Decree No. 04/1999/NĐ-CP on Fees and Charges Belonging to the State Budget

DECREE OF THE GOVERNMENT

Regarding fees and charges under the State budget

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Government Organization Law dated September 30, 1992;

Based on the Law on State Budget dated March 20, 1996 and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of the State Budget Law No. 06/1998/QH10 dated May 20, 1998;

To strengthen and unify the management of fees and charges for the State budget;

At the proposal of the Minister of Finance,

DECREE:

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1.This Decree stipulates fees and charges under the State budget, including:

1. Fees collected to serve public service activities, public activities, or public interests that are not commercial in nature at the request of organizations or individuals;

2. Charges collected to serve administrative management activities of the State according to the provisions of the law or at the request of organizations or individuals.

Article 2. Fees and charges under the State budget (hereinafter referred to as fees and charges) defined in this Decree shall be understood as follows:

1. Fees are revenues prescribed by the State to offset part of the costs of the State budget for investment in construction, purchase, maintenance, and management of assets, resources, or national sovereignty to serve the activities of organizations or individuals in public services, public activities, or public interests that are not commercial in nature at their request;   

2. Charges are revenues prescribed by the State to collect from organizations or individuals for the State to serve administrative management activities of the State according to their request or as provided by law.

Article 3. This Decree does not apply to:

1. Fees and charges related to social welfare, such as social insurance fees, health insurance fees, labor insurance fees, and other types of insurance fees directly serving the social welfare needs of contributors and the community, managed according to other laws;

2. Fees (or monthly or annual contributions) collected according to the regulations of political organizations, political-social organizations, social organizations, and occupational social organizations;

3. Fees for goods and services provided by organizations or individuals engaged in production, construction, transportation, trade, catering, services, and other business activities (including the selling price of goods and services and additional charges included in the selling price of goods and services), managed according to the pricing policy prescribed by the State;

4. Collections from organizations and individuals for the purpose of building infrastructure, public works, and other public utilities as prescribed by law;

5. Voluntary contributions for charitable purposes or sponsorship for cultural, sports, and mass movement activities that are not commercial in nature.

When organizations or individuals (including production, business, and service units) collect fees and charges under the State budget, they must manage them according to the provisions of this Decree.

Unauthorized fundraising will be handled according to the provisions of this Decree.

Article 4.Organizations or individuals served by the State in public service activities, public activities, public interests, or administrative management activities of the State as prescribed by law as objects of fee and charge collection must pay fees and charges according to the provisions of this Decree.

Where international treaties to which Vietnam is a party provide for fees and charges differently from this Decree, the provisions of those international treaties shall apply.

The competent authority issuing the revenue collection and payment system for fees and charges shall specify the payers and non-payers of fees and charges prescribed in this Article.

Article 5.Only agencies and organizations prescribed by law to have the task of collecting fees and charges may collect such fees and charges, including:

1. State Tax Authority;

2. Agencies and organizations managing and using materials, assets, resources, or national sovereignty for public services, communal activities, or administrative management tasks of the state as prescribed by law to collect fees and charges;

Strictly prohibited are any organizations or individuals from collecting fees and charges contrary to the provisions of this Decree.

Chapter II

STATE MANAGEMENT OF FEES AND CHARGES

Article 6. The contents of state management of fees and charges include:

1. Issuing legal normative documents on fees and charges;

2. Organizing the implementation and guiding the implementation of laws on fees and charges;

3. Inspecting and auditing the implementation of laws on fees and charges;

4. Examining and resolving violations of laws, complaints, and denunciations regarding fees and charges;

5. Abolishing, suspending the enforcement of fees and charges that are inconsistent with the law or issued contrary to the law.

Article 7.State management of fees and charges:

1. The Government uniformly manages state affairs concerning fees and charges;

2. The Ministry of Finance implements state management of fees and charges, responsible for submitting to the Government for resolution or resolving within its authority the contents of state management of fees and charges stipulated in Article 6 of this Decree;

3.Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).Provincial People's Committees implement state management of fees and charges within their localities, responsible for advising the Provincial People's Councils to issue resolutions on the policy of collecting fees and charges at the local level and implementing the contents of state management of fees and charges within the authority to issue regulations at the local level;

4. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and People's Committees at all levels are responsible for coordinating with the Ministry of Finance and provincial People's Committees to perform state management functions concerning fees and charges within their duties and powers;

Article 8.Authority to issue legal normative documents regulating fees and charges:

1. The Government shall promulgate a list of types of fees and charges outside those types already specified by the National Assembly and the Standing Committee of the National Assembly in Laws and Ordinances; Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).In the course of implementation, if it is necessary to amend or supplement, then the ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies (hereinafter referred to as "Ministry"), and provincial People's Committees (hereinafter referred to as "province") shall propose to the Ministry of Finance for the Ministry of Finance to compile and submit to the Government for consideration and decision;

Based on current relevant Laws and Ordinances, the Government shall promulge along with this Decree a unified list of fee and charge items applicable throughout the country. The Ministry of Finance shall guide the scope of application of each type of fee and charge in the list promulgated along with this Decree;

Strictly prohibited are any organizations or individuals from establishing collection systems and organizing the collection of fee and charge types not included in the list prescribed in this clause;

2. The authority to issue documents regulating the collection, payment, and use of fees and charges is divided as follows:

a) The Government shall establish the system for the collection, payment, and use of certain types of fees and charges with large revenue sources, centralized, and implemented nationwide;

b) The Ministry of Finance shall lead and coordinate with related ministries and sectors to establish the system for the collection, payment, and use of fees and charges uniformly applied throughout the country (regardless of central or local agencies organizing the collection), types of fees and charges collected in some provinces and cities;

After having a resolution on the policy of collecting fees and charges from the Provincial People's Council, the Provincial People's Committee shall establish the system for the collection, payment, and use of fees and charges within the local scope and by agencies under the province (including districts and communes) organizing the collection (except for types of fees and charges already established by the Government or the Ministry of Finance according to points a and b of Clause 2 of this Article);

c)Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).The agency issuing the system for the collection, payment, and use of fees and charges prescribed in points b and c of Clause 2 of this Article must report the issuance decision to the Government and the Ministry of Finance for reporting. The Ministry of Finance is responsible for monitoring and compiling the fees and charges issued by the Provincial People's Committee; if any case of issuance contrary to the provisions of this Decree and related documents is discovered, it must be reported to the Government for handling or the Ministry of Finance for handling within its authority;

Agencies authorized to issue the system for the collection, payment, and use of each type of fee and charge prescribed in this clause shall not delegate this authority to other agencies or lower levels. REGIME FOR THE COLLECTION AND PAYMENT OF FEES AND CHARGES

The amount of fees and charges is set as a fixed amount or as a percentage (%) of the value of capital, assets, goods, based on necessary costs, nature, characteristics of each type of public service activity, communal activity, administrative management task of the state, and economic and social conditions during each period, taking into account regional features and international practices.

Chapter III

Organizations and individuals paying fees and charges in Vietnam must pay in Vietnamese Dong. If the law stipulates the amount of fees and charges in foreign currency, they can be paid in foreign currency or converted into Vietnamese Dong based on the inter-bank foreign exchange rate published by the State Bank of Vietnam at the time of payment; organizations and individuals paying fees and charges abroad must pay in the local currency or in US dollars.

Article 9. Organizations and individuals collecting fees and charges must issue receipts for fees and charges as prescribed by the Ministry of Finance to the payer.

Article 10.Organizations and individuals paying fees and charges must request the collector to provide them with receipts for fees and charges as prescribed by the Ministry of Finance.

Article 11.Strictly prohibited are any organizations or individuals from collecting or paying fees and charges without using or using receipts not in accordance with the Ministry of Finance's regulations.

Revenue from the collection of fees and charges is managed and used as follows:

1. When collecting fees and charges, the agency collecting fees and charges must deposit the collected money into the State Treasury where the agency is located, following the guidance of the Ministry of Finance;

Article 12.2. All revenue from the collection of fees and charges prescribed in this Decree must be fully reflected in the state budget. To facilitate the agency collecting fees and charges in performing its assigned tasks, the revenue from the collection of fees and charges is managed and used as follows:

1.The fee and stamp duty collection agency, upon collecting fees and stamp duties,must deposit them into the State Treasury at the location where the collectionagency is headquartered, in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry ofFinance;

2.All funds collected from fees and stamp duties, as prescribed by this Decree, mustbe fully reflected in the state budget. To facilitate the fee and stamp dutycollection agencies in proactively performing their assigned tasks, the collectedfees and stamp duties shall be managed and utilized as follows:

a) For types of fees and charges where the collecting agency does not incur costs for the collection activities related to such fees and charges or these expenses have already been covered by the state budget for the collecting agency according to the annual budget estimate, the collecting agency must remit the entire amount of fees and charges collected into the state budget.

In cases where agencies and organizations are entrusted with the collection of fees and charges outside their regular functions and duties, the agency or organization directly collecting the fees and charges shall be entitled to a fee allowance extracted at a certain percentage (%) from the amount of fees and charges collected to cover the costs of organizing the collection of such fees and charges according to the general regime of the State, without increasing the level of fees and charges to collect additional amounts.

b) For types of fees and charges where the collecting agency incurs costs for the collection activities but these expenses are not covered by the state budget according to the annual budget estimate, the agency directly collecting the fees and charges may retain part of the amount of fees and charges collected to cover the costs of organizing the collection of such fees and charges according to the specific regulations on the collection, payment, and use of fees and charges (excluding investment construction costs and non-recurring expenses managed under separate regimes); the remainder must be fully remitted into the state budget.

The Ministry of Finance shall provide guidance on the retention and use of revenue from the collection of fees and charges as stipulated in this Clause.

3. Revenue from fees and charges belonging to the state budget as prescribed in this Decree is exempt from tax.

Article 13.Registration, declaration, payment, settlement of fees and charges:

1. Agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges must register the collection and payment of fees and charges with the Tax Authority directly managing them in accordance with the Tax Authority's guidelines. For agencies and organizations starting to collect fees and charges, the registration period for the collection and payment of fees and charges must be completed no later than ten days from the date of commencement of the collection of fees and charges; in cases of change, termination, or suspension of the collection of fees and charges, they must report to the Tax Authority no later than five days before the change.

2. Agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges must declare fees and charges monthly and submit the declaration form to the Tax Authority within the first five days of the following month. Agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges must declare fully and accurately according to the prescribed declaration form and bear responsibility for the accuracy of the declaration.

3. Agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges must remit the collected fees and charges into the state budget fully and on time as notified by the Tax Authority.

The Tax Authority shall specify the deadline for each agency and organization collecting fees and charges to remit the collected fees and charges into the state budget within the month following the collection, no later than the 15th day of the following month.

Agencies and organizations must remit the collected fees and charges into the state budget in Vietnamese dong; in cases where laws prescribe the collection of fees and charges in foreign currency, they must remit the fees and charges in foreign currency into the state budget. Specifically, agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges abroad must remit the collected fees and charges into the state budget in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance.

4. Agencies and organizations collecting fees and charges must settle accounts annually (based on the Gregorian calendar) with the Tax Authority, submit the annual settlement report on fees and charges to the Tax Authority before the end of February of the following year, and must pay any outstanding fees and charges into the state budget within ten days from the date of submission of the settlement report; if there is an overpayment, it can be deducted from the fees and charges payable in the next period.

5.Provincial People's Committees set specific pricesThe fees and charges remitted into the state budget are allocated among different levels of the budget in accordance with the current State Budget Law.

Chapter IV

DUTIES, RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

OF THE AGENCIES COLLECTING FEES AND CHARGES AND THE TAX AUTHORITY

Article 14. Agencies and organizations authorized to collect fees and charges have the following duties, rights, and responsibilities:

1. To organize the collection of fees and charges in accordance with the provisions of the law and publicly announce the legal provisions on fees and charges at the place of collection;

2. To notify the fee and charge payers of the amount of fees and charges to be paid and the payment deadlines in accordance with the law; if the payer fails to pay the fees and charges as required by the law, the agency has the right to refuse service or meet the corresponding benefits requested by the payer; if the payer intentionally evades paying the fees and charges, in addition to collecting the full amount of fees and charges as prescribed, they will also be subject to administrative penalties or the case file will be transferred to the competent authority for handling in accordance with the law;

3. To register and declare fees and charges to the Tax Authority in accordance with the regulations of the Ministry of Finance;

4. To remit the full amount of fees and charges and fines into the state budget on time as directed by the Tax Authority;

5. To strictly comply with accounting, invoices, and vouchers as prescribed by the law; to provide accounting books, financial reports, invoices, and vouchers related to the management of fees and charges upon request of the Tax Authority and the competent authority.

Article 15. In addition to the duties, rights, and responsibilities stipulated in Article 14 of this Decree for the types of fees and charges assigned to the Tax Authority to directly organize the collection, the Tax Authority also has the following duties, rights, and responsibilities:

1. To guide and urge agencies collecting fees and charges to properly declare, collect, pay, maintain accounting records and vouchers, and settle accounts on fees and charges in accordance with this Decree;

2. To notify agencies collecting fees and charges of the amount to be paid and the payment deadline into the state budget in accordance with the law; if the agency collecting fees and charges fails to pay within the deadline specified in the notice, further notices regarding the amount of fees and charges to be paid and the late payment penalty as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 19 of this Decree will be issued; if the agency collecting fees and charges still fails to pay the full amount of fees and charges and the penalty as specified in the notice, the Tax Authority has the right to apply the measures prescribed in Clause 4, Article 19 of this Decree to ensure the full collection of fees and charges and penalties; if these measures have been implemented and the agency collecting fees and charges still fails to pay the full amount of fees and charges and penalties, the case file will be transferred to the competent state authority for handling in accordance with the law;

3. To inspect and audit the declaration, collection, payment, use, and settlement of fees and charges by agencies collecting fees and charges to ensure compliance with the law.

4. Handling administrative violations concerning fees and charges and resolving complaints about such fees and charges within the scope of authority;

5. Requesting the fee and charge payer and the fee and charge collection agency to provide accounting books, vouchers, and other relevant financial documents related to the calculation and payment of fees and charges;

6. Retaining and using data and materials provided by the fee and charge payer and the fee and charge collection agency according to prescribed regulations;

Chapter V

SETTLEMENT OF COMPLAINTS, HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS AND REWARDS

Article 16.Rights and responsibilities of the fee and charge payer in lodging complaints and reporting violations of laws on fees and charges are stipulated as follows:

1. Organizations and individuals paying fees and charges have the right to lodge complaints and report officials collecting fees and charges or the fee and charge collection agencies in accordance with the law on complaints and reports regarding violations of this Decree;

While waiting for resolution, the fee and charge payer must still comply with the announcements of the fee and charge collection agency;

2. In cases where the complainant or reporter disagrees with the decision of the complaint and report resolution agency or if the decision has not been made within the time limit specified in Article 17 of this Decree, they have the right to appeal to the superior agency of the fee and charge collection agency in accordance with the law on complaints and reports of citizens or file a lawsuit to court as prescribed by law;

Article 17.Responsibilities and authorities of the fee and charge collection agency in handling complaints:

1. The fee and charge collection agency, upon receiving a complaint about fees and charges, must examine and resolve it within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the complaint; for complex cases, the deadline may be extended but shall not exceed thirty days; if the case does not fall within its jurisdiction, it must transfer the file or report to the competent agency for resolution and inform the complainant within ten days from the date of receipt of the complaint;

2. The fee and charge collection agency, upon receiving a complaint, has the right to request the complainant to provide relevant documents and materials related to the complaint; if the complainant refuses to provide documents and materials without a valid reason, the fee and charge collection agency has the right to refuse to examine and resolve the complaint;

3. The fee and charge collection agency must refund the amount of fees and charges, fines collected incorrectly to the fee and charge payer within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the decision of the competent agency as prescribed by law;

4. If fraud, evasion of payment of fees and charges, or errors in fees and charges are discovered and concluded, the collecting agency is responsible for recovering the fees and charges, fines within five years from the date of inspection and discovery of such fraud, evasion, or errors; in cases where the fee and charge collection agency collects fees and charges but fails to declare and pay them into the state budget, the recovery period applies from the date the agency begins collecting fees and charges;

5. The head of the superior agency of the fee and charge collection agency is responsible for resolving complaints about fees and charges against subordinate fee and charge collection agencies;

Article 18.Handling violations by the fee and charge payer

1. Organizations and individuals who fail to pay the full amount of fees and charges as prescribed shall not be entitled to service or benefits as prescribed by law for that type of service;

2. Organizations and individuals intentionally evading payment of fees and charges, in addition to being required to pay the full amount of fees and charges as prescribed by law, may also be subject to warnings or fines ranging from one to three times the amount of evaded fees and charges, depending on the nature and severity of the violation; large-scale evasion of fees and charges or repeated violations after administrative penalties for fee and charge violations, or serious violations, will result in criminal liability under the law;

The competent agency issuing the fee and charge collection system will specify specific penalties for each violation as stipulated in this Article;

Article 19. Handling violations by the fee and charge collection agency

The fee and charge collection agency violating the provisions of this Decree shall be handled as follows:

1. Immediately cease implementation when discovered that the fee and charge collection regulation document exceeds authority or improperly collects types of fees and charges not in accordance with this Decree and related documents. Incorrectly collected fees and charges must be refunded to the payer; if the payer cannot be identified, the entire amount must be deposited into the state budget (allocated 100% to the central budget); depending on the nature and severity of the violation, administrative penalties or criminal responsibility may also be pursued according to the law;

2. Failure to properly declare, deposit into the budget, settle accounts, maintain accounting records, use and retain vouchers and invoices as prescribed in Articles 13 and 14 of this Decree shall be subject to administrative penalties according to the law on administrative penalties in the field of taxation, depending on the nature and severity of the violation;

3. Delaying the deposit of collected fees and charges and fines into the state budget beyond the prescribed date or the decision on handling fees and charges shall require, in addition to paying the full amount of fees and charges and fines, a daily penalty of 0.1% (one thousandth) of the delayed amount; deposits of the fee and charge collection agency at banks, treasuries, and credit institutions shall be deducted to pay fees and charges and fines;

Banks, treasuries, and credit institutions are responsible for deducting funds from the account of the fee and charge collection agency to pay fees and charges and fines into the state budget according to the decision of the Tax Agency or the competent authority before collecting debts;

4. Fraud and evasion of collected fees and charges, in addition to depositing the full fraudulent and evaded amount into the state budget, may also be subject to fines ranging from one to three times the amount of fraudulent fees and charges, depending on the nature and severity of the violation; large-scale evasion of fees and charges or serious violations will result in criminal liability under the law;

Article 20.Handling violations by fee and charge collectors and other individuals violating fee and charge management regulations

1. Staff collecting fees and charges who lack a sense of responsibility or handle matters incorrectly, causing damage to those paying the fees and charges, must compensate for the damage according to the provisions of the law and may be subject to disciplinary action or criminal liability追究责任，视其性质和程度而定；

2. Staff collecting fees and charges and other individuals who abuse their positions and powers to illegally use fee and charge funds, fines, or intentionally fail to process them, causing damage to the state, must fully compensate the state for all improperly used, embezzled, or damaged fee and charge funds and fines according to the provisions of the law and may be subject to disciplinary action or criminal liability追究责任，视其性质和程度而定；

3. Staff collecting fees and charges and other individuals who abuse their positions and powers to collude with or cover up for those violating laws on fees and charges, or engage in other acts violating the provisions of this Decree, may be subject to disciplinary action or criminal liability追究责任，视其性质和程度而定；

Article 21.Authority to handle violations concerning fees and charges

1. The authority to handle administrative violations concerning fees and charges stipulated in Article 18 of this Decree shall be implemented according to the specific regulations on the collection of each type of fee and charge issued by the competent authorities;

2. The authority to handle administrative violations concerning fees and charges stipulated in Article 19 of this Decree shall be implemented according to the Decree on Administrative Penalties in the Field of Taxation;

Article 22.Units collecting fees and charges and staff collecting fees and charges who successfully complete assigned tasks, and organizations or individuals who have made contributions in detecting violations of this Decree shall be rewarded according to the regulations of the Government;

Chapter VI

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 23. This Decree takes effect fifteen days from the date of signature.

Abolish Decision No. 276/CT dated July 28, 1992 of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers (now the Prime Minister) regarding the unified management of various types of fees and charges and other provisions on fees and charges that conflict with this Decree;

Article 24.Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, agencies under the Government, People's Committees at all levels organize and direct the immediate implementation of the following matters:

1. Conduct a comprehensive inventory and review of all types of fees and charges under their respective sectors and localities currently being collected, and classify and handle them as follows:

a) Immediately suspend the collection of those fees and charges not established by the competent authority as prescribed in Article 8 of this Decree. The units and organizations collecting these fees and charges must settle accounts, declare the amounts collected, and remit the entire amount into the State Treasury according to the guidelines of the Ministry of Finance;

b) For those fees and charges that have been established in accordance with the authority prescribed in Article 8 of this Decree, they must be managed, collected, and used in accordance with the provisions of this Decree;

2. Propose and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).the provincial People's Committee to study and draft systems for collecting fees and charges within their respective sectors and localities;

3. The Ministry of Finance and Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).the provincial People's Committee must promptly study and draft, and submit to the competent authority for issuance or issue according to their authority systems for collecting fees and charges in compliance with the provisions of this Decree in 1999;

Article 25. The Minister of Finance shall provide guidance on implementing this Decree, specify the public announcement of the system for collecting fees and charges, and cooperate with political and social organizations in mobilizing the people to implement and supervise units and staff engaged in collecting fees and charges.

Article 26. Cinformation The Minister, Head of Ministries equivalent to Ministries, agencies under the Government, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government shall be responsible for organizing the implementation of this Decree./. Within 10 working days from the date of receipt of the dossier as mentioned in Sub-clause b, Clause 1, Article 3 above, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will review and submit to the competent authority for decision (Issues exceeding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' jurisdiction will be referred to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision).LIST OF FEES AND CHARGES APPLICABLE

(/1999/NĐ-CP dated January 30, 1999 of the Government)

(Adopted along with Decree No. 04LIST OF FEES AND CHARGES

AUTHORITY TO REGULATE COLLECTION, PAYMENT AND USE