Decree No. 09/2007/ND-CP Amending and Supplementing Certain Articles of Decree No. 117/2003/ND-CP dated October 10, 2003 of the Government on Recruitment, Employment, and Management of Civil Servants in State Agencies

DECREE

Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 117/2003/NĐ-CP dated October 10, 2003 of the Government on recruitment, utilization, and management of civil servants in state agencies

Pursuant to the Civil Servant Ordinance on February 26, 1998; the Ordinance amending and supplementing some articles of the Civil Servant Ordinance on April 28, 2000 and the Ordinance amending and supplementing some articles of the Civil Servant Ordinance on April 29, 2003;

Considering the proposal of the Minister of Home Affairs.

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THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Amending and supplementing some articles of Decree No. 117/2003/NĐ-CP dated October 10, 2003 of the Government on recruitment, utilization, and management of civil servants in state agencies (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 117/2003/NĐ-CP), as follows:

1. Amending and supplementing Article 5:

DECREE:

Article 1. Objectives and conditions for registering to take the civil servant recruitment examination

1. The following categories of individuals are eligible to register for civil servant positions:

"Article 5. a) Public service employees working at state-owned public institutions;

b) Management and leadership staff at level of department or higher in state-owned enterprises;

c) Cadres and civil servants at commune level;

d) Officers and professional military personnel in the Vietnam People's Army and the Vietnam People's Public Security Force;

2. Other individuals who wish to be recruited and appointed to civil servant positions (Class A or Class B) shall register for provisional civil servant positions and must comply with the provisional civil servant regulations currently in effect before being considered for recruitment and appointment to civil servant ranks.

3. Individuals applying for positions under Class C civil servants must meet all the conditions and standards stipulated in Clause 4 (excluding Point e of Clause 4) of this Article. These cases will be recruited according to the civil servant quota and will not implement the provisional civil servant system.

4. Individuals mentioned in Clause 1 of this Article, if they apply for civil servant positions, must meet the following conditions and standards:

a) Vietnamese citizen, with permanent residence in Vietnam;

b) Age from 18 to 45 years old;

c) Have an application form; have a clear record; hold educational certificates and training certificates that match the requirements of the position applied for;

d) Be physically fit to perform duties and public service tasks;

đ) Not during the period of disciplinary action, criminal prosecution, serving a prison sentence, undergoing non-custodial rehabilitation, probation, or being subject to community-based education measures or placed in a medical facility or educational institution;

e) Have worked continuously in state agencies, organizations, or units for at least three years (36 months);

g) In addition to the above conditions, based on the nature and specific professional characteristics of the position being recruited, the competent authority may add additional conditions for applicants."

2. Supplementing the objects in Clauses 1 and 2 and adding Clause 4 to Article 7:

Priority in recruitment examinations

1. Heroes of the Armed Forces, Labor Heroes, war invalids, and persons enjoying benefits equivalent to war invalids shall be granted an additional 30 points to their total examination results;

"Article 7. 2. Children of martyrs, children of war invalids, children of wounded veterans, children of those engaged in revolutionary activities prior to the August Revolution (before August 19, 1945), children born to those affected by chemical warfare during the resistance war, children of Heroes of the Armed Forces, children of Labor Heroes, and persons holding a doctoral degree in a relevant field matching the recruitment needs shall be granted an additional 20 points to their total examination results;

4. Commune-level cadres and civil servants who have worked continuously in commune-level agencies and organizations for at least 36 months shall be granted an additional 10 points to their total examination results."

3. Supplementing the priority objects in the selection process in Clauses 3, 5, and 6 of Article 8:

...

Priority in the selection process

3. War invalids, persons enjoying benefits equivalent to war invalids;

"Article 8. 5. Children of war invalids, children of wounded veterans, children of those engaged in revolutionary activities prior to the August Revolution (before August 19, 1945), children born to those affected by chemical warfare during the resistance war, children of Heroes of the Armed Forces, children of Labor Heroes;

...

6. Persons holding a doctoral degree in a relevant field matching the recruitment needs; commune-level cadres and civil servants who have worked in commune-level agencies and organizations for at least 36 months.

...

4. Amending and supplementing Article 11:

Recruitment Board

...".

1. The Recruitment Board is established by the head of the agency authorized to manage civil servants through a decision.

"Article 11. 2. The Recruitment Board consists of the Chairman of the Board and Board members (including one member who serves as the Secretary of the Board).

3. The Recruitment Board can establish supporting units including the Examination Committee, the Grading Committee, and the Sealing Committee.

4. If the number of applicants exceeds the recruitment quota, the Recruitment Board may organize preliminary screening."

5. Amending and supplementing Article 12:

Duties and powers of the Recruitment Board

The Recruitment Board operates on the principle of collective decision-making by majority vote and has the following duties and powers:

"Article 12. 1. Developing plans for organizing recruitment examinations or selections (if applicable);

2. Announcing publicly: recruitment plan; eligibility criteria and conditions for registration; subjects, forms, and contents of the examination; examination rules; time, location, and registration fees;

3. Receiving and reviewing applications; conducting preliminary screening (if applicable); announcing publicly the list of qualified applicants; sending notification letters to applicants about participating in the examination;

4. Establishing the Examination Committee, the Grading Committee, and the Sealing Committee;

5. Organizing the collection of examination fees and expenditures as prescribed;

6. Organizing the recruitment examination or selection in accordance with regulations;

7. Directing and organizing grading in accordance with regulations;

8. Reporting the recruitment results to the head of the authorized agency for review and issuance of a decision recognizing the results; announcing the recruitment results;

9. Handling complaints and reports from applicants."

6. Amending and supplementing Clause 1 of Article 18:

Regulations and policies for probationers and their mentors

6. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 18:

"Article 18. Regulations and policies for probationers and their mentors

1. During the probation period, probationers in categories belonging to Class C civil servants shall receive 85% of the starting grade salary (Grade 1) of the recruited category. In other cases, when recruited as civil servants, they shall not undergo probation, and the competent authority managing civil servants shall base on the salary progression and current salary level at the previous agency to rank the salary according to the regulations and guidelines of the State.

7. Amend and supplement Clause 4 Article 22:

"Article 22. Category Transfer

...

4. The inspection board consists of 05 or 07 members including the Chairman of the Board and the Board members who are leaders of specialized departments, some civil servants with competence and professional qualifications at the same category or higher (including one member兼任秘书委员会委员).

...".

8. Add Article 22a on the transfer of civil servant types:

"Article 22a. Transfer of Civil Servant Types

1. Those who are Class B or Class C civil servants as stipulated in Clause 1 Article 4 Decree No. 117/2003/ND-CP, having graduated from universities, colleges, or secondary schools, if the agency has positions, work requirements, and arranges suitable working positions corresponding to their educational qualifications, may be considered for transfer to Class A (or Class B) civil servants simultaneously being appointed and ranked to the corresponding civil servant category.

2. Competent agencies organize the examination of transferring civil servants from Class B, Class C to Class A or from Class C to Class B according to the provisions of Article 22 Decree No. 117/2003/ND-CP.

3. The Ministry of Home Affairs guides the standards, conditions, procedures, and appointment to ranks and ranking salaries when examining the transfer of civil servant types and is responsible for supervising the implementation.

9. Amend and supplement Clause 2 Article 24:

"Article 24. Nomination of Civil Servants to Take Promotion Exams

...

2. Civil servants nominated to take promotion exams must meet the professional standards of the target category, possess the necessary academic degrees and training certificates, have a minimum salary grade that does not exceed two grades higher than Grade 1 of the applied category, and satisfy other necessary conditions as prescribed. The competent authority managing civil servants is responsible for the standards and conditions of the nominated civil servants.

Ministries and ministerial-level agencies entrusted with managing specialized civil servant categories shall coordinate with the Ministry of Home Affairs to guide the standards and conditions for taking promotion exams for specialized civil servant categories.

10. Amend and supplement Article 26:

"Article 26. Examination Board for Promotion Exams

1. When organizing promotion exams, the competent authority organizing the exam must establish an Examination Board for Promotion Exams. The Examination Board for Promotion Exams consists of 05 or 07 members including the Chairman of the Exam Board and the Board members (including one member兼任秘书委员会委员).

2. The Examination Board for Promotion Exams can establish assisting units, including: Examination Supervision Team, Grading Team, Sealing Team.

11. Amend and supplement Article 27:

"Article 27. Duties and Authorities of the Examination Board for Promotion Exams

The Examination Board for Promotion Exams operates under the principle of collective decision-making by majority vote and has the following duties and authorities:

1. Develop plans for organizing the promotion exam sessions, including: notifying candidates about the exam schedule; guiding review preparation; exam rules, subjects, formats, contents; collecting exam fees; exam time and location; opening the exam session, organizing exam days and grading subjects;

2. Accepting lists of civil servants nominated to take promotion exams as prescribed; reporting candidate lists to the Ministry of Home Affairs for verification; sending call letters to nominated civil servants;

3. Establishing the Examination Supervision Team, Grading Team, Sealing Team;

4. Organizing the collection of exam fees and expenditures according to regulations;

5. Directing the organization and grading of exams according to the regulations;

6. Summarizing and reporting exam results to the competent authority for recognizing the exam results;

7. Handling complaints and reports from candidates during the exam organization process according to regulations;

8. Announcing the list of candidates and exam results to the competent authority for appointing successful candidates to the target category.

12. Amend and supplement Article 29:

"Article 29. Appointment to Civil Servant Categories

Based on the exam results, within no more than 30 days from the date of receiving the exam results, the competent authority managing civil servant categories shall issue decisions on appointing to categories and ranking salaries for civil servants who passed the exam according to regulations.

13. Amend and supplement Clauses 6 and 7 Article 41:

"Article 41. Duties and Authorities of the Ministry of Home Affairs

...

6. Submit to the Government or the Prime Minister for issuance within their authority:

a) Positions and standards of civil servant categories;

b) Standards for leadership positions from department level and equivalent in administrative organizations under ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and equivalent up to deputy minister level and equivalent; standards for leadership positions from department, bureau level or equivalent under provincial people's committees and equivalent up to provincial department, bureau, industry level and equivalent;

c) Recruitment and promotion regulations for civil servants;

d) Examination and promotion examination rules for civil servants;

đ) Performance evaluation regulations for civil servants.

7. Managing the state administration of the cadre and civil servant workforce; appointing and ranking salaries for high-level civil servant categories; inspecting recruitment and promotion examinations organized by ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, provincial people's committees, and centrally-administered municipalities; supervising promotion examinations managed by ministries; guiding and inspecting the examination of transferring civil servants from Class B, Class C to Class A or from Class C to Class B.

...".

14. Amend and supplement Clauses 1 and 6 Article 42:

"Article 42. Duties and Authorities of Ministries, Ministerial-Level Agencies, and Government Agencies

1. Managing the quantity, standards, recruitment, utilization, transfer, rotation, assessment, appointment of leadership positions according to the delegated authority; regular salary increments for civil servants from senior specialist officer category and below; appointing to senior specialist officer category and below; handling resignation and retirement procedures for cadres and civil servants according to the delegated management authority.

...

6. Organizing the examination of transferring civil servants from Class B, Class C to Class A or from Class C to Class B according to regulations.

...".

15. Add Clauses 8 and 9 to Article 43:

"Article 43. Allocation of Agencies Managing Specialized Civil Servant Categories

...

8. The Ministry of Trade manages the specialized civil servant categories of Market Control Officers.

9. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall manage the ranks of civil servants specializing in Product Quality Control Officers.

16. Amend and supplement Clauses 1 and 5 of Article 45:

"Article 45. Duties and powers of the People's Committee of provinces and centrally governed cities

1. Manage the number, standards, recruitment, utilization, appointment, transfer, rotation, evaluation, promotion to leadership positions according to the分级授权；对于初级专业和相应级别的公务员，进行定期增资；任命中级专业及以下级别；按照分级管理的规定，处理辞职和退休的制度和手续。

...

5. Organize the review and transfer of civil servants from Class B and Class C to Class A, or from Class C to Class B, in accordance with regulations."

Article 2. Effectiveness and guidance for implementation

1. This Decree shall take effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.

2. The Minister of Home Affairs shall provide guidance on the implementation of this Decree.

3. The competent authority of political organizations shall guide the application of this Decree to agencies under political organizations and political-social organizations.

Article 3. Responsibility for Implementation

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.