MINISTRY OF SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM

CONSTRUCTION Independence - Freedom – Happiness

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No.: 18/2016/TT-BXD Hanoi, 30 June 2016

CIRCULAR

DETAILING AND GUIDING SOME CONTENTS ON PROJECT APPRAISAL AND

APPROVAL AND DESIGN AND ESTIMATE OF WORKS CONSTRUCTION

Pursuant to the Construction Law No. 50/2014/QH13 dated 18/6/2014;

Pursuant to Decree No. 62/2013 / ND-CP dated 25/06/2013 of the Government stipulating the
functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Construction;

Pursuant to Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP dated 18/6/2015 of the Government on management of

construction investment project;

Pursuant to Decree No. 46/2015/ND-CP dated 12/5/2015 of the Government on management of

quality and maintenance of construction works;

Pursuant to Decree No. 32/2015/ND-CP dated 25/3/2015 of the Government on management of

costs of construction investment;

Considering the recommendations of the Agency of Construction Activity Management,

The Minister of Construction issues this Circular detailing and guiding some contents on project
appraisal and approval and design and estimate of works construction.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation and subjects of application

1. Scope of regulation:

a) This Circular details some contents on project appraisal and approval and design and estimate
of works construction in accordance with the provisions in Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP dated
18/6/2015 of the Government on management of construction investment projects (hereafter
referred to as Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP).

b) The appraisal of pre-feasibility report, recommendation of investment guidelines and decision

on investment guidelines shall comply with the law on investment and public investment.
2. Subjects of application: specialized construction bodies under the Ministries managing the
specialized construction works, provincial and district People’s Committee; investment decider,
investor and other relevant organizations and individuals.

Article 2. Interpretation of terms

In this Circular, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. Appraisal request is the investor or person authorized in writing by the investor or body or
organization assigned by the investment decider in case of unidentified investor.

2. Appraisal body is the specialized construction body as decentralized or specialized body

directly under the investment decider specified in Articles 10, 24, 25 and 26 of Decree No.
59/2015/ND-CP.

Article 3. Principles of project appraisal and approval, design and estimate of construction
works

1. Project submission and appraisal, design and estimate of works construction in accordance
with authority to ensure the prescribed appraisal procedures and time limit.

2. Appraisal of design and construction estimate is done with the entire works or each works of
project or by phase or project package but must ensure the consistency and uniformity of content
and grounds for calculation in appraisal results.

3. Openness and transparency on order, procedures, dossier and appraisal result and compliance
with regulations on reform of administrative procedures during the appraisal.

4. Project approval and design and estimate of works construction in accordance with authority
or authorization after there is a Notice of appraisal result and the dossier submitted for approval
is added or completed as required by the appraisal body.

5. For projects which have a number of steps of design more than the prescribed number, the
specialized construction body only appraises the design dossier at the step of design according to
regulation of law, the remaining steps of design shall be decided by the investment decider for
appraisal and approval. Where the name and content of steps of design of project follow the
international practices other than the prescribed steps of design, the specialized construction
body only appraises the design dossier with the content corresponding to the basic and technical
steps of design or construction drawing design.

Article 4. Responsibility of organizations and individuals in project appraisal and approval

and design and estimate of works construction

1. Responsibility of the investment decider:

a) Requires the investor to follow the appraisal procedure in line with scale and capital of
project, type and level of construction works. For projects using the mixed capital, the
investment decider shall determine the type of capital as a basis for project submission, appraisal,
approval and design and estimate of works construction;

b) Assigns and inspects the appraisal from the subordinate professional bodies;

c) Approves or authorizes the approval for project, design and estimate of works construction in
accordance with the laws.

2. Responsibility of the investor:

a) Submits for appraisal of project, basic design, design and estimate of works construction in
accordance with the provisions of this Circular; organizes appraisal for review and approval for
construction drawing design and estimate of works construction for case of 03-step design;

b) Inspects, reviews and take responsibility before the appraisal body and law for the legitimacy
and contents of appraisal dossier; explains and completes appraisal dossier as required by the
appraisal body;

c) Directly chooses the qualified consultant to carry out the verification for the appraisal and
takes responsibility for checking the content of verification of the consultant to meet the
verification requirements;

d) Keeps dossier as stipulated in Paragraph 3, Article 6 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

3. Responsibility of the appraisal body or organization:

a) Organizes the appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction in accordance
with regulations of law;

b) Complies with regulations on rights and responsibilities of the appraisal body or organization
as stipulated in Article 71 and 87 of the Construction Law;

c) Makes report and provides explanation of appraisal as required by the competent state body in
case of necessity.

d) Keeps necessary dossiers and documents related to the appraisal as stipulated in Paragraph 4,
Article 9 of this Circular.

4. Responsibility of the construction consultant:

a) Comply with the rights and obligations of the construction consultant specified in Article 70
and 86 of the Construction Law when formulating and verifying project, basic design, design and
estimate of works construction;
b) Fully provides dossier and gives explanation and corrects the content of appraisal dossier as
required by the investor and the appraisal body.

Chapter II

PROJECT APPRAISAL, DESIGN AND ESTIMATE OF WORKS CONSTRUCTION

Article 5. Order of project appraisal, design and estimate of works construction

The order of project appraisal, design and estimate of works construction specified in Article 11
and 30 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP is guided as follows:

1. The appraisal decider shall prepare dossier before submission for appraisal of project, design
and estimate of works construction.

2. Submission for project appraisal :

a) For projects using the capital from state budget: The dossier for appraisal is sent to the
specialized construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal of feasibility Report and technical
– economic Report on construction investment;

b) For projects using non-budget state capital: The dossier for appraisal is sent to the specialized
construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal of basic design (or design of construction
drawing and estimate of works construction for projects which must have the technical –
economic Report) and sent to the specialized bodies directly under the investment decider for
appraisal of other contents of feasibility Report and technical – economic Report on construction
investment and technological design (if any);

c) For projects using other capital: The dossier for appraisal is sent to the specialized
construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal of basic (or design of construction drawing and
estimate of works construction for projects which must have the technical – economic Report)
for construction investment projects having works of special grade, grade I, public works or
works with significant impact on the landscape, environment and community safety. The
specialized bodies directly under the investment decider shall appraise the other contents of
feasibility Report and technical – economic Report on construction investment and technological
design (if any);

d) For remaining projects not subject to the appraisal from the specialized construction bodies,
the specialized bodies directly under the investment decider shall appraise all contents of
feasibility Report and technical – economic Report on construction investment.

3. Submission for appraisal of construction design developed after basic design and estimate of
works construction:

a) For projects using the capital from state budget: The dossier for appraisal is sent to the
specialized construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal;
b) For projects using non-budget state capital: The dossier for appraisal is sent to the specialized
construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal. Particularly for technological design and
design of works of grade IV, of medium voltage grid construction, the appraisal dossier shall be
sent to the specialized bodies directly under the investment decider for appraisal;

c) For projects using other capital subject to the appraisal by the specialized construction bodies
as stipulated in Paragraph 1, Article 26 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP: The dossier for appraisal
is sent to the specialized construction bodies as decentralized for appraisal of construction design
and sent to the specialized bodies directly under the investment decider for appraisal of
technological design (if any) and estimate of construction;

d) For remaining projects not subject to the appraisal from the specialized construction bodies,
the specialized bodies directly under the investment decider shall appraise all contents of
construction design developed after the basic design and estimate of works construction.

4. The appraisal body shall carry out the appraisal in order and contents specified from Article 5
to Article 9 of this Circular.

Article 6. Dossier submitted for appraisal of project, basic design and design and estimate
of works construction

1. The appraisal requester shall submit one (01) dossier (original dossier) to the appraisal body
specified in Article 5 of this Circular for appraisal. In case of required opinion gathering from the
relevant bodies and organizations, the appraisal body shall require the person submitting dossier
for appraisal to add the contents of gathered opinions into the dossier.

2. The dossier submitted for appraisal must ensure the legitimacy and in line with the contents of
appraisal. The dossier submitted for appraisal is considered valid when it ensures the contents
specified in Paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of this Article, proper specification, presentation in
Vietnamese or bilingual (Vietnamese as primary language) and is verified and sealed for
confirmation by the appraisal requester.

3. The dossier submitted for appraisal of project and basic design consists of: Request for
appraisal and list of documents for appraisal as stipulated in the Form No.01, Appendix II of
Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

4. The dossier submitted for appraisal of technical – economic Report on construction investment
consists of: Request for appraisal and list of documents for appraisal as stipulated in the Form
No.04, Appendix II of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

5. The dossier submitted for appraisal of technical design, design of construction design and
estimate of works construction consists of: Request for appraisal and list of documents for
appraisal as stipulated in the Form No.06, Appendix II of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

Article 7. Receiving and verifying the appraisal dossier

1. The appraisal body shall receive and check the completeness and validity of appraisal dossier
directly sent or by post. The appraisal dossier shall be returned to the appraisal requester upon
refusal of receipt in cases specified in Paragraph 4 of this Article.

2. Within five (05) working days, the appraisal body shall review and send document to require
the addition of appraisal dossier to the appraisal requester (if need, the addition of dossier is
required only one (01) time during the appraisal) or the dossier shall be returned in cases
specified under Point d, Paragraph 4 of this Article. Within twenty (20) days after receiving the
requirement from the appraisal body, if the appraisal requester fail to add his dossier, the
appraisal body shall stop its appraisal and the appraisal requester shall submit dossier for re-
appraisal when required.

3. The appraisal requester shall pay the appraisal fees to the appraisal body. The appraisal fee of
project, basic design and design and estimate of works construction follows the regulations of the
Ministry of Finance.

4. The appraisal body shall refuse to receive the appraisal dossier in the following cases:

a) The submission for appraisal not in line with the authority of the appraisal body;

b) The project, basic design and design and estimate of works construction are not subject to be
appraised according to the regulations of law on construction;

c) The appraisal dossier does not ensure the legitimacy or validity as stipulated in Paragraph 2,
Article 6 of this Circular;

d) For dossiers received by post in cases specified under Points a, b and c of this Paragraph, the
appraisal body shall send document to the appraisal requester to specify the reasons for refusal of
appraisal.

Article 8. Appraisal implementation

1. The appraisal is carried out when the appraisal body receives all valid dossier as stipulated in
Article 6 of this Circular and ends upon a written notice of appraisal result. The time limit for
appraisal is according to the provisions in Paragraph 4, Article 11 and Paragraph 8, Article 30 of
Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

2. The appraisal contents shall comply with the provisions in Article 58 and 83 of the
Construction Law and Article 6 and 10 of Decree No. 32/2015/ND-CP dated 25/3/2015 of the
Government on management of cost of construction investment.

3. Within five (05) working days from the starting date for appraisal, the appraisal body shall
send documents to gather opinions from other relevant bodies or organizations. The time limit
for opinions contribution from other relevant bodies or organizations is in accordance with the
provisions in Paragraph 3, Article 11 and Paragraph 3, Article 30 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.
4. During the appraisal, the appraisal body has the right to:

a) Require the relevant bodies or organizations to provide the necessary information, documents
and data for the appraisal;

b) Invite the organizations and individuals that are qualified and have experience to participate in
the appraisal.

c) Require the investor to directly choose the consultant for the verification in service of
appraisal or consider using the verification result from the investor (where the investor has
carried out the verification as stipulated in Paragraph 2, Article 10 of this Circular);

d) Require the investor to explain and clarify the contents related to the appraisal if needed;

dd) Suspend the appraisal and promptly notify the appraisal requester of the mistakes and errors
of calculation methods, load, drawing description, diagram, etc in the contents of dossier resulted
in the failure to give out the appraisal conclusion. Where these mistakes and errors cannot be
remedied within twenty (20) days, the appraisal body shall stop its appraisal and the appraisal
requester shall submit dossier for re-appraisal when required.

Article 9. Appraisal result and notice of appraisal result

1. The appraisal result must have the assessment and conclusion about the level of response to
requirement to each appraisal content and all contents submitted for appraisal under the form
specified in Appendix II of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP; recommendations to the investment
decider and the investor. The content of consideration and assessment of the appraisal body is
specifically guided as follows:

a) For the appraisal of project and basic design: Assess the consistence and level of response to
the investment guidelines, requirements, content of formulation of project, basic design, criteria
reflecting the need for construction investment, feasibility and effectiveness of project;

b) For appraisal of design and estimate of works construction: Assess the consistence and level
of response to the requirements, duties and content of design and estimate of works construction;

c) Review and update the result of verification for appraisal, approval opinions on fire prevention
and fighting, environmental protection and opinions of relevant bodies and organizations (if
any).

2. The appraisal body shall announce the appraisal result to the appraisal requester directly or by
post.

3. After the appraisal dossier is modified and completed, the appraisal body shall check and seal
on one (01) dossier of project, drawing of basic design, drawing of technical design or
construction drawing design and estimate of works construction. The appraisal seal sample is in
accordance with the provisions in Appendix I of this Circular. The appraisal requester shall
submit the copy (photocopy or PDF file) of feasibility report, basic design, design and estimate
of works construction sealed to the appraisal body.

4. When finishing the appraisal, the appraisal body shall:

a) Keep a number of documents: Request for appraisal, conclusions of organizations and

individuals involved in the appraisal; opinion documents from the relevant organizations and
bodies, notice of appraisal result, copies of documents with appraisal seals as stipulated in
Paragraph 3 of this Article;

b) Return documents submitted for appraisal excluding documents specified under Point a of this
Paragraph to the appraisal requester.

Article 10. Verification for appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction

The verification for appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction specified in
Article 11 and 30 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP is guided as follows:

1. Based on the verification requirement of the appraisal body, the investor shall choose the
qualified consultant directly to carry out the verification for the appraisal.

2. Where the investor carries out the verification before the appraisal, the specialized
construction body shall consider the use of verification result for the appraisal.

3. The consultant chosen for verification for the appraisal of the specialized construction body
must meet the following requirements:

a) Is qualified for constructional operation in accordance with regulations of law;

b) Its information on capacity of constructional operation is posted on the website of the Ministry
of Construction or the Department of Construction as stipulated in Article 69 of Decree No.
59/2015/ND-CP. Where the verification consultant has not yet registered its capacity of
constructional operation, it must be approved in writing by the specialized body directly under
the Ministry of Construction or the Department of Construction;

c) Is independent from legal status and finance from the investor and the consultants for
formulation of project, design and estimate of works construction.

4. The procedures for directly choosing the verification consultant for the appraisal as required
by the specialized construction body specified as follows:

a) The appraisal body recommends the requirements and scope of verification for the appraisal
including some main contents as follows:

- The contents specified under Points c, d and dd, Paragraph 2 and 3, Article 38 of the
Construction Law for the appraisal of project and basic design;
- The contents specified in Paragraph 4, Article 58 of the Construction Law for the appraisal of
technical-economic report;

- The contents specified in Paragraphs 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, Article 83 of the Construction Law for the
appraisal of design and estimate of works construction.

b) Based on the verification requirement from the appraisal body, the investor shall send the
verification request with the needs and contents of verification and draft contract (including the
contents: scope of verification, time of implementation, required quality of verification, contract
value, accountability, etc) to the consultant expected to be chosen for verification.

c) Based on the verification request from the investor, the consultant shall send its
recommendations of verification to the investor for review, negotiation and contract signing.

5. The time to carry out the verification of project, basic design, design and estimate of works
construction is specified in Paragraph 5, Article 11 and Paragraph 4, Article 30 of Decree No.
59/2015/ND-CP. In case of extension of verification time, the investor shall send a written notice
to the appraisal body to explain the reasons and request the extension.

6. The investor shall verify and assess the verification result Report carried out by the consultant
before sending it to the appraisal body. The form of verification result Report is guided in the
Appendix I of this Circular.

Article 11. Decentralization and authorization for appraisal of project, design and estimate
of works construction

1. The specialized construction body under the Ministry managing the specialized construction
works can make a recommendation to the competent person to decide on the decentralization to
the Department managing the specialized construction works for the appraisal of technical –
economic report on construction investment of works from grade II or lower using the state
capital which are decided on construction investment by the Ministries, ministerial bodies,
governmental bodies, central bodies of political organizations, social – political organizations,
state economic groups and corporations in the administrative areas of provinces.

2. Based on the specific conditions of localities, the provincial People’s Committee shall decide
on the decentralization or authorization of appraisal of project, design and construction estimate
for projects and works under the appraisal authority of Department managing the specialized
construction works to the Division in charge of construction management under the district
People’s Committee, Management Board of industrial park, export processing zone, high-tech
parks and economic zone.

3. The decentralization as stipulated in Paragraph 1 and 2 of this Article and other cases of
authorization and decentralization (if any) must ensure the principles and conditions as stipulated
in Paragraph 6, 34 of the Law on organization of Government and Article 13 and 14 of the Law
on organization of local government.
Article 12. Appraisal of technical – economic Report on construction investment

The order to appraise the projects with required technical – economic Report shall comply with
the provisions in Article 5 of this Circular. Particularly for appraisal authority of technical –
economic Report specified under Point a, Paragraph 3, Article 13 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP
is guided as follows:

1. The specialized construction body directly under the Ministry managing the specialized
construction works specified in Article 76 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP shall take charge of the
appraisal:

a) The technical – economic Report on construction investment of works using the state capital
which the Ministries, ministerial bodies, governmental bodies and central bodies of political
organizations, social – political organizations decide on their investment, excluding the projects
decentralized to the Department managing the specialized construction works as stipulated in
Paragraph 1, Article 11 of this Circular;

b) Design of construction drawing (excluding the technological design), estimate of works

construction using non-budget state capital which the Ministries, ministerial bodies,
governmental bodies and central bodies of political organizations, social – political
organizations, state economic groups and corporations decide on their investment, excluding the
projects decentralized to the Department managing the specialized construction works as
stipulated in Paragraph 1, Article 11 of this Circular;

c) Design of construction drawing (excluding the technological design), works of special grade
and 1st grade using other capital.

2. Department managing the specialized construction works shall take charge of the appraisal:

a) The technical – economic Report on construction investment of works using the state capital
which are under construction investment in the administrative areas of provinces and are decided
on investment by the provincial level, the technical – economic Report with works from level II
or lower which are decided on investment by the Ministries, ministerial bodies, governmental
bodies and central bodies of political organizations, social – political organizations according to
the provisions on decentralization in Paragraph 1, Article 11 of this Circular, except for the
projects specified in Paragraph 3 of this Article.

b) Design of construction drawing (except for the technological design), estimate of construction
works of grade II and III using the non-budget state capital invested for construction in the
administrative areas of provinces which the provincial level, the Ministries, ministerial bodies,
governmental bodies and central bodies of political organizations, social – political
organizations, state economic groups and corporation decide on their investment in accordance
with the provisions on decentralization in Paragraph 1, Article 11 of this Circular, except for
works specified in Paragraph 3 of this Article;
c) Design of construction drawing (except for the technological design), public works and works
with great effect on landscape, environment and safety of community using other capital invested
for construction in the administrative areas of provinces, except for works specified in Paragraph
1 of this Article.

3. The Division in charge of construction management under the district People’s Committee,
Management Board of industrial park, export processing zone, high-tech parks and economic
zone shall appraise the technical – economic Report on construction investment using capital
from the state budget; design of construction drawing and estimate of works construction using
the non-budget state capital in accordance with the provisions on decentralization in Paragraph 1,
Article 11 of this Circular.

Article 13. Other provisions on appraisal of project, design and estimate of work
construction

1. For the project, design and estimate of work construction in line going through 02 provinces or
more subject to the appraisal by the specialized construction body, the specialized construction
body under the Ministry managing the specialized construction works shall take charge of the
appraisal.

2. For the projects including various works of different grades, the body in charge of appraisal is
the organ which shall appraise the main works or works with highest grade of the project.

3. For the projects carried out in the form of public-private partnership contract (PPP), the
competent state body specified in Paragraph 1, Article 26 of Decree No. 15/2015/ND-CP dated
14/02/2015 of the Government on investment in the form of public-private partnership is the unit
in charge of appraisal of project. The appraisal of basic design and design and estimate of works
construction is done like the project using the non-budget state capital specified in Paragraph 2,
Article 11 and Paragraph 1 of Article 25 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP.

4. The specialized body directly under the investment decider shall take charge of appraisal of
design and estimate of works construction of the projects which have main content as goods
procurement and services supply but have their constructional components including the works
items and activities which do not affect the investment objectives and safety in operation, use
and expense ratio of construction of less than 15% of the total project investment; appraisal of
technical and economic reports of repair, renovation and upgrade project of works using the non-
business capital with investment nature.

5. Projects using the mixed capital with contribution of capital from state budget, non-budget
state capital from 30% or more or less than 30% but over 500 billion dong in the total
investment, such projects shall be appraised like the ones using the non-budget state capital.

Chapter III

APPROVAL AND MODIFICATION OF PROJECT, DESIGN AND ESTIMATE OF

WORKS CONSTRUCTION
Article 14. Approval for project and decision on construction investment

The approval for project and decision on construction investment specified in Article 12 and 13
of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP is guided as follows:

1. The body in charge of appraisal of project directly under the investment decider shall
summarize the appraisal result and submit it for approval. For the remaining cases, the
investment decider shall review and assign them to the subordinate specialized bodies for
summary of appraisal result and submission for approval.

2. The investment decider shall approve the project including the main contents specified in
Paragraph 2, Article 12 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP and the relevant regulations of law. The
project approval must include the specific contents of capital, expected arrangement of capital
plan by time of project implementation, number of steps of design and applicable standards and
regulations and time to perform the work construction.

3. The form of construction investment decision is specified in Appendix I of this Circular.

Article 15. Approval for design and estimate of works construction

1. The investment decider and the investor shall approve the design and the estimate of works
construction with the contents specified in Article 28 of Decree No. 59/2015/ND-CP. The
investment decider is decentralized or authorized to approve the design and estimate of works
construction as stipulated in Paragraph 1, Article 72 of the Construction Law.

2. The investment decider shall approve the design of construction drawing and the estimate of
works construction for the projects which require the formulation of technical and economic
Report on construction investment.

3. The form of request for approval for design and estimate of works construction is specified in
the Appendix I of this Circular.

Article 16. Modification of construction investment project

1. The construction investment project using the state budget and non-budget state budget shall
be modified in cases specified in Paragraph 1, Article 16 of the Construction Law. The
investment decider shall decide on the modified contents related to the objectives, investment
scale, location, progress of project performance, total investment and structure of used capital.

2. The modified projects and basic designs under the approval authority of the investment
decider must be appraised in the order specified in Paragraph 3 of this Article.

3. The order of appraisal of modified project and basic design is guided as follows:
a) The investor requests in writing the investment decider to consider and approve the project
modification policy, particularly clarify the reasons, contents and scope of modification and
recommend the implementation solutions.

b) Based on the written approval from the investment decider on project modification policy, the
investor shall prepare documents of project and basic design to be modified and submit them to
the body in charge of decentralized appraisal for appraisal;

c) The summary of appraisal result and submission of modified project are specified in
Paragraph 1, Article 14 of this Circular.

4. The approval for modified construction investment project from the investment decider
consists of the modified contents or all contents of project after modification.

5. The body in charge of appraisal of modified project and basic design is the body which took
charge of appraisal of approved project and basic design.

Article 17. Modification of design and estimate of works construction

1. The cases of modification of design and estimate of works construction are done according to
the provisions in Article 84 of the Construction Law and Article 11 of Decree No. 32/2015/ND-
CP of the Government on management of costs of construction investment.

2. The investment decider shall decide on the modification of design and estimate of works
construction when this modification results in modification of construction investment project.
The other cases shall be decided by the investor who shall take responsibility for his
modification decision. The investor shall report to the investment decider on the contents of
modification of construction design which he decides on implementation.

3. The specialized construction body shall appraise the modified design and construction
estimate in the following cases:

a) Modification of construction design due to the change of in engineering geology, design load,
structural solutions and materials used for load-bearing structures (except increasing the safety of
the works) and measures to hold the construction affecting the bearing safety of the works;

b) Modification of estimate of works construction due to the modification which results in the
excess of total investment or estimate of works construction approved by the investment decider.

4. For the modified design and estimate of works construction under the decision authority of the
investor as stipulated in Paragraph 2 of this Article and not subject to the appraisal as stipulated
in Paragraph 3 of this Article, in case of necessity, the investor shall organize the appraisal by
himself as a basis for consideration and approval.

5. The approval for modified design and estimate of works construction from the investment
decider and investor consists of the modified contents or all contents of the design and estimate
of works construction after modification. The investment decider and investor shall approve the
modified design and estimate of works construction which he has decided on modification as
stipulated in Paragraph 2 of this Article.

Chapter IV

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 18. Responsibility of the Ministry of Construction

In the appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction, the Ministry of
Construction shall:

1. Take charge and guide the appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction of
the Ministries, sectors, localities and enterprises.

2. Assign and decentralize the specialized construction bodies in appraisal of project, design and
estimate of works construction

3. Periodically or irregularly inspect the appraisal implementation of the specialized construction

bodies at all levels; decide the revocation and cancellation of appraisal result or require the re-
appraisal upon detection of error in the appraisal which can affect the legitimacy, quality, safety,
cost and construction progress; summarize and report the reality of appraisal implementation.

4. Coordinate with the Ministries managing the specialized construction works to deal with the
problems and shortcomings in the appraisal of Ministries, sectors, investors and enterprises.

5. Provide the professional training on appraisal for the relevant bodies, organizations and
individuals.

6. Issue and guide the application of assessment criteria in the appraisal; norm of cost of
consultation for verification of project, basic design, design and estimate of works construction.

Article 19. Responsibility of relevant Ministries and sectors

In the appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction, the Ministries and sectors
shall:

1. Ministries managing the specialized construction works shall:

a) Guide, direct and inspect the appraisal of the specialized construction bodies under their
management ; assign and decentralize the specialized construction bodies in appraisal of project,
design, estimate of works construction; decide on revocation and cancel the appraisal result or
require re-appraisal upon detection of errors in the appraisal affecting the legitimacy, quality,
safety, cost and construction progress.
b) Coordinate with the other Ministries managing construction works and the provincial People’s
Committees in appraisal for the projects of national importance, works construction project in
line going through many areas.

c) Summarize and make the quarter report on the appraisal of project, design and estimate of
works construction and send it to the Ministry of Construction for summary and monitoring in
the first 15 days of the subsequent quarter. The form of appraisal report is specified in Appendix
II of this Circular.

2. Ministries, sectors and governmental bodies, central bodies of political organizations and
social - political organizations

a) Exercise the rights and responsibilities of the investment decider as prescribed by law for
projects which they decide on investment.

b) Assign the subordinate specialized bodies to participate and coordinate the appraisal of
project, design, estimate of works construction under their management according to the laws on
construction.

c) Inspect the appraisal of the subordinate specialized bodies and coordinate the timely
settlement of problems arising during the appraisal.

Article 20. Responsibility of provincial and district People’s Committees

In the appraisal of project, design and estimate of works construction, the provincial and district
People’s Committees shall:

1. Decide the assignment, decentralization and authorization of appraisal, approval for project,
design, estimate of works construction in the areas in line with the laws on construction and
specific conditions of localities.

2. Direct and inspect the appraisal of the Departments managing the specialized construction
works and the divisions in charge of construction management of district People’s Committees;
decide the revocation and cancellation of appraisal result or require re-appraisal upon detection
of errors in the appraisal affecting the legitimacy, quality, safety, cost and construction progress;

3. Promptly settle and deal with problems on procedures and coordinate the appraisal in the areas
under their management.

4. Summarize and make the quarter report on the appraisal of project, design and estimate of
works construction and send it to the Ministry of Construction for summary and monitoring in
the first 15 days of the subsequent quarter. The form of appraisal report is specified in Appendix
II of this Circular.

Article 21. Transitional handling and effect

1. For the appraisal project, design and estimate of works construction:

a) The projects of construction investment, design and estimate of works constructions submitted
to the competent authorities for appraisal before the effective date of this Circular shall not have
to be submitted for re-appraisal and shall be appraised under the current regulations before the
effective date of this Circular.

b) The modification of projects, design and estimate of works constructions after the effective
date of this Circular.

2. Effect:

a) This Circular takes effect from 15/8/2016.

b) The provisions on verification, appraisal and approval for construction investment project,
design, estimate of works construction specified in Circular No. 03/2009/TT-BXD dated
26/3/2009 of the Ministry of Construction detailing some contents of Decree No. 12/2009/ND-
CP dated 12/02/2009 of the Government on management of works construction investment
projects; Circular No. 10/2013/TT-BXD dated 25/7/2013 of the Ministry of Construction
detailing some contents on management of quality of construction works; Circular No.
13/2013/TT-BXD dated 15/8/2013 of the Ministry of Construction on verification, appraisal and
approval for design of works construction and Circular No. 09/2014/TT-BXD dated 10/7/2014 of
the Ministry of Construction on modification and addition of some articles of Circulars guiding
the Decree No. 15/2013/ND-CP dated 06/02/2013 of the Government on management of quality
of construction works shall be invalidated from the effective date of this Circular.

Any difficulty arising during the implementation of this Circular should be promptly reported to
the Ministry of Construction for review and modification accordingly./.

FOR THE MINISTER

DEPUTY MINISTER

Le Quang Hung