The National Assembly has passed the Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Geology and Minerals. This Law takes effect from the beginning of January 2026.
The law stipulates that rare earths are special strategic minerals. Research, assessment, exploration, exploitation, processing and use of rare earths must comply with the national strategy on rare earths and rare earth planning.
Rare land must be protected, exploited, and used reasonably, economically, and effectively associated with the requirements of sustainable socio-economic development, ensuring national defense and security of the country.
The State prioritizes investing and organizing the implementation of geological surveys, assessments, and exploration of rare earths.
Regarding the exploration, exploitation, and processing of rare earths, it must be strictly controlled; no export of rare earth minerals; only enterprises and organizations designated or licensed by the State are entitled to explore, exploit, process and use rare earths.
Deep processing of rare earths must be associated with building a modern industrial ecosystem to enhance the domestic value chain, ensuring autonomy in implementing the national strategy on rare earths.
Information and geological data, rare earth minerals must be built synchronously, managed centrally and uniformly, and exploited and used effectively.
The State encourages international cooperation in research, transfer, and development of technology for exploiting, selecting, separating, and deeply processing rare earths to serve the development of the domestic rare earth industry.
Supporting the training of high-quality human resources, meeting the requirements of expertise, technology and technology in the chain of activities of geological survey, assessment, exploration, exploitation, deep processing of rare earths, application and management of rare earths.
The State has policies to reserve and protect rare earths, regulate the export and import of rare earths in each period in accordance with the goals of sustainable socio-economic development and ensuring resource security.
Regarding the reserve and protection of rare earth minerals, the Law stipulates that the rare earth mineral reserve area is an area with rare earth minerals but not yet exploited, which needs to be protected and determined based on the results of mineral geological surveys, and the results of rare earth mineral exploration.
