Circular No. 12/2010/TT-BTC guides the handling of contraband items that are easily damaged goods and the management of funds obtained from the disposal of confiscated items to be surrendered to the state treasury due to administrative violations.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for handling administrative violation items that are goods,

products prone to damage and managing the amount of money collected from handling such items,‎managing the amount of money collected from handling administrative violation items,

means of transportation confiscated and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations

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Pursuant to the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2002 and the Ordinance amending and supplementing certain articles of the Ordinance on Handling Administrative Violations 2008;

Pursuant to Decree No. 128/2008/NĐ-CP dated December 16, 2008 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance 2002 and the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Administrative Violation Handling Ordinance 2008;

Pursuant to Decree No. 60/2003/NĐ-CP dated June 6, 2003, promulgated by the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of the Law on State Budget;

Pursuant to Decree No. 118/2008/NĐ-CP dated November 27, 2008, of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

The Ministry of Finance issues guidelines for handling administrative violation items that are goods, products prone to damage and managing the amount of money collected from handling such items, means of transportation confiscated and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations as follows:

Section 1

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular guides the following contents:

a) Handling administrative violation items that are goods, products prone to damage;

b) Managing the amount of money collected from handling administrative violation items, means of transportation confiscated and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations (including the amount of money collected from handling administrative violation items that are goods, products prone to damage and other administrative violation items); except for administrative violation items, means of transportation confiscated and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations in the field of anti-smuggling, commercial fraud, and counterfeit goods.

2. Management of the amount of money collected from handling administrative violation items, means of transportation confiscated and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations in the field of anti-smuggling, commercial fraud, and counterfeit goods shall be carried out according to separate guidelines issued by the Ministry of Finance; it does not fall within the scope of this Circular.

Section 2

HANDLING OF CONTRABAND ITEMS THAT ARE PRONE TO DAMAGE

AS GOODS AND PRODUCTS

Article 2. Goods and products prone to damage

Goods and products prone to damage include:

1. Fresh goods, easily perishable, difficult to store;

2. Processed food products, medicines with expiration dates under 30 days;

3. Other types of goods, products if not handled immediately after confiscation will deteriorate, exceed their usable period.

Article 3. Forms of handling administrative violation items that are goods, products prone to damage

1. Direct sale (without auction), except in cases where destruction is required as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

2. Destruction of goods, products that have been damaged and are no longer usable.

Article 4. Organization of handling administrative violation items that are goods, products prone to damage

1. For goods and products prone to damage that are handled through direct sale:

a) The person authorized to confiscate items and means of transportation according to the law on administrative violation handling (hereinafter referred to as the authorized confiscator) organizes the sale of goods and products to organizations and individuals who wish to purchase them.

The selling price of goods and products prone to damage is determined based on their quality and the price list published by the Department of Finance at the nearest time; in cases where the Department of Finance has not published a price list or the goods and products prone to damage are not included in the price list published by the Department of Finance, the authorized confiscator, in conjunction with the financial agency specified in Point b of this Clause, determines the selling price based on the quality and market selling price of similar goods.

The authorized confiscator is responsible for organizing the evaluation of the quality of the goods and products being sold; when necessary, the authorized confiscator invites specialized agencies to cooperate in evaluating the quality of the goods and products.

b) The financial agency at the same level as the agency of the authorized confiscator or the financial agency in the locality where the violation occurred (in cases where the superior financial agency has delegated authority or in cases where the authorized confiscator belongs to an agency not organized according to administrative levels) cooperates with the authorized confiscator in determining the selling price of goods and products prone to damage.

c) The sale of goods and products prone to damage must be recorded in a record. The main contents of the record include: basis for sale; time and place of sale; seller; name, type, quantity, condition of goods and products at the time of sale; unit price, total payment; buyer and other related contents.

2. For goods and products prone to damage that need to be destroyed:

a) The authorized confiscator establishes a Committee for Handling to destroy the goods and products prone to damage as stipulated in Clause 2 of Article 3 of this Circular; the Committee for Handling is chaired by the authorized confiscator or the person delegated authority, members include representatives of the financial agency specified in Point b of Clause 1 of this Article and representatives of relevant specialized agencies.

b) Methods of destruction: Depending on the nature and characteristics of the goods and products and the requirement to ensure environmental hygiene, destruction is carried out in the following forms:

- Using chemicals;

- Using mechanical methods;

- Burning;

- Burial;

- Other forms as prescribed by law.

c) The destruction of goods and products must be recorded in a record, signed by all members of the Committee for Handling. The main contents of the record include: basis and reason for destruction; time and place of destruction; participants in destruction; name, type, quantity, condition of goods and products at the time of destruction; method of destruction and other related contents.

Article 5. Management of funds obtained from the disposal of items that are easily perishable

The amount of money collected from handling administrative violation items that are goods and products prone to damage must be deposited into a temporary account (cash deposit account) opened by the agency of the authorized confiscator at the State Treasury and managed as follows:

1. In cases where the items are confiscated and transferred to the state treasury according to the decision of the authorized confiscator, the management and use of the collected funds shall be implemented according to Articles 6 and 7 of this Circular;

2. In cases where the items are not confiscated and transferred to the state treasury, the collected funds must be returned to the owner, manager, or lawful user.

Section 3

MANAGEMENT OF THE AMOUNT OF MONEY COLLECTED FROM HANDLING TANGIBLE EVIDENCE,

MEANS OF TRANSPORTATION CONFISCATED AND TRANSFERRED TO THE STATE TREASURY

DUE TO ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATIONS

Article 6. Management of funds obtained from the disposal of confiscated assets and means transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations

1. The entire amount of funds obtained from the sale of confiscated assets and means transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations, after deducting the expenses specified in Clause 1, Article 7 of this Circular, shall be deposited into a temporary holding account or an account for refunding temporarily held money and property pending resolution (hereinafter referred to collectively as a temporary holding account) opened by the financial authority at the State Treasury, specifically as follows:

a) For confiscated assets and means due to administrative violations decided by authorized persons of central agencies and provincial-level agencies to transfer to the state treasury, they shall be deposited into the temporary holding account of the Provincial Finance Department opened at the State Treasury at the same level.

b) For confiscated assets and means due to administrative violations decided by authorized persons of district-level agencies and below to transfer to the state treasury, they shall be deposited into the temporary holding account of the district-level financial authority opened at the State Treasury at the same level.

2. The funds obtained from the sale of confiscated assets and means transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations on the temporary holding account of the financial authority opened at the State Treasury as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article, after deducting the expenses specified in Clause 2, Article 7 of this Circular, shall be deposited into the state budget according to the provisions of the law on分级管理国家预算。

Article 7. Management and use of expenses related to administrative violation penalties

1. Organizations and individuals entrusted with selling confiscated assets and means transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations shall decide and bear responsibility for their own decisions regarding the payment of the following expenses from the proceeds obtained from the sale of such assets and means before depositing them into the temporary holding account of the financial authority opened at the State Treasury:

a) Transportation, delivery, storage costs of assets from the time of decision to seize the assets and means until the completion of the handling process. In cases where the agency issuing the seizure decision and the organization entrusted with selling the assets and means have been allocated warehouses, staff, transportation vehicles, and regular operating funds by the state, they shall not be reimbursed for expenses related to transportation and storage of these assets.

b) Auction fees (if applicable).

2. The financial authority managing the temporary holding account as stipulated in Article 6 of this Circular shall be responsible for paying the following expenses:

a) Investigation, verification, arrest costs including: communication costs for officers participating in handling; fuel costs for inspection, arrest, escort, and protection vehicles or rental costs for vehicles and locations (if applicable); repair costs for inspection vehicles damaged during pursuit and arrest; costs for posting notices and announcements to find owners. The maximum expenditure shall not exceed five percent (5%) of the proceeds from the disposal of the assets involved in the case.

b) Information purchase costs (if applicable): the maximum cost of purchasing information for each case shall be ten percent (10%) of the proceeds from the sale of confiscated assets and means due to administrative violations in that case but shall not exceed fifty million dong (50,000,000 dong). For cases where the confiscated assets and means are counterfeit goods, goods that must be destroyed, or have low value, the information purchase cost shall not be controlled according to the above ratio but shall not exceed thirty million dong (30,000,000 dong).

Payment of information purchase costs must be supported by complete documentation as prescribed; in cases where the name of the information provider must be kept confidential, payment of the information purchase cost shall be based on a payment voucher with signatures of the person directly paying the money to the information provider, the cashier, the accountant, and the head of the unit directly investigating and handling administrative violations. The head of the unit directly investigating and handling administrative violations and criminal offenses must be responsible for the accuracy and honesty in the payment of information purchase costs, ensuring that it is paid to the right person, for the right purpose, and is effective.

c) Costs for caring for and rescuing wild animals from the time of temporary detention until the completion of their release into the natural environment as prescribed or their transfer to zoos, research centers, or other organizations as decided by the competent authority.

d) Testing, appraisal, valuation costs of temporarily detained assets serving as the basis for determining fine ranges and penalty authority; compensation costs for losses caused by objective reasons (if any) from the time of inspection or temporary detention until the approval of the handling plan by the competent authority.

đ) Rental repair costs of assets if repairs are necessary for sale or if the increased value of the asset exceeds the repair costs (if any); costs to remedy asset losses due to objective reasons during the auction process (if any); actual and reasonable costs in cases where the auction does not succeed.

e) Actual costs for organizing the sale of assets by the County Auction Council or the Provincial Service Center for Asset Auctions or the agency issuing the confiscation decision. The County Auction Council or the Provincial Service Center for Asset Auctions may be temporarily advanced up to five percent (5%) of the asset's value (based on the starting price) to cover the costs of the asset auction work. Upon completion of the auction, the County Auction Council or the Provincial Service Center for Asset Auctions must settle the advance payment according to current regulations.

g) Overtime allowance; allowance for concurrently performing duties of individuals participating in investigation, arrest, management, and handling of assets transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations. Specific amounts shall be determined by the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province or centrally-administered city (hereinafter referred to as the provincial level) upon the proposal of the Provincial Finance Department.

h) Initial support costs for civil servants injured or killed while handling administrative violations or for the families of deceased civil servants, with a maximum expenditure not exceeding twenty percent (20%) of the proceeds from the sale of confiscated assets and means in the case, and shall be decided by the Chairman of the People's Committee of the provincial level.

i) For propaganda work; for supporting the purchase and supplementary equipment, working tools, and material investment to serve administrative violation handling work. The total amount of expenditure for these contents shall be decided by the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee but shall not exceed 10% of the revenue from selling the confiscated items and means of transportation of the case.

k) For rewarding groups and individuals with outstanding achievements in managing and handling assets seized and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations. The specific level of expenditure shall be implemented according to the current regulations of the Government on commendation and reward.

l) For meetings summarizing and concluding the work of seizing, handling confiscated items and means of transportation due to administrative violations. The content and level of expenditure shall be carried out according to the current regulations on working expense systems and meeting systems for administrative agencies and public service units.

m) Actual and reasonable expenses for organizing the liquidation and destruction of assets.

n) Other related expenses directly linked to the seizure, confiscation, preservation, and handling of assets.

3. The payment of the expenses stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article shall be based on the proposal of the agencies and organizations participating in the management and handling of assets; the reasonableness and legality of the expenses and relevant State regulations.

4. The source of funds for the expenditures specified in Clause 2 of this Article shall be used from the proceeds from the sale of confiscated items and means of transportation due to administrative violations held in the temporary account opened at the State Treasury by the financial agency. In cases where the amount in the temporary account is insufficient for payment, assistance shall be requested from the State budget according to the provisions of the law on the decentralization of State budget management.

5. For assets transferred to State agencies, organizations, and units for management and use, the costs arising from the date of the decision approving the handling plan by the competent authority until the completion of the handover shall be borne by the receiving agency, organization, or unit.

Section 4

IMPLEMENTATION

Article 8. Implementation organization

1. This Circular shall take effect 45 days from the date of signature.

Abolish the following provisions of the Ministry of Finance:

a) Circular No. 72/2004/TT-BTC dated July 15, 2004, guiding the management and handling of assets and means of transportation seized and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations;

b) Circular No. 04/2006/TT-BTC dated January 18, 2006, amending and supplementing Circular No. 72/2004/TT-BTC dated July 15, 2004, guiding the management and handling of assets and means of transportation seized and transferred to the state treasury due to administrative violations;

Point 2.1, Clause 2, Section III of Circular No. 34/2005/TT-BTC dated May 12, 2005, guiding the determination of the initial price and transfer of state assets for auction.

3. For cases where there has been a decision to seize and transfer to the state treasury before the effective date of this Circular, the management of the proceeds from the handling of confiscated items and means of transportation due to administrative violations shall be carried out according to the regulations in effect at the time of the decision to seize and transfer to the state treasury; the provisions of this Circular shall not be applied.

4. During implementation, if any difficulties arise, agencies, organizations, and units are requested to promptly report to the Ministry of Finance for coordination in resolving them./.