Circular No. 12/2009/TT-BLDTBXH guiding the implementation of transferring social insurance for farmers in Nghe An province to voluntary social insurance according to Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg dated March 16, 2009 of the Government Prime Minister.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for Implementing the Transfer of Agricultural Workers' Social Insurance in Nghe An Province to Voluntary Social Insurance Pursuant to Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg dated March 16, 2009 of the Prime Minister

Pursuant to the provisions ofClause 1, Article 6 of Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTgdated March 16, 2009 of the Prime Minister on transferring agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province to voluntary social insurance (hereinafter referred to as Decision No.41/2009/QD-TTg),

Pursuant to Decree No. 190/2007/ND-CPdated December 28, 2007 of the Government guiding certain provisions ofSocial Insurance Lawthe Law on Voluntary Social Insurance; the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs guides the implementation of the provisions stipulated in Articles2, 3, 4, and Article 5 of Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg as follows:

Article 1. The subjects subject to the provisions of Article 2 of Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg include:

1. Workers currently participating in agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province (including those temporarily suspended from contributions) who wish to transfer to voluntary social insurance in accordance with the Law on Social Insurance.

2. Workers currently participating in agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province (including those temporarily suspended from contributions) who wish to stop participating in social insurance to receive a one-time benefit.

3. Retirees currently receiving monthly benefits from the agricultural workers' social insurance fund in Nghe An Province.

Article 2. Implementation of the conversion of time and amount of contributions under agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province to voluntary social insurance as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 3 of Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg:

1. Time spent participating in agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province will be converted into time spent participating in voluntary social insurance according to Point a, Clause 1, Article 3 of Decision No. 41/2009/QD-TTg as follows:

The time spent participating in voluntary social insurance after conversion is calculated as the total time spent participating in voluntary social insurance converted from the years of contribution to agricultural workers' social insurance. The amount of voluntary social insurance contributions for each year is calculated as the ratio between the amount of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance in that year and the product of the percentage of contributions to the pension and death benefit fund in that year and the general minimum wage for that year. The calculation formula is as follows:

Where:

k: year in which the worker contributes to agricultural workers' social insurance;

C_k: the amount of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance in year k (calculated as the product of the number of months contributed to agricultural workers' social insurance and the monthly contribution rate in year k);

H_k: the percentage of contributions to the pension and death benefit fund in year k, shown in Table 1 below:

Table 1:Percentage of Contributions to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund

L_min,k: the general minimum wage in year k, as listed in Table 2 below:

Table 2: General Minimum Wage from 1998 to April 2009

T_TNg: the time spent participating in voluntary social insurance converted from the time spent participating in agricultural workers' social insurance.

a) In cases where the amount of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance in year k is greater than or equal to the product of the number of months contributed to agricultural workers' social insurance and the percentage of contributions to the pension and death benefit fund and the general minimum wage in year k, the time spent contributing to voluntary social insurance is calculated as the time spent contributing to agricultural workers' social insurance. In this case, the monthly amount contributed to the agricultural workers' social insurance fund serves as the basis for calculating the income level for voluntary social insurance contributions, as specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular.

Specifically, if in year k the amount of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance equals or exceeds the amount specified in Table 3 below (corresponding to the number of months contributed to agricultural workers' social insurance in year k), then the conversion of the number of months contributed in that year will not be carried out.

Table 3:

b) In cases where workers contribute to agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province in one lump sum for multiple years, the average monthly contribution amount is determined based on the total amount paid and the recorded contribution period in the agricultural workers' social insurance record for that payment, and then the conversion is carried out according to the provisions of this clause.

c) If the converted time of voluntary social insurance contributions corresponds to a whole number plus a fraction, the fraction is rounded off. Fractions of 0.50 or more are rounded up to 1.00.

Example 1:Mr. A participated in agricultural workers' social insurance in Nghe An Province with the following contribution history:

Based on the above Table 3, in 2005, Mr. A had 6 months of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance with a total amount of 480,000 VND, which exceeded the minimum contribution amount for voluntary social insurance for 6 months in 2005 (315,000 VND), and in 2006, Mr. A had 12 months of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance with a total amount of 960,000 VND, which exceeded the minimum contribution amount for voluntary social insurance for 12 months in 2006 (810,000 VND). Therefore, the conversion of these periods was not carried out. The monthly income level for voluntary social insurance contributions for 6 months in 2005 and 12 months in 2006, as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 3 of this Circular, is 533,333 VND/month.

The number of months of contributions to agricultural workers' social insurance converted to voluntary social insurance is calculated according to the formula stated in Clause 1 above as follows:

Since the minimum wage levels did not change in 2003 and 2004, the converted months are combined as follows:

13.8 + 4.57 + 6 + 12 = 14 + 5 + 18 = 37 (months)

Thus, the total time spent participating in voluntary social insurance after conversion for Mr. A is 37 months, with the corresponding monthly income level for voluntary social insurance contributions as follows:

2. The make-up payment for the remaining time due to conversion and the amount of the make-up payment prescribed in point b, Clause 1, Article 3 of Decision No. 41/2009/QĐ-TTg shall be guided as follows:

a) The maximum period for make-up payment due to conversion:

the period of voluntary social insurance contribution after conversion that is less than the period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province, the worker shall be entitled to make up for the remaining period. The make-up period is calculated in months and is equal to the difference between the period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province and the period of voluntary social insurance contribution after conversion.

- The maximum period for make-up payment is calculated using the following formula:

Where:

T_nd: Period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province;

T_TNg: Period of voluntary social insurance contribution converted from the period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province;

T: Maximum period for make-up payment due to conversion.

b) The minimum make-up payment amount per month in 2009 is calculated as 16% x 540,000 VND/month = 86,400 VND/month.

- In case the make-up payment amount per month is 86,400 VND, the monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution is the general minimum wage (540,000 VND/month).

- In case the make-up payment amount per month exceeds 86,400 VND, the monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution is calculated according to the provisions of Clause 2, Article 3 of this Circular.

Example:For Mr. A in Example 1, the total number of months he has contributed to agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province is 48 months, and the number of months after converting to voluntary social insurance is 37 months. Therefore, the maximum number of months Mr. A can make up is:

48 months – 37 months = 11 months

a) Assuming Mr. A chooses to make up for all 11 months with a make-up payment of 86,400 VND/month, the make-up payment amount for Mr. A is calculated as follows:

86,400 VND/month x 11 months = 950,400 VND

Thus, after making the make-up payment, Mr. A's voluntary social insurance contribution period is 48 months. Among which, the monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution for the 11 months of make-up payment is 540,000 VND/month.

b) Or Mr. A only chooses to make up for 10 months with a make-up payment of 86,400 VND/month. The make-up payment amount for Mr. A is calculated as follows:

86,400 VND/month x 10 months = 864,000 VND.

Thus, after making the make-up payment, Mr. A's voluntary social insurance contribution period is 47 months. Among which, the monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution for the 10 months of make-up payment is 540,000 VND/month.

c) Or Mr. A does not make any make-up payment, then his voluntary social insurance contribution period is 37 months.

Article 3. Workers who do not carry out the conversion will have their participation time in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province preserved as voluntary social insurance contribution time as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 3 of Decision No. 41/2009/QĐ-TTg, which is guided as follows:

1. The period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province is considered as the period of voluntary social insurance contribution.

2. The monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution is calculated based on the monthly payment for agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province, using the following formula:

Example 3:In case Mr. A in Example 1 does not carry out the conversion as prescribed in Article 2 of this Circular, then:

a) The period of voluntary social insurance contribution is equal to the period of participation in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province, which is 48 months.

b) The monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution of Mr. A is calculated as follows:

Article 4. Monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution

The monthly income for voluntary social insurance contribution of workers prescribed in Article 2 and Article 3 of this Circular is adjusted based on the consumer price index of each period as stipulated in Decree No. 134/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2008 of the Government, when workers receive pension, one-time social insurance benefit, or survivor benefits under the law on voluntary social insurance. In particular, the adjustment of the monthly income already paid for social insurance after conversion in years before 2009 for the subjects prescribed in Article 2 and the monthly income without conversion in years before 2009 for the subjects prescribed in Article 3 of this Circular is applied according to the provisions of Table 3, item b2, point b, Clause 1, Section II of Circular No. 02/2009/TT-BLĐTBXH dated January 15, 2009 of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs.

Article 5. One-time allowance for workers who do not continue to participate in voluntary social insurance

The one-time allowance for workers who do not continue to participate in voluntary social insurance prescribed in Article 4 of Decision No. 41/2009/QĐ-TTg is implemented according to the provisions of Clause 2, Article 14 of the Regulations on Agricultural Social Insurance in Nghệ An Province issued together with Decision No. 32/2001/QĐ-UB dated April 10, 2001 of the People's Committee of Nghệ An Province (hereinafter referred to as the Regulations on Agricultural Social Insurance in Nghệ An Province).

Article 6. Retirees currently receiving pension from the agricultural social insurance fund in Nghệ An Province prescribed in Article 5 of Decision No. 41/2009/QĐ-TTg are guided as follows:

1. Continue to receive monthly allowances at the current level.

The monthly allowance is adjusted according to the current laws on social insurance.

2. Enjoy medical insurance covered by the voluntary social insurance fund.

3. In case the person receiving monthly allowances as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article dies, the survivors are entitled to a one-time allowance according to the provisions of Clauses 1, 2, and 3 of Article 15 of the Regulations on Agricultural Social Insurance in Nghệ An Province.

Article 7. Implementation Provisions

1. The People's Committee of Nghệ An Province directs the Agricultural Social Insurance in Nghệ An Province to transfer all documents and files of participants in agricultural social insurance in Nghệ An Province to the provincial social insurance agency for management; directs the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs and relevant agencies to inspect and urge the implementation of the provisions of this Circular.

2. The Vietnam Social Security is responsible for directing and guiding the Social Security of Nghe An Province to receive, manage transferred documents, issue and record social insurance books, and implement social insurance benefits for agricultural workers participating in the Nghe An Agricultural Social Insurance Program in accordance with Decision No. 41/2009/QĐ-TTg and the guidelines set forth in this Circular, specifically:

a) Receiving and managing the files of workers participating in social insurance from the Nghe An Agricultural Social Insurance;

b) Implementing the issuance and recording of social insurance books for workers as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular;

c) Implementing one-time allowances for subjects as specified in Clause 2, Article 1 of this Circular;

d) Implementing monthly allowance payments and health insurance for subjects as specified in Clause 3, Article 1 of this Circular; implementing funeral benefits when those receiving monthly allowances die.

Clause 3. This Circular takes effect 45 days from the date of issuance.

During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, please report to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs for timely research and resolution./.