No: 33/2005/QH11

Independence – Freedom – Happiness

Ha Noi, day 14 month 06 year 2005

Section 1. CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY SALE AND PURCHASE

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS ON CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY SALE AND PURCHASE

Article 428.- Contracts for property sale and purchase

A contract for property sale and purchase is an agreement between the parties whereby the seller has the obligation to hand over the property to the purchaser and receive payment, while the purchaser has the obligation to accept the property and make payment to the seller.

Article 429.- Objects of sale and purchase contracts

1. The object of a sale and purchase contract shall be a property permitted for transaction.

2. In cases where the object of a sale and purchase contract is an object, that object must be clearly defined.

3. In cases where the object of a sale and purchase contract is a property right, there must be documents of title or other evidence proving such right of the seller.

Article 430.- Quality of objects for sale and purchase

1. The quality of the objects for sale and purchase shall be agreed upon by the parties.

2. In cases where the quality of objects has been announced or provided for by competent state agencies, the quality of the objects shall be determined in accordance with the announced standards or the regulations of the competent state agencies.

3. When the quality of objects is not agreed upon between the parties or not provided for by law, then the quality of the objects for sale and purchase shall be determined according to the use purposes and the average quality of objects of the same kind.

Article 431.- Price and mode of payment

1. The price shall be agreed upon by the parties or determined by a third party at the parties’ request.

In cases where the parties agree to make payments at market prices, the price shall be determined at the place and time of payment.

With respect to the property in civil transactions, for which the State has set a price frame, the price shall be agreed upon by the parties in accordance with that price frame.

2. The parties may agree to apply inflation coefficients upon the fluctuation of prices.

3. The agreed price may be a specific price level or a method of determining the price. In cases where the agreement on the price level or the price-determining method is not clear, the price of the property shall be determined, based on the market price at the place and time the contract is entered into.

4. The mode of payment shall be agreed upon by the parties.

Article 432.- Time limit for performance of sale and purchase contracts

1. The time limit for the performance of a sale and purchase contract shall be agreed upon by the parties. The seller shall have to hand over the property to the purchaser at the time agreed upon; the seller may hand over the property before or after the time limit, only if the purchaser so agrees.

2. When there is no agreement between the parties on the time limit for handing over the property, the buyer shall have the right to demand that the seller hand over the property and the seller shall also have the right to demand that the purchaser receive the property at any time, but the parties must notify each other thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time.

3. When there is no agreement between the parties on the time limit for payment, the buyer must make payment upon receipt of the property.

Article 433.- Places for handing over property

The place for handing over the property shall be agreed upon by the parties; in the absence of such agreement, the provisions of Clause 2, Article 284 of this Code shall apply.

Article 434.- Modes of handing over property

The property shall be handed over by the mode agreed upon by the parties; in the absence of such agreement, the property shall be handed over in one installment by the seller directly to the purchaser.

Article 435.- Liability for handing over objects in an incorrect quantity

1. In cases where the seller hands over the object in a quantity greater than that agreed upon, the purchaser shall have the right to receive or not to receive the excess portion. In case of receipt, the payment for the excess portion shall be made as agreed upon.

2. In cases where the seller hands over the object in a quantity smaller than that agreed upon, the purchaser shall have one of the following rights:

a/ To receive the portion already handed over and demand compensation for damage;

b/ To receive the portion already handed over and set a time limit for the seller to hand over the deficit portion;

c/ To cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 436.- Liability for handing over objects in incomplete sets

1. In cases where the object is handed over in an incomplete set, thereby making the use purpose of the object unachievable, the purchaser shall have one of the following rights:

a/ To receive the object and demand that the seller hand over the remaining part, demand compensation for damage and postpone the payment for the part received until the complete set is handed over;

b/ To cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage.

2. In cases where the purchaser has made payment but not yet received the object due to the hand-over of an incomplete set, he/she/it shall be paid interests on the paid amount at the basic interest rate set by the State Bank and demand that the seller compensate for damage due to the hand-over of the incomplete set, starting from the time the contract must be performed to the time the complete set is handed over.

Article 437.- Liability for handing over objects of a wrong kind

In cases where the object handed over is of a wrong kind, the purchaser shall have one of the following rights:

1. To receive the object and make the payment at the price agreed upon by the parties;

2. To demand the hand-over of object of the right kind and compensation for damage;

3. To cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 438.- The duty to pay

1. The purchaser must pay in full at the time and place agreed upon; in the absence of such agreement, he/she/it must make full payment at the time and place of handing over the property.

2. The purchaser must pay interests starting from the date of late payment as specified in Clause 2, Article 305 of this Code, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 439.- Time for transfer of ownership rights

1. The rights to ownership over a property for purchase and sale shall be transferred to the purchaser as from the time the property is handed over, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law.

2. With respect to a property for sale and purchase to which the ownership rights must, as provided for by law, be registered, the ownership rights shall be transferred to the purchaser as from the time the procedures for registering the ownership rights to such property have been completed.

3. In cases where the property for sale and purchase has not yet been handed over while yields and/or incomes are generated, such yields and/or incomes shall belong to the seller.

Article 440.- Time for bearing risks

1. The seller shall bear the risks to the property for purchase and sale until the property is handed over to the purchaser; while the purchaser shall bear risks to such property from the time of receiving it, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. With respect to a contract for purchase and sale of property to which the ownership rights must, as provided for by law, be registered, the seller shall bear risks to such property until the registration procedures are completed, and the purchaser shall bear the risks from the time the registration procedures have been completed even when it has not yet received the property, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 441.- Transportation costs and costs related to the transfer of ownership rights

In cases where there is no agreement between the parties or no legal provision on transportation costs and costs relating to the transfer of ownership rights, the seller must bear the costs of transportation to the place of handing over the property and the costs related to the transfer of ownership rights.

Article 442.- The obligation to provide information and use instructions

The seller is obliged to provide necessary information on the property for purchase and sale, and instructions on the use of such property; if the seller fails to perform this obligation, the purchaser shall be entitled to request the seller to perform it; if the seller still declines to perform it, the purchaser shall be entitled to cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 443.- Security of the purchaser’s ownership rights to the property for purchase and sale

1. The seller is obliged to secure that the ownership rights to a property sold to the purchaser are not disputed by a third party.

2. In cases where the property is disputed by a third party, the seller must take side with the purchaser in order to protect the latter’s interests; if the third party is entitled to own part or the whole of the property for purchase and sale, the purchaser shall be entitled to cancel the contract and demand that the seller compensate for damage.

3. In cases where the purchaser knew or must have known that the property for purchase and sale is under the ownership of a third party, but still purchases it, he/she/it must return the property to its owner and shall not be entitled to demand compensation for damage.

Article 444.- Security of the quality of objects for purchase and sale

1. The seller must secure the use value or properties of an object for purchase and sale; if after the purchase, the purchaser discovers a defect that devaluates or reduces the use value of the object already purchased, he/she/it must promptly notify the seller of the defect upon the detection thereof and is entitled to request the seller to repair or change the defective or devalued object and compensate for damage, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. The seller must secure that the object for sale conforms to the descriptions on its pack, trademark or to the sample that has been selected by the purchaser.

3. The seller shall not be liable for defects of the object in the following cases:

a/ Defect that the purchaser knew or must have known when purchasing the object;

b/ The object auctioned or object sold at a second-hand shop;

c/ The purchaser is at fault in causing the defects of the object.

Article 445.- The obligation to provide warranty

The seller shall have the obligation to provide warranty for a sold object for a period of time called warranty time limit, if the warranty is agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law.

The warranty time limit shall be counted from the time the purchaser has the obligation to receive the object.

Article 446.- The right to demand warranty

Within the warranty time limit, if the purchaser discovers a defect in the purchased object, he/she/it shall be entitled to request the seller to repair it free of charge, reduce its price, exchange the defective object for another one, or return the object and get back the money.

Article 447.- Repair of objects within the warranty time limit

1. The seller must repair the object and secure that the object meets all the quality standards or has all the properties as committed.

2. The seller shall bear the expenses for repair and transportation of the object to the place of repair and from the place of repair to the place of residence or the head- office of the purchaser.

3. The purchaser shall be entitled to request the seller to complete the repair within the time limit agreed upon by the parties or within a reasonable period of time; if the seller cannot repair or complete the repair within such time limit, the purchaser shall be entitled to demand a price reduction, an exchange of the defective object for another one, or return the object and get back the money.

Article 448.- Compensation for damage within the warranty time limit

1. In addition to the demand for the application of warranty measures, the purchaser shall be entitled to request the seller to compensate for damage caused by technical defects of the object within the warranty time limit.

2. The seller shall not have to compensate for damage if he/she/it can prove that the damage was caused due to the purchaser’s fault. The seller shall be entitled to a reduction of damages if the purchaser has not applied the necessary measures within his/her/its capacity to prevent or limit the damage.

Article 449.- Purchase and sale of property rights

1. In case of purchase and sale of property rights, the seller must transfer all documents of title and carry out the procedures for transfer of ownership rights to the purchaser, whereas the purchaser must pay money to the seller.

2. In cases where the property rights are rights to claim debts and the seller warrants the debtor’s solvency, the seller shall be jointly liable for the payment if the debtor fails to pay the debt when it is due.

3. The time for transferring the ownership of property rights shall be the time at which the purchaser receives the papers certifying the ownership of such property rights or from the time of registration of the transfer of ownership rights, if so provided for by law.

II. CONTRACTS FOR PURCHASE AND SALE OF HOUSES

Article 450.- Forms of contracts for purchase and sale of residential houses

A contract for the purchase and sale of a residential house shall be made in writing, with notarization or authentication, unless otherwise provided for by law.

Article 451.- Obligations of the residential house seller

The residential house seller shall have the following obligations:

1. To notify the purchaser of any restrictions on ownership rights to the house, if any;

2. To maintain the residential house already sold pending its transfer to the purchaser;

3. To transfer to the purchaser the residential house in the same conditions as described in the contract and all the documents on the house;

4. To strictly carry out all procedures for purchase and sale of a residential house in accordance with the provisions of law.

Article 452.- Rights of the residential house seller

The residential hose seller shall have the following rights:

1. To request the purchaser to receive the house within the agreed time limit;

2. To request the purchaser to make payment within the agreed time limit and by the agreed mode of payment;

3. To request the purchaser to complete all the procedures for purchase and sale of residential houses within the agreed time limit;

4. Not to transfer the house when he/she/it has not yet received the full payment as agreed upon.

Article 453.- Obligations of the residential house purchaser

The residential house purchaser shall have the following obligations:

1. To pay the purchase money in full, on time and by the agreed mode; if there is no agreement on the time limit and place of payment, the purchaser must make the payment at the time when the seller hands over the house and at the place where the house is located;

2. To receive the house and the documents on the house within the agreed time limit;

3. In case of purchasing the house currently on lease, the purchaser must secure the rights and interests of the lessee as agreed upon in the lease contract when the lease remains in effect.

Article 454.- Rights of the residential house purchaser

The residential house purchaser shall have the following rights:

1. To receive the house in the same conditions as agreed upon together with all the documents on the house;

2. To request the seller to complete all the procedures for the purchase and sale of residential house within the agreed time limit;

3. To request the seller to hand over the house on time; if the seller fails to hand over or delays the hand-over, to request the seller to pay compensation for damage.

Article 455.- Purchase of houses to be used for other purposes

Unless it is otherwise provided for by law, the provisions of Articles 450 thru 454 of this Code shall also apply to the purchase of houses to be used for other purposes other than the purchase of residential houses.

III. SPECIFIC REGULATIONS ON PROPERTY PURCHASE AND SALE

Article 456.- Auction

A property may be sold by auction at the will of its owner or as provided for by law.

When a common property is to be sold by auction, the consent of all co-owners must be obtained, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 457.- Auction notices

1. The auctioneer must make a public announcement at the place of auction and on the mass media regarding the time, place, quantity and quality and the list of property to be auctioned, at least seven days for movables and thirty days for immovables before the date of auction.

2. Persons related to the property to be auctioned must be notified of the auction for their participation in determining the reserve price, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 458.- Conduct of an auction

1. At an auction, the auctioneer shall announce the reserve price.

2. The person who offers the highest bid, which is at least equal to the reserve price shall be the person entitled to purchase the auctioned property and be considered having accepted to enter into a contract.

3. The auction shall be recorded in writing with the signatures of the purchaser, the seller and two witnesses.

4. The time limit for handing over the auctioned property, the mode and time limit of payment shall comply with the regulations on auction.

5. The auctioneer shall not be liable for the value and quality of the auctioned property.

6. In cases where the announced highest bid is lower than the reserve price, the auction shall be considered having failed.

The Government shall specify the organization of, and the procedures for, property auction.

Article 459.- Auction of immovable property

1. The auction of an immovable property shall be held at the locality where the immovable property is located or at a place determined by the auctioneer.

2. After the issuance of a notice on the auction of an immovable property, persons who wish to purchase it must register to purchase and make an advance cash deposit. The list of purchase registrants shall be publicized at the place of auction.

3. In case of success in the purchase of the auctioned property, the advance deposit shall be deducted from the purchase price; if the successful bidder refuses to purchase, he/she shall not be refunded with such money.

4. The auctioneer must refund the advance deposits to other persons who have registered to purchase but could not purchase the auctioned property.

5. The purchase and sale of an auctioned immovable property must be recorded in writing with notarization or authentication or must be registered, if so provided for by law.

Article 460.- Purchase after trial use

1. The parties may agree on a trial use by the purchaser of the purchased objects for a period of time called the trial use period. During the trial use period, the purchaser may reply to purchase or not to purchase them; if the purchaser does not reply after the trial use period expires, he/she shall be considered as having accepted the purchase on the terms agreed upon prior to the receipt of the objects for trial use.

2. During the trial use period, the objects still belong to the seller. The seller must bear all risks that may occur to the objects, unless otherwise agreed upon. Within the trial use period, the seller must not sell, donate, lease, exchange, mortgage or pledge the property, pending the purchaser’s reply.

3. In cases where the trial user gives the reply of non-purchase, he/she must return the objects to the seller and compensate the seller if he/she has caused the loss of, or damage to, the objects in trial use. The trial user shall not be liable for ordinary wear caused by trial use, and shall not have to return any yields gained from the trial use.

Article 461.- Purchase by deferred payment or installment payment

1. The parties may agree on the deferred payment or installment payment by the purchaser within a time limit after receiving the purchased objects; the seller shall have the right to reserve his/her ownership rights to the sold objects until the purchaser has paid in full, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. The contract for purchase by deferred payment or installment payment must be made in writing. The purchaser shall be entitled to use the objects purchased by deferred payment or installment payment and must bear risks during the use period, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 462.- Redemption of property already sold

1. The seller may agree with the purchaser on the right to redeem the sold property within a time limit called the redemption period.

The redemption period shall be agreed upon by the parties, but shall not exceed one year for movables, and five years for immovables, as from the time of handing over the property. Within this period, the seller shall be entitled to redeem the property at any time, but must notify the purchaser in advance within a reasonable period of time. The redemption price shall be the market price at the time and place of redemption, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. Within the redemption period, the purchaser must not sell, exchange, donate, lease, mortgage or pledge the property and must bear risks to the property.

Section 2. CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY EXCHANGE

Article 463.- Contracts for property exchange

1. A contract for property exchange is an agreement between the parties whereby the parties shall transfer their property and ownership rights to such property to each other.

2. A contract for property exchange must be made in writing, notarized or authenticated or registered, if so provided for by law.

3. In cases where one party exchanges with the other party a property not under its ownership rights or without authorization of the owner, the other party shall be entitled to cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage.

4. Each party shall be considered the seller of the property transferred to the other party and the buyer of the property received. The provisions on purchase and sale contracts in Articles 428 thru 437 and Articles 439 thru 448 of this Code shall also apply to contracts for property exchange.

Article 464.- Payment for differences in value

In cases where the exchanged property has differences in value, the parties must pay each other for such differences, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Section 3. CONTRACTS FOR DONATION OF PROPERTY

Article 465.- Contracts for donation of property

A contract for donation of property is an agreement between the parties whereby the donor shall transfer his/her property and ownership rights to the donee without demanding any compensation while the donee agrees to receive it.

Article 466.- Donation of movables

A contract for donation of a movable property shall take effect when the donee receives the property; with regard to a movable property to which the ownership rights must be registered as provided for by law, the contract for donation of such property shall take effect from the time of registration.

Article 467.- Donation of immovables

1. The donation of an immovable property must be made in writing, with notarization or authentication or must be registered, if the ownership rights to such immovable must be registered as provided for by law.

2. A contract for donation of an immovable property shall take effect from the time of registration; if the registration of the ownership rights to the immovable property is not required, the donation contract shall take effect from the time of transferring the property.

Article 468.- Liability for intentional donation of property not under one’s ownership

In cases where the donor intentionally donates a property not under his/her ownership while the donee does not know or cannot know such, the donor must pay the donee the expenses for increasing the value of the property when the owner recovers the property.

Article 469.- Notification of defects of donated property

The donor shall have the obligation to notify the donee of the defects of the donated property. In cases where the donor knows the defects of the donated property but fails to give notification thereof, he/she must pay compensation for damage caused to the donee; if the donor does not know the defects of the donated property, he/she shall not have to pay compensation for damage.

Article 470.- Conditional donation of property

1. The donor may request the donee to perform one or more than one civil obligation before or after the donation. The conditions for the donation must not be contrary to law and social ethics.

2. In cases where the obligations must be performed before the donation, if the donee has fulfilled his/her obligations and the donor still has not handed over the property, the donor must pay for the obligations already performed by the donee.

3. In cases where the obligations must be performed after the donation and the donee has failed to perform them, the donor shall be entitled to reclaim the property and demand compensation for damage.

Section 4. CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY LOAN

Article 471.- Contracts for property loan

A contract for property loan is an agreement between the parties whereby the lender transfers the property to the borrower; when the loan is due, the borrower must return to the lender the property of the same type in the same quantity and of the same quality, and shall have to pay the interest only if so agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 472.- Ownership rights to loaned property

The borrower shall become owner of the loaned property from the time of receiving such property.

Article 473.- Obligations of the lender

The lender shall have the following obligations:

1. To hand over to the borrower the property in full, of the right quality and in the right quantity at the time and place agreed upon.

2. To compensate for damage to the borrower if the lender is aware that the property is not of the required quality but fails to notify the borrower thereof, except in cases where the borrower is aware thereof but still receives such property;

3. Not to request the borrower to return the property ahead of time, except for the cases specified in Article 478 of this Code.

Article 474.- Borrowers’ obligation to repay debts

1. Where the loaned property is money, the borrower must repay in full when it becomes due; if the loaned property is an object, the borrower must return an object of the same type, in the same quantity and of the same quality, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where the borrower cannot return the object, he/she may repay a sum of money equivalent to the value of the loaned object at the place and time of repaying the debt, if so agreed by the lender.

3. The place for repayment of debts shall be the place of residence or the head- office of the lender, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. In case of an interest-free loan, if the borrower fails to repay or has not repaid fully the debt when it becomes due, he/she must pay the interest on the amount of overdue debt at the basic interest rate announced by the State Bank corresponding to the duration of late payment at the time of repayment of the debt, if so agreed upon.

5. In case of a loan with interest, if the borrower fails to repay or has not repaid fully the debt, he/she must pay the interest on the principal and the interest thereon at the basic interest rate announced by the State Bank corresponding to the borrowing term at the time of repayment of the debt.

Article 475.- Use of loaned property

The parties may agree that the loaned property must be used for the right borrowing purpose; the lender shall be entitled to inspect the use of the property and reclaim the loaned property ahead of time, if the borrower still uses the property for other than the agreed purpose even though he/she has been warned not to.

Article 476.- Interest rate

1. The lending interest rate shall be agreed upon by the parties, but must not exceed 150% of the basic interest rate announced by the State Bank for loans of the corresponding type.

2. In cases where the parties have agreed on the payment of interest for a loan but have not clearly determined an interest rate or have a dispute over an interest rate, the basic interest rate announced by the State Bank corresponding to the borrowing term at the time of repayment of the debt shall be applied.

Article 477.- Performance of contracts on loans without fixed term

1. With respect to a contract for an interest-free loan without a fixed term, the lender shall be entitled to reclaim the property and the borrower shall be entitled to repay the debt at any time, provided that they must notify each other thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. With respect to a contract for a loan without a fixed term and with interest, the lender shall be entitled to reclaim the property at any time but must notify the borrower thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time and be paid the interest up to the time of receiving back his/her property, while the borrower shall also be entitled to return the property at any time and pay only the interest up to the time of repaying the debt but also must notify the lender thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time.

Article 478.- Performance of fixed-term loan contracts

1. With respect to a contract for an interest-free fixed-term loan, the borrower shall be entitled to return the property at any time but must notify the lender thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time, and the lender shall only be entitled to reclaim the property ahead of time, if the borrower so agrees.

2. With respect to a contract for a fixed-term loan with interest, the borrower shall be entitled to return the property ahead of time, but must pay the interest for the whole term, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 479.- Tontine

1. Tontine is a form of property transaction, which is carried out according to practices and on the basis of agreement of a group of people rallying together to determine the number of people, time, money amounts or other property, mode of contributing and receiving annuities and the rights and obligations of members.

2. The form of tontine for the purpose of mutual assistance among people shall comply with the provisions of law.

3. It is strictly prohibited to organize tontines in the form of usury.

Section 5. CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY LEASE

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS ON CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY LEASE

Article 480.- Contracts for property lease

A contract for property lease is an agreement between the parties whereby the lessor shall hand over the property to the lessee for use for a specified period of time, and the lessee must pay a rent.

Article 481.- Leasing prices

The property-leasing prices shall be agreed upon by the parties.

In cases where the leasing price frames are provided for by law, the parties may only agree on leasing prices within such price frames.

Article 482.- Leasing terms

1. Leasing terms shall be agreed upon by the parties; in the absence of such agreement, they shall be determined according to the leasing purposes.

2. In cases where the parties have not agreed on a leasing term or where the leasing term cannot be determined according to the leasing purpose, the leasing contract shall expire when the lessee has achieved the leasing purpose.

Article 483.- Sublease

The lessee shall be entitled to sublease the property he/she/it has leased, if the lessor so agrees.

Article 484.- Hand-over of leased property

1. The lessor must hand over the property to the lessee in the right quantity, quality, type, condition and at the time and place agreed upon, and provide information necessary for the use of the property.

2. In cases where the lessor delays the hand-over of the property, the lessee may extend the time limit for the hand-over or rescind the contract and demand compensation for damage; if the quality of the leased property does not conform to the agreement, the lessee shall be entitled to request the lessor to repair the property, reduce the leasing price or to rescind the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 485.- The obligation to ensure the use value of leased property

1. The lessor must ensure that the leased property is in the condition as agreed upon, in accordance with the leasing purpose throughout the leasing term; and must repair all damage and defects of the leased property, except for minor damage which must, according to practices, be fixed by the lessee himself/herself/itself.

2. In cases where the leased property is decreased in use value but not due to the lessee’s fault, the lessee shall be entitled to request the lessor to:

a/ Repair the property;

b/ Reduce the leasing price;

c/ Replace the property with another property or to be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage, if the leased property is irreparable and therefore the leasing purpose cannot be achieved, or if the leased property has defects that the lessee is not aware of.

3. In cases where the lessor has been given a notice but does not repair or make untimely repair, the lessee shall be entitled to repair the leased property by himself/herself/itself, but must notify the lessor thereof and shall be entitled to request the lessor to pay the repair expenses.

Article 486.- The obligation to ensure the lessee’s right to use the property

1. The lessor must ensure the lessee’s right to a stable use of the property.

2. In case of a dispute over the ownership rights to the leased property, which disallows the stable use of the property by the lessee, the lessee shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 487.- The obligation to preserve leased property

1. The lessee must preserve the leased property as if it were his/her/its own, maintain it and make minor repairs; if causing loss or damage, he/she/it must pay compensation therefor.

The lessee shall not be liable for natural wear resulting from the use of the leased property.

2. The lessee may repair and add value to the leased property, if the lessor so agrees, and shall be entitled to request the lessor to pay the reasonable expenses.

Article 488.- The obligation to use leased property according to its utility and for the right purpose

1. The lessee must use the leased property in accordance with its utility and for the agreed purpose.

2. In cases where the lessee has used the leased property not for the right purpose and not in accordance with its utility, the lessor shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 489.- Payment of rent

1. The lessee must pay in full the rent within the time limit as agreed upon; where there is no agreement on the time limit for rent payment, the time limit for rent payment shall be determined according to practices at the place of payment; if the time limit for payment cannot be determined according to practices, the lessee must pay the money when he/she/it returns the leased property.

2. In cases where the parties have agreed on periodic payments of the rent, the lessor shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract if the lessee does not pay the rent for three consecutive periods, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 490.- Return of leased property

1. The lessee must return the leased property in the same condition as when received, except for natural wear, or in the condition agreed upon in the contract; if the value of the leased property has decreased as compared with its condition upon receipt, the lessor shall be entitled to demand compensation for damage, except for natural wear.

2. In cases where the leased property is a movable, the place for returning the leased property shall be the place of residence or the head office of the lessor, unless otherwise agreed upon.

3. In cases where the leased property is a domestic animal, the lessee must return both the leased domestic animal and its offsprings born in the leasing term, unless otherwise agreed upon. The lessor must pay the expenses for caring for the offsprings to the lessee.

4. In cases where the lessee delays the return of the leased property, the lessor shall be entitled to request the lessee to return the leased property and pay the rent for the property for the delayed period and compensate for damage; the lessee must also pay a fine for violation by delaying the return of the leased property, if so agreed upon.

5. The lessee must bear risks to the leased property during the period of delayed return.

Article 491.- Termination of property lease contracts

A contract for property lease shall terminate in the following cases:

1. The leasing term has expired;

2. The parties agree to terminate the contract ahead of time; for a leasing contract without a definite term, if the lessor wishes to terminate the contract, he/she/it must notify the lessee thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time, if there is no agreement on an advance notice period;

3. The contract is rescinded or the performance of the contract is unilaterally terminated;

4. The leased property no longer exists.

II. CONTRACTS FOR RENTING HOUSES

Article 492.- Form of contracts for renting residential houses

A contract for renting a residential house must be made in writing; if the renting term is six months or longer, the contract must be notarized or authenticated and registered, unless otherwise provided for by law.

Article 493.- Obligations of the residential house lessor

The residential house lessor shall have the following obligations:

1. To hand over the house to the lessee in accordance with the contract;

2. To ensure the stable use of the house by the lessee in the renting term;

3. To maintain and repair the house periodically or as agreed upon; if the lessor does not maintain and repair the house, thus causing damage to the lessee, he/she/it must pay compensation therefore.

Article 494.- Rights of the residential house lessor

The residential house lessor shall have the following rights:

1. To receive the rent in full and on schedule as agreed upon;

2. To unilaterally terminate the performance of the house-renting contract under the provisions in Clause 1 and Clause 3, Article 498 of this Code;

3. To renovate and upgrade the leased house when so consented by the lessee, but not to cause inconveniences to the lessee in using the accommodation;

4. To take back the leased house upon expiration of the contract; if the renting term is not specified in the contract, the lessor wishing to take back the house must notify the lessee thereof six months in advance.

Article 495.- Obligations of the residential house lessee

The residential house lessee shall have the following obligations:

1. To use the house for the right agreed purpose;

2. To pay rent in full and on schedule as agreed upon;

3. To preserve the house and repair damage caused by himself/herself/itself;

4. To observe the regulations on public life;

5. To return the house to the lessor as agreed upon.

Article 496.- Rights of the residential house lessee

A residential house lessee shall have the following rights:

1. To receive the rented house as agreed upon;

2. To be entitled to exchange the house being rented to another lessee, if it is so consented in writing by the lessor;

3. To sublease the rented house, if it is so consented in writing by the lessor;

4. To continue the rent under the conditions agreed upon with the lessor in case of changing the house owner;

5. To request the lessor to repair the currently leased house in cases where the house is heavily damaged;

6. To unilaterally terminate the performance of the house-renting contract as provided for in Clause 2 and Clause 3, Article 498 of this Code.

Article 497.- Rights and obligations of all the lessee’s persons named in the contracts for renting residential houses

All persons of the lessee who are named in the house-renting contracts shall have equal rights and obligations toward the lessor and must jointly perform the obligations of the lessee toward the lessor.

Article 498.- Unilateral termination of performance of contracts for renting residential houses

1. The lessor shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of a house-renting contract when the lessee commits one of the following acts:

a/ Failing to pay rent for three consecutive months or more without a plausible reason;

b/ Using the house not in accordance with the renting purpose;

c/ Intentionally causing serious damage to the house;

d/ Repairing, exchanging or subleasing the house wholly or partially to another person without the written consent of the lessor;

e/ Repeatedly disturbing public order and seriously affecting the normal life of the people in the neighborhood;

f/ Causing serious impacts on environmental sanitation.

2. The lessee shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of a house-renting contract when the lessor commits one of the following acts:

a/ Failing to repair the house when its quality deteriorates seriously;

b/ Increasing the renting price unreasonably.

c/ Restricting the lessee’s right to use the house for the interests of a third party.

3. The party unilaterally terminating the performance of a house-renting contract must notify the other party thereof one month in advance, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 499.- Termination of contracts for renting residential houses

A residential house-renting contract shall terminate in the following cases:

1. The renting term has expired; if the contract does not specify the renting term, it shall terminate after six months from the date the lessor notifies the lessee of the need of retaking the house;

2. The rented house no longer exists;

3. The lessee dies without leaving any co-habitant;

4. The rented house must be demolished due to severe damage that may cause the house to collapse or due to the implementation of the State construction planning.

Article 500.- Renting of houses for other purposes

Unless it is otherwise provided for by law, the provisions of Articles 492 thru 499 of this Code shall also apply to the renting of houses for non-residential purposes.

III. CONTRACTS FOR PACKAGE LEASES OF PROPERTY

Article 501.- Contracts for package leases of property

A contract for a package lease of property is an agreement between the partie whereby the package lessor hands over the property to the lessee for the exploitation of its utility and the enjoyment of the yields and profits gained from such property and the lessee has the obligation to pay the rent.

Article 502.- Objects of package lease contracts

Objects of a contract for a package lease of property may be land, forest, unexploited water surface, animals, production and/or business establishments, other means of production as well as necessary equipment and facilities for exploiting the utility, enjoying the yields or profits, unless otherwise provided for by law.

Article 503.- Package lease term

The package lease term shall be agreed upon by the parties according to the production and/or business cycle consistent with the characteristics of the object of the package lease.

Article 504.- Package lease price

The package lease price shall be agreed upon by the parties; if a package lease is made through bidding, the package lease price shall be determined by bidding.

Article 505.- Hand-over of package lease property

Upon the hand-over of the package lease property, the parties must make record, evaluating the conditions of the package lease property and determining the value of the package lease property.

In cases where the parties cannot determine the value, they shall invite a third party to determine the value in writing.

Article 506.- Payment of package rent and mode of payment

1. Rent may be paid in kind, in cash or by performing a task.

2. The package lessee must pay the package rent in full even though he/she/it does not exploit the utility of the package lease property.

3. When entering into a package lease contract, the parties may agree on the conditions for reduction of the rent; if the yields or profits are lost at least by one third due to a force majeure event, the package lessee shall be entitled to demand a rent reduction or exemption, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. In cases where the package lessee has to pay the rent in kind according to the season or the cycle of exploitation of the utility of the package lease property, he/she/it must pay the rent at the end of the season or the cycle of exploitation, unless otherwise agreed upon.

5. In cases where the lessee has to perform a task, he/she/it must perform that very task.

Article 507.– Exploitation of package lease property

The package lessee must exploit the package lease property in accordance with the agreed purpose and must notify the lessor periodically of the conditions and exploitation of the property; if the package lessor requests or needs unexpected notification, the package lessee must give a notice in time. When the package lessee exploits the utility of the package lease property at variance with the agreed purpose, the package lessor shall have the right to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 508.- Preservation, maintenance and disposition of package lease property

1. Within the period of exploiting the package lease property, the package lessee must preserve and maintain such property and accompanying equipment and facilities at his/her own expenses, unless otherwise agreed upon; if the package lessee causes the loss of, or damage to, the package lease property or causes the loss or reduction of its value, he/she/it shall have to compensate for damage. The package lessee shall not be liable for natural wear resulting from the use of the package lease property.

2. The package lessee may replace or improve the package lease property by himself/herself/itself, if so agreed upon, and must preserve its value.

The package lessor must reimburse to the lessee the reasonable expenses for replacing or improving the package lease property as agreed upon.

3. The package lessee shall not be allowed to sublease, unless so consented by the package lessor.

Article 509.- Enjoyment of yields and incurring of damage to package lease animals

During the term of a package lease of animals, the package lessee shall be entitled to enjoy half of the born offsprings and incur half of the damage to the leased animals due to a force majeure event, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 510.- Unilateral termination of performance of package lease contracts

1. In cases where a party unilaterally terminates the performance of a contract, it must notify the other party thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time; if the package lease is contracted according the season or cycle of exploitation, the period of advance notification must correspond to the season or cycle of exploitation.

2. In cases where the package lessee breaches his/her/its obligations while the exploitation of the leased object is the sole source of his/her/its livelihood and the continuation of the package lease does not seriously affect the interests of the package lessor, the package lessor must not unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract; the package lessee must commit with the package lessor not to further breach the contract.

Article 511.- Return of package lease property

Upon the termination of a package lease contract, the lessee must return the package lease property in the conditions corresponding to the agreed depreciation level; if the lessee causes loss or reduction of the value of the package lease property, he/she/it must compensate for the damage.

Section 6. CONTRACTS FOR PROPERTY BORROWING

Article 512.- Contracts for property borrowing

A contract for property borrowing is an agreement between the parties whereby the lender hands over the property to the borrower for use in a specified time limit free of charge, and the borrower must return such property when the borrowing term ends or the borrowing purpose has been achieved.

Article 513.- Objects of property-borrowing contracts

Everything that is non-expendable may be object of a contract for borrowing a property.

Article 514.- Obligations of the property borrower

The property borrower shall have the following obligations:

1. To preserve and maintain the borrowed property as if it were his/her/its own property; not to change the conditions of the borrowed property on his/her/its own will; if the property suffers normal damage, it must be repaired;

2. Not to sub-lend the borrowed property without the lender’s consent;

3. To return the borrowed property on time; if there is no agreement on the deadline for the return of the property, the borrower must return it immediately after the borrowing purpose has been achieved;

4. To compensate for damage if he/she/it causes any damage to, or loss of, the borrowed property.

Article 515.- Rights of the property borrower

The property borrower shall have the following rights:

1. To use the borrowed property in accordance with its utility and the agreed purpose;

2. To request the lender to reimburse the reasonable expenses for any repair or for increasing the value of the borrowed property, if so agreed upon.

3. Not to be liable for natural wear of the borrowed property.

Article 516.- Obligations of the property lender

The property lender shall have the following obligations:

1. To provide necessary information on the use of the property and defects of the property, if any;

2. To reimburse to the borrower expenses for repair, expenses for increasing the value of the borrowed property, if so agreed upon;

3. To compensate the borrower for any damage, if the lender knows about the defects of the property but does not inform the borrower thereof, thus causing damage to the borrower, except for the defects which the borrower knew or should have known.

Article 517.- Rights of the property lender

The property lender shall have the following rights:

1. To reclaim the property immediately after the borrower has achieved his/her purpose, if there is no agreement on the borrowing period; if the lender has urgent and unexpected needs to use the lent property, he/she/its shall be entitled to reclaim the property even if the borrower has not yet achieved his/her/its purpose, but must notify the borrower thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time;

2. To reclaim the property when the borrower does not use the property for the right purpose, in accordance with its utility or the agreed method or the borrower sublends the property without the lender’s consent;

3. To demand compensation for damage caused to the property by the borrower.

Section 7. SERVICE CONTRACTS

Article 518.- Service contracts

A service contract is an agreement between the parties whereby the service provider shall perform a task for the service hirer, and the service hirer must pay service charges to the service provider.

Article 519.- Objects of service contracts

The object of a service contract must be a feasible task not prohibited by law and not contrary to social ethics.

Article 520.- Obligations of the service hirer

The service hirer shall have the following obligations:

1. To supply the service provider with necessary information, documents and means for the performance of the task, if so agreed upon or so required by the performance of the task;

2. To pay service charges to the service provider as agreed upon.

Article 521.- Rights of the service hirer

The service hirer shall have the following rights:

1. To request the service provider to perform the task in accordance with the agreed quality, quantity, time limit, location and other agreements;

2. In cases where the service provider violates its obligations, the service hirer shall have the right to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 522.- Obligations of the service provider

The service provider shall have the following obligations:

1. To perform the task in accordance with the agreed quality, quantity, time limit, location and other agreements;

2. Not to assign other persons to perform the task without the service hirer’s consent;

3. To preserve and return to the service hirer the supplied documents and means after fulfillment of the task;

4. To immediately notify the service hirer of any inadequacy of information and documents and poor quality of the means for fulfilling the task;

5. To keep secret the information which he/she/it has come to know during the time of providing the service, if so agreed upon or provided for by law;

6. To compensate the service hirer for damage, if he/she/it causes the loss of, or damage to, the supplied documents and/or means or discloses secret information.

Article 523.- Rights of the service provider

The service provider shall have the following rights:

1. To request the service hirer to supply necessary information, documents and means;

2. To change the service conditions in the interests of the service hirer without necessarily having to wait for the opinion of the service hirer, if such wait may cause damage to the service hirer, but the service provider must immediately notify the service hirer thereof;

3. To request the service hirer to pay the service charges.

Article 524.- Payment of service charges

1. The service hirer must pay the service charges as agreed upon.

2. When a contract is entered into without agreement on the service charges, the method of determining the service charges or without any other instructions on service charges, the service charges shall be determined based on the market price of the service of the same kind at the time and place the contract is entered into.

3. The service hirer must pay the service charges at the place where the task is performed and when the service is accomplished, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. In cases where the service is provided below the agreed level or the task is not accomplished on time, the service hirer shall have the right to reduce the service charges and demand compensation for damage.

Article 525.- Unilateral termination of performance of service contracts

1. In cases where the continued performance of a task does not benefit the service hirer, the service hirer shall have the right to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract, but must notify the service provider thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time; the service hirer must pay the service charges for the service portion performed by the service provider and compensate for damage.

2. In cases where the service hirer does not perform his/her/its obligation or has performed it at variance with the agreement, the service provider shall have the right to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 526.- Continuation of service contracts

If after the expiry of the service period, the task has not yet been accomplished and the service provider continues to perform the task while the service hirer knows but does not object, the service contract shall automatically continue to be performed in accordance with the agreed contents until the task is accomplished.

Section 8. CONTRACTS FOR TRANSPORTATION

I. CONTRACTS FOR TRANSPORTATION OF PASSENGERS

Article 527.- Contracts for transportation of passengers

A contract for transportation of passengers is an agreement between the parties whereby the carrier shall transport the passenger and his/her luggage to the specified destination as agreed upon, and the passenger shall have to pay the transportation fare.

Article 528.- Forms of contract for transportation of passengers

1. A contract for transportation of passengers may be made in writing or orally.

2. Tickets shall be the evidence of the entry into a contract for transportation of passengers between the parties.

Article 529.- Obligations of the carrier

The carrier shall have the following obligations:

1. To transport the passengers from the place of departure to the place of destination on time, in a civilized and courteous manner and safely by the agreed means and prescribed route; provide sufficient seats for passengers and not transport in excess of the prescribed load;

2. To buy civil liability insurance for passengers as provided for by law;

3. To ensure the departure time as notified or agreed upon;

4. To transport luggage and return them to the passengers or to the persons entitled to receive such luggage at the agreed place and time along the route as agreed upon;

5. To reimburse the transportation fare to the passengers as agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 530.- Rights of the carrier

The carrier shall have the following rights:

1. To request passengers to pay in full the transportation fares and charges for the transport of accompanied luggage in excess of the prescribed limit.

2. To refuse to transport a passenger in the following cases:

a/ Where the passenger fails to comply with the regulations of the carrier or commits acts of causing public disorder, hindering the work of the carrier, threatening the life, health or property of other persons or commits other acts threatening the safety of the journey; in this case. the passenger shall not be refunded the transportation fare and must be fined for violation, if so provided for by the transport regulations;

b/ Where the carrier clearly sees that due to the health condition of the passenger, the transportation may cause danger to the passenger him/herself or others during the journey;

c/ To prevent the spread of epidemics.

Article 531.- Obligations of the passenger

The passenger shall have the following obligations:

1. To pay fully the passenger transportation fare and the charge for the transport of luggage in excess of the prescribed limit, and take care of his/her luggage by him/herself;

2. To be present at the place of departure on the agreed time;

3. To respect and strictly observe the regulations of the carrier and other regulations on traffic safety.

Article 532.- Rights of the passenger

The passenger shall have the following rights:

1. To demand that he/she be transported by the agreed means of transport, in the class commensurate with the value of the ticket and along the agreed route;

2. To be exempt from the transport charges for unaccompanied luggage and hand luggage within the limits agreed upon or specified by law;

3. To demand the reimbursement of expenses incurred or compensation for damage, if the carrier is at fault in failing to conduct the transport according to the agreed time schedule and place;

4. To be entitled to the reimbursement of the whole or part of the transportation fare in cases specified at Points b and c, Clause 2, Article 530 of this Code and other cases specified by law or agreed upon;

5. To receive the luggage at the agreed place, on time and along the agreed route;

6. To request the temporary stop of the travel within the time limit and according to the procedures specified by law.

Article 533.- Liability to compensate for damage

1. In cases of loss of human life and/or damage to the health and luggage of passengers, the carrier must compensate therefore in accordance with the provisions of law.

2. The carrier shall not have to compensate for the loss of human life, and/or damage to the health and luggage of passengers if such loss and/or damage is entirely due to the fault of the passengers, unless otherwise provided for by law.

3. In cases where a passenger breaches the agreed transportation conditions or the provisions of the transport regulations, thus causing damage to the carrier or a third party, he/she shall have to compensate therefore.

Article 534.- Unilateral termination of performance of contracts for passenger transportation

1. The carrier shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of contracts in the cases specified in Clause 2, Article 530 of this Code.

2. The passengers shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of contracts in cases where the carrier breaches the obligations specified in Clauses 1, 3 and 4, Article 529 of this Code.

II. CONTRACTS FOR TRANSPORTATION OF PROPERTY

Article 535.- Contracts for transportation of property

A contract for transportation of property is an agreement between the parties whereby the carrier shall have the obligation to carry the property to the specified place as agreed upon and hand over such property to the person entitled to receive it and the transport hirer shall have the obligation to pay the freight.

Article 536.- Forms of contract for transportation of property

1. A contract for transportation of property shall be made orally or in writing.

2. The bill of lading or other equivalent transportation documents shall be the evidence of the entry into contracts between the parties.

Article 537.- Hand-over of property to the carrier

1. The transport hirer shall have the obligation to hand over the property to the carrier at the agreed time and place, to pack the property in accordance with the agreed packing specifications; and to bear the cost of loading/unloading his/her property onto/from the means of transport, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where the transport hirer does not hand over the property at the agreed time and place, he/she must pay the carrier any expenses incurred for the time of waiting and the cost of transportation of the property to the place agreed in the contract or pay a fine for breach as agreed upon; if the carrier delays the receipt of the property at the agreed place, he/she/it must bear the cost incurred by the delay.

Article 538.- Freight rates

1. The freight rates shall be agreed upon by the parties; if the freight rates are provided for by law, such rates shall be applied.

2. The transport hirer must pay in full the freight once the property has been loaded onto the means of transport, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 539.- Obligations of the carrier

The carrier shall have the following obligations:

1. To ensure that the property is transported in full and safely to the designated place and on time;

2. To hand over the property to the person entitled to receive it;

3. To bear the costs related to the transportation of the property, unless otherwise agreed upon;

4. To buy civil liability insurance as provided for by law;

5. To compensate the transport hirer in cases where the carrier causes the loss of, or damage to, the property due to the carrier’s fault, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 540.- Rights of the carrier

The carrier shall have the following rights:

1. To check the authenticity of the property and the bill of lading or other equivalent transport documents;

2. To refuse to carry any property of types other than those agreed upon in the contracts;

3. To request the transport hirer to pay freight in full and on schedule;

4. To refuse to carry the property banned from transaction, dangerous and/or noxious property, if the carrier knows or should have known such;

5. To demand compensation for damage from the transport hirer.

Article 541.- Obligations of the transport hirer

The transport hirer shall have the following obligations:

1. To pay the carrier the freight in full, on schedule and by the agreed mode;

2. To take care of the property during the transportation, if so agreed upon. In cases where the transport hirer takes care of the property and the property is lost or damaged, the transport hirer shall not be compensated therefore.

Article 542.- Rights of the transport hirer

The transport hirer shall have the following rights:

1. To request the carrier to transport the property to the agreed place and at the agreed time;

2. To personally receive back or appoint a third party to receive back the property the transport of which is hired;

3. To demand compensation for damage from the carrier.

Article 543.- Delivery of property to the consignee

1. The party receiving the property may be the transport hirer or a third party appointed by the hirer for the receipt of the property.

2. The carrier must deliver the property to the consignee in full, on schedule, at the agreed place and by the agreed mode.

3. In cases where the property has been transported to the place of its delivery on time but there is no consignee, the carrier may entrust such property to the place of bailment and must immediately notify the transport hirer or the consignee thereof. The transport hirer or the consignee shall have to bear all reasonable expenses arising from the bailment.

The obligation to deliver the property shall be fulfilled when the bailed property satisfied the agreed conditions and the transport hirer or the consignee has been notified of the bailment.

Article 544.- Obligations of the consignee

The consignee shall have the following obligations:

1. To produce to the carrier a bill of lading or other equivalent transport documents and receive the property on time and at the agreed place;

2. To bear the costs of loading and/or unloading the transported property, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law;

3. To pay reasonable expenses arising from the delay in receiving the property;

4. To notify the transport hirer of the receipt of the property and other necessary information at his/her/its request; if not, the consignee shall not have the right to request the transport hirer to protect his/her/its rights and interests related to the transported property.

Article 545.- Rights of the consignee

The consignee shall have the following rights:

1. To check the quantity and quality of the delivered property;

2. To receive the delivered property;

3. To request the carrier to pay reasonable expenses arising from the waiting for the receipt of the property if the carrier delays the delivery;

4. To personally request or ask the transport hirer to request the carrier to compensate for loss of, or damage to, the property.

Article 546.- Liability to compensate for damage

1. The carrier must compensate the transport hirer for damage, if causing loss of, or damage to, the property, except for cases specified in Clause 2, Article 541 of this Code.

2. The transport hirer must compensate the carrier and a third party for any damage caused by the dangerous or toxic nature of the transported property if he/she/it fails to apply measures to pack the property and/or to ensure safety during the transportation.

3. In case where a force majeure event results in a loss, damage or destruction of the property during the transportation, the carrier shall not be liable for compensating for any damage, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law.

Section 9. PROCESSING CONTRACTS

Article 547.- Processing contracts

A processing contract is an agreement between the parties whereby the processor performs a task to make a product at the processee’s request and the latter shall receive the product and pay remuneration therefore.

Article 548.- Objects of processing contracts

The objects of a processing contract shall be items which are pre-determined with the models and standards agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law.

Article 549.- Obligations of the processee

The processee shall have the following obligations:

1. To supply the processor with materials and/or raw materials in accordance with the quantity, quality, time limit and place as contracted, unless otherwise agreed upon; supply the necessary documents related to the processing work;

2. To instruct the processor in performing the contract;

3. To pay remuneration as agreed upon.

Article 550.- Rights of the processee

The processee shall have the following rights:

1. To receive the processed products in accordance with the agreed quantity, quality, mode, time limit and place;

2. To unilaterally terminate the performation of the contract and demand compensation for any damage when the processor seriously breaches the contract;

3. In cases where the products fail to meet the quality and the processee agrees to accept them and demand repairs but the processor cannot repair them within the agreed time limit, then the processee shall be entitled to rescind the contract and demand compensation for damage.

Article 551.- Obligations of the processor

The processor shall have the following obligations:

1. To preserve the materials and/or raw materials supplied by the processee;

2. To notify the processee to replace the materials and/or raw materials, if they fail to meet the quality; refuse to perform the processing if the use of such materials and/or raw materials may create products harmful to society; if the processor does not give such notification or refusal, he/she shall be liable for the products turned out;

3. To deliver the products to the processee in accordance with the agreed quantity, quality, mode, time limit and place;

4. To keep secret information on the processing process and the created products;

5. To take responsibility for the product quality, except for cases where the poor quality of the products is attributed to the materials and/or raw materials supplied by the processee or to unreasonable instructions of the processee;

6. To return to the processee the remaining materials and/or raw materials after the contract is completed.

Article 552.- Rights of the processor

The processor shall have the following rights:

1. To request the processee to supply materials and/or raw materials in accordance with the agreed quality, quantity, time limit and place;

2. To reject any unreasonable instruction by the processee if deeming that such instruction may reduce the product quality, but must immediately notify the processee thereof;

3. To request the processee to pay the remuneration in full, on schedule and by the agreed mode.

Article 553.- Liability to bear risks

Owners of materials and/or raw materials shall bear all risks to their materials and/or raw materials and/or products made therefrom until the products are delivered to the processee, unless otherwise agreed upon.

When the processee delays receiving the products, he/she/it shall bear the risks during such delay, even if such products are made from the processor’s materials and/or raw materials, unless otherwise agreed upon.

When the processor delays delivering the products, thus causing risks to the processed products, he/she/it must compensate for damage to the processee.

Article 554.- Hand-over and receipt of processed products

The processor shall have to hand over the processed products and the processee shall have to receive them at the agreed time and place.

Article 555.- Delay in hand-over and receipt of processed products

1. In cases where the processor delays delivering the processed products, the processee may extend the time limit; if past this time limit the processor still has not accomplished the work, the processee shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and demand compensation for damage.

2. In cases where the processee delays receiving the products, the processor may entrust such product to a place of bailment and must immediately notify the processee thereof. The obligation to hand over products is fulfilled once all the agreed conditions have been met and the processee has been notified thereof. The processee shall bear all expenses arising from the bailment.

Article 556.- Unilateral termination of processing contracts

1. Either party shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the processing contract if the continued performance thereof does not benefit him/her/it, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law, but must notify the other party thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time; if the processee unilaterally terminates the performance of the contract, he/she/it must pay remunera-tion corresponding to the performed work; if the processor unilaterally terminates the performance of the contract, he/she/it shall not be paid any remuneration, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. The party that unilaterally terminates the performance of the contract, thus causing damage to the other party must compensate therefor.

Article 557.- Payment of remuneration

1. The processee must fully pay the remuneration at the time of receipt of the processed products, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where there is no agreement on the remuneration rate, the average rate for making products of the same type at the place of processing and at the time of payment shall apply.

3. The processee shall not be allowed to reduce the remuneration, if the products do not meet the agreed quality due to the materials and/or raw materials supplied by him/herself/itself or due to his/her/its unreasonable instructions.

Article 558.- Liquidation of materials and raw materials

When a processing contract is terminated, the processor must return the remaining materials and/or raw materials to the processee, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Section 10. CONTRACTS FOR BAILMENT OF PROPERTY

Article 559.- Contracts for bailment of property

A contract for bailment of property is an agreement between the parties whereby the bailee agrees to keep in custody the property entrusted to him/her/it by the bailor and shall return it to the bailor upon the expiration of the contractual term, while the bailor shall have to pay remuneration to the bailee, except for cases of free-of-charge bailment.

Article 560.- Obligations of the bailor

The bailor shall have the following obligations:

1. To immediately notify, upon the hand-over of property, the bailee of the conditions of the property and the appropriate measures to preserve the bailed property; if failing to do so and the bailed property is destroyed or damaged because of inappropriate preservation, the bailor shall bear the loss or damage by him/herself/itself; if damage is caused, he/she/it must compensate therefor.

2. To pay the remuneration in full, on schedule and by the agreed mode.

Article 561.- Rights of the bailor

The bailor shall have the following rights:

1. To reclaim his/her/its property at any time, if the contract for bailment does not specify the time limit, but must notify the bailee thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time;

2. To demand compensation for damage, if the bailee causes the loss of, or damage to, the bailed property, except for force majeurecases.

Article 562.- Obligations of the bailee

The bailee shall have the following obligations:

1. To preserve the property as agreed upon, and return it to the bailor in the same condition as at the time of receipt for bailment;

2. To change the method of preservation only if such change is necessary to better preserve the property, but must immediately notify the bailor of the change;

3. To immediately notify the bailor in writing of any risk of damage or destruction to his/her/its property due to the nature of such property and request the latter to find a remedy within a certain time limit; if such time limit has expired and the bailor does not reply, the bailee shall be entitled to take necessary measures for preservation of the property and demand the bailor to reimburse the expenses therefore;

4. To compensate for damage if causing the loss of, or damage to, the bailed property, except for force majeure cases.

Article 563.- Rights of the bailee

The bailee shall have the following rights:

1. To request the bailor to pay the remuneration as agreed upon;

2. To request the bailor to reimburse the reasonable expenses for preserving the property in case of free-of-charge bailment;

3. To request the bailor to take back his/her/its property at any time, but must notify the bailor thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time, in case of bailment for an indefinite period of time;

4. To sell the bailed property which is in danger of degeneration or destruction in order to ensure the bailor’s interests, notify the bailor thereof, and return the sale proceeds to the bailor after deducting the reasonable expenses for the sale of property.

Article 564.- Return of bailed property

1. The bailee must return exactly the received property and the yields therefrom, if any, unless otherwise agreed upon;

The place for return of the bailed property is the place of bailment; if the bailor requests to have his/her/its property returned at a place other than the place of bailment, then he/she/it must bear the expenses for transporting the property to such place, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. The bailee must return the property on schedule and shall be entitled to request the bailor to take back the property ahead of schedule only if there is a plausible reason.

Article 565.- Delay in hand-over, reception of bailed property

In cases where the bailee delays in the hand over of property, he/she/it shall not be entitled to request the bailor to pay remuneration and preservation expenses as from the time of hand-over delay and must bear risks to the property during the period of delay in hand-over of the property.

In cases where the bailor delays in the reception of property, he/she/it must pay the preservation expenses and remuneration to the bailee for the period of reception delay.

Article 566.- Payment of remuneration

1. The bailor must pay remuneration in full when taking back the bailed property, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where the parties have no agreement on the remuneration level, the average remuneration level at the place and time of remuneration payment shall apply.

3. When the bailor takes back his/her/its property ahead of schedule, he/she/it still has to pay the remuneration in full and necessary expenses arising from the early return of the property by the bailee, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. When the bailee requests the bailor to take back his/her/its property ahead of schedule, the bailee shall not be entitled to receive the remuneration and shall have to compensate for damage caused to the bailor, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Section 11. INSURANCE CONTRACTS

Article 567.- Insurance contracts

An insurance contract is an agreement between parties, whereby the insurance buyer must pay the insurance premium and the insurer must pay a sum of insurance indemnity to the insured upon the occurence of an insured event.

Article 568.- Types of insurance contract

The insurance contracts include contracts for human insurance, contracts for property insurance and contracts for civil liability insurance.

Article 569.- Objects of insurance

Objects of insurance include humans, property, civil liability and others as specified by law.

Article 570.- Forms of insurance contract

Insurance contracts must be made in writing. The written insurance requests signed by insurance buyers constitute inseparable parts of insurance contracts. The insurance certificates or applications shall be the evidence of the entry into insurance contracts.

Article 571.- Insured events

An insured event is an objective event agreed upon by the parties or specified by law, upon the occurrence of which the insurer must pay an insurance indemnity to the insured, except for the cases specified in Clause 2, Article 346 of this Code.

Article 572.- Insurance premium

1. The insurance premium is a sum of money paid by the insurance buyer to the insurer.

The time limit for payment of insurance premium shall be agreed upon or prescribed by law. The insurance premium may be paid in lump sum or periodically.

2. In cases where the insurance buyer delays in periodic payment of insurance premium, the insurer may set a time limit for the insurance buyer to pay such premium; if upon the expiration of such time limit the insurance buyer still fails to pay the insurance premium, the contract shall terminate.

Article 573.- The obligation of the insurance buyer to provide information

1. Upon entering into an insurance contract, the insurance buyer must provide the insurer at the latter’s request with the full information concerning the objects of insurance, except for information which the insurer already knew or should have known.

2. In cases where the insurance buyer intentionally provides false information in order to enter into the contract for enjoying the insurance indemnity, the insurer shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of such contract and collect the insurance premium up to the time of termination of the contract.

Article 574.- The obligation to prevent damage

1. The insured shall have the obligation to comply with the contractual conditions as well as relevant provisions of law and to take measures to prevent damage.

2. In cases where the insured is at fault, failing to take measures to prevent damage as contracted, the insurer may set a time limit for the insured to take such measures; if such preventive measures are not taken upon the expiration of this time limit, the insurer shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of such contract or refuse to pay the insurance indemnity upon the occurence of the damage due to the insured’s failure to take such preventive measures.

Article 575.- Obligations of the insurance buyer, the insured and the insurer when insured events occur

1. Upon the occurence of an insured event, the insurance buyer or the insured must immediately notify the insurer thereof and take all necessary measures within his/her/its capacity to prevent or limit the damage.

2. The insurer must pay all necessary and reasonable expenses incurred by a third party to prevent or limit the damage.

Article 576.- Payment of insurance indemnity

1. The insurer must pay the insurance indemnity to the insured within the agreed time limit; if there is no agreement on such time limit, the insurer must pay the insurance indemnity within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the complete and valid dossier requesting the payment of insurance indemnity.

2. In cases where the issurer delays the payment of insurance indemnity, he/she/it must also pay the interest on the late paid amount at the basic interest rate set by the State Bank at the time of payment of insurance indemnity corresponding to the duration of the delayed payment.

3. In cases where the insured intentionally lets the damage occur, the insurer shall not have to pay the insurance indemnity; if such damage occurs due to the insured’s negligence, the insurer shall not have to pay the part of the insurance indemnity corresponding to the extent of the insured’s negligence.

Article 577.- Transfer of claim for reimbursement of indemnity

1. In cases where the damage is caused to the insured due to the fault of a third party and the insurer has paid the insurance indemnity to the insured, the insurer shall have the right to demand such third party to reimburse the amount already paid. The insured shall have the obligation to provide the insurer with all necessary information, documents and evidence, which he/she/it is aware of so as to enable the insurer to exercise his/her/its right to demand with respect to the third party.

2. In cases where the insured has received from the third party the damages less than the amount of insurance indemnity payable by the insurer, the insurer shall have to pay the insured only the difference between the insurance indemnity and the amount paid by the third party, unless otherwise agreed upon; if the insured has received the insurance indemnity less than the damage caused to him/her/it by the third party, the insured shall still have the right to request the third party to pay the difference between the insurance indemnity and the damages.

The insurer shall have the right to demand the third party to reimburse the amount of money he/she/it has paid to the insured.

Article 578.- Life insurance

In case of life insurance, when the insured event occurs, the insurer must pay the insurance indemnity to the insured or his/her authorized representative; if the insured dies, the insurance indemnity shall be paid to his/her heir(s).

Article 579.- Property insurance

1. The insurer must compensate for any damage caused to the insured property in accordance with the agreed terms or the provisions of law.

2. In cases where the ownership rights to the insured property are transferred to another person, the new owner of such property shall automatically substitute the former owner in the insurance contract, as from the time such ownership rights are transferred. The former owner who is the insurance buyer shall have to notify the new owner that the property has been insured and notify the insurer in time that the ownership rights to the property have been transferred.

Article 580.- Civil liability insurance

1. In case of insurance of civil liability toward a third party as agreed upon or provided for by law, the insurer must pay indemnity to the insurance buyer or to the third party at the insurance buyer’s request for the damage caused to the third party by the insurance buyer at the level of insurance as agreed upon or provided for by law.

2. In cases where the insurance buyer has already compensated for the damage to the third party, he/she/it shall be entitled to demand the insurer to reimburse the sum of money he/she/it has paid to the third party, which, however shall not exceed the level of insurance indemnity agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law.

Section 12. MANDATE CONTRACTS

Article 581.- Mandate contracts

A mandate contract is an agreement between the parties whereby the mandatary shall have the obligation to perform a task on behalf of the mandator, and the mandator shall only have to pay remuneration, if so agreed upon or provided for by law.

Article 582.- Time limit of mandate

The time limit of mandate shall be agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law; if there is no agreement or no legal provisions theron, the mandate contract shall be effective for one year as from the date the mandate is established.

Article 583.- Sub-mandate

The mandatary shall be entitled to submandate a third party only if so consented by the mandator or so provided for by law.

The form of a submandate contract must also conform to the form of the original mandate contract.

The submandate must not go beyond the scope of the original mandate.

Article 584.- Obligations of the mandatary

The mandatary shall have the following obligations:

1. To perform the task in accordance with the mandate and notify the mandator of the performance thereof;

2. To notify a third party concerned with the performance of the mandate of the mandate time limit and scope as well as any amendments or additions to the scope of mandate;

3. To preserve and maintain the documents and instruments entrusted to him/her for performing the mandate;

4. To keep secret the information which he/she knew while performing the mandate;

5. To return to the mandator the property received and benefits obtained in the process of performing the mandate as agreed upon or provided for by law;

6. To compensate for any damage arising from any breach of the obligations specified in Clauses 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of this Article.

Article 585.- Rights of the mandatary

The mandatary shall have the following rights:

1. To request the mandator to provide information, documents and means necessary for performing the mandated task;

2. To be entitled to remuneration and reimbursement of reasonable expenses he/she has paid for the performance of the mandated task.

Article 586.- Obligations of the mandator

The mandator shall have the following obligations:

1. To provide necessary information, documents and means for the mandatary to perform the task;

2. To take responsibility for the commitments performed by the mandatary within the scope of mandate;

3. To reimburse reasonable expenses paid by the mandatary for the performance of the mandated task and pay remuneration to the mandatary, if so agreed upon.

Article 587.- Rights of the mandator

The mandator shall have the following rights:

1. To request the mandatary to fully notify the performance of the mandated task;

2. To request the mandatary to return the property and benefits obtained from the performance of the mandated task, unless otherwise agreed upon;

3. To be compensated for damage, if the mandatary breaches the obligations specified in Article 584 of this Code.

Article 588.- Unilateral termination of performance of mandate contracts

1. In case of a mandate with remuneration, the mandator may unilaterally terminate the perfomance of the contract at any time, but must pay the mandatary a remuneration corresponding to the task already performed by the mandatary and compensate for damage; if it is a mandate without remuneration, the mandator may unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract at any time, but must notify the mandatary thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time.

The mandator must notify in writing a third party of his/her unilateral termination of the performance of the contract; if not, the contract with the third party shall remain in effect, except in cases where the third party knew or must have known about the termination of the mandate contract.

2. In case of a mandate without remuneration, the mandatary may unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract at any time, but must notify the mandator thereof in advance within a reasonable period of time; if it is a mandate with remuneration, the mandatary may unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract at any time, but must compensate for any damage to the mandator.

Article 589.- Termination of mandate contracts

A mandate contract shall terminate in the following cases:

1. The mandate contract has expired;

2. The mandated task has been fulfilled;

3. The mandator or the mandatary unilaterally terminates the performance of the contract as provided for in Article 588 of this Code;

4. The mandator or the mandatary dies, or is declared by the court as losing his/her civil act capacity, having his/her civil act capacity restricted, missing or dead.

Section 13. PROMISE OF REWARD AND COMPETITION FOR PRIZES

Article 590.- Promise of reward

1. A person who has publicly made a promise for a reward shall have to give the promised reward to the person who has performed the task at the request of the reward promisor.

2. The task for which the reward is promised must be specific and feasible, and is neither prohibited by law nor contrary to social ethics.

Article 591.- Withdrawal of the promise of reward

Before the time set for starting the performance of the task, the reward promisor shall be entitled to withdraw his/her promise of reward. The withdrawal of such promise of reward must be conducted in the manner and by the medium in which the promise of reward was announced.

Article 592.- Grant of reward

1. In cases where a task with a promise of reward is performed by a person, such person shall be entitled to receive the reward once the task is fulfilled.

2. When a task with a promise of reward is performed by several persons simultaneously but independently from one another, then the first to fulfill such task shall be entitled to receive the reward.

3. In cases where many persons fulfill a task with a promise of reward at the same time, the promised reward shall be equally shared among such persons.

4. In cases where many persons collaborate with one another in performing a task with a promise of reward at the reward promisor’s request, then each person shall receive one part of the reward corresponding to his/her contribution.

Article 593.- Competition for prizes

1. Organizers of cultural, artistic, sport, scientific, technical competitions and other competitions which are not contrary to law and/or social ethics shall have to announce the conditions for participation, the scale of evaluation points, the prizes and the value of each prize.

2. Any change to the conditions for participation in a competition must be made in accordance with the announced manner within a reasonable period of time before the competition begins.

3. A prize winner shall be entitled to demand the organizer of the competition to grant the prize exactly of the announced value.

Chapter XIX

PERFORMANCE OF TASKS WITHOUT MANDATE

Article 594.- Performance of tasks without mandate

The performance of a task without mandate means the voluntary performance of the task by a person, who is under no obligation to perform such task, solely in the interest of the person for whom the task is performed when such person does not know or knows but does not protest against such performance.

Article 595.- Obligations to perform tasks without mandate

1. The person who performs a task without mandate shall have the obligation to perform the task in accordance with to his/her capacity and conditions.

2. The person who performs a task without mandate shall have to perform such task as if it were his/her own; if he/she knows or can guess the intention of the person for whom the task is performed, he/she must perform the task in accordance with that intention.

3. The person who performs a task without mandate must notify the person for whom the task is performed of the progress and results of the performance of that task, if requested, except for cases where the latter already knew or the person who performs the task without mandate does not know the latter’s place of residence.

4. In cases where the person for whom the task is performed dies, the person who performs the task without mandate shall have to continue the performance of that task until the heir or the representative of the person for whom the task is performed takes over it.

5. If for justifiable reasons, the person who performs the task without mandate is unable to continue the performance of the task, he/she must notify the person for whom the task is performed or his/her representative or next of kin thereof, or he/she may ask another person to assume the task in his/her place.

Article 596.- Payment obligation of the person for whom the task is performed

1. The person for whom a task is performed must take over the task from the person who performs the task without mandate and reimburse the reasonable expenses already paid by the latter for the performance of the task, even in cases where the performance of the task has not yielded the result desired by the former.

2. The person for whom a task is performed must pay remuneration to the person who performs the task if the latter has performed the task dutifully to the former’s benefit, except in cases where the person who performs the task without mandate refuses to receive it.

Article 597.- The obligation to compensate for damage

1. When the person who performs a task without mandate intentionally causes damage while performing the task, he/she shall have to compensate the person for whom the task is performed.

2. If the person who performs a task without mandate unintentionally causes damage while performing the task, then based on the circumstances under which he/she assumed that task, such person may enjoy a reduction of compensation.

Article 598.- Termination of the performance of tasks without mandate

The performance of a task without mandate shall terminate in the following cases:

1. At the request of the person for whom the task is performed;

2. The person for whom the task is performed, his/her heir or representative takes over the task;

3. The person who performs a task without mandate is unable to continue the performance of the task according to the provisions in Clause 5, Article 595 of this Code;

4. The person who performs the task without mandate dies.

Chapter XX

THE OBLIGATION TO RETURN THE PROPERTY POSSESSED, USED OR BENEFITS ENJOYED THEREFROM WITHOUT A LEGAL BASIS

Article 599.- The obligation to return

1. The possessor or user of another person’s property without a legal basis shall have to return such property to its lawful owner or possessor; if the lawful owner or possessor cannot be found, the property shall be handed over to a competent state authority, except for the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 247 of this Code.

2. The person who benefits from a property without a legal basis thus causing damage to another person shall have to return these benefits to the damage sufferer, except for the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 247 of this Code.

Article 600.- Property to be returned

1. A possessor or user of a property without a legal basis must return the entire property he/she has acquired;

2. In cases where the property to be returned is a distinctive object, he/she must return that exact object; if that distinctive object is lost or damaged, he/she must pay pecuniary compensation therefore, unless otherwise agreed upon;

3. In cases where the property to be returned is a fungible object which has been lost or damaged, he/she must return object of the same type or pay pecuniary compensation therefore, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. The person who enjoys benefits from a property without a legal basis shall have to return these benefits in kind or in money to the person who has sustained the loss of benefits.

Article 601.- The obligation to return yields or profits

1. The person who possesses, uses or enjoys benefits from a property without a legal basis and not in good faith shall have to return the yields or profits gained as from the time of possessing or using the property or enjoying the benefits from the property without a legal basis.

2. The person who possesses, uses or enjoys benefits from a property without a legal basis but in good faith shall have to return the yields or profits gained as from the time he/she knew or should have known that such possession or use of the property, or such enjoyment of benefits from the property lacked a legal basis, except for the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 247 of this Code.

Article 602.- The right to demand return of property from a third person

In cases where the possessor or user of a property without a legal basis has transferred the property to a third person, when the lawful owner or possessor of the property demands the return of the property, the third person shall have to return such property, unless otherwise provided for by this Code; if the property has been paid for in money, or in compensation, the third party shall be entitled to demand the transferor to compensate for damage.

Article 603.- Payment obligation

If the lawful owner, possessor or the damage sufferer recovers the property, he/she shall have to reimburse the necessary expenses paid by the possessor, user or beneficiary of the property without a legal basis but in good faith for preserving or increasing the value of the property.

Chapter XXI

LIABILITY TO COMPENSATE FOR DAMAGE OUTSIDE CONTRACT

Section 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 604.- Grounds for liability to compensate for damage

1. Those who intentionally or unintentionally infringe upon the life, health, honor, dignity, prestige, property, rights, or other legitimate interests of individuals or infringe upon the honor, prestige and property of legal persons or other subjects and thereby cause damage shall have to compensate.

2. In cases where the law provides that the persons who cause damage must compensate even when they are not at fault, such provision shall apply.

Article 605.- Principles for damage compensation

1. Damage must be compensated in full and in time. The parties may agree on the compensation levels, the form of compensation either in cash, in kind, or by the performance of a task, and on the mode of compensation either in lump sum or in installment, unless otherwise provided for by law.

2. Persons who cause damage may be entitled to reduction of compensation levels, if they unintentionally cause the damage which is too great for their economic capabilities at present and in the future.

3. When the compensation levels are no longer suitable to reality, the persons who suffered from damage or the persons who caused the damage may request the Court or other competent state agencies to change the compensation levels.

Article 606.- Liability capacity of individuals to compensate for damage

1. Persons aged full eighteen years or older who cause damage shall have to compensate by themselves.

2. If a minor under fifteen years old, whose father and/or mother are/is still alive, causes damage, his/her father and/or mother shall have to compensate the whole damage; if the property of his/her parents is not enough for compen-sation while the minor who causes the damage has his/her own property, this property shall be used to make up for the deficit, except for the cases specified in Article 621 of this Code.

If persons aged between full fifteen years and under eighteen years cause damage, they must compensate for the damage with their own property; if their property is not enough for compensation, their parents shall have to make up for the deficit with their own property.

3. If persons who are minors or lose their civil act capacity cause damage but have their guardians, such guardians shall be entitled to use the property of their wards to pay the compensation; if the wards have no property or have not enough property for compensation, the guardians shall have to compensate with their own property; if the guardians can prove that they are not at fault in the guardianship, they shall not have to use their property for compensation.

Article 607.- Statute of limitations for initiating lawsuits to demand for damage compensation

The statute of limitations for initiating lawsuits to demand for damage compensation shall be two years counting from the date the legitimate rights and interests of individuals, legal persons or other subjects are infringed upon.

Section 2. DETERMINATION OF DAMAGE

Article 608.- Damage caused by infringement upon property

In case of infringement upon property, the damage to be compensated for shall cover:

1. The lost property;

2. The destroyed or damaged property;

3. The interests associated with the use or exploitation of such property;

4. The reasonable expenses for preventing, limiting and remedying the damage.

Article 609.- Damage caused by infringement upon health

1. Damage caused by infringement upon health shall cover:

a/ Reasonable expenses for treatment, nursing and the rehabilitation of health and/or lost or impaired functions of the victims;

b/ The loss or reduction of the victims’ actual incomes; if the victims’ actual incomes are not stable, thus being unable to be determined, the average income earned for the same type of work shall be applied;

c/ Reasonable expenses and the loss of actual incomes of the persons who take care of the victims during the time of treatment; if the victims lose their working capacity and need people to care for them permanently, the damage shall also cover the reasonable expenses for caring for the victims.

2. The persons who infringe upon the health of others must compensate for damage as provided for in Clause 1 of this Article and pay another sum of money as compensation for their mental sufferings, which shall be agreed upon by the parties; if there is no such agreement, the maximum level shall not exceed thirty months’ minimum salary set by the State.

Article 610.- Damage caused by infringement upon life

1. Damage caused by infringement upon life shall cover:

a/ Reasonable expenses for the treatment, nursing and taking care of the victims before they die;

b/ Reasonable expenses for funeral;

c/ Support allowances for persons whom the victims have the obligation to support;

2. The persons who infringe upon the lives of others shall have to compensate for damage as provided for in Clause 1 of this Article and pay a sum of money as compensation for the mental sufferings to the victims’s next of kin in the first rank of inheritance; if these persons are not available, the persons who the victims have directly nurtured or the persons who have directly nurtured the victims shall enjoy this sum of money. The levels of compensation for mental sufferings shall be agreed upon by the parties; in the absence of such agreement, the maximum compensation level shall not exceed sixty months’ minimum salary set by the State.

Article 611.- Damage caused by infringement upon honor, dignity or prestige

1. Damage caused by infringement upon the honor, dignity or prestige of individuals or damage caused by infringement upon the honor or prestige of legal persons or other subjects shall cover:

a/ The reasonable expenses for limiting and/or remedying the damage;

b/ The actually lost or reduced income.

2. The persons who infringe upon the honor, dignity or prestige of others must compensate for damage as provided for in Clause 1 of this Article and pay a sum of money as compensation for mental sufferings caused to such persons. The levels of compensation for mental sufferings shall be agreed upon by the parties; if there is no such agreement, the maximum compensation level shall not exceed ten months’ minimum salary set by the State.

Article 612.- Duration for enjoyment of compensation for damage caused by infringement on life or health

1. In cases where the victims have completely lost their working capacity, they shall be entitled to enjoy compensation until they die.

2. In cases where a victim dies, the persons who were supported by the victim during his/her lifetime shall be entitled to the support money for the following time limit:

a/ Minors or unborns who are the issue of the decedent and still alive after birth shall be entitled to support money until they reach full eighteen years of age, except for cases where the persons who are aged between full fifteen and under eighteen years have already participated in labor and earned incomes enough to support themselves;

b/ Adults who have no working capacity shall be entitled to the support money until they die.

Section 3. COMPENSATION FOR DAMAGE IN A NUMBER OF SPECIFIC CASES

Article 613.- Compensation for damage caused by acts beyond the limits of legitimate self-defense

1. Persons causing damage in case of legitimate self-defense shall not have to compensate the victims.

2. Persons acting beyond the limits of legitimate self-defense and causing damage must compensate the victims.

Article 614.- Compensation for damage caused by acts beyond the requirements of emergency circumstances

1. Persons causing damage in emergency circumstances shall not have to compensate the victims.

2. In cases where damage is caused by acts beyond the requirements of an emergency circumstance, the persons causing such damage must compensate the victims.

3. Persons causing emergency circumstances that resulted in damage must compensate the victims.

Article 615.- Compensation for damage caused by persons using stimulants

1. A person who, due to the consumption of alcohol or the use of other stimulants, falls into a state where he/she is unable to cognize and control his/her own acts and thereby causes damage to another person shall have to compensate.

2. When a person who intentionally uses alcohol or other stimulants to make another person fall into a state of being unable to cognize and control his/her own acts, and thereby causes damage, shall have to compensate the victim.

Article 616.- Compensation for damage caused by more than one person

In cases where many persons jointly cause damage, they shall have to jointly compensate the victim. The compen-sation liability of each of the persons who have jointly caused the damage shall be determined correspon-dingly to each person’s fault; if the extent of fault cannot be determined, they shall have to equally pay compensation for the damage.

Article 617.- Compensation for damage in cases where victims are at fault

When a victim is also at fault in causing the damage, the person who causes the damage shall have to pay only the compensation corresponding to his/her fault; if the victim is totally at fault, the person who causes the damage shall not have to compensate.

Article 618.- Compensation for damage caused by personnel of a legal person

Legal persons must compensate for damage caused by their personnel while performing their assigned tasks; if the legal persons have already compensated for the damage, they shall have the right to request the persons who are at fault in causing the damage to refund the amounts of compensation they have already paid to the victims as provided for by law.

Article 619.- Compensation for damage caused by public servants

Agencies or organizations shall have to compensate for damage caused by public servants under their management while performing their public duties.

Agencies or organizations shall have the responsibility to request public servants under their management to refund the amount of money they have paid in compensation to the victims as provided for by law, if the public servants are at fault while performing their public duties.

Article 620.- Compensation for damage caused by competent personnel of agencies conducting legal proceedings

Agencies conducting legal proceedings must compensate for damage caused by their competent personnel while performing tasks in the process of conducting legal proceedings.

Agencies conducting legal proceedings shall have the responsibility to request their competent persons who have caused damage to refund the amounts of money they have paid in compensation to the victims as provided for by law, if that competent persons are at fault while performing their tasks.

Article 621.- Compensation for damage caused by persons under fifteen years old, or persons having lost their civil act capacity while under the direct management of schools, hospitals or other organizations

1. For persons aged under fifteen years who cause damage while at schools, the schools must compensate for the damage caused.

2. For persons having lost their civil act capacity who cause damage to others while being under the direct management of hospitals or other organizations, the hospitals or such organizations shall have to compensate for the damage caused.

3. In the cases specified in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article, if the schools, hospitals or other organizations can prove that they are not at fault in the management thereof, the fathers, mothers or guardians of such under-fifteen persons or persons having lost their civil act capacity shall have to compensate.

Article 622.- Compensation for damage caused by employees or apprentices

Individuals, legal persons and other subjects shall have to compensate for damage caused by their employees or apprentices while performing the assigned tasks and be entitled to request the employees or apprentices at fault to reimburse the amounts of money they have paid in compensation to victims as provided for by law.

Article 623.- Compensation for damage caused by sources of extreme danger

1. Sources of extreme danger include motorized means of transport, power transmission systems, industrial factories in operation, weapons, explosives, inflammables, poisons, radioactive substances, wild beasts and other sources of extreme danger specified by law.

The owner of a source of extreme danger must comply with the regulations on maintenance, keeping, transportation and use of sources of extreme danger in accordance with the provisions of law.

2. The owner of a source of extreme danger shall have to compensate for damage caused by such source of extreme danger; if he/she has assigned the possession or use of such source of extreme danger to another person, such person shall have to compensate, unless otherwise agreed upon.

3. The owner of, or the person assigned by the owner to possess or use, a source of extreme danger shall have to compensate for damage even if he/she is not at fault, except for the following cases:

a/ Where the damage occurred totally due to the intentional fault of the victim;

b/ Where the damage occurred due to force majeure or emergency circumstance, unless otherwise provided for by law.

4. In cases where a source of extreme danger is illegally possessed or used, the illegal possessor or user shall have to compensate for the damage.

If the owner of, or person assigned by the owner to possess or use, a source of extreme danger is also at fault in letting the source of extreme danger be illegally possessed or used, he/she shall have to jointly compensate for the damage.

Article 624.- Compensation for damage caused by environmental pollution

Individuals, legal persons or other subjects who pollute the environment and thereby cause damage shall have to compensate as provided for by law, even in cases where the environment polluters are not at fault.

Article 625.- Compensation for damage caused by animals

1. The owner of an animal shall have to compensate for damage caused by the animal to another person; if the victim is completely at fault in letting the animal cause the damage to him/her, the owner of the animal shall not have to compensate.

2. In cases where a third party is completely at fault for the damage caused by an animal to another person, such third party shall have to compensate for damage; if the third party and the owner of the animal are both at fault, they shall have to jointly compensate for the damage.

3. In cases where an animal which is illegally possessed or used causes damage, the illegal possessor or user shall have to compensate.

4. In cases where the animal is allowed to range freely according to practices and causes damage, the owner of such animal shall have to compensate according to practices but not in contravention of law and/or social ethics.

Article 626.- Compensation for damage caused by trees

The owners of trees shall have to compensate for damage caused by their falling or broken trees, except in cases where the damage is caused completely by the victim’s fault or a force majeure circumstance.

Article 627.- Compensation for damage caused by houses or other construction works

The owners of, or the persons assigned by the owners to manage and/or use, houses or other construction works, shall have to compensate for damage if they let such houses or other construction works collapse, deteriorate or sink and slide, thereby causing damage to other persons, except in cases where the damage is caused completely by the victim’s fault or a force majeurecircumstance.

Article 628.- Compensation for damage caused by infringement upon corpses

1. Individuals, legal persons or other subjects that infringe upon corpses shall have to compensate for circumstance.

2. The damage caused by infringement upon corpses shall cover reasonable expenses for limiting or remedying the damage.

3. Persons infringing upon corpses must pay a pecuniary compensation as provided for in Clause 2 of this Article and another sum of money to make up for the mental sufferings caused to the decedents’ next of kin in the first rank of inheritance; if these people are not available, the persons who have directly nurturned the decedents shall be entitled to enjoy these sums of money. The levels of compensation for mental sufferings shall be agreed upon by the parties; if there is no such agreement, the maximum level shall not exceed thirty months’ minimum salary set by the State.

Article 629.- Compensation for damage caused by infringement upon tombs

Individuals, legal persons or other subjects that cause damage to tombs of others shall have to compensate for the damage. The damage caused by infringement upon tombs shall cover reasonable expenses for limiting or remedying the damage.

Article 630.- Compensation for damage caused by infringement upon consumers’ interests

Individuals, legal persons or other subjects that undertake production and business without ensuring the quality standards of goods, thus causing damage to any consumer, shall have to compensate.

PART FOUR

INHERITANCE

Chapter XXII

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 631.- Inheritance right of individuals

Every individual shall have the right to make a testament to dispose of his/her property; to bequeath his/her property to his/her heir(s) at law; and to inherit property under a testament or according to law.

Article 632.- Individuals’ right of equality in inheritance

Every individual shall be equal in the right to bequeath his/her property to another person and the right to inherit property under a testament or according to law.

Article 633.- Time and place for opening inheritance

1. The time for opening inheritance is the time the owner of property dies. In cases where the Court declares that a person is dead, the time for opening the inheritance shall be the date specified in Clause 2, Article 81 of this Code.

2. The place for opening inheritance is the last place of residence of the estate leaver; if such place cannot be identified, the place for opening inheritance shall be the place where all or most of his/her estate is located.

Article 634.- Estate

Estate includes the decedent’s own property and his/her shares in property in common with others.

Article 635.- Heirs

If an heir is an individual, he/she must be alive at the time of opening the inheritance, or must be born and still alive after the time of opening the inheritance, but must be conceived before the death of the estate leaver. In cases where a testamentary heir is an agency or organization, such agency or organization must be in existence at the time of opening the inheritance.

Article 636.- Time at which the heir’s rights and obligations arise

As from the time of opening the inheritance, the heirs shall have the property rights and obligations left by the decedents.

Article 637.- Performance of property obligations left by the decedent

1. The persons enjoying the inheritance shall have the responsibility to perform the property obligations within the limit of estate left by the decedent, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where the estate has not yet been divided, the property obligations left by the decedent shall be performed by the estate administrator in accordance with the agreement among the heirs.

3. In cases where the estate has already been divided, then each of the heirs shall perform the property obligations left by the decedent, which correspond to, but not exceed, the portion of property he/she has received, unless otherwise agreed upon.

4. In cases where the State, an agency or organization enjoys an estate under a testament, it shall also have to perform the property obligations left by the decedent like an individual heir.

Article 638.- Estate administrators

1. An estate administrator is the person who is appointed in the testament or appointed under the agreement among the heirs.

2. In cases where the testament does not appoint an estate administrator and the heirs have not yet appointed an administrator, the person who possesses, uses, or administers the estate shall continue to administer it until the heirs appoint an administrator of the estate.

3. In cases where the heir(s) has/have not been identified and there is still no administrator of the estate, such estate shall be managed by a competent State agency.

Article 639.- Obligations of the estate administrator

1. The estate administrator defined in Clause 1 and Clause 3, Article 638 of this Code shall have the following obligations:

a/ To draw up the list of estate; recover the property of the decedent, which is being possessed by other persons, unless otherwise provided for by law;

b/ To preserve the estate; not to sell, exchange, donate, mortgage, pledge or dispose of it in any other manners, if not so consented in writing by the heirs;

c/ To notify the heirs of the estate;

d/ To compensate for damage, if he/she breaches his/her obligations, thereby causing damage;

e/ To hand back the estate at the request of the heir(s).

2. The person who currently possesses, uses or administers the estate as specified in Clause 2, Article 638 of this Code shall have the following obligations:

a/ To preserve the estate; not to sell, exchange, donate, mortgage, pledge or dispose of it in any other manners;

b/ To notify the heirs of the estate;

c/ To compensate for damage, if he/she breaches his/her obligations, thereby causing damage;

d/ To hand back the estate as agreed upon with the estate leaver in a contract or at the request of the heir(s).

Article 640.- Rights of the estate administrator

1. The estate administrator defined in Clause 1 and Clause 3, Article 638 of this Code shall have the following rights:

a/ To represent the heirs in their relations with a third party concerning the estate;

b/ To enjoy remuneration as agreed upon with the heir(s).

2. The persons who currently possess, use or administer the estate as defined in Clause 2, Article 638 of this Code shall have the following rights:

a/ To continue using the estate as agreed upon in the contract with the estate leaver or consented to by the heirs.

b/ To enjoy remuneration as agreed upon with the heirs.

Article 641.- Inheritance by persons entitled to mutually inherit each other’s estate who die simultaneously

In cases where the persons who have the right to inherit each other’s estate die simultaneously or are considered to have died simultaneously because it is impossible to determine who dies first, then they shall not have the right to inherit each other’s estate and the estate of each person shall be inherited by his/her respective heir(s), except for case of inheritance by substitution as provided for in Article 677 of this Code.

Article 642.- Disclaimer of inheritance

1. An heir shall have the right to disclaim an estate, except for cases where such disclaimer is aimed at shirking his/her property obligations toward another person.

2. A disclaimer of estate must be made in writing; the person who disclaims must notify other heirs, the person tasked to divide the estate, the Notary Public Office or the People’s Committee of the commune, ward or township, where such inheritance is opened, of the disclaimer of estate.

3. The time limit for disclaiming an estate shall be six months counting from the date of opening the inheritance. After six months counting from the date of opening the inheritance, if there is no disclaimer of estate, the heirs are considered having accepted the inheritance.

Article 643.- Persons not entitled to enjoy estate

1. The following persons shall not be entitled to enjoy estate:

a/ Persons who are convicted of having intentionally infringed upon the life or health of the estate leavers, or of having maltreated, or physically or mentally abused the estate leavers, or of having seriously infringed upon the honor or dignity of such persons;

b/ Persons who seriously breach their obligations to support the estate leavers;

c/ Persons who are convicted of having intentionally infringed upon the life of other heirs for the purpose of acquiring part or all of the portion of the estate to which such heirs are entitled;

d/ Persons who deceive, coerce or hinder the estate leavers while the latter make their testaments; persons who forge, modify or destroy the testaments in order to acquire part or all of the estates against the will of the estate leavers.

2. The persons defined in Clause 1 of this Article shall still be entitled to enjoy the estate, if the estate leavers, though aware of their acts, still allow them to enjoy the estate under the testaments.

Article 644.- Estates without heirs shall belong to the State

In cases where there is no heir under the testament or at law or where there is an heir who is, however, not entitled to enjoy estate or disclaims his/her estate, the estate left after fulfilling the property obligations and without any heir shall belong to the State.

Article 645.- Statute of limitations for initiating inheritance-related lawsuits

The statute of limitations for an heir to request the division of estate, to determinate his/her rights to inheritance or deny the inheritance rights of another person shall be ten years counting from the time of opening the inheritance.

The statute of limitations for initiating a lawsuit to demand an heir to fulfill the property obligations left by the decedent shall be three years counting from the time of opening the inheritance.

Chapter XXIII

TESTAMENTARY INHERITANCE

Article 646.- Testaments

A testament is the expression of an individual’s will to transfer his/her own property to other person(s) after his/her death.

Article 647.- Testators

1. A person who has attained adulthood is entitled to make a testament, except in cases where such person is affected by a mental disease or other ailment, which prevents him/her from being aware of, or controlling his/her acts.

2. A person aged between full fifteen years and under eighteen years may make a testament, if his/her father, mother or guardian so agrees.

Article 648.- Rights of the testator

The testator shall have the following rights:

1. To designate his/her heirs(s); to disinherit an heir;

2. To divide his/her estate for each of his/her heirs;

3. To set aside part of his/her estate for donation and/or worship;

4. To assign obligations to his/her heir(s);

5. To designate a person to keep the testament, the administrator of his/her estate and the distributor of the estate.

Article 649.- Forms of testament

A testament must be made in writing; if the testament cannot be made in writing, it can be made orally.

Ethnic minority people shall be entitled to make their testaments in their own ethnic minority scripts or languages.

Article 650.- Written testaments

A written testament may be:

1. A written testament made without witnesses;

2. A written testament made in the presence of witnesses;

3. A notarized written testament;

4. An authenticated written testament.

Article 651.- Oral testaments

1. In cases where a human life is threatened by a disease or other causes, which prevent him/her from making a written testament, he/she may make an oral testament.

2. After three months counting from the time the oral testament is made, if the testator is still alive and clear-minded, such oral testament shall be automatically annulled.

Article 652.- Lawful testaments

1. A testament shall be considered lawful when it meets all the following conditions:

a/ The testator is clear-minded while making the testament; he/she is not deceived, threatened or forced;

b/ The content of the testament is not contrary to law and/or social ethics; the form of testament is not contrary to the provisions of law.

2. The testament of a person aged between full fifteen years and under eighteen years must be made in writing and such person must get the consent of his/her parents or guardian.

3. The testament of a person who is physically handicapped or who is illiterate must be put into writing by a witness and notarized or authenticated.

4. A written testament without notarization or authentication shall be considered lawful only if it satisfies the conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article.

5. An oral testament shall be considered lawful if the oral testator expresses his/her last will before at least two witnesses and immediately after that the witnesses write such down and jointly sign or press their fingerprints. Within five days as from the date the oral testator expresses his/her last will, the testament must be notarized or authenticated.

Article 653.- Contents of written testaments

1. A testament must contain:

a/ Day, month, year, on which the testament is made;

b/ Full name and place of residence of the testator;

c/ Full names of the person(s), agency(ies) or organization(s) entitled to the estate or the clear definition of conditions for individuals, agencies or organizations to enjoy the estate;

d/ The inheritance estate bequeathed and the location of such estate;

e/ The person(s) appointed to perform the obligations and the contents of such obligations.

2. No abbreviations or symbols shall be used in testaments; if a testament comprises many pages, then each page must be ordinally numbered and signed or fingerprinted by the testator.

Article 654.- Witnesses to the making of testaments

Every person may serve as a witness to the making of a testament, except the following persons:

1. Heirs under the testament or at law of the testator;

2. Persons with property rights and obligations related to the contents of the testament;

3. Persons who have not yet reached full eighteen years or persons having no civil act capacity.

Article 655.- Written testaments made without witnesses

The testator must himself/herself write and sign the testament.

The making of written testaments without witnesses must comply with the provisions of Article 653 of this Code.

Article 656.-Written testaments made in the presence of witnesses

In cases where a testator is unable to write the testament by himself/herself, he/she may ask another person to write it, but in the presence of at least two witnesses. The testator must sign or fingerprint the testament in the presence of the witnesses; the witnesses shall certify the signature or fingerprint of the testator and sign the testament.

The making of testaments must comply with the provisions of Article 653 and Article 654 of this Code.

Article 657.- Testaments notarized or authenticated

Testators may request the notarization or authentication of their testaments.

Article 658.- Procedures for making testaments at public notary offices or People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships

The making of testaments at public notary offices or People’s Committees of communes, wards or townships must comply with the following procedures:

1. The testators shall announce the contents of their testaments before the public notaries or persons of commune/ward/township People’s Committees, who are competent to authenticate them. The public notaries or the persons competent to authenticate must record in writing the contents stated by the testators. The testators shall sign or fingerprint the testaments after certifying that their testaments have been accurately recorded and correctly express their will. The public notaries or the persons competent to authenticate of commune/ward/township People’s Committees then sign the testaments;

2. In cases where testators cannot read, hear, sign or fingerprint the testaments, they must request the assistance of witnesses who shall have to sign the testaments for certification in the presence of the public notaries or the persons competent to authenticate of commune/ward/township People’s Committees. The public notaries or the persons competent to authenticate of commune/ward/township People’s Committees shall certify the testaments in the presence of the testators and witnesses.

Article 659.- Persons not allowed to notarize or authenticate testaments

The public notaries or competent persons of commune/ward/township People’s Committees must not notarize or authenticate testaments if they are:

1. Testamentary heirs or at-law heirs of the testators;

2. Persons whose fathers, mothers, spouses or children are testamentary heirs or at-law heirs;

3. Persons having their property rights and obligations related to the testaments’ contents.

Article 660.- Written testaments are as valid as notarized or authenticated testaments

Written testaments which have the same validity as notarized or authenticated testaments shall include:

1. Testaments of army men in active service, certified by commanders of army units of the company or higher level, if such army men cannot request the notarization or authentication;

2. Testaments of persons traveling on board sea-going vessels or aircraft, certified by the commanders of such means of transport;

3. Testaments of persons undergoing medical treatment at hospitals or other health or convalescent establishments, certified by the persons in charge of such hospitals or establishments;

4. Testaments of persons conducting survey, exploration or research work in mountainous areas or on islands, certified by the persons in charge of their units;

5. Testaments of Vietnamese nationals residing abroad, certified by Vietnamese consular offices or diplomatic missions in those countries;

6. Testaments of persons being held in custody, serving their prison sentences or administrative handling measures at re-education camps or medical establishments, certified by the persons in charge of such establishments.

Article 661.- Testaments made by public notaries at places of residence

1. Testators may request public notaries to come to their places of residence to make their testaments.

2. The procedures for making testaments at places of residence shall comply with the procedures for making testaments at public notary offices under the provisions in Article 658 of this Code.

Article 662.- Amendment, supplementation, substitution and annulment of testaments

1. Testators may amend, supplement, substitute or annul their testaments at any time.

2. In cases where a testator makes any supplement to his/her testament, the already made testament and the supplement shall have equal legal effect; if a part of the already made testament and the supplement are contradictory, only the supplement shall have legal effect.

3. In cases where a testator replaces his/her testament with a new testament, then the previous testament shall be annulled.

Article 663.- Joint testament of husband and wife

Husband and wife may make a joint testament to dispose of their common property.

Article 664.- Amendment, supplementation, substitution and annulment of joint testaments

1. Husband or wife may amend, supplement, substitute or annul their joint testament at any time.

2. When a wife or husband wishes to amend, supplement, substitute or annul their joint testament, she or he must get the consent of the other; if one of them has already died, the other can only amend or supplement the testament related to his/her own part of property.

Article 665.- Custody of testaments

1. A testator may request a public notary office or another person to keep his/her testament in its/his/her custody.

2. In cases where the public notary office keeps the testament, it must maintain and preserve the testament in accordance with the provisions of law on notary public.

3. The individual entrusted to keep the testament shall have the following obligations:

a/ To keep its contents confidential;

b/ To safeguard and preserve the testament; if the testament is lost or damaged, he/she must immediately notify the testator thereof;

c/ To hand back the testament to the testator’s heir(s) or to the person competent to announce the testament upon the testator’s death. The hand-over of the testament must be made in writing with the signatures of the person who hands it over and the recipient, and in the presence of two witnesses.

Article 666.- Lost or damaged testaments

1. If from the time of opening the inheritance, a testament is lost or damaged to such an extent that it does not fully express the will of the testator nor is there any evidence to demonstrate the true wish of the testator, the testament shall be deemed non-existent and the provisions of law on inheritance at law shall apply.

2. In cases where the testament is found out before the estate is divided, then the estate shall be divided according to the testament.

Article 667.- Legal effect of testaments

1. A testament shall take effect as from the time of opening the inheritance.

2. A testament shall be considered invalid wholly or partially in the following cases:

a/ The testamentary heirs die before or at the same time with the testator;

b/ The agency or organization designated as a heir is no longer in existence at the time of opening the inheritance.

In cases where there are more than one testamentary heir and one of them dies before or at the same time with the testator, or one of the agencies or organizations designated as heirs is no longer in existence at the time of opening the inheritance, then only the part of the testament that relates to the person who died before or simultaneously with the testator, or such defunct agency or organization shall be legally ineffective.

3. A testament shall have no legal effect if the estate left to the heir(s) is no longer in existence at the time of opening the inheritance; if only part of such estate is still in existence, then the testamentary part related to the remaining part of the estate shall remain effective.

4. If a part of the testament is unlawful but does not affect the validity of the rest of the testament, then only such part shall have no legal effect.

5. If a person leaves more than one testament regarding a property, then only the latest testament shall take legal effect.

Article 668.- Legal effect of joint testament of husband and wife

A joint testament of husband and wife shall take effect as from the time the last of them dies or at the time both the husband and wife die simultaneously.

Article 669.- Heirs independent from contents of testaments

The following persons shall still be entitled to an estate portion which is equivalent to two-thirds of the portion given to an heir at law, if the estate is divided according to law, in cases where they are not allowed by the testator to enjoy the estate or are allowed to enjoy only a portion less than two-thirds of their due part, unless they disclaim the estate according to the provisions of Article 642 or they are not entitled to the estate according to the provisions of Article 643 of this Code:

1. Minor children, father, mother, wife or husband;

2. Adult children without working capacity.

Article 670.- Estate used for worshiping

1. In cases where a testator has allocated part of the estate for worshiping, that part of his/her estate shall not be divided for inheritance, but shall be entrusted to a person designated in the testament for management to service the worship; if the designated person fails to comply with the testament or with the heirs’ agreement, the heirs shall be entitled to entrust such part of the estate to another person for management and use thereof for worshiping.

In cases where the estate leaver does not designate an administrator of the worship estate, the heirs shall designate a person to manage the worship estate.

In cases where all the testamentary heirs have died, the estate portion reserved for worshiping shall belong to the current lawful administrator of such estate among people entitled to inheritance at law.

2. In cases where the whole property of the decedent is not enough for fulfillment of his/her property obligations, no part of the estate shall be reserved for worshiping.

Article 671.- Testamentary donation

1. A testamentary donation means the reserve of part of an estate by a testator as gift to another person. The testamentary donation must be clearly stated in the testament.

2. The testamentary donee shall not have to fulfill any property obligation related to the testamentary donation, except in cases where the whole estate is not enough for performance of the property obligations of the donor, the testamentary donation shall be also used to perform the remaining part of the obligations of such person.

Article 672.- Announcement of testaments

1. In cases where a written testament is kept at a public notary office, the public notary shall be the person to announce the testament.

2. In cases where the testator appoints a testament announcer, the latter shall have the obligation to announce the testament; if the testator does not appoint or has appointed a testament announcer but the appointee refuses to announce the testament, the surviving heirs shall agree to appoint the testament announcer.

3. After the time of opening the inheritance, the testament announcer must send copies of the testament to all concerned persons related to the contents of the testament.

4. The persons who receive copies of the testament shall be entitled to request the comparison thereof with the original.

5. In cases where the testament is made in a foreign language, it must be translated into Vietnamese and must be notarized.

Article 673.- Interpretation of testaments

In cases where the contents of a testament are unclear leading to different interpretations, then the testament announcer and the heirs must together interprete the testament contents, based on the true will of the decedent before his/her death, taking into consideration the relationship between the decedent and his/her testamentary heir(s). Where such persons fail to agree on the interpretation of the contents of the testament, such testament shall be deemed non-existent and the estate shall be divided in accordance with the provisions of law on inheritance at law.

In cases where a part of the testament cannot be interpreted but does not affect the rest of the testament, only the uninterpretable part shall be invalid.

Chapter XXIV

INHERITANCE AT LAW

Article 674.- Inheritance at law

Inheritance at law is inheritance in accordance with the ranks, conditions and order of inheritance provided for by law.

Article 675.- Cases of inheritance at law

1. Inheritance at law shall apply in the following cases:

a/ There is no testament;

b/ The testament is unlawful;

c/ All the testamentary heirs die before or at the same time with the testator; the agency or organization designated as testamentary heir is no longer in existence at the time of opening the inheritance;

d/ The persons designated as testamentary heirs shall not have the right to inherit or have disclaimed their inheritance rights.

2. Inheritance at law shall also apply to the following parts of the estate:

a/ Part of the estate, which is not disposed of in the testament;

b/ Part of the estate, which is related to the invalid part of the testament;

c/ Part of the estate, which is related to a testamentary heir, who, however, does not have the right to inherit or who has disclaimed his/her inheritance rights, or who dies before or at the same time with the testator; or related to an agency or organization which is designated as testamentary heir, which is, however, no longer in existence at the time of opening the inheritance.

Article 676.- Heirs at law

1. Heirs at law are classified in the following order:

a/ First rank of inheritance shall include wife, husband, biological father, biological mother, adoptive father, adoptive mother, biological children and adopted children of the decedent;

b/ Second rank of inheritance shall include paternal grandfather, paternal grandmother, maternal grandfather, maternal grandmother, natural brother(s) and sister(s) of the decedent; grand-children of whom the decedent is the paternal grandfather or grand-mother, maternal grandfather or grandmother;

c/ Third rank of inheritance shall include paternal and maternal great-grandparents; paternal and maternal uncles and aunts by blood of the decedent; nephews and nieces of whom the decedent is the paternal or maternal uncle or aunt by blood; great grand-children of whom the decedent is the paternal or maternal great grandparents.

2. Heirs belonging to the same rank of inheritance shall be entitled to equal portions in the estate.

3. Heirs belonging to the subsequent rank of inheritance shall be entitled to inheritance only if none of the heirs of the preceding rank of inheritance is left as they have died, are not entitled to the estate, are disinherited or disclaim the estate.

Article 677.- Inheritance by substitution

In cases where a child of an estate leaver dies before or at the same time with the estate leaver, then his/her grandchild shall be entitled to inherit the part of the estate that his/her father or mother would have inherited if he or she is still alive; if such grandchild also dies before or at the same time with the estate leaver, then the great grandchild of the estate leaver shall be entitled to inherit the part of the estate that his/her father or mother would have inherited if he or she is still alive.

Article 678.- Inheritance relation-ship between adopted children and their adoptive fathers, adoptive mothers and their biological parents

An adopted child and his/her adoptive father and/or mother shall be entitled to inherit each other’s estate and also inherit the estate in accordance with the provisions of Articles 676 and 677 of this Code.

Article 679.- Inheritance relation-ship between stepchildren and their stepfathers and/or stepmothers

If a stepchild and his/her stepfather and/or stepmother have a relationship of mutual care and support as between a biological father and a biological child or between a biological mother and a biological child, they shall be entitled to inherit each other’s estate and also inherit the estate in accordance with the provisions of Articles 676 and 677 of this Code.

Article 680.- Inheritance in cases where wife and husband have divided their common property, are applying for divorce or have married another person

1. In cases where husband and wife have divided their common property while their marriage still exists and one of the spouses thereafter dies, then the survivor shall still be entitled to inherit the other’s estate.

2. In cases where wife and/or husband have/has applied for divorce but the divorce has not yet been approved or has already been approved by a court through a judgment or decision which is not legally effective yet, and one of the spouses thereafter dies, then the survivor shall still be entitled to inherit the other’s estate.

3. A person who was still wife or husband of the decedent at the time the latter dies shall still be entitled to inherit the decedent’s estate even if he/she later has married another person.

Chapter XXV

PAYMENT AND DIVISION OF ESTATE

Article 681.- Meeting of heirs

1. After the notice on the opening of the inheritance is made or the testament is announced, the heirs may hold a meeting to agree on the following issues:

a/ The appointment of an administrator of the estate, a distributor of the estate and the determination of the rights and obligations of these people, if the estate leaver has failed to make such appointments in the testament;

b/ The method of dividing the estate.

2. Any agreement among the heirs must be made in writing.

Article 682.- Estate distributors

1. The estate distributor may also be the estate administrator designated in the testament or appointed by the heirs under their agreement.

2. The estate distributor must divide the estate in strict accordance with the testament or as agreed upon by the heirs at law.

3. The estate distributor is entitled to remuneration, if so allowed by the estate leaver in the testament or so agreed upon by the heirs.

Article 683.- Priority order of payment

Property obligations and expenses related to the inheritance shall be paid in the following order:

1. Reasonable funeral expenses in accordance with practices;

2. Unpaid support allowance;

3. Support allowances for dependents of the decedent;

4. Labor wage;

5. Compensation for damage;

6. Taxes and other debts owed to the State;

7. Fines;

8. Other debts owed to any individuals, legal persons or other subjects;

9. Expenses for the preservation of the estate;

10. Other expenses.

Article 684.- Division of estates in accordance with testaments

1. The estate shall be divided according to the will of the testator; if the testament does not clearly determine the share of each heir, then the estate shall be divided equally among the persons indicated in the testament, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where the testament specifies the division of an estate in kind, the heirs shall be entitled to receive their shares in kind together with the yields or profits gained therefrom or must bear any depreciation in value of such shares in kind up to the time of the division of the estate; if the shares in kind have been destroyed due to another person’s fault, the heirs shall be entitled to demand compensation for such damage.

3. In cases where the testament only specifies the division of the estate by percentages of the total value of the estate, then such percentages shall be calculated on the basis of the estate value remaining at the time of estate division.

Article 685.- Division of estate by law

1. If at the time of estate division, an heir of the same rank of inheritance has been conceived but not yet born, then a part of the estate equal to the share which another heir of the same rank is entitled to shall be set aside for inheritance by the unborn heir if he/she is born alive; if this heir is still-born, then the other heirs shall be entitled to his/her share.

2. The heirs shall have the right to demand that the estate be divided in kind; if the estate cannot be divided equally in kind, the heirs may agree on the evaluation of the assets in kind and on the persons who shall receive them; if no agreement can be reached, the assets in kind shall be sold for division.

Article 686.- Restrictions on division of estate

If by the will of the testator or by the agreement of all heirs, the estate can only be divided after a certain period of time, then it shall only be divided after the expiration of that time limit.

In cases where the estate division is requested and will seriously affect the life of the living spouse and his/her family, the living spouse shall have the right to request the Court to determine the estate shares to be enjoyed by the heirs but not to allow the estate division within a certain time limit which, however, shall not exceed three years as from the time of opening the inheritance; if the time limit set by the Court has expired or the living spouse has married another person, the other heirs may request the Court to permit the division of the estate.

Article 687.- Division of estates in cases where new heirs appear or where heirs are disinherited

1. In cases where an estate has been already divided and a new heir has appeared, the estate in kind shall not be re-divided but the heirs who have received their respective shares of estate must pay the new heir a sum of money corresponding to his/her share of estate at the time of estate division in proportion to the received share of estate, unless otherwise agreed upon.

2. In cases where an estate has been already divided and an heir is disinherited, such heir must return his/her share of estate or pay a sum of money corresponding to the value of the estate he/she has enjoyed at the time of dividing the estate to the heirs, unless otherwise agreed upon.

PART FIVE

PROVISIONS ON THE TRANSFER OF LAND USE RIGHTS

Chapter XXVI

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 688.- Bases for establishment of land use rights

1. Land is under the State’s ownership and the Government’s unified management.

2. Land use rights of individuals, legal persons, households and other subjects shall be established upon the land assignment or lease or the land use right recognition by the State.

3. Land use rights of individuals, legal persons, households and other subjects shall also be established upon the transfer thereof by other persons in accordance with the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 689.- Forms of transfer of land use rights

1. The transfer of land use rights shall be carried out through contracts, except for the case specified in Clause 3 of this Article.

2. The contracts on land use right transfer must be made in writing, notarized or authenticated in accordance with the provisions of law.

3. The inheritance of land use rights shall comply with the provisions of Articles 733 thru 735 of this Code.

Article 690.- Price for transfer of land use rights

The price for a transfer of land use rights shall be agreed upon by the parties or provided for by law.

Article 691.- Principles for transfer of land use rights

1. Individuals, legal persons, households and other subjects using land shall be entitled to transfer the land use rights only when they are so permitted by law.

2. When transferring the land use rights, the parties shall be entitled to agree on the contents of the contract for the transfer of land use rights but must comply with the provisions of this Code and the land law.

3. The transferee of the land use rights must use the land for the right purposes and within the duration stated in the land use right certificates and in compatibility with land use plannings or plans in the localities at the time of land use right transfer.

Article 692.- Effect of transfer of land use rights

The transfer of land use rights shall take effect as from the time the land use rights are registered in accordance with the provisions of land law.

Chapter XXVII

CONTRACTS FOR EXCHANGE OF LAND USE RIGHTS

Article 693.- Contracts for exchange of land use rights

A contract for exchange of land use rights is an agreement between parties whereby the parties transfer land and land use rights to each other in accordance with the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 694.- Contents of contracts for exchange of land use rights

A contract for exchange of land use rights shall contain the following contents:

1. Names and addresses of the parties;

2. Rights and obligations of the parties;

3. Category, grade, acreage, location, code number, boundaries and conditions of the land;

4. Time for the transfer of land;

5. The land use term of the exchanger; the remainder of the land use term for the exchange;

6. The difference in land use right value, if any;

7. Rights of a third party to the exchanged land, if any;

8. The parties’ liabilities for breach of the contract.

Article 695.- Obligations of parties to the exchange of land use rights

The parties to an exchange of land use rights shall have the following obligations:

1. To transfer land to each other in strict accordance with the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon;

2. To use the land for the right purposes and within the prescribed duration;

3. To pay fees for the exchange of land use rights with respect to the area of land received and perform the obligations of a land user as provided for by this Code and the land law;

4. To pay the difference, if the value of the exchanged land use rights of one party is higher than that of the other, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 696.- Rights of parties to the exchange of land use rights

The parties to an exchange of land use rights shall have the following rights:

1. To request the other party to transfer the land in strict accordance with the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon;

2. To request the other party to hand over all the valid papers related to the land use rights;

3. To be granted a land use right certificate for the exchanged land;

4. To use land in strict accordance with the prescribed purpose and duration.

Chapter XXVIII

CONTRACTS FOR ASSIGNMENT OF LAND USE RIGHTS

Article 697.- Contracts for assignment of land use rights

A contract for the assignment of land use rights is an agreement between parties whereby the land use right assignor transfers the land and land use rights to the assignee and the assignee shall pay money to the assignor in accordance with the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 698.- Contents of contracts for assignment of land use rights

A contract for the assignment of land use rights shall include the following contents:

1. Names and addresses of the parties;

2. Rights and obligations of the parties;

3. Category, grade, acreage, location, code number, boundaries and conditions of the land;

4. Land use term of the assignor; the remainder of the land use term for the assignee;

5. Assignment price;

6. Mode and time of payment;

7. Rights of a third party to the assigned land;

8. Other information related to the land use rights;

9. The parties’ liabilities for breach of the contract.

Article 699.- Obligations of the land use right assignor

The land use right assignor shall have the following obligations:

1. To transfer the land to the assignee in strict accordance with the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon;

2. To hand over the papers related to the land use rights to the assignee.

Article 700.- Rights of the land use right assignor

The land use right assignor shall have the rights to receive money for the assignment of land use rights; in cases where the assignee is late in making the payment, the provisions of Article 305 of this Code shall apply.

Article 701.- Obligations of the land use right assignee

The land use right assignee shall have the following obligations:

1. To pay money to the land use right assignor in full, on time and by the agreed mode;

2. To register the land use rights as provided for by the land law;

3. To ensure the rights of the third party to the assigned land;

4. To perform other obligations as provided for by the land law.

Article 702.- Rights of the land use right assignee

The land use right assignee shall have the following rights:

1. To request the land use right assignor to hand over all papers related to the land use rights;

2. To request the land use right assignor to transfer the land in strict accordance with the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon;

3. To be granted a land use right certificate for the assigned land;

4. To use land in accordance with the right purposes and duration.

Chapter XXIX

CONTRACTS FOR LAND USE RIGHT LEASE, SUBLEASE

Section 1. CONTRACTS FOR LAND USE RIGHT LEASE

Article 703.- Contracts for land use right lease

A contract for land use right lease is an agreement between parties whereby the lessor shall transfer the land to the lessee for use in a period of time, and the lessee must use such land for the right purpose, pay the rent and return the land when the lease term expires as provided for by this Code and the land law.

Article 704.- Contents of contracts for land use right lease

A contract for land use right lease shall contain the following contents:

1. Names and addresses of the parties;

2. Rights and obligations of the parties;

3. Category, grade, acreage, location, code number, boundary and conditions of the land;

4. Lease term;

5. Lease price;

6. Mode and time of payment;

7. Rights of a third party to the leased land;

8. The parties’ liabilities for breach of the contract;

9. Remedy of consequences when the land use right lease contract expires.

Article 705.- Obligations of the land use right lessor

The land use right lessor shall have the following obligations:

1. To register the lease of land use rights;

2. To transfer land to the lessee in accordance with the land acreage, location, code number, category and conditions as agreed upon;

3. To lease land use rights within the term of land allocation or lease;

4. To check and remind the lessee to protect, preserve and use the land for the right purpose;

5. To pay land use tax, unless otherwise agreed upon;

6. To inform the lessee of the rights of the third party to the leased land.

Article 706.- Rights of the land use right lessor

The land use right lessor shall have the following rights:

1. To request the land use right lessee to pay the rent in full;

2. To request the lessee to immediately stop the use of land not for the right purpose, the destruction of land or the reduction of its use value; if the lessee fails to immediately stop such violations, the lessor shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and request the lessee to return such land and compensate for damage;

3. To request the lessee to return the land upon expiration of the lease term.

Article 707.- Obligations of the land use right lessee

The land use right lessee shall have the following obligations:

1. To use land for the right purpose, within the boundary and the lease term;

2. Not to destroy the land or reduce its use value and to fulfill other requirements as agreed upon in the land use right lease contract;

3. To pay the rent in full, on time, at the right place and by the agreed mode; in the event the use of land fails to generate profits, the lessee shall still be obligated to pay the rent in full, unless otherwise agreed upon;

4. To comply with the regulations on environmental protection; not to cause damage to the legitimate rights and interests of the surrounding land users;

5. To return the land in the same conditions as when it was received upon the expiration of the lease term, unless otherwise agreed upon.

Article 708.- Rights of the land use right lessee

The land use right lessee shall have the following rights:

1. To request the lessor to transfer the land in strict accordance with the land acreage, location, code number, grade, category and conditions as agreed upon;

2. To use the leased land in a stable manner within the agreed duration;

3. To enjoy the yields and profits from the use of land;

4. To unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract as provided for in Article 426 of this Code;

5. To request the lessor to reduce or exempt the rent in cases where the yields and/or profits are lost or reduced due to force majeurecircumstances.

Article 709.- Delay in payment of rent

When the lessee delays in paying the rent for the lease of land use rights as agreed upon, the lessor may grant an extension; if such extension has expired and the lessee fails to fulfill his/her obligations, the lessor shall be entitled to unilaterally terminate the performance of the contract and request the lessee to return the land. The lessor shall be entitled to request the lessee to make the full payment for the time during which the land use rights were leased, including the interest on the amount of delayed payment at the basic interest rate set by the State Bank corresponding to the period of delayed payment at the time of payment.

Article 710.- Compensation for damage caused by recovery of land

1. When the lessor or the lessee intentionally breaches the obligations of the land user, thus leading to the recovery of land by the State, the breaching party must compensate the other party for the damage.

2. In cases where the contract for the land use right lease is still valid, but for the national security, defense requirements, national interests, public interests and economic development, the State recovers the land, then the contract for the land use right lease shall terminate ahead of time.

In cases where the lessee has paid the rent fully in advance, the lessor must reimburse the lessee the remaining rent corresponding to the period of time when the land has not been used; if the lessee has not yet paid the rent, he/she/it must pay only an amount corresponding to the period of time when the land has been used.

The lessor shall be compensated by the State for the damage caused by the recovery of land in accordance with provisions of law, and the lessee shall be compensated by the State for the loss of yields from such land.

Article 711.- The right to continue leasing land use rights when one party dies

1. In cases where the land use right lessor being an individual dies, the lessee shall be entitled to continue leasing land use rights until the lease term expires.

2. In cases where the land use right lessee being an individual dies, the members of his/her household shall be allowed to continue leasing land use rights until the lease term expires, but must notify a competent state agency thereof.

Article 712.- Assignment of land use rights during the term of a land use right lease

When term of a land use right lease remains in effect, the lessor is still entitled to assign land use rights to another person, if so permitted by a competent state agency, but must inform the lessee thereof so that the latter performs his/her obligations to the land use right assignee.

The lessee shall still be entitled to continue the lease until the contractual term of the land use right lease expires.

Article 713.- Termination of contracts for land use right lease

1. A contract for land use right lease shall terminate in the following cases:

a/ The lease term expires and is not extended;

b/ It is so agreed upon by the parties;

c/ The State recovers the land;

d/ One of the parties unilaterally terminates the performance of the contract or cancels the contract as agreed upon or provided for by law;

e/ The land use right lessee being an individual dies without any other members of his/her household or with other members of his/her household but they do not have demand for continued lease;

f) The leased land area is no longer in existence due to a natural calamity;

g) Other cases specified by law.

2. When a land use right lease contract terminates, the lessee must restore the land to its conditions as when it was received, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law. The property attached to the land shall be settled under the parties’ agreement.

Section 2. CONTRACTS FOR LAND USE RIGHT SUBLEASE

Article 714.- Contracts for land use right sublease

Unless otherwise provided for by law, the provisions of Articles 703 thru 713 of this Code shall also apply to contracts for land use right sublease.

Chapter XXX

CONTRACTS FOR LAND USE RIGHT MORTGAGE

Article 715.-Contracts for land use right mortgage

A contract for land use right mortgage is an agreement between the parties whereby the land user (hereinafter referred to as the mortgagor) shall use his/her land use rights to secure the performance of civil obligations toward the other party (hereinafter referred to as the mortgagee). The mortgagor may continue to use the land during the mortgage term.

Article 716.- Scope of land use right mortgage

1. Land use rights may be mortgaged in part or in whole.

2. In cases where a land user mortgages his/her land use rights, his/her houses, other construction works, planted forests, tree gardens and other assets which are attached to land, shall belong to the mortgaged property only when it is so agreed upon.

Article 717.- Obligations of the land use right mortgagor

The land use right mortgagor shall have the following obligations:

1. To hand over the land use right certificate to the mortgagee;

2. To fill the mortgage registration procedures; to cancel the mortgage registration when the mortgage contract terminates;

3. To use the land for the right purpose, not to destroy or reduce the value of the mortgaged land;

4. To repay the loan on time and by the mode agreed upon in the contract.

Article 718.- Rights of the land use right mortgagor

The land use right mortgagor shall have the following rights:

1. To use the land within the mortgage term;

2. To receive the loan from the land use right mortgage by the agreed mode;

3. To enjoy the yields and/or profits gained, except in cases where the yields and/or profits also belong to the mortgaged property;

4. To exchange, assign, lease or sublease the mortgaged land use rights if so consented by the mortgagor;

5. To receive back the land use right certificate after the mortgage obligations have been fulfilled.

Article 719.- Obligations of the land use right mortgagee

The land use right mortgagee shall have the following obligations:

1. To register the mortgage together with the mortgagor;

2. To return the land use right certificate when the mortgagor has fulfilled the obligations secured by the mortgage.

Article 720.- Rights of the land use right mortgagee

The land use right mortgagee shall have the following rights:

1. To examine and remind the land use right mortgagor to protect and preserve the land and use it for the right purpose;

2. To enjoy the priority in debt settlement in cases where the mortgaged land use rights are handled.

Article 721.- Handling of mortgaged land use rights

When the term for the performance of the obligations secured by the mortgage of land use rights is due, and the mortgagor has still failed to perform or performed improperly his/her obligations, the mortgaged land use rights shall be handled as agreed upon; if there is no such agreement or the mortgaged land use rights cannot be handled as agreed upon, the mortgagee shall be entitled to initiate a lawsuit at the court.

Chapter XXXI

CONTRACTS FOR LAND USE RIGHT DONATION

Article 722.- Contracts for land use right donation

A contract for the donation of land use rights is an agreement between the parties whereby the donor transfers his/her land use rights to the donee without requesting any compensation, and the donee agrees to receive them in accordance with the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 723.- Contents of contracts for land use right donation

A contract for land use right donation shall contain the following contents:

1. Names and addresses of the parties;

2. The reasons for donation of the land use rights;

3. The rights and obligations of the parties;

4. The land category, grade, acreage, location, code number, boundary and conditions;

5. The remaining land use duration of the donor;

6. A third party’s rights to the donated land;

7. The parties’ liabilities for breach of the contract.

Article 724.- Obligations of the land use right donor

The land use right donor shall have the following obligations:

1. To transfer the land in strict accordance with the agreed land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions;

2. To hand over the papers related to the land use rights to the donee for carrying out the procedures for land use right registration.

Article 725.- Obligations of the land use right donee

The land use right donee shall have the following obligations:

1. To register the land use rights at a competent state agency defined by the land law;

2. To ensure a third party’s rights to the donated land;

3. To perform other obligations as provided for by the land law.

Article 726.- Rights of the land use right donee

The land use right donee shall have the following rights:

1. To request the donor to transfer the land in strict accordance with the agreed land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions;

2. To use the land for the right purpose and within the set time limit;

3. To be granted the land use right certificate.

Chapter XXXII

CONTRACTS FOR CAPITAL CONTRIBUTION WITH LAND USE RIGHT VALUE

Article 727.- Contracts for capital contribution with the land use right value

A contract for capital contribution with the land use right value is an agreement between the parties whereby the land user (hereinafter referred to as the capital contributor) contributes his/her capital with the land use right value for production and/or business cooperation with other individuals, legal persons, family households and/or other subjects under the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 728.- Contents of the contracts for capital contribution with the land use right value

A contract for capital contribution with the land use right value shall contain the following contents:

1. Names and addresses of the parties;

2. Rights and obligations of the parties;

3. The land category, grade, acreage, location, code number, boundary and conditions;

4. The remaining land use duration of the capital contributor;

5. The time limit for capital contribution;

6. The land use right value contributed as capital;

7. A third party’s rights to the land contributed as capital;

8. The parties’ liabilities for breach of the contract.

Article 729.- Obligations of parties contributing capital with the land use right value

A party contributing capital with the land use right value shall have the following obligations:

1. To transfer the land in strict accordance with the time limit, the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon in the contract;

2. To register the land use rights at a competent state agency as provided for by the land law.

Article 730.- Rights of parties contributing capital with the land use right value

A party contributing capital with the land use right value shall have the following rights:

1. To enjoy profits according to the proportion of capital contribution with the land use right value;

2. To assign, bequeath the capital portion contributed with the land use right value, unless otherwise agreed upon or provided for by law;

3. To receive back the land use rights contributed as capital as agreed upon or upon the expiration of the capital contribution time limit;

4. To cancel the contract and demand compensation for damage if the party receiving the contributed capital fails to pay the profits on time or fails to make full payment thereof.

Article 731.- Obligations of parties receiving capital contributed with the land use right value

A party receiving capital contributed with the land use right value shall have the following obligations:

1. To pay profit portion to the party contributing capital with the land use right value on time and by the mode agreed upon in the contract;

2. To ensure a third party’s rights to the land contributed as capital;

3. To fulfill other obligations provided for by the land law.

Article 732.- Rights of parties receiving capital contributed with the land use right value

A party receiving capital contributed with the land use right value shall have the following rights:

1. To request the party contributing capital with the land use right value to transfer the land in strict accordance with the time limit, the land acreage, grade, category, location, code number and conditions as agreed upon in the contract;

2. To use the land for the right purposes and within the agreed time limit;

3. To be granted a land use right certificate in cases where the contributed capital-receiving party is a legal person, except for cases of capital contribution in business cooperation contracts.

Chapter XXXIII

INHERITANCE OF LAND USE RIGHTS

Article 733.- Inheritance of land use rights

The inheritance of land use rights means the transfer of land use rights from the decedent to his/her heir(s) under the provisions of this Code and the land law.

Article 734.- Individuals entitled to bequeath land use rights

Individuals who are assigned or leased land by the State or are transferred the land use rights shall have the right to bequeath the land use rights as provided for in Part Four of this Code and the land law.

Article 735.- Inheritance of the rights to use land assigned to households by the State

If a member of a family household assigned land by the State dies, such member’s land use rights shall be left to his/her heirs in accordance with the provisions of Part Four of this Code and the land law.

PART SIX

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

Chapter XXXIV

COPYRIGHT AND RELATED RIGHTS

Section 1. COPYRIGHT

Article 736.- The author

1. A person who has created a literary, artistic or scientific work (hereinafter referred collectively to as works) is the author of such work.

In cases where two or more persons jointly create a work, such persons are co-authors.

2. Persons who have created derivative works from other persons’ works, including works translated from one language into another, recreated, transformed, adapted, compiled, annotated or selected works, are authors of such derivative works.

Article 737.- Objects of copyright

Objects of copyright shall include all works created in the literary, artistic or scientific field and expressed in any form and by any means, regardless of their contents and value, and without depending on any procedures.

Article 738.- Contents of copyright

1. Copyright shall include personal rights and property rights to works.

2. Personal rights in copyright shall include the rights:

a/ To name the works;

b/ To put real names or pen names in the works; to have real names or pen names mentioned when the works are publicized, used;

c/ To publicize or to permit other persons to publicize the works;

d/ To protect the integrity of the works, not to permit other persons to amend, garble or distort the works.

3. The property rights in copyright shall include the rights:

a/ To duplicate the works;

b/ To permit the creation of derivative works;

c/ To distribute, import the originals and copies of the works;

d/ To disseminate the works to the public;

e/ To lease the originals or copies of computer programs.

Article 739.- Time at which copyright arises and the effect of copyright

1. Copyright shall arise from the date a work is created and expressed in a given material form.

2. Personal rights in copyright shall exist indefinitely, except the right to publicize or to permit other persons to publicize the works as provided for by the law on intellectual property.

3. Property rights in copyright shall exist within the time limit specified by the law on intellectual property.

Article 740.- Owners of copyright

1. Personal rights belong to the authors.

2. In cases where works are created not on the basis of the performance of assigned tasks or job assignment contracts, the property rights shall belong to the authors.

3. In cases where works are created on the basis of the performance of assigned tasks or job assignment contracts, property rights shall belong to agencies or organizations which have assigned the tasks or the parties that have assigned the contractual jobs, unless otherwise agreed upon.

In cases where property rights do not belong to the authors, the authors shall have the right to receive remuneration or royalties to be paid by the property right owners in accordance with the law on intellectual property.

Article 741.- Division of rights of co-authors

In cases where a work is created by co-authors, in which each part created by each co-author can be separated for independent use, the provisions of Article 740 of this Code shall apply to each part of the work, which is used independently, unless otherwise agreed upon by the co-authors.

Article 742.- Transfer of copyright

1. Personal rights provided for at Points a, b and d, Clause 2, Article 738 of this Code cannot be transferred.

Personal rights specified at Point c, Clause 2, Article 738 of this Code can be transferred under the conditions set by the law on intellectual property.

2. Property rights can be transferred in whole or in part under contracts or be bequeathed, inherited.

Article 743.- Contracts for transfer of property rights in copyright

The transfer of part or whole of the property rights in copyright shall be effected on the contractual basis. The contracts for transfer of copyright must be made in writing.

Section 2. RIGHTS RELATED TO COPYRIGHT

Article 744.- Objects of copyright-related rights

Objects of copyright-related rights (hereinafter referred to as the related rights) shall include performances by performers; audio records, video records; broadcasts by broadcasting organizations and satellite signals carrying coded programs.

Article 745.- Owners and contents of the rights to performances

1. The rights to performances shall include personal rights of performers and property rights of investors for realization of the performances.

2. Personal rights of performers shall include the right to have their names mentioned in the performances or transmission of audio records, video records of the performances and the right to protect the integrity of the image of the performances.

3. Property rights of investors for realization of performances shall include the right to perform and to forbid other persons to perform the following acts:

a/ Audio recording, video recording the performances;

b/ Duplicating, distributing originals or copies of the audio records or video records of the performances;

c/ Broadcasting or transmitting in other ways the performances to the public.

Article 746.- Owners and contents of the rights to audio records, video records

1. The rights to audio records, video records shall belong to investors in the creation of such audio records or video records.

2. The rights to audio records, video records shall include the right to perform and to forbid other persons to perform the following acts:

a/ Duplicating in whole or part of the audio records, video records;

b/ Distributing, importing the originals or copies of the audio records, video records;

c/ Leasing the originals or copies of audio records, video records for commercial purposes.

Article 747.- Owners and contents of the rights to broadcasts

1. The rights to broadcasts shall belong to the broadcasting organi-zations.

2. The rights to broadcasts shall include the rights to perform or forbid other persons to perform the following acts:

a/ Recording, duplicating the records; broadcasting, re-broadcasting part or whole of a broadcast;

b/ Distributing the records or duplicates of the records of broadcasts.

Article 748.- Owners and contents of the rights to satellite signals carrying coded programs

1. The rights to satellite signals carrying coded programs shall belong to the persons who are the first to transmit the satellite signals carrying such coded programs.

2. The rights to satellite signals carrying coded programs shall include the rights to perform, to permit or forbid other persons to perform the following acts:

a/ Producing, assembling, modifying, importing, selling, leasing equipment or systems for decoding the coded satellite signals;

b/ Receiving, redistributing decoded signals when not so permitted by the holders of the rights to the coded satellite signals.

Article 749.- Transfer of related rights

1. Property rights in the related rights defined in Articles 745, 746, 747 and 748 of this Code can be transferred.

2. The transfer of related rights shall be made in writing under contracts.

Chapter XXXV

INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND THE RIGHTS TO PLANT VARIETIES

Article 750.- Objects of industrial property rights and the rights to plant varieties

1. Objects of industrial property rights shall include inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs, business secrets, trademarks, trade names, geographical indications.

2. Objects of the rights to plant varieties are propagating materials and plant varieties.

Article 751.- Contents of industrial property rights and the rights to plant varieties

1. Industrial property rights to inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs, and the rights to plant varieties shall include the personal rights and the property rights, which are provided for as follows:

a/ Personal rights to inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs, plant varieties shall belong to the persons who have directly created their inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs or plant varieties with their creative labor, including the right to be named as authors in the protection titles issued by the State, in documents publicizing or introducing such inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs or plant varieties;

b/ Property rights to inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs or plant varieties shall belong to owners of such objects, including the right to use, to permit or forbid other persons to use such inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs or plant varieties.

2. Industrial property rights to business secrets shall belong to the organizations or individuals that obtain the information to be lawfully formed into business secrets and keep confidential such information, including:

a/ Exploiting, using business secrets;

b/ Permitting or forbidding other persons to approach, use or disclose the business secrets.

3. Industrial property rights to trademarks or trade names shall belong to the owners of such trademarks or trade names, including:

a/ Using trademarks, trade names in business;

b/ Permitting or forbidding other persons to use trademarks which are so coincident or similar to the extent of causing confusion with their own trademarks; forbidding other persons to use trade names which cause confusion with their own business activities.

4. The rights to own geographical indications shall belong to the State. The rights to use geographical indications aiming to indicate origins, sources of products shall belong to organizations or individuals that satisfy the conditions set by the law on intellectual property.

5. The rights to fight unfair competition shall belong to organizations or individuals that conduct business activities under competitive conditions.

Article 752.- Bases for establishing industrial property rights and the rights to plant varieties

1. Industrial property rights to inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs, trademarks, geographical indications and the rights to plant varieties shall be established on the basis of decisions of competent state agencies when carrying out the registration of such objects in accordance with the provisions of law on intellectual property.

2. Industrial property rights to trade names shall be established on the basis of lawful use of such trade names.

3. Industrial property rights to business secrets shall be established on the basis of acquiring the information to be lawfully formed into business secrets and keeping confidential such information.

4. The rights to fight unfair competition shall be established on the basis of competitive activities in business.

Article 753.- Transfer of industrial property rights and the rights to plant varieties

1. Industrial property rights to inventions, industrial designs, semi-conductor integrated circuit layout designs, business secrets, trademarks, and the rights to plant varieties can be transferred in whole or in part under contracts or be bequeathed or inherited.

2. The rights to trade names can only be transferred together with the transfer of the entire business establishments and business activities under such trade names.

3. The rights to geographical indications must not be transferred.

4. For contracts on transfer of industrial property rights arising on the basis of registration, only when such contracts are registered shall they have the legal validity for a third party.

Chapter XXXVI

TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

Article 754.- Technology transfer rights

The following organizations and individuals shall be entitled to transfer the rights to use, the rights to own technologies:

1. Technology owners;

2. Organizations or individuals that are permitted by technology owners to transfer the right to use and the right to own the technology.

Article 755.- Objects of technology transfer

1. The objects of technology transfer shall include technical know-hows; technical knowledge of technology in the form of technological schemes, technical solutions, formulas, technical para-meters, technical diagrams or drawings, computer programs, data information on the transferred technologies; solutions to rationalization of production, technological renewal, exclusive business licensing and other objects specified by the law on technology transfer.

2. In cases where technology is an object entitled to intellectual property right protection, the transfer of such technology must be carried out simultanously with the transfer of intellectual property rights in accordance with the provisions of law on intellectual property.

Article 756.- Technologies which must not be transferred

1. Technologies which do not meet the provisions of law on labor safety, labor hygiene, assurance of people’s health and environmental protection.

2. Other cases specified by law.

Article 757.- Contracts for technology transfer

1. Technology transfer shall be carried out on the basis of written contracts.

2. Technology transfer contracts must be registered at competent state agencies, if so provided for by law.

3. The amendment, supplementation, extension, cancellation of technology transfer contracts must be made in written contracts; for technology transfer contracts defined in Clause 2 of this Article, the amendment, supplementation, extension, cancellation thereof must be registered at competent state agencies.

PART SEVEN

CIVIL RELATIONS INVOLVING FOREIGN ELEMENTS

Article 758.- Civil relations involving foreign elements

Civil relations involving foreign elements mean civil relations in which at least one party is a foreign agency, organization or individual or overseas Vietnamese or civil relations between the parties being Vietnamese citizens, organizations but the bases for establishing, altering or terminating those relations are foreign laws, arise overseas or assets related to such relations are located overseas.

Article 759.- Application of civil law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, treaties, foreign laws and international practices

1. The provisions of the civil law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall apply to civil relations involving foreign elements, unless otherwise provided for by this Code.

2. In cases where a treaty to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam has signed or acceded contains provisions different from the provisions of this Code, the provisions of such treaty shall apply.

3. In cases where the application of foreign laws is referred to by this Code and other legal documents of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam or by the treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party, such foreign laws shall apply, provided that such application or the consequence thereof is not contrary to the basic principles of the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; in cases where such foreign laws refer back to the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, then the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall apply.

Foreign laws shall also apply in cases where the parties have so agreed upon in contracts, if such agreement is not contrary to the provisions of this Code and other legal documents of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

4. In cases where the civil relations involving foreign elements are not governed by this Code and other legal documents of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party or civil contracts between the parties, the international practices shall apply, provided that such application or the consequence thereof is not contrary to the basic principles of the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 760.- Bases for the application of laws to stateless persons or foreigners with two or more foreign nationalities

1. In cases where this Code or other legal documents of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam refer to the application of the laws of foreign countries of which the foreigners are citizens, the laws applicable to stateless persons shall be the laws of the countries where such persons permanently reside; if such persons have no permanent residences, the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall apply.

2. In cases where this Code or other legal documents of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam refer to the application of laws of countries of which the foreigners are citizens, the laws applicable to foreigners with two or more nationalities shall be the laws of the countries of which such persons bear the nationalities and where they reside at the time when the civil relations arise; if such persons do not reside in one of the countries of which they bear the nationalities, the laws of the countries of which such persons bear their respective nationalities and have the closest relations regarding the civil rights and duties shall apply.

Article 761.- Civil legal capacity of foreigners

1. The civil legal capacity of a foreigner shall be determined according to the law of the country of which he/she bears the nationality.

2. Foreigners shall have the civil legal capacity in Vietnam as Vietnamese citizens, except in cases where the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam otherwise provides for.

Article 762.- Civil act capacity of foreigners

1. The civil act capacity of a foreigner shall be determined according to the law of the country where he/she is a citizen, except in cases where the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam otherwise provides for.

2. In cases where a foreigner establishes and/or performs civil transactions in Vietnam, his/her civil act capacity shall be determined according to the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 763.- Determination of persons as having no, having lost or having been restricted in, civil act capacity

1. The determination of persons as having no, having lost or having been restricted in, civil act capacity must comply with the laws of the countries of which such persons bear the nationalities.

2. In cases where foreigners reside in Vietnam, the determination of such persons as having no, having lost or having been restricted in, civil act capacity must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 764.- Determination of persons as missing or dead

1. The determination of a person as missing or dead must comply with the law of the country of which such person bears the nationality at the time before acquiring the last information on his/her missing or death.

2. In cases where a foreigner resides in Vietnam, the determination of such person as missing or dead must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 765.- Civil legal capacity of foreign legal persons

1. The civil legal capacity of a foreign legal person shall be determined according to the law of the country where such foreign legal person has been established, except for the case specified in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. In cases where a foreign legal person establishes and/or performs civil transactions in Vietnam, the civil legal capacity of such foreign legal person shall be determined in accordance with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 766.- Property ownership rights

1. The establishment, implementation, alteration and termination of property ownership rights and the contents of such rights shall be determined according to the law of the country where such property is located, except for the cases specified in Clauses 2 and 4 of this Article.

2. The ownership rights to movable property on the way of transportation shall be determined according to the law of the country of destination, unless otherwise agreed upon.

3. The differentiation between movable and immovable property shall be deter-mined in accordance with the law of the country where such property is located.

4. The determination of the ownership rights to civil aircraft and sea-going vessels in Vietnam must comply with the law on civil aviation and the maritime law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 767.- At-law inheritance involving foreign elements

1. The inheritance at law must comply with the laws of the countries of which the estate leavers bear the nationalities before their death.

2. The inheritance rights to immovables must comply with the laws of the countries where such immovables are located.

3. Heirless estates being immovables shall belong to the States of the countries where such immovables are located.

4. Heirless estates being movables shall belong to the States of the countries of which the estate leavers bear the nationalities.

Article 768.- Testamentary inheritance

1. The capacity to make, change and cancel testaments must comply with the laws of the countries where the testators are citizens.

2. Forms of testament must comply with the laws of the countries where the testaments are made.

Article 769.- Civil contracts

1. The rights and obligations of the parties to a civil contract shall be determined in accordance with the law of the country where the contract is performed, unless otherwise agreed upon.

A civil contract entered into and performed entirely in Vietnam must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

In cases where a civil contract does not specify the place of performance, the determination of the place of performance of the contract must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

2. Civil contracts relating to immovables in Vietnam must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 770.- Forms of civil contract

1. Forms of a contract must comply with the law of the country where the contract is entered into. Where a contract is entered into in a foreign country, which violates the regulations on contractual forms under the law of that country but is not contrary to the contractual form provided for by the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the form of the contract entered into in the foreign country shall still be recognized in Vietnam.

2. The forms of contracts related to the construction of works or transfer of ownership rights to works, houses and other immovables in the Vietnamese territory must comply with the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 771.- Civil contracts entered in absentia

In cases where a contract is entered in absentia, the determination of the place where the contract is entered into must comply with the law of the country where the individual resides or where the legal person is headquartered, that has proposed the entry into the contract.

The time for entry into a contract in absentia shall be determined in accordance with the law of the party proposing the entry into the contract if this party receives the reply of acceptance from the party to which the entry is proposed.

Article 772.- Unilateral civil transactions

In unilateral civil transactions, the rights and obligations of the party that voluntarily performs the unilateral civil transactions shall be determined in accordance with the law of the country where such party resides or conducts principal operations.

Article 773.- Compensation for damage outside contract

1. Compensation for damage outside contract shall be determined in accordance with the law of the country where the act causing such damage takes place or where the actual consequences of such act arise.

2. Compensation for damage caused by an aircraft flying in international airspace or by a sea-going ship sailing in international waters shall be determined in accordance with the law of the country of which such aircraft or ship bears the nationality, unless otherwise provided for by the maritime or aviation law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

3. In cases where the act causing damage occurs outside the territory of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the person who causes the damage and the victim are both Vietnamese citizens or legal persons, the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam shall apply.

Article 774.- Copyright involving foreign elements

The copyright of foreign individuals and/or legal persons over the work that is publicized and disseminated for the first time in Vietnam, or created and performed in a certain form in Vietnam, shall be protected under the provisions of the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party.

Article 775.- Industrial property rights and the rights to plant varieties, which involve foreign elements

Industrial property rights or the rights to plant varieties of foreign individuals or legal persons to the objects of industrial property rights or objects of the rights to plant varieties that have been granted protection titles or recognized by the Vietnamese State shall be protected under the provisions of the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a contracting party.

Article 776.- Technology transfer involving foreign elements

Technology transfer between Vietnamese individuals or legal persons and foreign individuals or legal persons, and technology transfer from any foreign country into Vietnam and from Vietnam to any foreign country, must comply with the provisions of this Code and other legal documents of Vietnam on techno-logy transfer and with treaties to which Vietnam is a contracting party or the laws of the foreign countries, if the application or the consequence thereof is not contrary to the basic principles of the law of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Article 777.- Statute of limitations for lawsuits

The statute of limitations for lawsuits regarding civil relations involving foreign elements shall be determined in accordance with the laws of the countries which are applied to the corresponding civil relations involving foreign elements.

This Code was passed on June 14, 2005, by the 10Ith National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, at its 7th session.