Legal basis

• Mineral Law 2010;
• Enterprise Law 2020;
• Decree 01/2021/ND-CP on business registration;
• Decree 15/2012/ND-CP detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Mineral Law;
• Decree 158/2016/ND-CP guiding the Mineral Law.

1. The law stipulates which organizations and individuals are allowed to exploit and trade minerals?

Minerals are a type of resource that brings great material and monetary value, so they are managed by the State by law. Therefore, not all organizations and individuals are allowed to exploit and trade minerals. According to Article 51 of the 2010 Mineral Law, regulations on organizations and individuals exploiting minerals are as follows:

(1) Organizations and individuals registered to do business in the mineral mining industry are allowed to mine minerals including:

• Enterprises established under the Enterprise Law;
• Cooperatives and unions of cooperatives are established under the Law on Cooperatives.

(2) Business households registered to do business in the mineral mining industry are allowed to exploit minerals as common construction materials and salvage minerals.

2. Conditions for establishing a mineral exploitation and trading company

Mineral exploitation is a conditional business. To establish a mineral trading company, an enterprise must meet the conditions specified in Clause 2, Article 53 of the 2010 Mineral Law, specifically as follows:

• There is an investment project to exploit minerals in areas where reserves have been explored and approved in accordance with planning. Mineral exploitation investment projects must have a plan to use appropriate specialized human resources, equipment, technology, and advanced mining methods; For toxic minerals, written permission from the Prime Minister is required;
• Have an environmental impact assessment report or a commitment to protect the environment in accordance with the law on environmental protection;
• Have equity capital equal to at least 30% of the total investment capital of the mineral exploitation investment project.

3. What do you need to apply for a mineral business license?

To be able to apply for a business license, organizations and individuals doing mineral exploitation business must prepare documents as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 59 of the 2010 Mineral Law, including the following documents:

• Application for a Mineral Mining License;
• Map of mineral exploitation area;
• Decision approving mineral reserves by competent state agencies;
• Mineral exploitation investment project with approval decision and copy of investment certificate;
• Environmental impact assessment report or environmental protection commitment;
• Copy of business registration certificate;
• In case of winning the auction of mineral mining rights, there must be a written confirmation of winning the auction;
• Document confirming equity as prescribed in Point c, Clause 2, Article 53 of the 2010 Mineral Law.

4. Procedures for applying for a mineral exploitation and business license

Procedures for applying for a mineral exploitation and trading license will become easier if organizations and individuals doing mineral business carry out 2 steps according to the latest order specified in Article 60 of Decree 158/2016/ND-CP as follows:

• Step 1: Organizations and individuals applying for a mineral exploitation license submit the mining application to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment. Within no more than 05 days, the application receiving agency is responsible for checking the documents and documents contained in the application.

·         In case the documents and documents in the dossier ensure compliance with the provisions of Clause 1, Article 59 of the 2010 Mineral Law and Clause 1, Article 51 of Decree 158/2016/ND-CP, the dossier-receiving agency will issue a receipt note. file.

·         In case the application dossier for mineral exploitation does not have complete documents and documents according to regulations or is complete but the content of documents and documents in the dossier does not ensure compliance with the provisions of law, the agency receiving the application Written instructions for organizations and individuals requesting additional mineral exploitation and completion of dossiers. The issuance of guiding documents and requests for additional and complete documents by the receiving agency is only done once.

• Step 2: Evaluate the application for a Mineral Mining License:

·         Within no more than 25 days from the date of receiving the application, the receiving agency is responsible for completing the check of coordinates and area of ​​the proposed mineral exploitation area and field inspection. ;

·         Within no more than 06 days from the date of completion of the work specified in Point a of this Clause, the dossier-receiving agency shall send a written request for comments to relevant agencies on the issuance of the Mineral Mining License. assets according to the provisions of Point c, Clause 2, Article 60 of the 2010 Mineral Law.

·         Within no more than 20 days from the date of receiving the document requesting opinions from the dossier-receiving agency, the agency receiving opinions is responsible for responding in writing on related issues. After the above time limit, if there is no written response, it will be considered that the agency whose opinion has been consulted has agreed. The time to collect opinions from relevant agencies is not included in the appraisal time;

·         Within no more than 40 days, the agency receiving the application must complete the appraisal of documents, records and other contents related to mineral exploitation and determine the fee for granting mineral exploitation rights. .

• Step 3: Submit application for Mineral Mining License:

·         Within no more than 05 days from the date of completion of the work specified in Clause 2 of this Article, the receiving agency is responsible for completing and submitting the licensing dossier to the competent state agency. permission;

·         Within no more than 07 days from the date of receipt of the dossier from the dossier-receiving agency, the state agency with licensing authority shall decide whether or not to grant a mineral mining license. In case the license is not granted, a written response must be made clearly stating the reason.

• Step 4: Notify and return the results of the application for a Mineral Mining License: Within no more than 07 days from the date of receiving the application from the licensing authority, the receiving agency shall notify the applicant. Notify organizations and individuals requesting a mineral exploitation license to receive results and perform relevant obligations according to regulations. The above time does not include the time it takes for organizations and individuals exploiting minerals to carry out procedures to pay for the first mining right.