The consolidated document clearly stipulates the conditions, dossiers, and procedures for certifying fragrant rice varieties exported to the European Union and the United Kingdom.

According to the consolidated document from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the regulations on certifying fragrant rice varieties exported to the European Union are constructed based on Decree No. 103/2020/NĐ-CP, as amended and supplemented by Decree No. 11/2022/NĐ-CP and Decree No. 33/2026/NĐ-CP.

This regulation applies to organizations and individuals involved in activities related to the certification of fragrant rice varieties exported to the EU under the EVFTA framework and exported to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland under the UKVFTA framework.

Under the regulations, certified fragrant rice must be produced from fragrant rice varieties whose seed quality complies with national technical regulations. Concurrently, the product must hold clear information regarding the cultivation area and location, detailed by block, hamlet, ward, commune, district, town, and province.

Notably, the fragrant rice fields must undergo inspection to guarantee a varietal purity of no less than 95%. This inspection is executed once within a 20-day window prior to harvest.

Following inspection, each fragrant rice field lot will be assigned a code number under regulations. Plant variety testing organizations accredited in accordance with legal provisions shall carry out the inspection of these fragrant rice field lots.

The competent authority responsible for certifying, re-certifying, and revoking fragrant rice variety certificates is the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The dossier requesting certification of fragrant rice varieties includes: an application form requesting certification, the certification form template fully filled out with required information, the fragrant rice field lot inspection report and a written agreement transferring the inspection report in cases where the applicant organization or individual is not named in the inspection report.

For dossiers submitted through electronic environments, the components must be filled out and signed with digital signatures on the electronic forms. Within a maximum of 1 working day from receiving the dossier, the competent authority shall review the completeness of the components. In cases where the dossier remains incomplete, functional authorities will issue a written notice to the organization or individual.

Within 5 working days from receiving a valid dossier, the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection shall organize an evaluation and issue the certification on the fragrant rice variety certificate form. In cases of refusal, the authority must respond in writing and explicitly state the reasons.

For cases requiring re-certification due to changes in information related to an already issued certificate, the timeline for evaluation and re-certification is 3 working days from receiving a valid dossier.

Under the regulations, fragrant rice variety certificates will be revoked if fraudulent acts are detected within the certification request dossiers. Information regarding revoked certificates will be published on the official portal of the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection.

Source: Bao Lao Dong