The VPA legality definition itself sets out the core requirements of legislation applicable to timber in Vietnam in the form of principles, criteria and verifiers. All elements of the legality definition need to be complied with in order for the timber to be considered to have been legally produced. The VPA legality definition is divided into two sections: one for ‘organisations’ (operators registered as a business, including private, state-owned and cooperatives) and one for ‘households’ (including domestic households, individuals and village communities).
Each section of the legality definition includes seven principles:
- Principle I: Harvesting of domestic timber complies with regulations on land use rights, forest use rights, management, environment and society
- Principle II: Compliance with regulations on handling confiscated timber
- Principle III: Compliance with regulations on importing timber
- Principle IV: Compliance with regulations on timber transportation and trade
- Principle V: Compliance with regulations on timber processing
- Principle VI: Compliance with regulations on export
- Principle VII (Organisations): Compliance with regulations on tax and labour; and Principle VII (Households): Compliance with regulations on tax.
To comply with the legality definition and show that their timber has been legally produced, ‘organisations’ and ‘households’ shall comply with all the applicable indicators under the seven principles.
Learn more about LD from the video below:
Download file: Timber Legality Definition