Circular 22/2026/TT-BNNMT: Simplifying Administrative Procedures Across Agriculture and Environment Sectors
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Based on:22/2026/TT-BNNMT - Government Official Gazette
This explanation was generated by AI and checked by an automated AI review, not by a human expert. It is not legal, tax or accounting advice and may contain errors. Check the official document before you rely on it.
On May 19, 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment issued Circular 22/2026/TT-BNNMT, amending a series of circulars to decentralize authority, cut red tape, and simplify administrative procedures across seven areas: crop cultivation and plant protection, quality management of agro-forestry-fishery products (food safety), climate change (carbon credit registration), science and technology, marine and island resources and environment, livestock and veterinary medicine, and environment. For businesses, the key changes include shorter processing times for several procedures (for example, recognition of special-case crop variety circulation drops from 15 to 10 working days, and some steps drop from 10 to 5 working days); state inspection of food safety for imports is transferred from the central-level Departments of Animal Health and Plant Protection to agencies designated by provincial People's Committee chairpersons; simplified documentation for Certificates of Free Sale (CFS) for exported goods and for food safety eligibility certificates; shorter appraisal periods for veterinary drug registration and renewal; and a streamlined process for canceling and transferring ownership of carbon credits and greenhouse gas emission quotas on the National Registry System. The Circular takes effect from May 19, 2026, except Articles 2 and 3 (import food safety inspection), which take effect from September 1, 2026, and Article 6 (carbon credit registration), which takes effect from August 1, 2026. Applications submitted before the effective date continue to be processed under the previous rules. Businesses in agricultural and food import/export, livestock, veterinary pharmaceuticals, and the carbon market should review their internal procedures to take advantage of the shortened processing times and confirm the newly designated competent authority, which is now often provincial rather than central level.
Scope and Purpose
Circular 22/2026/TT-BNNMT, issued by the Minister of Agriculture and Environment on May 19, 2026, amends a series of circulars to decentralize authority and cut and simplify administrative procedures under the Ministry's state management. It has 8 chapters and 19 articles, amending numerous circulars across 7 sectors.
Chapter I - Cultivation and Plant Protection
- Amends the process for issuing and revoking decisions recognizing special-case circulation of plant varieties: appraisal timelines shortened from 15 to 10 working days (intake step) and from 10 to 5 working days (processing step); violations leading to revocation must be processed within 10 working days.
- Replaces the phrase «03 months» with «60 days» in a related appraisal provision.
- Repeals certain provisions of Circular 33/2014/TT-BNNPTNT on phytosanitary quarantine for imports, exports, and transit.
Chapter II - Quality Management of Agro-Forestry-Fishery Products
- Transfers authority for state inspection of imported food safety, both standard and strict inspection methods, from the former Departments of Animal Health and Plant Protection to agencies assigned or designated by provincial People's Committee chairpersons.
- Simplifies the dossier for food safety eligibility certificates, now just an application form plus a description of facilities and equipment.
- Simplifies the dossier for Certificates of Free Sale (CFS) for exported goods: a request letter stating the product name, HS code, and applicable standards; a list of production facilities; and the declared applicable standard.
- Amends dossiers for registering, renewing, and changing the scope of designated food-testing laboratories under Joint Circular 20/2013/TTLT-BYT-BCT-BNNPTNT.
- Repeals certain provisions of Circular 38/2018/TT-BNNPTNT and Circular 17/2025/TT-BNNMT.
Chapter III - Climate Change
- Simplifies the procedure for canceling voluntary carbon credit registration: the account holder submits a request, and the provincial People's Committee chairperson processes it within 2 working days.
- Simplifies the procedure for transferring ownership of greenhouse gas emission quotas and carbon credits outside the carbon trading system: dossiers are submitted to the provincial People's Committee, validity is confirmed within 2 working days, and processing and registry updates are completed within 5 working days.
- Repeals Circular 17/2015/TT-BTNMT on the Vietnam-Japan Joint Crediting Mechanism.
Chapter IV - Science and Technology
- Amends the procedure for registering, appraising, and recognizing technical advances in agriculture: dossiers may be submitted in person or online; document review takes 3 working days, Council appraisal takes 5-7 working days, and recognition follows within 5 working days after the dossier is finalized.
- Repeals Circular 01/2021/TT-BNNPTNT, Circular 17/2016/TT-BNNPTNT, Circular 10/2024/TT-BNNPTNT, and Circular 43/2025/TT-BNNMT.
Chapter V - Marine and Island Resources and Environment
- Amends the principles for exploiting and using the marine and island resources and environment database: users must pay fees set by the Ministry of Finance; access may also be arranged by contract.
- Repeals three articles detailing database access.
Chapter VI - Livestock and Veterinary Medicine
- Shortens the processing time for export or international exchange of livestock breeds on the export-ban list, for research or exhibition purposes, to 9 working days.
- Amends the procedures for testing and recognizing livestock breed and feed trial results, and for recognizing new livestock breeds, shortened to 4-10 working days depending on the step.
- Amends the rules for issuing livestock facility identification codes, now auto-issued via the National Livestock Database System, and for revoking and reissuing codes.
- Amends the authority and procedure for issuing and reissuing disease-free zone and facility certificates: the Department of Livestock and Veterinary Medicine retains authority only over provincial-level zones and cases required by importing countries, with other cases decentralized to provincial agencies.
- Shortens appraisal and response times for veterinary drug marketing authorization and renewal dossiers, now 7-75 days depending on dossier type.
- Shortens quarantine certificate procedures for imported and exported animals and animal products, and for temporary import for re-export, to 1 working day from the test result or quarantine inspection.
- Repeals certain provisions of Circular 09/2025/TT-BNNMT and Circular 20/2026/TT-BNNMT.
Chapter VII - Environment
- Replaces a form template, Form 04 of Appendix II, in Circular 02/2022/TT-BTNMT implementing the Law on Environmental Protection.
Chapter VIII - Implementation Provisions
- Dossiers already accepted before the effective date continue to be processed under the previous rules; dossiers for procedures that have now been eliminated but not yet completed are halted and returned upon request; documents and certificates issued before the effective date remain valid until they expire.
- Effective dates: May 19, 2026 for the general provisions; Articles 2 and 3, import food safety inspection, from September 1, 2026; Article 6, carbon credit registration, from August 1, 2026.