Circular No. 177/2010/TT-BTC on the financial management regime for the Fund for the Protection of Vietnamese Citizens and Legal Entities Abroad

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the financial management of the Citizen Protection Fund

 and Vietnamese legal entities abroad

_____________________

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular regulating the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds supported by the State budget for organizations assigned or authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to perform tasks of selecting, introducing, and managing Vietnamese workers working for foreign organizations and individuals in Vietnam.

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;

Pursuant to Decision No. 119/2007/QĐ-TTg dated July 25, 2007 of the Government Chairman regarding the establishment of the Fund for Protecting Vietnamese Citizens and Legal Entities Abroad;

The Ministry of Finance shall regulate the financial management of the Citizen Protection Fund and Vietnamese legal entities abroad as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Application

This Circular stipulates the financial management of the Citizen Protection Fund and Vietnamese legal entities abroad (referred to as the Citizen Protection Fund), established by the Prime Minister under Decision No. 119/2007/QĐ-TTg dated July 25, 2007. The international transaction name is Fund for Assisting Overseas Vietnamese Citizens and Legal Entities - abbreviated as FAOV.

Vietnamese citizens residing abroad who have subscribed to insurance in their host countries are not subject to this Regulation.

Article 2. Principles of operation of the Fund for Protecting Vietnamese Citizens

1. The Citizen Protection Fund operates without profit-making objectives. The Fund has its own legal status, separate accounts, and seals. The Fund opens domestic currency and foreign currency accounts at the State Treasury or domestic commercial banks in accordance with Article 2 of Decision No. 119/2007/QĐ-TTg dated July 25, 2007, issued by the Prime Minister.

2. Vietnamese representative offices abroad cooperate with the Fund's Board of Directors and Office to carry out citizen protection activities in compliance with the Regulation on "Organization and Operation of the Citizen Protection Fund and Vietnamese Legal Entities Abroad" issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Article 3. Revenue sources of the Fund for Protecting Vietnamese Citizens

1. The initial funding of the Citizen Protection Fund from the State Budget is twenty billion Vietnamese dong; annual supplementary funding from the State Budget is based on the approved budget estimate.

2. Money and assets contributed voluntarily by individuals and organizations both domestically and internationally, and sponsored to the Fund, must comply with relevant laws.

3. Interest income from deposits and other lawful revenues (if any).

Article 4. Expenditure items of the Fund for Protecting Vietnamese Citizens

1. The Citizen Protection Fund for Vietnamese citizens abroad may allocate funds for the following purposes:

a) Non-reimbursable expenditures:

- Expenditures for activities of diplomatic agencies, consular agencies, or other authorized agencies of Vietnam abroad to implement citizen and entity protection. Expenses for staff travel costs related to citizen and entity protection tasks, including airfare, transportation fees, fuel expenses, and travel allowances according to current regulations.

- Assistance for particularly difficult cases of citizens injured or severely affected by accidents or risks that they cannot overcome alone, and women and children victims of human trafficking without family, kin, or organizational guarantees, including:

+ Transportation assistance within the host country; food, accommodation, and personal clothing expenses based on actual receipts, in a spirit of economy, as decided by the head of the diplomatic agency, consular agency, or other authorized agencies of Vietnam abroad to implement citizen and entity protection.

+ Assistance for the return of women and child victims of human trafficking from abroad to Vietnam, in accordance with the expenditure items and levels specified in Clause 3, Section III of Joint Circular No. 116/2007/TTLT-BTC-BLĐTBXH dated May 8, 2008, issued by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs, guiding the content and level of expenditures for verification, reception, and support for women and children repatriated from abroad to reintegrate into society.

b) Reimbursable expenditures:

- Advance payment for ticket purchases to return home, hospitalization fees, and accommodation expenses for citizens in the following situations:

+ When the individual does not have financial means but has a deposit or guarantee from family, kin, or domestic organizations, or from the People's Committee of the province or city where the individual is registered, regarding the repayment of these amounts;

+ In special cases, when the individual does not have a guarantee from family or domestic organizations regarding the repayment of these amounts, the individual must commit to repay these amounts;

- Expenditures for other protection activities as decided by the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

2. Expenditures for managing the Fund:

Annually, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs may allocate up to 10% of the total approved funding for the Citizen Protection Fund and Vietnamese Legal Entities to cover management activities, including:

a) Allowances for the position of Fund Director under the concurrent position regulations stipulated in Circular No. 78/2005/TT-BNV dated August 10, 2005, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, guiding the implementation of allowances for concurrent positions for officials, civil servants, and employees concurrently holding leadership positions in other agencies or units.

b) Salaries, social insurance, and allowances as prescribed by law for contractual staff of the Fund (if any).

c) Payment for overtime work (if any) according to current regulations.

d) Expenditures for promotional activities to build the Fund.

đ) Expenditures for outbound and inbound delegations serving the construction of the Fund, regular and annual inspections of the use of the Fund at Vietnamese representative offices abroad; surveys and studies of actual conditions, cooperation with localities in protecting Vietnamese citizens and legal entities abroad.

e) Expenditures for purchasing, repairing, and maintaining fixed assets serving the operations of the Fund.

g) Expenditures for office supplies; payment for public services.

h) Periodic and extraordinary rewards for organizations and individuals who contribute to the Fund or achieve outstanding results in its activities. The establishment, management, and use of the Fund for commendation and awards shall be carried out in accordance with the Circular of the Ministry of Finance guiding Decree No. 42/2010/NĐ-CP dated April 15, 2010, of the Government detailing the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Commendation and Awards. The source of the commendation and award fund is allocated from the Fund's operational budget and assigned annually by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

i) Other lawful expenditures serving the management of the Fund.

The above expenditure items shall be implemented in accordance with the current state expenditure regimes and standards; the Director of the Fund shall decide on the standard expenditure and bear legal responsibility for his decision.

The proportion of expenditures for management activities mentioned above will be adjusted to suit the actual situation upon the proposal of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and approval by the Minister of Finance.

Article 5: Budget preparation, budget allocation, finalization, and usage mechanism

1. Budget preparation and budget allocation:

a) Each year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs prepares the budget for the Fund's operational expenses and consolidates it into the Ministry's budget to be submitted to the competent authority as prescribed by the State Budget Law and related guiding documents.

b) Based on the approved budget, the Minister of Foreign Affairs proceeds to allocate the budget funds for the Fund (accompanied by a detailed explanation of the Fund's intended use), which is then sent to the Ministry of Finance for review according to regulations. Based on the allocated budget, the Fund withdraws funds from the National Treasury to cover management costs and disburses funds to Vietnamese representative offices abroad to fulfill their duty of protecting Vietnamese citizens and legal entities abroad, as required by actual conditions at those offices.

2. Final settlement:

a) Each year, Vietnamese representative offices abroad using the Fund are responsible for reporting the finalized budget expenditures and simultaneously sending original expense receipts to the Fund Office for verification, approval, and consolidation of the final report to be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

b) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for reviewing the Fund's income and expenditure finalization reports and consolidating them into the annual finalization report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance for assessment according to the State Budget Law and related guiding documents.

In cases where the Fund does not fully utilize the approved budget funds in a given year, the remaining balance will be carried over to the following year for use in accordance with the predetermined purpose and content of the Fund's use.

3. Usage mechanism:

Based on the annual spending plan that has been allocated, the Director of the Fund is responsible for and instructs Vietnamese representative offices abroad to manage and use funds in compliance with Vietnamese laws, local laws, international laws, and current financial management regulations, as well as the Fund's financial management regulations and its organizational and operational charter.

The Director of the Fund has the authority to approve expenditures up to a maximum of US$10,000 (ten thousand US dollars) per case. For amounts exceeding US$10,000, the Director of the Fund must report to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for consideration and decision.

The Head of the overseas representative office has the authority to approve expenditures up to a maximum of US$3,000 (three thousand US dollars) per case. For amounts exceeding US$3,000, the Head of the overseas representative office must recommend to the Director of the Fund for consideration and decision.

The Fund may not use its funds for activities not aligned with the Fund's designated purposes.

Article 6: Accounting Work and Fund Management

1. The Citizen Protection Fund must organize accounting work and bookkeeping in accordance with Decision No. 19/2006/QĐ-BTC dated March 30, 2006, issued by the Minister of Finance regarding "Accounting Regulations for Administrative and Public Services"; in accordance with financial management regulations for Vietnamese representative offices abroad, as well as the Fund's regulations.

2. The Fund conducts separate bookkeeping for operational activities funded by the Fund for management purposes.

3. The Fund organizes separate bookkeeping to track contributions from individuals and organizations both domestically and internationally through overseas representative offices.

4. Currency for bookkeeping: Bookkeeping and settlement are conducted in Vietnamese Dong.

5. In cases of foreign currency use: If the Ministry of Finance directly allocates foreign currency, the exchange rate for accounting and bookkeeping shall be based on the monthly announcement by the Ministry of Finance. In cases of purchasing foreign currency from a bank, the conversion rate shall be based on the bank's documentation at the time of purchase.

6. The Director of the Fund and the Head of the representative office are responsible for expenditures in compliance with policies, systems, and regulations stipulated in this Circular.

7. The Citizen Protection Fund complies with current state regulations concerning the inspection and audit of the Fund's financial activities.

Article 7: Implementation organization

This Circular shall take effect 45 days from the date of signature, replacing Decision No. 40/2008/QĐ-BTC of the Minister of Finance on the issuance of the Financial Management Regulations for the Fund for the Protection of Vietnamese Citizens and Legal Entities Abroad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall be responsible for guiding Vietnamese representative offices abroad as well as relevant units within the Ministry to implement the provisions of this Circular.

In the course of implementation, if any difficulties arise, they should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Finance for guidance on resolution./.