Environmental impact assessment permit application services

1. Why is an environmental impact assessment necessary?

Environmental impact assessment (EIA; abbreviated in Vietnamese as ĐTM) is the analysis, assessment and forecasting of the environmental impacts of an investment project or plan, together with measures to mitigate the negative impacts.

This is an important point because the competent authorities and organisations rely on this report to assess and decide whether or not the project is allowed to proceed.

2. Legal basis & authorities appraising environmental impact assessments

The preparation and appraisal of EIA reports must comply with the legal documents currently in force. As of 2025, the main documents include:

• • Law on Environmental Protection No. 72/2020/QH14 issued on 17 November 2020
  • Government Decree No. 08/2022/ND-CP of 10 January 2022 detailing a number of articles of the Law on Environmental Protection.
  • Circular No. 02/2022/TT-BTNMT of 10 January 2022 of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Environmental Protection.

The authorities competent to appraise EIA reports are clearly specified in Article 35 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, including:

• • Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment: appraises Group I investment projects (with a high risk of adverse environmental impact) and projects located in 02 or more provincial-level administrative units.
  • Provincial People’s Committee: appraises investment projects in its province that do not fall under the authority of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
  • Ministry of National Defence and Ministry of Public Security: appraise investment projects classified as state secrets in national defence and security.

3. Projects required to prepare an environmental impact assessment (EIA) report

Under Article 30 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020, the projects required to carry out an environmental impact assessment (EIA) fall into 2 groups

Group I investment projects: Projects with a high risk of adverse environmental impact, as specified in Clause 3, Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020. These include:

• • Projects in production, business or service types with a risk of causing environmental pollution at a large scale or capacity; projects providing hazardous waste treatment services; projects importing scrap from abroad as production materials;
  • Projects in production, business or service types with a risk of causing environmental pollution at a medium scale or capacity but with environmentally sensitive factors; projects not in production, business or service types with a risk of causing environmental pollution, at a large scale or capacity but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects using land, land with water surface or sea areas at a large scale, or at a medium scale but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects exploiting minerals or water resources at a large scale or capacity, or at a medium scale or capacity but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects requiring land-use conversion at a medium scale or above but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects requiring large-scale relocation and resettlement.

Group II investment projects: Projects with a risk of adverse environmental impact (not in Group I) but in production, business or service types that generate waste, as specified in Points c, d, dd and e, Clause 4, Article 28 of the Law on Environmental Protection 2020.

• • Projects using land, land with water surface or sea areas at a medium scale, or at a small scale but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects exploiting minerals or water resources at a medium scale or capacity, or at a small scale or capacity but with environmentally sensitive factors;
  • Projects requiring land-use conversion at a small scale but with environmentally sensitive factors; projects requiring medium-scale relocation and resettlement.

(The detailed lists of project types in Groups I and II are set out in Appendices III, IV and V issued with Decree 08/2022/ND-CP).

4. What does the appraisal dossier include?

The dossier requesting appraisal of the EIA report, submitted to the competent state authority, includes the following main documents:

• • 01 written request for appraisal of the EIA report, following Form No. 04, Appendix II issued with Circular 02/2022/TT-BTNMT;
  • 01 copy of the feasibility study report or economic-technical report of the investment project, or equivalent documents;
  • 01 official copy of the EIA report, bound, signed and sealed. The project owner also submits 01 electronic file of the report (*.doc and *.pdf formats). Additional paper copies may be required depending on the appraisal authority.

5. Main contents of an environmental impact assessment report

The main contents of an EIA report must fully present the information required by regulations, including:

• • Origin of the investment project, the project owner and the competent approving authority; legal and technical bases; environmental impact assessment methods applied.
  • Assessment of the project’s conformity with the national environmental protection master plan, regional planning, provincial planning and other legal provisions on environmental protection.
  • Assessment of the technology, works items and activities of the project that may adversely affect the environment.
  • Natural, socio-economic and biodiversity conditions; assessment of the current environmental status in the project area.
  • Assessment and forecasting of the main environmental impacts and the waste generated in each phase of the project; scale and characteristics of the waste; impacts on natural heritage and historical-cultural relics; impacts of site clearance, relocation and resettlement.
  • Works and measures for collecting, storing and treating waste.
  • Other measures to mitigate the project’s negative impacts on the environment; the environmental remediation and restoration plan and the environmental incident prevention and response plan.
  • Environmental management and monitoring programme; results of community consultation; conclusions, recommendations and commitments of the investor.

(The structure and detailed contents of the EIA report must follow Form No. 03 in Appendix II issued with Circular 02/2022/TT-BTNMT).

6. CONSULTING SERVICE FOR PREPARING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) REPORTS

NGO International Co., Ltd provides consulting and environmental impact assessment report preparation services quickly and accurately. We have extensive experience cooperating and working with many partners, with a strong reputation and on-schedule delivery.

If your business needs to prepare or learn more about an environmental impact assessment (EIA) report, please contact us by phone: +84 24 7300 0890 or email office@8ngo.com.