An FDI manufacturer in Quang Nam decides to add a new product line and expand project scale by 40 percent. This article walks the full objectives-and-scale adjustment dossier: where to file, which document is central, what the implementation report must prove, and why the new line cannot be installed before the adjusted IRC issues.
Applicable Legal Framework
Adjusting objectives and scale is a standard investment project adjustment under the Investment Law 143/2025/QH15 and Decree 96/2026/ND-CP: the investor files for IRC adjustment at the registration agency that issued the IRC (provincial Department of Finance or the park management board), with a report on project implementation up to the adjustment date. Where the project is under investment policy approval, changing objectives or scale may first require a policy-adjustment approval at the competent level.
The adjustment dossier does not stand alone: larger scale usually re-triggers land demand assessment, environmental review (EIA or supplementary environmental licence under the Law on Environmental Protection 72/2020/QH14), fire design appraisal for the expansion and funding of the added capital through the ICA account. The registration agency appraises these elements together before issuing the adjusted IRC.
Detailed Answers to Practical Questions
Where do we file to change project objectives and scale?
At the registration agency that issued the project’s IRC: the provincial Department of Finance for projects outside parks, or the industrial/economic zone management board for in-park projects. File via the one-stop desk or the local investment online service system. Wrong addressee is the simplest reason dossiers are returned – confirm which agency currently manages your project file, especially for projects near park management boundaries.
What does the objectives adjustment dossier include?
Central are the written adjustment request (current contents, proposed changes, reasons) and the project implementation report up to the adjustment date (capital implemented, progress, land, labour). Attach: the investor’s decision on the adjustment; financial capacity evidence for the added capital; land documents for the expanded scale; environmental files matching the new scale; and the IRC original or copy as intake requires. A missing implementation report is the commonest ground for supplementation requests.
How long does adjustment processing take?
Under the procedural framework of the Investment Law 143/2025/QH15 and Decree 96/2026/ND-CP for each adjustment type, with specific timelines notified at intake; dossiers needing supplementation or explanation extend by the time the enterprise takes to complete them. Build internal timelines on the receiving agency’s appointment slip and supplement early, rather than expecting one fixed day-count for all cases – especially for large scale changes needing multiple sector opinions.
While waiting, can we start implementing the new scale?
No. The new scale and objectives may be implemented only after the adjusted IRC issues (plus related licences for the expansion). Starting early – installing lines, building workshops for the new objective – is implementing unadjusted contents, fined under Decree 122/2021/ND-CP and potentially ordered to stop or dismantle. Activities under the current IRC continue normally during the wait.
Action Checklist
- Confirm the registration agency managing the project before drafting the dossier.
- Prepare an implementation report updated to the latest month: capital, progress, land, labour, compliance.
- Prepare financial evidence for the added capital and land documents for the expanded scale.
- Assess environmental and fire duties of the expansion early so they run in parallel with the IRC file.
- Freeze implementation of the new part until the adjusted IRC and related licences issue.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does adjusting objectives cost us current investment incentives?
Incentives follow the legal basis at grant and the conditions attached to the project; changing objectives or scale may change incentive conditions for the changed part. Ask the registration agency to confirm the post-adjustment incentive scope during appraisal.
What period must the implementation report cover?
Up to the nearest date before filing, consistent with the latest investment activity report filed; divergence between the two documents is the first thing appraisal finds, so synchronise figures before filing.
What differs for policy-approved projects adjusting scale?
An extra step: adjust the investment policy approval at the approving level (or corresponding authority) before the IRC adjustment; the sequence is longer and requires justification of the new scale’s impacts at policy level.
This article has been quality-reviewed by the FLAW AI Legal Council