Title: Circular 01/2012/TT-BNNPTNT Stipulating dossier of lawful forest products and inspection of the origin of forest products

Type: Circular

Issuing Agency: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Responsible Agency: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Issuing Date: 04-01-2012

 

Determination of forest product quantity and volume

1. Volume of round timber, sawn timber and square timber shall be determined under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development's regulations on management and hammer marking of trees.

For stumps and roots, timber with complex shape, ornamental trees, trees for shadow or secular trees, including their roots, trunks, branches and leaves, which cannot be measured for determining their volumes, they shall be weighed in kilogram (kg) and converted at the ratio of 1,000 kg equivalent to 1 m3 of round timber or measured in ster and converted at the ratio of one ster equivalent to 0.7 m3 of round limber.

2. Quantity of forest animals shall be determined in number of forest animal individuals which are weighed in kg. If it is impossible to determine the number of individuals, these animals will be weighed in kg.

Volumes of parts and derivatives of forest animals and plants shall be determined by weight in kg or measurement in milliliter (ml) if these parts and derivates are in liquid form.

3. Quantity of forest products from non-timber forest plants shall be determined by weighing in kg.

Packing lists of forest products

1. The form of packing lists of forest organizations, communities, households and individuals.

2. Packing lists of forest products shall be made by organizations, communities, households and individuals engaged in forest product exploitation, receipt and delivery upon each pre-receipt inspection and forest protection hammer marking or pre-receipt inspection and delivery of forest products carried on the same vehicle.

Organizations, communities, households and individuals that make packing lists of forest products shall take responsibility before law for the accuracy and lawful origin of forest products specified in their packing lists.

3. Method of making a packing list of forest products:

a/ The forest product owner writes all contents of forest products in the packing list.

b/ He/she enumerates in detail raw logs, round timber and timber with the smaller end's diameter of between 10 and 20 cm and a length of 1 m or longer or with the smaller end's diameter of 20 cm or larger and a length of 30 cm or more, and sawn timber planks and cut timber blocks of a length of 1 m or more, a width of 20 cm or more and a thickness of 5 cm or more.

c/ He/she writes the total quantity, volume or weight of round timber, cut timber and sawn timber with sizes smaller than those specified at Point b of this Clause.

d/ He/she writes in detail the real quantity, volume or weight of each non-timber forest product- or the total figure of these forest products according to their actual figures.

e/ At the bottom of each page of the packing list, he/she writes the total volume of forest products.

Forest product receipt and delivery monitoring books

1. The form of forest product receipt and delivery monitoring books provided in this Circular applies to all forest product exploitation, processing and trading organizations.

2. Forest product receipt and delivery monitoring books shall be managed at organizations specified in Clause 1 of this Article. Immediately after forest products are received or delivered, forest product owners shall clearly write in the book the following information: date of receipt or delivery; names and origin of forest products; specifications, quantity, volume, and balances at the beginning and the end of the period.

When receiving timber exploited from natural forests in the country, organizations mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article shall report such to local forest protection agencies for inspection and signing for certification in their forest product receipt and delivery monitoring books.

Certification of forest products

1. Agencies competent to certify forest products

a/ District-level forest ranger offices or provincial-level forest protection sub-departments in localities having no district-level forest ranger offices may certify the following forest products:

- Unprocessed forest products exploited from natural forests or consolidated planted forests in the country, of delivering organizations;

- Forest products of import origin and not yet processed in the country, of delivering organizations or individuals;

- Forest animals raised in the country and their parts or derivatives, of delivering organizations, communities, households or individuals;

- Confiscated unprocessed forest products of receiving organizations, communities, households or individuals;

- Processed forest products of receiving organizations, communities, households or individuals;

- Forest products transported internally among places not in the same province or centrally run city.

b/ Forest ranger offices of special-use forests or protection forests may certify forest products lawfully exploited from these forests and confiscated forest products according to their competence;

c/ Local forest protection agencies shall advise People's Committees of communes, wards or townships (below collectively referred to as commune-level People's Committees) may certify the following forest products:

- Unprocessed forest products exploited from home gardens, farms or scattered trees by delivering organizations;

- Unprocessed forest products exploited from natural forests in the country, consolidated planted forests, home gardens, farms or scattered trees by delivering communities, households or individuals.

2. Procedures and dossiers of request for forest product certification

a/ The forest product owner shall submit one dossier set (the original) of request for forest product certification directly to a competent state agency defined in Clause 1 of this Article.

b/ A dossier of request for forest product certification comprises a packing list of forest products, sale invoices under the Ministry of Finance's regulations (if any) and documents on the origin of forest products under the State's current regulations.

For forest products purchased from many communities, households or individuals that have exploited them from their home gardens, farms or scattered trees, the forest product purchaser shall make a packing list with the signatures of representatives of such communities, households or individuals.

3. Certification time limit

a/ The time limit for forest product certification and notification of certification results is 3 working days after the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier. Certification must be given immediately in case the examined dossier is valid and forest products are compliant with regulations.

For an invalid dossier, the dossier-receiving agency shall promptly notify such to and guide the forest product owner in completing the dossier.

b/ In case of necessity to verify the origin of forest products before certification, the dossier-receiving agency shall promptly notify such to the forest product owner and verify unclear matters in the forest product dossier, origin, quantity, volume and category and make a written record of the verification upon completing the verification. If the verification finds no violation, forest products shall be promptly certified under this Circular. In case of verification, the time limit for forest product certification is 5 working days after the receipt of a complete and valid dossier.

In case a violation is detected through verification, a dossier shall be made for handling the violation under current laws.

c/ The representative of the stale agency certifying forest products shall write his/her opinions on the details provided by the forest product owner in the forest product dossier, including the number and date written in the enclosed invoices, license plate number of the vehicle (if any); date of certification; and sign and write his/her full name and position and append the seal of his/her agency on the packing list, and take responsibility before law for the accuracy and lawful origin of certified forest products.

In case of certification of forest products by commune-level People's Committees under Point c, Clause I of this Article, signatures of local rangers on packing lists of forest products are also required. For their advice, local ranger officers shall also take responsibility before law for the accuracy and lawful origin of forest products.

Management and preservation of forest product dossiers

1. Forest product owners shall manage forest product dossiers (original) together with forest products; and preserve these dossiers and forest product receipt and delivery monitoring books for 5 years after forest products are delivered.

2. Agencies competent to certify forest products shall preserve the packing lists of forest products (original) after giving certification and documents on the origin of forest products (copies) at their offices.

 

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