Special investment procedures: a new investment procedure
Law No. 57/2024/QH15 supplements regulations on special investment procedures into the Investment Law No. 61/2020/QH14 under Article 36a (“Investment Law“). On February 10, 2025, the Government issued Decree No. 19/2025/ND-CP, detailing the implementation of the Investment Law regarding special investment procedures (“Decree 19“). This article provides a summary of the special investment procedures stipulated in the Investment Law and Decree 19.
1. Conditions for Applying Special Investment Procedures
Investors may opt to apply special investment procedures when submitting an investment registration application if the investment project meets the following conditions:
i) The project is not subject to the authority of the National Assembly for investment policy approval under Article 30 of the Investment Law.
ii) The project location is within an industrial park, export processing zone, high-tech park, centralized information technology zone, free trade zone, or a functional area within an economic zone.
iii) The project falls under one of the following sectors:
- Investment in the construction of innovation centers, research and development (R&D) centers; investment in the semiconductor integrated circuit industry, technology design, manufacturing of electronic components, integrated circuits (ICs), flexible electronics (PE), chips, and semiconductor materials;
- Investment in high-tech sectors prioritized for development and production of products listed in the high-tech product catalog encouraged for development under the Prime Minister’s decision.
2. Advantages of Special Investment Procedures
i) Investors are exempt from the following procedures: investment policy approval, technology appraisal, environmental impact assessment report preparation, detailed planning, construction permits, and various approval processes in the fields of construction, fire prevention, and firefighting.
ii) The investment registration procedure is received and processed by the Management Board of industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech parks, and economic zones. The review and issuance of the Investment Registration Certificate take only 15 working days.
3. Key Considerations
i) The composition of the investment registration dossier under the special procedures has removed the requirement for “Explanatory content on the technology used in the investment project for projects subject to appraisal and consultation on technology under the Law on Technology Transfer” as stipulated in Point e, Clause 1, Article 33 of the Investment Law. However, it adds the following requirements:
- A written request for project implementation, including a commitment to compliance with legal conditions, standards, and regulations on construction, environmental protection, fire prevention, and firefighting;
- The investment project proposal must include identification, prediction of environmental impacts, and mitigation measures replacing the preliminary environmental impact assessment.ii) The Investment Law and Decree 19 do not address the scenario where an investor applies for special investment procedures in a locality that has not yet established a Management Board for industrial parks, export processing zones, high-tech parks, or economic zones.
iii) The Investment Law and Decree 19 do not mention the simplification of land-related procedures for investment projects.
For any discussions or contributions, please contact the author:
Lawyer Phan Quang Chung
BFSC LAW LLC
Phone: (+84-24) 7108 2688 (ext: 102) | Email: [email protected]