JOINT CIRCULAR

ELABORATION OF SUSPENSION OF CASES DUE TO FORCE MAJEURE (NATURAL DISASTERS OR EPIDEMICS) ACCORDING TO POINT C CLAUSE 1 ARTICLE 148, POINT D CLAUSE 1 ARTICLE 229 AND POINT D CLAUSE 1 ARTICLE 247 OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURES CODE

Pursuant to the Criminal Procedure Code dated November 27, 2015; the Law on amendments to some articles of the Criminal Procedure Code dated November 12, 2021;

Pursuant to Law on Promulgation of legislative documents dated June 22, 2015; the Law on amendments to some articles of Law on Promulgation of legislative documents dated June 18, 2020;

The Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Minister of Public Security, the Minister of National Defense, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Minister of Finance unanimously promulgate a Joint Circular on elaboration of suspension of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics) according to Point c Clause 1 Article 148, Point d Clause 1 Article 229 and Point d Clause 1 Article 247 of Criminal Procedures Code.

Article 1. Scope and regulated entities

1. This Joint Circular elaborates suspension of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics) according to Point c Clause 1 Article 148, Point d Clause 1 Article 229 and Point d Clause 1 Article 247 of Criminal Procedures Code. To be specific:

a) Principles for suspension of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics)

b) Suspension due to force majeure (natural disasters);

c) Suspension due to force majeure (epidemics);

d) Cooperation in management and settlement of cases subject to suspension due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics).

2. This Circular applies to the following entities:

a) Investigation authorities at all levels of the People's Public Security, investigation authorities at all levels in the People's Army, investigation authorities of the Supreme People's Procuracy and the investigation authorities of the Central Military Procuracy;

b) Agencies assigned to conduct a number of investigation activities in Clause 1, Article 35 of the Criminal Procedure Code;

c) Supreme People's Procuracy, Military Procuracy at all levels;

d) Persons who have power to institute proceedings of the agencies specified at Points a, b and c of this Clause;

dd) Relevant organizations, individuals, authorities.

Article 2. Principles for suspension of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics)

In case of suspension of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics) according to point c clause 1 article 148, point d clause 1 article 229 and point d clause 1 article 247 of Criminal Procedures Code, the authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings must adhere to the following principles:

1. Comply with regulations of the Criminal Procedure Code and relevant laws;

2. Apply in case there is substantiation as prescribed in Articles 3 and 4 of this Joint Circular;

3. Ensure human rights, lawful rights and interests of relevant agencies, organizations and individuals;

4. Ensure caution in case of decision on application to each specific case; prohibit abuse;

5. Ensure control of crime; fail to affect the settlement of cases in case of resumption.

Article 3. Suspension due to force majeure (natural disasters)

1. The authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings shall only be subject to suspension of the processing of cases due to force majeure (natural disasters) specified at Point c, Clause 1, Article 148, Point d, Clause 1, Article 229 or Point d, Clause 1, Article 247 of the Criminal Procedure Code if the following substantiation are fully satisfied:

a) All necessary measures as prescribed by law have been applied but it is impossible to conduct one or several activities of criminal procedures in order to end the processing of denunciations, criminal information disclosed and requisitions for charges; investigation or decide prosecution due to one of cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article;

b) The time limit for processing of denunciations, criminal information disclosed and requisitions for charges, the time limit for investigation or the time limit for decision on the prosecution has expired.

2. Force majeure (natural disasters):

a) Entities engaging in proceedings or authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings are residing in the area where the state of emergency has been declared or where there are emergency cases of natural disasters in accordance with the law on state of emergency, prevention and control of natural disasters;

b) Location where the activities of criminal procedures are conducted falls into the area where the state of emergency has been declared or where there are emergency cases of natural disasters in accordance with the law on state of emergency, prevention and control of natural disasters

Article 4. Suspension due to force majeure (epidemics)

1. The authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings shall only be subject to suspension of the processing of cases due to force majeure (epidemics) specified at Point c, Clause 1, Article 148, Point d, Clause 1, Article 229 or Point d, Clause 1, Article 247 of the Criminal Procedure Code if the following substantiation are fully satisfied:

a) All necessary measures as prescribed by law have been applied but it is impossible to conduct one or several activities of criminal procedures in order to end the processing of denunciations, criminal information disclosed and requisitions for charges; investigation or decide prosecution due to one of cases specified in Clause 2 of this Article;

b) The time limit for processing of denunciations, criminal information disclosed and requisitions for charges, the time limit for investigation or the time limit for decision on the prosecution has expired.

2. Force majeure (epidemics):

a) Entities engaging in proceedings or authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings are residing or location where the activities of criminal procedures are conducted falls into the area where the state of emergency has been declared in accordance with the law on state of emergency, prevention and control of infectious diseases;

b) Entities engaging in proceedings are subject to medical isolation according to the decision of competent agencies or persons due to being infected with a group A epidemic or another case relevant to a group A epidemic as prescribed by the law on prevention and control of infectious diseases.

c) Entities engaging in proceedings or authorities and persons given authority to institute proceedings are residing or location where the activities of criminal procedures are conducted falls into the area where the Prime Minister or the Minister of Health declares epidemics of group A infectious diseases in accordance with the law on prevention and control of infectious diseases.

Article 5. Cooperation in management and settlement of cases subject to suspension due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics).

Cooperation in management and settlement of cases subject to suspension; resumption of the processing of denunciations, criminal information disclosed and requisitions for charges; resumption and suspension of investigation of cases subject to suspension in the stage of investigation; resumption and suspension of investigation of cases subject to suspension in the stage of prosecution, application or cancellation of preventive or coercive measures; management and handling of evidences, documents, objects and assets that are temporarily seized in cases subject to suspension; making and management of documents on cases subject to suspension; implementation of information, statistics and reporting regime for cases subject to suspension due to force majeure (natural disasters or epidemics) shall comply with regulations of Criminal Procedure Code and the Joint Circular No. 01/2020/TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC-BCA-BQP-BNNPTNT-BTC-BTP dated June 1, 2020 of the Procurator General of the Supreme People's Court, the Chief Judge of the Supreme People's Court, the Minister of Public Security, the Minister of National Defense, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Justice on cooperation in implementation of some articles of the Criminal Procedure Code on the management and settlement of cases subject to suspension.

Article 6. Implementation provision

1. This Joint Circular comes into force as of December 01, 2021.

2. The Supreme People's Procuracy, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Finance, within the scope of their functions, tasks and powers, shall be responsible for implementation of this Circular.

Any difficulty or problem that arises during the implementation of this Circular should be reported to the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Finance for consideration, implementation and amendments.