Decision No. 16/2011/QD-TTg On the implementation of financial management mechanisms and staffing for the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs for the period 2011-2015

Article 1. Scope of Application

Implementing the financial management mechanism and staffing applicable to the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs under the Ministry of Finance for the period 2011-2015.

Article 2. Objectives and Requirements

1. Fulfill well the state management functions over state budget revenues and the assigned tasks and responsibilities.

2. Vigorously promote administrative reform, modernize management procedures and processes towards effectiveness and efficiency, ensuring transparency, simplicity, and facilitating businesses and citizens in fulfilling their tax obligations and participating in supervising tax and customs officials in enforcing the law.

3. Reform the staffing management and operating funds mechanism, promoting organizational restructuring, building a clean, strong, and highly qualified workforce; using allocated funds in conjunction with performance and effectiveness; granting autonomy and responsibility to unit heads in organizing work, labor utilization, and financial resource management.

4. Proactively utilize allocated funds, practice thrift, combat waste, contribute to supplementing income for tax and customs officials; focus on investing in material infrastructure, modernizing information technology, and equipping management techniques and technologies, ensuring conditions for international integration; strengthen training in modern management knowledge, tasks, and skills for the cadre and staff. Ensure alignment with the goals of the Tax and Customs Development Strategy until 2020.

5. Implement democratic transparency in accordance with the provisions of the law, ensuring the legitimate rights of tax and customs officials.

Article 3. On Staffing

1. The staffing of the General Department of Taxation; the staffing of the General Department of Customs shall be determined within the total staffing quota granted by the competent state authority to the Ministry of Finance. The Minister of Finance shall allocate staffing quotas to the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs in accordance with the functions and tasks of each department. The General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall organize and utilize labor in accordance with the state's policy of reducing staffing.

2. In cases where additional tax or customs agencies are established at provincial or centrally-administered city levels or when new functions and tasks are added according to the decision of the competent authority, the Minister of Finance shall coordinate with the Minister of Home Affairs to report to the Prime Minister for approval.

3. In addition to the allocated staffing, tax and customs agencies may enter into service contracts and labor contracts in accordance with the law.

Article 4. Sources of funds to ensure operational activities

1. The operating funds of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall be annually allocated at a stable rate of 1.9% of the annual state budget revenue forecast assigned by the National Assembly and the Government, which the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall implement and consolidate in the annual state budget revenue-expenditure plan of the Ministry of Finance submitted to the Government and the National Assembly for approval.

2. In addition to the funds allocated as provided for in Clause 1 of this Article, each year, the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall also utilize the following sources of funds:

a) State budget funding allocated:

- Implement national-level scientific research projects;

- Train and enhance cadres and civil servants according to the State’s program;

- Implement national target programs and other government programs and projects outside regular tasks;

- Implementing staff reduction according to the regime prescribed by the State.

b) Fees and charges allowed to retain according to the regulations of the competent authority, other lawful sources of funding may be used in accordance with the law.

3. The General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall cover additional expenditures according to new policies and systems issued by the competent state authority in line with policy changes and requirements. In cases where objective factors result in insufficient allocated funds for the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article to ensure minimum operational costs, the Minister of Finance shall report to the Prime Minister for review and adjustment as appropriate.

Article 5. Use of Operating Funds

1. The sources of funds specified in Clause 1, Article 4 shall be allocated and budgeted to the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs to ensure: at least 10% for investment construction costs, at least 25% for purchasing modern equipment, and a maximum of 65% for regular operational expenses based on the total budgeted expenditures assigned.

2. Contents of the use of operating funds

a) Investment construction costs:

- Implement projects and works of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs according to plans approved by competent authorities.

- In cases of necessity, capital must be concentrated to accelerate progress to put projects and works currently being implemented but without allocated capital into operation and use. The Minister of Finance may reallocate investment capital already allocated for projects and works under the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs and shall be responsible before the Prime Minister.

Management and use of construction investment capital shall be carried out in accordance with laws on investment and construction.

b) Costs for purchasing and modernizing equipment:

- Expenditure on purchasing assets and working equipment to serve professional tasks;

- Expenditure on applying information technology according to programs and plans approved by competent authorities;

- Implementation of programs and projects serving the specialized tasks of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs such as: communication infrastructure projects, database projects, information technology training center projects and disaster prevention projects, and other programs and projects decided by the Minister of Finance.

Management and control of budgets, procurement of modern equipment shall be carried out in accordance with the law.

c) Regular expenditure: The regular expenditure of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs includes the following contents:

- Personal payment expenses (including additional salary payments, hiring fees, and outsourcing labor contracts as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 3 of this Decision).

- Administrative management costs and costs to ensure professional activities, including:

+ Expenses for public services, office supplies, telecommunications, communications, conferences, travel expenses, rental and other expenses as prescribed;

+ Expenses for propaganda of state policies, laws on taxation and customs; support for taxpayers;

+ Expenses for special operations against smuggling, inspection, supervision, and customs intelligence to prevent tax evasion and violations of tax and customs laws;

+ Expenses for purchasing materials, seals, tax collection commissions, uniforms, training, and maintaining service dogs, risk management, and other special operation expenses;

+ Expenses for coordinating work to fulfill tasks;

+ Costs for compensating organizations and individuals according to the law in professional activities;

+ Expenses for grassroots scientific research; training and professional development for staff and civil servants according to industry programs and plans;

+ Expenses for repairing assets, equipment, facilities, and workplaces to serve professional tasks;

+ Expenses for overseas trips; expenses for welcoming and hosting foreign guests visiting Vietnam, organizing international seminars and conferences in Vietnam, and contributions to international organizations as prescribed;

+ Expenses for supporting the dispatching, rotation, and assignment of staff and civil servants within the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs;

+ Expenses for ensuring the activities of party organizations according to the Decision of the Central Party Secretariat; expenses for self-defense personnel; expenses for ensuring the activities of mass organizations according to current laws;

+ Other regular activity expenses.

The General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall proactively use funding sources in line with actual needs, specialized tasks, and within the scope of assigned funds. Unspent funds at year-end shall be managed in accordance with current regulations.

Article 6. Standards, Levels of Expenditure, and Expenditure Regimes

1. Expenditures shall be implemented in accordance with established standards and levels issued by competent authorities. The Minister of Finance shall approve and issue special expenditures based on the application of current standards and levels, suitable to specific circumstances and financial resources.

2. Salary and wage levels: Based on the number of positions assigned by the Minister of Finance and available funding, the average salary and wage level for cadres, civil servants, officials, and workers throughout the sector shall not exceed 1.8 times the state-prescribed salary system (grade, rank, position, and allowances, excluding night and overtime allowances).

Distribution of salaries and wages shall be based on the quality of work completion by each cadre, civil servant, official, and worker according to principles of fairness and reasonableness, linking salaries to work performance, and must be reflected in the internal expenditure regulations of the unit.

Article 7. Use of savings funds

Annually, the savings from regular expenditures as stipulated in Point c, Clause 2, Article 5 of this Decision, the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs may use for the following purposes:

1. To allocate for construction projects and the purchase of modern equipment for the industry when necessary to accelerate the construction of facilities and modernization of the industry while funding is insufficient.

2. Additional assistance outside general policies for those voluntarily retiring during the process of labor organization restructuring; support for cadres, civil servants, and officials facing particularly difficult circumstances, suffering from serious illnesses, or other special cases; support for subordinate public institutions; support for activities of party and mass organizations of the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs.

3. Supplementing income for cadres, civil servants, officials, and workers throughout the sector up to 0.2 times the state-prescribed salary (grade, rank, position, and allowances, excluding night and overtime allowances).

4. Rewarding organizations and individuals inside and outside the Tax and Customs systems who have made significant contributions to tax and customs management activities; collective welfare expenses.

The level of reward and welfare expenses within the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs shall not exceed three months' worth of salary, wages, and actual income realized in the year.

5. Any remaining funds after using them for the above purposes, the General Department of Taxation and the General Department of Customs may transfer to the next year for continued use.

Article 8. Funding for the operation of public service units

State budget units under the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department shall be guaranteed operational funds from the state budget as prescribed in Article 4 of this Decision; they shall apply the expenditure regime stipulated in this Decision and exercise autonomy and responsibility for fulfilling their tasks, organizational structure, staffing, and finance according to the provisions of Decrees No. 43/2006/NĐ-CP dated April 25, 2006, No. 115/2005/NĐ-CP dated September 5, 2005, No. 96/2010/NĐ-CP dated September 20, 2010 issued by the Government, and current guiding documents of the State. The Minister of Finance shall approve the level of allocated funds for these state budget units based on the classification of state budget units as prescribed.

Article 9. Implementation Organization

1. Entrust the Minister of Finance:

a) To guide the implementation of this Decision. Direct the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department to organize and implement it; monitor and inspect to ensure that units comply with the regulations set forth in this Decision.

b) The Ministry of Finance shall issue standards, norms, and expenditure regimes appropriate to the requirements and activities of the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department based on the national standards, norms, and regimes.

c) By the third quarter of 2015, conduct a review and evaluation of the results of implementing this Decision, and report to the Prime Minister for submission to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly regarding the financial management mechanism and staffing for the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department for the subsequent phase.

2. Entrust the Minister of Planning and Investment:

To be responsible for monitoring and supervising the use of investment capital allocated to the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department in compliance with regulations on managing and utilizing state budget funds and the approved list and plan.

3. Operational funds allocated to the General Taxation Department and the General Customs Department (including all funds) remaining unused and unspent from 2010 and earlier shall continue to be used for specialized tasks, investment construction expenses, and purchasing modern equipment. The Minister of Finance shall specify the use of these funds to ensure practicality and effectiveness.

4. This Decision shall take effect from April 30, 2011, and shall apply to fiscal years from 2011 to 2015.

Repeal the provisions of Decisions No. 63/2009/QĐ-TTg and No. 64/2009/QĐ-TTg dated April 20, 2009, issued by the Prime Minister concerning the financial management mechanism and staffing for the Customs and Tax sectors in 2009 and 2010.

5. The Ministers of Finance, Home Affairs, Planning and Investment, and heads of relevant agencies shall be responsible for implementing this Decision./.