Circular No. 199/2010/TT-BTC guiding the collection, payment, management, and use of fees and charges for quality, safety, and veterinary management of aquatic products.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines on the collection, submission, management, and use of fees and charges for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products

Management of quality, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products

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Pursuant to Decree No. 57/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Ordinance on Fees and Charges;

Pursuant to Decree No. 24/2006/NĐ-CP dated March 6, 2006 of the Government amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 57/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002;

Pursuant to Decree No. 163/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 7, 2004 of the Government detailing the implementation of certain articles of the Ordinance on Food Safety Hygiene, certain Articles of the Ordinance on Veterinary Services, the Ordinance on Livestock Breeds, and the Ordinance on Plant Quarantine and Protection;

Pursuant to the 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;

After considering the opinion of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development expressed in Circular No. 3416/BNN-TC dated October 21, 2010, the Ministry of Finance hereby stipulates the regime for the collection, submission, management, and use of fees and charges for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products as follows:

Article 1. Fee and charge rates

Attached to this Circular is the Fee and Charge Table for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products, including:

1. Appendix 1 - Charges for quality control and safety hygiene services for aquatic products;

2. Appendix 2 - Charges for veterinary services for aquatic products;

3. Appendix 3 - Fees for quality control and safety hygiene services for aquatic products;

4. Appendix 4 - Fees for veterinary services for aquatic products.

Article 2. Applicability

Vietnamese organizations and individuals, as well as foreign organizations and individuals engaged in the production, business, export, import, and domestic consumption of aquatic products and aquatic product derivatives; and the production and business of veterinary drugs, feed, chemicals, and biological preparations used in aquaculture in Vietnam, when subject to quality control and safety hygiene services for food and veterinary services for aquatic products as prescribed by law by competent state agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development must pay fees and charges according to the rates specified in Article 1 of this Circular.

Fees and charges for national management of quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products shall be collected in Vietnamese Dong. In cases where foreign organizations and individuals wish to pay fees and charges in foreign currency, they shall be collected in US dollars (USD) at the average inter-bank foreign exchange rate published by the State Bank of Vietnam at the time of payment.

Article 3. Collection and Submission of Fees and Charges

State management agencies responsible for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products (including the Directorate of Quality Assurance for Agricultural and Forestry Products and Aquatic Products, the Directorate of Animal Health, the General Department of Fisheries, subordinate units, and local agencies managing quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products) performing tasks as specified in Article 2 of this Decision shall be responsible for organizing the collection, submission, management, and use of fees and charges in accordance with this Circular (hereinafter referred to as fee collection agencies).

Article 4. Management and Use of Fees and Charges

Fees and charges for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products are revenue items belonging to the state budget, which shall be managed and used as follows:

1. Fee collection agencies may retain 85% of the total actual collected fees and charges to cover expenses related to the collection of fees and charges, as specifically provided below:

a) Salary, wages, and other allowances of a similar nature according to current regulations (excluding salary costs for civil servants already receiving salaries from the state budget);

b) Occupational health protection or uniforms for workers according to established regulations;

c) Contributions according to regulations for employees such as social insurance, health insurance, and trade union fees;

d) Payment for public services, office supplies, and communication services supporting the work of collecting fees and charges;

đ) Regular maintenance costs for buildings, equipment, and office machinery serving the inspection of quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products;

e) Other expenses directly supporting the work of quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products;

g) Purchase of receipts, seals, raw materials, chemicals, tools, equipment, machinery, and supplies directly supporting the work of collecting fees and charges;

h) Major repair costs for assets, machinery, and specialized equipment serving the work of collecting fees and charges;

i) Rent for offices, technical experts, technical workers, and technical equipment rental serving the work of collecting fees and charges (if applicable);

k) Expenses for conferences, seminars, short-term training, professional training, and experimental techniques to support the inspection of food safety hygiene, veterinary services for aquatic products, and the work of collecting fees and charges;

l) Expenses for external activities directly supporting the work of quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products, such as purchasing technical documents, hosting foreign experts to inspect the quality control and safety hygiene of aquatic products in Vietnam; Travel expenses for staff and specialists sent abroad to work with foreign partners according to current regulations;

m) Rewards and welfare for staff directly involved in collecting fees and charges within their unit, averaging no more than three months' salary if the annual collection exceeds the previous year, or two months' salary if it is equal to or less than the previous year's collection.

2. Fee collection agencies under the Directorate of Quality Assurance for Agricultural and Forestry Products and Aquatic Products, the Directorate of Animal Health, and the General Department of Fisheries shall allocate funds based on retained collections to ensure minimum wage funds for fee collectors and staff, and to cover operational expenses for quality control, safety hygiene, and veterinary services for aquatic products of the Directorate and General Department.

3. The Department of Agricultural Product Quality, Plant Protection and Fisheries, the Department of Animal Health, and the General Department of Fisheries shall prepare annual revenue and expenditure budgets, report to the Ministry of Finance for approval; open separate accounts at the State Treasury where transactions take place to monitor income and expenditure related to funds for organizing fee and charge collection activities from excess payments made by collecting units to be transferred to underfunded units. At the same time, they must maintain separate accounting records; any unspent funds at the end of the year may be carried over to the next year for continued use, and annual settlement with the Ministry of Finance is required.

4. The total amount of fees and charges actually collected, after deducting the amount allocated according to the ratio specified in Clause 1 of this Article (15%), the fee and charge collecting agencies must remit the remaining amount into the state budget according to the corresponding chapter, type, item, sub-item, and sub-sub-item of the current state budget classification.

State-owned enterprises that have been assigned by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to conduct offshore wind power project surveys before the effective date of this Circular shall continue to implement according to the assigned documents; any new matters arising after the effective date of this Circular shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of this Circular.

1. This Circular takes effect 45 days from the date of signature. This Circular replaces Decision No. 60/2008/QD-BTC dated July 31, 2008 of the Minister of Finance on the regulations regarding the collection, payment, management, and use of fees and charges for quality control, hygiene safety, and veterinary services for aquatic products. For costs associated with inspecting conditions ensuring hygiene safety at aquatic product production and business establishments, annually, central and local quality control, hygiene safety, and veterinary services management agencies shall prepare budgets for inspection activities, submit them for review and approval by competent authorities, and allocate funds according to the State Budget Law.

2. Other matters related to the collection, payment, management, use, and public disclosure of fee and charge systems not covered in this Circular shall be implemented in accordance with Circular No. 60/2007/TT-BTC dated June 14, 2007 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Tax Administration Law and guiding the implementation of Decree No. 85/2007/NĐ-CP dated May 25, 2007 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Tax Administration Law, and Circular No. 157/2009/TT-BTC dated August 6, 2009 amending and supplementing Circular No. 60/2007/TT-BTC dated June 14, 2007.

1. Organizations and individuals subject to the payment of fees and charges for quality control, hygiene safety, and veterinary services for aquatic products, the Department of Agricultural Product Quality, Plant Protection and Fisheries, the Department of Animal Health, the General Department of Fisheries, fee and charge collecting units, and relevant agencies are responsible for implementing this Circular.

2. In the course of implementation, if there are difficulties, organizations and individuals are requested to promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Finance for study and supplementary guidance./.