Joint Circular No. 139/1998/TTLT/BTC-BKHCNMT guides the regime for collecting, managing, and using fees for technology transfer contract registration and examination fees.

JOINT CIRCULAR

REGULATION NO. 139/1998/TTLT-BTC-BKHCNMT OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT ON OCTOBER 23, 1998 GUIDING THE SYSTEM FOR COLLECTION, MANAGEMENT, AND USE OF FEES FOR TECHNICAL REVIEW AND REGISTRATION FEES FOR TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER CONTRACTS

WHEREAS, Decree No. 45/1998/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 1998 of the Government detailing regulations on technology transfer;
WHEREAS, Decision No. 276-CT dated July 28, 1992 of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers (now Prime Minister) regarding the unified management of various types of fees and registration fees;
The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment hereby guide the system for collection, management, and use of fees for technical review and registration fees for technology transfer contracts approved by authorized agencies as follows:

I. OBJECTS SUBJECT TO PAYMENT OF FEES

All organizations and individuals applying for approval and registration of technology transfer contracts (TT Contracts) in accordance with Decree No. 45/1998/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 1998 of the Government must pay technical review fees and registration fees for TT Contracts (hereinafter referred to as fees).

II. AMOUNT OF FEES

- Technical review fees for TT Contracts shall be calculated at a rate of 0.1% (one thousandth) of the total value of the Contract but shall not exceed 20 million VND and shall not be less than 2 million VND.

- For TT Contracts requiring supplementary or amended approval, the technical review fee must be paid at a rate of 0.1% (one thousandth) of the total value of the amended Contract, but shall not exceed 10 million VND and shall not be less than 1 million VND.

- For TT Contracts that do not require approval but must be registered with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, the registration fee is 200,000 VND per contract.

- Technical review fees and registration fees for TT Contracts shall be collected in Vietnamese Dong. In cases where the technical review fee is calculated based on the value of the Contract denominated in foreign currency, it must be converted into Vietnamese Dong according to the inter-bank exchange rate published by the State Bank of Vietnam at the time of calculating the technical review fee.

III. MANAGEMENT AND USE OF TECHNICAL REVIEW FEES

1. The competent authority responsible for technical review and approval of TT Contracts (hereinafter referred to as the reviewing agency) in accordance with Decree No. 45/1998/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 1998 of the Government shall directly collect fees and registration fees in accordance with this Circular.

2. The entire amount of fees and registration fees collected constitutes revenue for the state budget. The reviewing agency may retain 50% of the collected amount for use in serving the technical review and approval of TT Contracts, while the remaining amount must be remitted to the state budget.

3. The reviewing agency is permitted to open an account at the State Treasury to manage and monitor the use of 50% of the total collected fees and registration fees, as specified above, to ensure timely coverage of expenses incurred during the technical review process as stipulated in Clause 5, Section III of this Circular.

4. Quarterly, based on the settlement report of the reviewing agency, the financial agency at the same level will process the recording of actual expenditures for the intended purposes, in compliance with prescribed financial regulations, standards, and have valid supporting documents used from the temporarily retained funds.

The reviewing agency is responsible for reporting the settlement of the use of temporarily retained funds to the supervising agency for consolidation and settlement with the financial agency at the same level in accordance with current financial regulations.

5. Technical review fees and registration fees for TT Contracts shall be used for the following purposes and must comply with current state regulations on financial management, standards, and expenditure systems:

a) Expenses for organizations and individuals participating in research, evaluation, and review of documents related to technology and technology transfer projects, pursuant to economic contracts signed between organizations and individuals and the agency responsible for approving TT Contracts (in cases where the reviewing agency lacks the capacity to conduct the review);

b) Preparation of review files and solicitation of opinions from opposing experts;

c) Expenses for meetings of the review board for projects;

d) Expenses for the inspection and review of technology in TT Contracts, and the inspection of technology transfer implementation in projects;

e) Expenses for purchasing information and documents for review;

g) Training and guidance expenses;

h) Printing and translation expenses;

i) Supplementary expenses for purchasing equipment and office supplies for review work (as approved in the budget);

k) Overtime and increased workload allowances for staff directly involved in review work and handling fee and registration procedures, but the maximum annual allowance for each staff member shall not exceed three months' basic salary.

IV. PROCEDURES FOR COLLECTION AND REMITTANCE OF FEES AND REGISTRATION FEES:

1. When the reviewing agency receives applications and documents for technical review of technology to be transferred from organizations and individuals, it must immediately collect the registration fee and the minimum fee required under each type of contract (2 million VND for new TT Contracts or 1 million VND for amended or supplemented TT Contracts). After completing the technical review and determining the payment amount for technology transfer, the reviewing agency shall collect the remaining technical review fee based on the guidance provided in this Circular from the organization or individual requesting the review.

2. Procedures for depositing funds into the state budget:

- Within five days of collecting fees and registration fees, the reviewing agency must submit a declaration of all collected fees and registration fees and the amount to be deposited into the state budget (50% of the total collected fees and registration fees) to the direct managing tax authority.

- Upon receipt of the declaration from the reviewing agency, the tax authority will check the declaration, compare it with issued and used receipts to determine the amount to be deposited into the state budget. Within five days of receiving the declaration from the reviewing agency, the tax authority will notify the reviewing agency of the amount to be deposited into the state budget (50% of the total collected fees and registration fees), the deadline for payment, corresponding chapters, sections, and accounts as stipulated in the State Budget Register, and the amount temporarily retained for use in review work.

- Based on the notification from the tax authority, the reviewing agency will promptly deposit the amount to be deposited into the state budget and the remaining amount will be deposited into the reviewing agency's account opened at the State Treasury as stipulated in Clause 3, Section III of this Circular.

V. IMPLEMENTATION

1. Responsibilities of the reviewing agency:

a) Publicly announce the level of collection, procedures for collecting fees and charges at the location where the collection is organized.

b) Implement accounting systems, vouchers, and financial reports using fees and charges according to the current state accounting and statistical regulations.

c) Manage, utilize, and settle the amount of collected fees and charges with the directly managing financial authority according to the current management regulations.

2- Responsibilities of the tax authority, State Treasury agency:

The tax authority, where the contract certification agency is located, has the responsibility to issue receipts for collecting fees and charges to the contract certification agency. The tax authority and the State Treasury agency have the responsibility to manage, utilize, and implement the settlement of receipts according to the current regulations on seal management.

3- At the end of the fiscal year, the contract certification agency must settle the funds already used for certification work with the same-level financial authority according to the regulations. Any unspent funds must be promptly and fully remitted to the state budget.

4. This Circular takes effect from the date of signature. During implementation, if there are any difficulties, they should be reported promptly to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Science and Technology and Environment for research and resolution.