day (1/2 day); a period of over 12 hours shall be deemed to be a day (01 day);

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4. Units of mass (including their packages): tonne (t) or cubic metre (m³); the mass unit of under 0.5 t or 0.5 m³ shall be ignored; the mass unit of at least 0.5 t or 0.5 m³ shall be rounded up to 01 t or 01 m³. The minimum volume of cargoes in a bill of lading for LCL shipment for fee calculation shall be 1 t or 1 m³. If a tonne of cargoes occupies at least 02 m³, then 0.2 m³ shall be expressed as “01 t”.

5. Unit of distance on which fees is charged: the distance shall be express by “nautical mile” (NM); a distance of under 1 NM shall be rounded up to 01 NM.

6. Wharfage charge is calculated according to the length overall (LOA) by metre (m) of the watercraft landing in a wharf; a LOA of under 01m shall be rounded up to 01 m.

7. Currencies

a) For international maritime activities: the currencies shall be USD or VND ;<0}

b) For domestic maritime activities: the currency shall be VND;

c) The USD shall be converted into VND, where necessary, at the exchange rate of transfer announced by the Joint-Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam at the time of payment of marine fees or charges.

8. Any watercraft that carries imports-exports from or to various maritime zones including domestic maritime zones shall be treated as the watercraft operating international maritime activities and shall follow the schedule of maritime fees and charges for international maritime activities by each arrival and departure. Domestic cargoes shall be exempted from mooring fees for cargoes.

9. For any watercraft of which each arrival or departure from a port is charged at various rates, the lowest rate shall be applied.

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Chapter II

SCHEDULE OF FEES AND CHARGES FOR INTERNATIONAL MARITIME ACTIVITIES

Article 7. Tonnage charges

1. Tonnage rates

Every watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones, specialized ports or offshore oil ports; and every foreign watercraft operating in the territorial sea of Vietnam outside the seaport water area shall be charged at the following rates:

Types of watercraft

Rate

A. Watercraft (except for Lash)

- Arrival:

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0.034 USD/GT

0.034 USD/GT

B. Lash

- Mother Lash

Arrival:

0.017 USD/GT

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0.017 USD/GT

Lash barges (for Lash barges operate in maritime zones apart from maritime zones where their mother ships berth or anchor).

Arrival:

0.017 USD/GT

Departure:

0.017 USD/GT

2. Specific provisions of tonnage charge calculation:

a) Every watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones for the replenishment of fuel, food, fresh water or replacement of crew members, repair, dismantling or sea trails after repairing or building but not handling cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers shall be charged at a tonnage rate 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

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c) Entities whose passenger ships enter or leave maritime zones shall be charged at the following rates:

- Any passenger ship under 300 GT entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 10 trips per month shall be  imposed  a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of from 300 GT to under 1,500 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 7 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of from 1,500 GT to under 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of at least 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for shall be charged at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

d) Oil tankers in the Van Phong Bay-Khanh Hoa shall be charged at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article. This provision shall apply to the end of 31^st of December, 2020.

dd) Every container ship of at least 50,000 GT that carries imported-exported containers or transshipped containers from or to ports in the Cai Mep-Thi Vai river shall be charged at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article. This provision shall apply to the end of 31^st of December, 2020.

3. The watercraft shall be exempted from tonnage charges in the following cases:

a) Any watercraft enters or leaves maritime zones for sheltering, rescuing or directing rescues and are certified  that they do not carry cargoes or passengers by port authorities; or  watercrafts participates in salvage and rescues, prevention of Acts of God  according to dispatch instructions or approvals of competent State authorities.

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c) Boats or canoes of mother passenger ships anchoring in waters carry passengers;

d) Lash barges operates within Lash’s maritime zones;

dd) Any watercraft transits to Cambodia.

Article 8. Maritime security fees

1. Maritime security fees

Every watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones, specialized ports or offshore oil ports shall be charged maritime security fees at the following rates:

Types of watercrafts

Zone I and III

Zone II

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- Arrival:

- Departure:

0.100 USD/GT

0.100 USD/GT

0.058 USD/GT

0.058 USD/GT

B. Lash

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- Mother ship

Arrival:

0.040 USD/GT

0.025 USD/GT

Departure:

0.040 USD/GT

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- Lash barges

 (For Lash barges on navigable channels apart  from their mother ships)

Arrival:

0.040 USD/GT

0.025 USD/GT

Departure:

0.040 USD/GT

0.025 USD/GT

2. Specific provisions of maritime security fees calculation:

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b) Every watercraft (except for passenger ships) that enters or leaves a maritime zone more than 03 trips per month shall be charged a monthly security fee at the rate of 80% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article for following trips in the same month;

c) Entities whose passenger ships enter or leave maritime zones shall be charged at the following rates:

- Every passenger ship under 300 GT entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 10 trips per month shall be charged a monthly security fee at the rate of 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Every passenger ship of from 300 GT to under 1,500 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 7 trips per month shall be charged a monthly security fee at the rate of 60% of prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Every watercraft of from 1,500 GT to under 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be charged a monthly security fee at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Every watercraft of at least 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for shall charged at the rate of 30% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article. 633

d) Oil tankers in the Van Phong Bay-Khanh Hoa shall be charged at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article. This provision shall apply to the end of 31^st of December, 2020.

dd) Every container ship of at least 50,000 GT that carries imported- exported containers or transshipped containers from or to ports in the Cai Mep-Thi Vai river shall be charged at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article. This provision shall apply to the end of 31^st day of December, 2020.

e) Every watercraft that enters maritime zones for storm sheltering but not handling cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers shall be charged at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

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a) Boats or canoes of mother passenger ships anchoring in maritime zones are permitted to carry passengers to or from seaports;

b) Any watercraft enters or leaves maritime zones for rescuing or rescues and are certified that they do not carry cargoes or passengers by port authorities; the watercraft participates in salvage and rescues, prevention of Acts of God according to dispatch instructions or approvals of competent State authorities.

c) The watercraft that carries out cargo handling services at wharves or piers and moves to other maritime zones to shelter from storms according to permission for leaving by port authorities shall be exempted from maritime security fees for the trip to the shelter and the departure from ports giving permission for leaving.

d) Any foreign military watercraft visits maritime zones at the invitations of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; or foreign watercraft reaches Vietnam’s maritime zones for cultural exchange purpose at the invitations of Ministries or Ministerial-level authorities of the Government of Vietnam.

Article 9. Pilotage charges

1. Pilotage rates

a) Every watercraft using pilotage services provided by maritime pilotage organizations shall be incurred progressive pilotage charge rates as follows:

No.

Pilotage distance

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 (USD/GT/NM)

1

Up to 10 NM

0.0034

2

From over 10 NM to 30 NM

0.0022

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Over 30 NM

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The minimum charge for an act (or ship) of pilotage shall be 300 USD.

E.g. The watercraft operating international maritime activities of 20,000 GT using maritime pilot services with the pilotage distance of 35 NM. The pilotage charge shall be calculated as follows:
- the first 10 NM: 20,000 GT x 0.0034 USD/GT/NM x 10 NM = 680 USD;
- the next 20 NM: 20,000 GT x 0.0022 USD/GT/HL x 20 HL = 880 USD;
- the remaining 05 NM: 20,000 GT x 0.0015 USD/GT/HL x 5 HL = 150 USD
The total pilotage payable: 680 + 880 +150=1,710 USD b) The movement of watercraft using maritime pilot services on the following shipping routes shall be charged as follows:

No.

Shipping routes

pilotage rate

USD/ GT/NM

1

Binh Tri, Hon Chong (Kien Giang province); Van Phong (Khanh Hoa province), Nghi Son ( Thanh Hoa province), Cua Lo (Nghe An Province), Chan May (Thua Thien Hue province), Dung Quat (Quang Ngai province), Vung Ang (Ha Tinh Province,) Hon La (Quang Binh province), Nam Can (Ca Mau province) and Van Gia (Quang Ninh province)

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An Dinh passing the Hau river

0.0032

3

Phu Quoc-Kien Giang

0.0070

The minimum pilotage charge for an act of pilotage shall be 300 USD.

c) The watercraft with pilotage entering, leaving or traveling within offshore oil ports or traveling among offshore oil ports shall be charged at the following rates:

- An arrival: 0.03 USD/GT;

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d) Under-200GT watercraft (including fishing vessels): 40USD/watercraft for an act of pilotage;

dd) Watercrafts that use maritime pilot services traveling the area of ports shall be charged as follows:

- Pilotage distance of under 05 NM  shall be charged at the pilotage rate of 0.015 USD/GT. The minimum charge for an act of pilotage shall be 100 USD/watercraft;

- Pilotage distance of at least 05 NM  shall be charged at the pilotage rate prescribed in point a, clause 1 of this Article.

2. Specific provisions of pilotage charge calculation:

a) The carrier shall submit his/her request for pilotage to the marine pilotage organization for at least 06 hours prior to the time of pilot; offshore oil ports shall submit their request for pilotage to the marine pilotage organization for at least 24 hours prior to the time of pilot. Any change in the time of pilot or cancellation of pilot shall be reported to the marine pilotage organization for at least 03 hours prior to the designated time of pilot (for carriers); or 08 hours prior to the designated time of pilot (for offshore oil ports).

Where the pilot booking cancellation is not priorly noticed to the marine pilotage organization for a period of time prescribed above, the carrier shall be liable for a waiting fee at the rate of 10USD/ person for each hour and 20 USD for a person and his/her instrument each hour. The waiting period shall be determined as follows:

- The pilot has not departed: the waiting period shall be deemed to be 01 hour;

- The pilot has departed: the waiting period shall be the length of time from the time on which the pilot departs to the time on which  he/she is back to his//her former position; the waiting period thereof shall be at least 01 hour.

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The waiting period of a pilot shall not exceed 04 consecutive hours after the designated time of pilot; after 04 hours, the pilotage booking shall be consider “cancelled” and the watercraft shall pay 80% of pilotage charges according the designated pilotage distance and  pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article;

b) Every watercraft on sea trials for the testing of engines, equipment or compasses shall pay 110% of the pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

c) The watercraft that breaks down charge to technical dysfunction shall pay 150% of the pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article according to the actual pilotage distance.

d) The watercraft (other than those specified in point a, b and c of this Article) surprisingly requesting pilotage services shall pay 110% of the pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article;

dd) If the pilot is in his/her position but the watercraft breaks down charge to force majeure events (certified by Port authorities), this watercraft shall be charged at the minimum pilotage charge (300 USD);

e) Where the watercraft anchors somewhere on the shipping route outside the designated arriving port (except for routes on which the watercraft is not allowed to travel at night), the carrier shall pay the pilot’s travel expenses incurred. Such incurring expenses shall not exceed 30 USD/watercraft for a single way;

g) If the watercraft is in the designated position on time, certified by a port authority and maritime pilotage organization, but the pilot fails to present himself/herself on time, the pilot shall pay a waiting fee of 100 USD for each actual waiting hour.

h) Every watercraft (except for passenger ships) that enters or leaves a maritime zone more than 03 trips per month shall pay a monthly pilotage charge at the rate 80% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum pilotage rate;

Every passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall pay a monthly pilotage charge at the rate of 50% of that  prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum rate.

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l) Any watercraft  traveling between wharves within a harbor by request of Directors of harbor enterprises shall be incurred the pilotage rate for

 Watercraft operating domestic maritime activities.<0}

m) Oil tankers in the Van Phong Bay-Khanh Hoa shall be charged at the pilotage rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum pilotage rate. This provision shall apply to the end of 31st of December, 2020;

n) Every container ship of at least 50,000 GT that carries imported- exported containers or  transshipped containers from or to ports in the Cai Mep-Thi Vai river shall be charged at the pilotage rate 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum pilotage rate. This provision shall apply to the end of 31st day of December, 2020;

o) The watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones for the replenishment of fuel, food, fresh water or replacement of crew member, repair, dismantling or sea trails after repairing or building but not loading or unloading cargoes, or carrying or receiving passengers shall be charged at the pilotage rate 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

p) Every watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones for rescuing or directing rescues and are certified that they do not carry cargoes or passengers by port authorities; and watercrafts that participating in salvage and rescues, prevention of natural disasters according to dispatch instructions or approvals of competent State authorities shall be exempted from pilotage charges.

Article 10. Mooring fees in waters

1. For watercraft of all kind:

a) The watercraft anchoring in waters for a period of 30  consecutive days(720 hours) shall be charged a mooring fee at the rate of 0.0005 USD/GT per an hour.

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c) The watercraft anchoring in offshore oil ports shall be charged a mooring fee at the following rates:

- For the first 30 days  (720 consecutive hours): 0.0003 USD/GT per an hour.

- From the 31st  days (721^st  hour)  onwards: 0.0002 USD/GT per an hour.

d) Where the watercraft anchors in more than one places of waters  within  maritime zones of a seaport, the mooring fee shall be calculated based on the actual period of anchoring in each place.

dd) Every passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall pay a monthly mooring fee at the rate of 50% of that  prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum rate.

e) Every passenger ship of at least 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for shall pay a monthly mooring fee at the rate of 40% of that  prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum mooring fee rate.

g) Every oil tanker in the Van Phong Bay-Khanh Hoa shall be charged a mooring fee at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in point a, b and c, clause 1 of this Article. This provision shall apply to the end of 31st of December, 2020.

h) The watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones for the replenishment of fuel, food, fresh water or replacement of seafarers, repair, dismantling or sea trails after repairing or building but not loading or unloading cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers shall be charged a mooring fee at the rate 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

i) Watercraft shall be exempted from mooring fees in the following cases:

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- The watercraft anchors  overnight according to the restrictions on traveling at night;

- The watercraft shelters from storms or bad weather conditions in the interest of safety; rescue or emergency aids  but not loading or unloading cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers as certified by port authorities.

2. For cargoes:

a) Cargoes transshipped at waters to be shipped to another maritime zone shall be charged mooring fees at the following rates:

- Ordinary cargoes: 0.007 USD/t;

- Refrigerator trucks, tricycles, grabs, road rollers, forklifts, cranes : 02 USD/unit;

- Motor cars of maximum 15 seats or less and vehicles with the payload of maximum 2.5 tonnes: 0.7USD/unit;

- Other types of motor cars: 1.3 USD/unit

b) Transshipped cargoes to be delivered to  wharves within the same maritime zone shall be exempted from mooring fees;

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d) Imports for export at the Van Phong Bay shall be exempted from mooring fees.

Article 11. Wharfage charges

1. For watercraft:

a) The watercraft anchoring in wharves and jetties shall be charged as follows:

- At wharves: 0.0031 USD/GT per an hour;

- At jetties: 0.0013 USD/GT per an hour;

Where the watercraft anchors in more than one places of waters within maritime zones of a seaport, the wharfage charge shall be calculated based on the actual period of anchoring in each place.

b) Every passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly wharfage charge at the rate of 50% of that  prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum rate.

c) Every passenger ship of at least 50,000 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone shall be incurred a monthly wharfage charge at the rate of 40% of that  prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

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- For wharves: 0.006 USD/GT/ per an hour;

- For jetties: 0.002 USD/GT/per an hour;

dd)  The watercraft lying idle alongside another shall be charged at the wharfage rate of  0.0015 USD/GT-hour;

e) The watercraft that is prevented from cargo handling charge to bad weather conditions for the period of 01 day (24 consecutive hours) or concedes its wharf space to other watercraft according to the port authority’s command shall be exempted from wharfage charges for the period of cargo handling;

g) The watercraft mooring to oil ports for cargo handling or replenishment of fuel or water shall be charged at a wharge rate of 0.3 USD/m-h; and the minimum wharfage charge for each docking time shall be 90 USD/watercraft.

h) Watercraft docking alongside offshore oil ports but not handling cargoes or replenishing water or fuel shall be charged at the wharfage rate of 0.35 USD/m-h; and the minimum wharfage charge for each docking shall be 100 USD/watercraft.

i) The watercraft lying alongside others at oil ports shall be charged at a wharfage rate of 0.08 USD/m-h; and the minimum wharfage charge for each docking shall be 25 USD/watercraft.

2. Cargoes carried through wharves or jetties shall be charged at the following rates:

a) Cargoes handling at wharves:

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- Twenty-foot containers: 1.6 USD/cont;

- Forty-foot containers: 3.2 USD/cont;

- Containers of over 40 foot : 4.0 USD/cont;

b) Cargoes handling at jetties: 0.09 USD/t

c)  For cargoes being vehicles:

- Refrigerator trucks, tricycles, grabs, road rollers, forklifts, cranes : 2.7 USD/unit;

- Motor cars of maximum 15 seats or less and vehicles with the payload of maximum 2.5 tonnes: 0.9USD/unit;

- Other types of motor cars: 1.8 USD/unit

d) Liquid bulk cargoes (liquefied gas, petroleum, liquid asphalt,…): 0.9 USD/t;

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3. Passengers passing wharves or jetties shall be charged at the following rates:

a)  Passenger passing wharves or jetties:

- An entry: 1 USD/person;

- An exit: 1 USD/person;

- Children under the age of 12 shall not be charged.

b) Where the watercraft anchoring in areas that is permitted to utilize different types of  tourism vessels to carry passengers to inland area or islands: such watercraft shall pay mooring fees prescribed in clause 1, Article 10; wharfage charges applicable to passengers shall be 1USD/person (for an entry and exit). Provisions in point a, clause 3 of this Article shall apply.

Article 12. Passing charges and certification fees

1. The watercraft that enters or leaves  maritime zones, specialized ports or offshore oil ports; and foreign watercrafts operating in the territorial sea of Vietnam outside seaport water areas shall follow procedures for State management under applicable laws of Vietnam and shall be incurred passing charges at the following rates:

No.

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Rate
(USD per an arrival or departure)

1

Under-200GT watercraft

5

2

Watercraft of from 100 GT to under 500 GT

10

3

Watercraft of from 500 GT to 1,000 GT

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4

Over-200GT watercraft

50

Charge payers shall make one-off payment for passing charges (both departures and arrivals|) as the time of carrying out procedures for entrance to maritime zones.

2. Every watercraft operating international maritime activities shall be incurred the certification fee  at the rate of 50 USD/ certification;

Chapter III

SCHEDULE OF FEES AND CHARGES FOR DOMESTIC MARITIME ACTIVITIES

Article 13. Tonnage charges

1. Tonnage rates

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- An arrival: 250 dong/GT;

- A departure: 250 dong/GT;

b) The watercraft sailing from a mainland to an island or vice versa on mainland-island routes shall be charged at tonnage rate of 500 dong/GT for each docking;

c) Every drillship sailing from a maritime zone to an offshore petroleum exploration area or vice versa shall be charged at the following rates:

- An arrival: 450 dong/GT;

- A departure: 450 dong/GT;

d) The watercraft providing towage service, fuel or food for a maritime zone shall be charged at the rate of 100 dong/GT for each actual working day. The tonnage charges may be collected by month. Where the watercraft idles, the ship-owner shall submit proofs as the basis for exemption from tonnage charges for the period of idleness to the port authority.

2. Specific provisions of tonnage charge calculation:

a) Every watercraft (except for passenger ships) that enters or leaves a maritime zone more than 03 trips per month shall be charged at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article for following trips in the same month;

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c) Entities whose passenger ships enter or leave maritime zones shall pay tonnage charges at the following rates:

- Any passenger ship under 500 GT entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 10 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of from 500 GT to under 1,500 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 7 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of at least 1,500 entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be incurred a monthly tonnage charge at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

3. The watercraft shall be eligible for exemption from tonnage charges in the following cases:

a) The watercraft enters or leaves maritime zones for sheltering, rescuing or directing rescues and are certified that they do not carry cargoes or passengers by port authorities; or watercrafts participates in salvage and rescues, prevention of Acts of God according to dispatch instructions or approvals of competent State authorities.

b) Boats or canoes of mother passenger ships anchoring in waters carry passengers;

d) Lash barges operates within Lash ship’s maritime zones;

d) There are Vietnamese fishing vessels and sport boats.

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1. Maritime security fee rates:

The watercraft that enter or exit maritime zones, specialized ports or offshore oil ports shall be charged maritime security fees at the following rates:

Under-200GT watercraft

- An arrival: 300 dong/GT;

- A departure: 300 dong/GT;

b) Watercraft of at least 2,000 GT

- An arrival: 600 dong/GT;

- A departure: 600 dong/GT;

c) The watercraft sailing from a mainland to an island or vice versa on mainland-island routes shall be charged at the rate of 550 dong/GT for each docking;

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- An arrival: 950 dong/GT;

- A departure: 950 dong/GT;

2. Specific provisions of maritime security fees calculation:

b) Every watercraft (except for passenger ships) that enters or leaves a maritime zone more than 03 trips per month shall be eligible for the monthly maritime security fee at the rate of 80% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article for trips thereafter  within that month;

b) Any watercraft that enters or leaves maritime zones for the replenishment of fuel, food, fresh water or replacement of crew members, repair, dismantling or sea trails after repairing or building but not loading or unloading cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers shall be charged at the rate of 70% that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

c) Entities whose passenger ships enter or leave maritime zones shall be charged at the following rates:

- Any passenger ship under 500 GT entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 10 trips per month shall be charged a monthly maritime security fee at the rate of 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Every watercraft of from 500 GT to under 1,500 GT  entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 7 trips per month shall be charged a monthly maritime security fee at the rate of 60% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

- Any passenger ship of at least 1,500 entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be charged a monthly maritime security fee at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

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3. The watercraft shall be eligible for exemption from maritime security fees in the following cases:

a) Boats or canoes of passenger mother ships anchoring in waters carry passengers;

b) The GT of self-propelled inland waterway watercraft is under 500 (except for those traveling on mainland-island routes);

c) There are inland waterway tugs, pusher craft, and convoys of barges;

d) The watercraft enters or leaves a maritime zone for rescuing or directing rescues and is certified that they do not carry cargoes or passengers by port authorities; watercraft participates in salvage and rescues, prevention of natural disasters under dispatch instructions or approvals of competent State authorities;

dd) The watercraft that carries out cargo handling services at wharves or piers moving to other maritime zones to shelter from storms according to permission for leaving ports of port authorities shall be exempt from maritime security fees for the trip to shelter and the exit from ports giving permission for leaving.

Article 15. Pilotage charges

1. Pilotage rates:

a) The watercraft using maritime pilot services on the following shipping routes shall be charged at the pilotage rate of 25 dong/GT per each nautical mile; or at least 500,000 dong/act of pilotage;

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c) The table below presents pilotage rates for shipping routes as follows:

No.

Routes

Pilotage rates
(dong/GT/NM)

Minimum rate(dong/watercraft/an act of pilotage)

1

Thi Vai (ba Ria-Vung Tau province); Phu Quoc (Kien Giang province); Binh Tri and Hon Chong (Kien Giang)

40

500,000

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Nghi Son (Thanh Hoa province), Cua Lo- Ben Thuy (Nghe An Province), Chan May (Thua Thien Hue province), Dung Quat (Quang Ngai province), Vung Ang ( Ha Tinh Province) ,

60

500,000

3

An Dinh passing the Hau river

30

1,500,000

d) The watercraft with pilotage entering or exiting or travelling within the oil rig areas shall be charged as follows:

- An arrival: 150 dong/GT;

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dd) The watercraft with the utilization of maritime pilot services travelling within the ports shall be charged as follows:

- Pilotage distance of under 05 NM  shall be charged at the pilotage rate of 60 dong/GT. The minimum pilotage rate shall be 300,000 dong/watercraft per an act of pilotage;

- Pilotage distance of at least 05 NM  shall be charged at the pilotage rate prescribed in point a, clause 1 of this Article. The minimum pilotage rate shall be 300,000 dong/watercraft per an act of pilotage;

2. Specific provisions of pilotage charge calculation:

a) The carrier shall submit his/her request for pilotage to the marine pilotage organization for at least 06 hours prior to the time of pilot. Any change in the time of pilot or cancellation of pilotage service shall be reported to the marine pilotage organization for at least 03 hours prior to the designated time of pilot.

Where the pilot booking cancellation is not priorly noticed to the marine pilotage organization for a period of time prescribed above, the carrier shall be liable for a waiting fee at the following rates:

- Pilots: 20,000 dong/person for each hour;

- Pilots and their instruments: 200,000 dong/1 person and his/her instrument for each hour.

- The waiting period is calculated as follows:

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+The pilot has departed: the waiting period shall be the length of time from the time on which the pilot departs to the time on which the pilot is back to his/her former position; the waiting period thereof shall be deemed to be at least 01 hour.

+If the pilot is detained by request of the ship master after the completion of his/her act of pilotage, the waiting fee shall be charged by each hour of detention.

The waiting period of a pilot shall not exceed 04 consecutive hours after the designated time of pilot; after 04 hours, the pilotage booking shall be consider “cancelled” and the watercraft shall pay 80% of pilotage charges according to the designated pilotage distance and pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article;

b) The watercraft on sea trials for the testing of engines, equipment or compasses shall be charged 110% of the pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article;

c) The watercraft that breaks down charge to technical dysfunction shall be charged 150% of the pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

d) The passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be charged a monthly pilotage at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article but not less than the minimum rate.

dd) Where the watercraft anchors somewhere on the shipping route outside the designated arriving port (except for routes on which the watercraft is not allowed to travel overnight), the ship-owner shall pay pilot’s travel expenses incurred. Such incurring expenses shall not exceed 300,000 USD/watercraft for a single way;

e) If the watercraft is in the designated position on time, certified by a port authority and marine pilot organization, but the pilot fails to present himself/herself on time, the pilot shall pay a waiting fee of 250,000 dong for each actual waiting hour to the ship-owner.

g) If the pilot is in his/her position but the watercraft breaks down charge to force majeure events (certified by Port authorities), the watercraft shall be charged at the minimum pilotage rate prescribed in clause 1 of this Article;

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Article 16. Mooring fees

1. The watercraft anchoring in waters shall be charged at the rate of 5 dong/GT per an hour.

2. The passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be charged at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

3. The anchoring watercraft stipulated in Article 20 of the Circular 10/2013/TT-BGTVT guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 21/2012/ND-CP dated march 21, 2012 on management of seaports navigable channels dated May 08, 2013 by the Ministry of Transport shall be charged at the following rates:

a) For under-100,000 GT watercraft: 10 dong/GT per day;

b) For the watercraft of at least 100,000 GT: 8 dong/GT per day;

4. The watercraft anchoring in waters for repair, dismantling or sea trails but not loading or unloading cargoes, or receiving or carrying passengers shall be charged at the rate 70% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

5. Where the watercraft anchors in more than one places of the waters within maritime zones of a seaport, the mooring fee shall be calculated based on the actual period of anchoring in each place.

6. The watercraft in the following cases shall be exempted from mooring fees:

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- The watercraft waits for daylight according to the restrictions on sailing at night;

- The watercraft shelters from storms or bad weather conditions in the interest of watercraft safety; rescue or emergency aids  but not loading or unloading cargoes, receiving or carrying  passengers as certified by port authorities.

Article 17. Wharfage charges

1. Every watercraft anchoring in wharves and jetties shall be charged as follows:

a) For the watercraft mooring to wharves: 15 dong/GT per an hour;

b) For the watercraft mooring to jetties: 10 dong/GT per an hour.

2. Where the watercraft moors to more than one places of the waters within maritime zones of a seaport, the wharfage shall be calculated based on the actual period of anchoring in each place.

3. The passenger ship entering and leaving a maritime zone for at least 4 trips per month shall be incurred a wharfage charge at the rate of 50% of that prescribed in clause 1 of this Article.

Article 18. Passing charges and certification fees

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No.

Types of watercraft

Rate (dong/an arrival or departure

1

Over-200GT watercraft

15,000

2

Watercraft of from 200 GT to not exceeding 1,000 GT

25,000

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Watercraft of from 1,000 GT to 5,000 GT

50,000

4

Over-5,000GT watercraft

100,000

Charge payers shall make one-off payment for passing charges (both departures and arrivals|) as the time of carrying out procedures for entrance to maritime zones.

2. Watercraft operating international maritime activities shall be charged certification fee at the rate of 100,000 USD/certification;

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATIONS

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1. This Circular enters into force from February 20, 2016 and annuls the Decision No. 98/2008/QD-BTC on marine fees and charges and schedules of marines fees and charges dated November 4, 2008 of the Ministry of Finance; the Circular No. 41/2012/TT-BTC guiding the calculation of marine fees for the heavy watercraft at Thi Vai-Cai Mep port and other legislative documents that are inconsistent with provisions of this Circular.

2. This Circular is issued together with a list of Maritime zones within the administration of port authorities.

3. Vietnam Maritime Administration shall be responsible for the implementation of this Circular.

4. Any issues arising during the implementation of this Circular should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Finance./.

.

ON BEHALF OF MINISTER
DEPUTY MINISTER




Tran Van Hieu

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OF MARITIME ZONES WITHIN THE ADMINISTRATION OF PORT AUTHORITIES
(Issued together with the Circular No. 01 /2016/TT-BTC dated January 05, 2016 of the Ministry of Finance)

No.

Name of port authority

Maritime zone

1

Quang Ninh port authority

04 Maritime zones: Van Gia, Hai Ha, Mui Chua, Cam Pha, Cua Doi, Hon Giai and Quang Yen

2

Hai Phong port authority

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3

Thai Binh port authority

01 maritime zone

4

Nam Dinh port authority

01 maritime zone

5

Thanh Hoa port authority

01 maritime zone

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Nghe An port authority

01 maritime zone

7

Ha Tinh port authority

02 maritime zones: Vung Ang and Xuan Hai

8

Quang Binh port authority

02 maritime zones: Hon La and Cua Gianh

9

...

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01 maritime zone

10

Thua Thien Hue port authority

02 maritime zones: Thuan An and Chan May

11

Danang port authority

01 maritime zone

12

Quang Nam port authority

...

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13

Quang Ngai port authority

03 maritime zones: Ly Son, Sa Ky and Dung Quat

14

Quy Nhon port authority

02 maritime zones: Quy Nhon and Vung Ro

15

Nha Trang port authority

07 maritime zones: Nha Trang, Ba Ngoi, Van Phong, Dao Yen, Ninh Chu, Truong Sa,  and Ca Na

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Binh Thuan port authority

05 maritime zones: Vinh Tan, Hoa Phu, Phan Thiet, Phu Quy and offshore oil well area (including Hong Ngoc, Su Tu Den, Su Tu Vang and Thang Long – Dong Do)

17

Vung Tau port authority

03 maritime zones: Vung Tau (covering Thi Vai-Cai Mep river, Dinh river, Go Da transshipment area and  Ganh Rai Bay-Vung Tau anchorage), Con Dao and offshore oil well area (covering Rong Doi, Rang Dong, Lan Tay, Dai Hung, Chi Linh, Ba Vi, Vietsopetro 01, Chim Sao and Te Giac Trang)

18

Dong Nai port authority

04 maritime zones: Thi Vai, Nha Be –Long Tau, Dong Nai and Binh Duong.

19

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01 maritime zone

20

My Tho port authority

03 maritime zones: Tien Giang, Vinh Long and Ben Tre.

21

Dong Thap port authority

01 maritime zone

22

An Giang port authority

...

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23

Can Tho port authority

01 maritime zone

24

Kien Giang port authority

04 maritime zones: Hon Chong-Ha Tien, Phu Quoc, Rach Gia and Nam Du.

25

Ca Mau port authority

02 maritime zones: Nam Can and the offshore oil well area Song Document.

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