10th Session: Removing "bottlenecks" and creating an open investment environment

On the morning of November 11, the National Assembly discussed the draft Investment Law (amended), aiming at an open investment environment, reducing procedures, and promoting domestic and foreign investment attraction.

Continuing the session program, on the morning of November 11, the National Assembly listened to the Presentation and Verification Report on the draft Investment Law (amended).

Presenting the Proposal, Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang said the draft Law consists of 7 chapters and 53 articles regulating investment and business activities in Vietnam and investment and business activities from Vietnam to foreign countries; applicable to investors and agencies, organizations and individuals related to investment and business activities.

The Draft Law has narrowed and clarified the scope of projects that must be approved in principle. Accordingly, investment in principle is only approved for infrastructure development investment projects in a number of fields such as seaports, airports, telecommunications, publishing, press, etc.; projects proposing to use land and sea areas; projects that have a major impact on the environment, have the potential to seriously impact the environment, or are implemented in areas that affect national defense and security, etc.

The Draft Law also stipulates that investment policy approval procedures shall not be carried out in the following cases:

Investment projects that request the State to allocate land, lease land, or allow the change of land use purpose of households and individuals are not required to have written approval from the Provincial People's Committee according to regulations of the law on land.

Investment projects on construction of technical infrastructure for industrial clusters; mineral exploitation (excluding offshore mineral exploitation investment projects); construction of houses (for sale, lease, lease-purchase), urban areas regardless of land use scale or population scale in cases of auction of land use rights or bidding to select investors.

Informing that it will continue to simplify investment approval procedures, according to Minister Nguyen Van Thang, the draft law amends and supplements Article 22 of the 2020 Investment Law to allow foreign investors to establish economic organizations without requiring an investment project before establishment, but must meet the market access conditions for foreign investors prescribed in Article 9 of this Law when carrying out procedures to establish economic organizations.

"This helps the investment and business environment become more open and attractive to foreign investors, promotes investment attraction, and ensures equal treatment between domestic and foreign investors when carrying out this procedure," Minister Nguyen Van Thang emphasized.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Khac Dinh speaks. (Photo: Doan Tan/VNA)

The Draft Law also amends and supplements in the direction of defining preferential investment sectors and occupations as sectors and occupations that are prioritized to attract investment to develop science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, digital technology industry and semiconductor industry; develop green economy, circular economy, sharing economy, digital economy, develop new economic models; develop industry clusters, value chains, attract investment in modern management, have high added value, have spillover effects, connect global production and supply chains; develop renewable energy, new energy, clean energy; ensure national energy security;...

The Draft Law has reviewed and cut 25 conditional investment and business sectors that do not meet the prescribed criteria and conditions; reviewed and revised the scope of 22 sectors and trades.

"The reason is that currently, most conditional business sectors apply a pre-inspection mechanism, which can be switched to a post-inspection mechanism to limit barriers to business entry, promote business freedom and implement the Government's resolution on the Program to reduce and simplify administrative procedures related to production and business activities in 2025 and 2026," said the Minister of Finance.

Reporting on the review of the draft Investment Law (amended), agreeing on the necessity, viewpoints, and objectives of amending and supplementing the Investment Law according to simplified procedures, Chairman of the National Assembly's Economic and Financial Committee Phan Van Mai suggested a thorough review, and only in truly necessary cases should the implementation be regulated according to the investment policy approval process.

In addition, continue to research and carefully argue the basis and rationale for removing the entire authority of the National Assembly in approving investment policies; review and perfect on the basis of ensuring the principles of decentralization and delegation of power.

According to Chairman Phan Van Mai, it is necessary to review and clarify in this Law project the criteria of "determined in planning," "conformity with planning," "suitability of the project with planning" to ensure feasibility, handle problems that are bottlenecks in reality, and ensure consistency with regulations in Law projects that are being simultaneously submitted to the National Assembly.

Continue to review, streamline, and reduce conditional investment and business sectors and professions, substantially reduce investment and business conditions, and retain only truly necessary conditions for constitutional reasons.

National Assembly delegate of Thanh Hoa province Cao Thi Xuan speaks. (Photo: Doan Tan/VNA)

The Economic and Financial Committee proposes to clearly distinguish between the practice conditions of individuals and the investment and business conditions of business investors when investing and doing business in the form of a business organization or legal entity.

Continue to thoroughly review and research regulations in the direction of not abolishing conditional investment and business sectors and professions, changing management methods, eliminating "pre-inspection" administrative procedures, and switching to management according to the "post-inspection" principle.

Regarding the investment incentives and support stipulated in Chapter III of the draft Law, the Economic and Financial Committee recommends continuing to review and study a number of proposals in the Full Review Report. Carefully and cautiously review the regulations allowing foreign investors to establish economic organizations without requiring an investment project before establishment.

Also this morning, the National Assembly listened to the Presentation and Verification Report on the projects: Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Citizen Reception, the Law on Complaints, the Law on Denunciation; Law on Drug Prevention and Control (amended)./.Hanh Quynh

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/ky-hop-thu-10-go-diem-nghen-tao-moi-truong-dau-tu-thong-thoang-post1076231.vnp