Decree 207/2026/ND-CP: Allocation of Responsibility for Quality Management, Construction and Maintenance of Building Works

01Scope and core principles

Under Article 1, the decree details: types of building works; completion dossiers; commencement of construction; requirements for the construction site; safety during construction; demolition of works; construction incidents; quality management and acceptance; handover of works; warranty; maintenance; and suspension of the operation and use of works.

02Responsibility allocation by project management model

Article 5 sets out specific responsibilities for each organisational model:

• In-house project management board: the project owner assigns tasks in writing; the management board is liable before the law and the project owner for the assigned work (Clause 1).
• Hiring a project management / construction supervision consultant: the project owner supervises contract performance; the consultant is liable for the work under the contract (Clause 2).
• PPP projects: the PPP project enterprise performs the responsibilities of the project owner (Clause 3).
• EPC / turnkey contracts: the EPC/turnkey contractor is responsible for organising quality and safety management for its own and its subcontractors' work; the project owner is responsible for checking, urging and organising completion acceptance (Clauses 4, 5, Article 5).
• Contractor joint venture: each joint-venture member must establish its own construction management system and is liable for its own work under the joint-venture agreement (Clause 6, Article 5).

03Responsibilities of the Project Owner (Article 16)

Article 16 sets out 20 groups of project owner responsibilities in construction management. The key items include:

• Handing over the site consistent with the construction schedule and the construction contract (Clause 1).
• Organising construction supervision as set out in Clause 1, Article 20 (Clause 2).
• Establishing a construction management system; deploying sufficient supervision personnel; the safety manager must be trained in occupational safety or construction engineering (Clause 3).
• Checking and approving the overall and detailed construction schedule (Clause 4).
• Checking and confirming acceptance quantities (Clause 5).
• Organising counter-check testing and quality inspection under Article 8 (Clause 9).
• Organising acceptance under Clause 6 Article 14, and Articles 22, 23, 24 (Clause 10).
• Organising the compilation of the completion dossier under Article 28 (Clause 11).
• Suspending or halting construction where quality or safety is not ensured, or where there is a risk of a labour accident (Clause 12).
• Sending the construction completion report to the competent acceptance-inspection authority under Clauses 4, 5, Article 27 (Clause 15).

04Responsibilities of the Construction Supervision Consultant (Article 20)

The content of construction supervision is detailed in Clause 1, Article 20, comprising 13 items (points a–m), notably:

• Checking the contractor's capacity against its bid dossier and the construction contract (point a).
• Checking and approving materials, components, construction products and equipment used for the works (point d).
• Supervising compliance with construction safety management rules; supervising safety measures for adjacent works and structural monitoring (point dd).
• Requesting the project owner to arrange design adjustments upon detecting errors or inconsistencies (point g).
• Requiring the contractor to suspend construction where quality or construction methods do not ensure safety (point h).

On acceptance of construction work, Clause 3, Article 22 requires the supervisor to carry out acceptance within no more than 24 hours of receiving the contractor's acceptance request; if acceptance is refused, the reason must be given in writing.

For works funded by public investment / the state budget, Clause 5, Article 20 requires the supervision organisation to be independent of the contractor and of material and equipment suppliers, and it may not participate in quality inspection of works it itself supervises.

05Responsibilities of the Construction Contractor (Article 15)

Article 15 lists 18 groups of contractor responsibilities, the key items being:

• Establishing and notifying the construction management system, clearly stating the organisational chart and the responsibility of each individual (commander/project director, technical staff, safety officers) (Clause 2).
• Preparing and submitting for the project owner's approval: the testing/inspection/acceptance plan, quality control measures, construction and safety-assurance measures, and the construction schedule (Clause 3).
• Promptly notifying the project owner upon detecting discrepancies between the design dossier / contract and actual site conditions (Clause 8).
• Halting construction upon detecting quality defects or a risk of a labour accident; remedying consequences before resuming (Clause 9).
• Keeping the construction diary and as-built drawings under Appendix II (Clause 13).
• The main contractor is responsible for checking the work performed by subcontractors (Clause 11).

06Author supervision by the Design Consultant (Article 21)

The design contractor is responsible for author supervision, including: explaining and clarifying design documents on request; coordinating to resolve design issues and inconsistencies; promptly notifying and recommending remedies upon detecting construction that deviates from the approved design; and participating in acceptance of the works (Clause 2, Article 21). If an item or work is found not to qualify for acceptance, the design contractor must give timely written comments to the project owner (point d, Clause 2).

07Acceptance of building works

For works subject to acceptance inspection under Clause 1, Article 25 (nationally important projects, large-scale/technically complex works under Appendix IX, or works with a major impact on public safety/interest), Clause 3, Article 27 provides that the specialised construction authority carries out inspection no more than 3 times for special-grade and grade-I works, and no more than 2 times for other works during construction. The deadline for issuing the completion acceptance inspection notice is no more than 16 working days (grade I, special grade) or 12 working days (other works) from receipt of a complete dossier (Clause 4, Article 27).

08Warranty of building works

Article 32 provides that the contractor and the equipment supplier are responsible for the warranty of the work they perform. Minimum warranty periods and amounts under Clauses 5, 7, Article 32:

Repair work performed during maintenance must be warranted for no less than 6 months (works of grade II and below) or no less than 12 months (works of grade I and above), with a warranty amount of no less than 5% of the contract value (Clause 5, Article 38).

09Maintenance of building works

Responsibility for preparing and approving the maintenance procedure is set out in Clause 2, Article 34: the design contractor prepares and hands over the maintenance procedure to the project owner together with the design dossier (point a); the equipment supplier prepares the maintenance procedure for its supplied equipment (point b); and the project owner organises the preparation and approval of the maintenance procedure (point d).

The content of periodic safety assessment is set out in Article 40: checking and assessing the working capacity of the main load-bearing structure and of parts of the works at risk of losing safety, applying the technical standards and regulations in force at the time of assessment.

10Construction incidents

Under Article 45, immediately after an incident, the project owner must notify the commune-level People's Committee at the incident location by the fastest means; within 24 hours it must report in writing to the provincial People's Committee (Clause 2). For incidents involving loss of life, the project owner must report to the Ministry of Construction and other relevant competent state authorities.

Assessment of the cause of a construction incident is carried out under Article 47, presided over by the specialised construction ministry or the provincial People's Committee, through an Incident Investigation Team (Clauses 1, 2).

This article is compiled based on the content of Decree No. 207/2026/ND-CP dated 15 June 2026 of the Government. It is intended for professional reference only and does not replace the original legal document. For advice on specific application to your project, please contact VIETSAFE E&C.