Consolidated Document number 2/VBHN-BNV guiding the implementation of the regular promotion and early promotion salary grade system for civil servants, public officials, and state employees.

CIRCULAR

GUIDELINES FOR IMPLEMENTING THE REGIME OF PERIODIC PAY GRADE INCREASES AND EARLY PAY GRADE INCREASES FOR PUBLIC OFFICIALS, CIVIL SERVANTS, STATE EMPLOYEES, AND LABORERS

Circular No. 08/2013/TT-BNV dated July 31, 2013, issued by the Minister of Home Affairs guiding the implementation of the regime of periodic pay grade increases and early pay grade increases for public officials, civil servants, state employees, and laborers, which took effect from September 15, 2013, has been amended and supplemented by:

Circular No. 03/2021/TT-BNV dated June 29, 2021, issued by the Minister of Home Affairs amending and supplementing the regime of periodic pay grade increases, early pay grade increases, and the supplementary allowance for exceeding the framework period for public officials, civil servants, state employees, and laborers, which took effect from August 15, 2021.

Pursuant to Decree No. 61/2012/NĐ-CP dated August 10, 2012, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Home Affairs;

Pursuant to Decree No. 204/2004/NĐ-CP dated December 14, 2004, promulgated by the Government on the salary system for public officials, civil servants, state employees, and armed forces personnel (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 204/2004/NĐ-CP), which has been amended and supplemented by Decree No. 76/2009/NĐ-CP dated September 15, 2009; Decree No. 14/2012/NĐ-CP dated March 7, 2012, and Decree No. 17/2013/NĐ-CP dated February 19, 2013, all promulgated by the Government;

The Minister of Home Affairs issues this Circular to guide the implementation of the regime of periodic pay grade increases and early pay grade increases for public officials, civil servants, state employees, and laborers.

Article 1. Scope and Objectives

1. Scope and Applicability:

a) Public officials, civil servants, and state employees classified under the senior expert salary scale, professional and technical salary scales, administrative and service salary scales working in state agencies from central to commune level (commune level referred to as commune level hereinafter) and in public institutions, including:

- Public officials in state agencies from central to district level classified under the administrative civil servant rank and grade as prescribed in Point b Clause 1 Article 3 of Decree No. 204/2004/NĐ-CP;

- Civil servants and state employees in state agencies and public institutions classified under the senior expert salary scale, professional and technical salary scales, administrative and service salary scales (including positions in the judiciary and prosecution sectors);

- Commune-level public officials as prescribed in Point b Clause 1 Article 5 and commune-level civil servants as prescribed in Point a Clause 2 Article 5 of Decree No. 92/2009/NĐ-CP dated October 22, 2009, promulgated by the Government on the position titles, number, and some policies for public officials and civil servants at commune level and non-professional staff at commune level (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 92/2009/NĐ-CP).

b) Those classified under the senior expert salary scale, professional and technical salary scales, administrative and service salary scales as prescribed by the State and authorized by competent authorities to work in projects and international organizations located in Vietnam while still being on the payroll of their agencies or units.

c) 2Those working under labor contracts in administrative agencies and public institutions with agreements in labor contracts classified under the salary scale as prescribed in Decree No. 204/2004/NĐ-CP dated December 14, 2004, promulgated by the Government on the salary system for public officials, civil servants, state employees, and armed forces personnel.

d) Those classified under the salary scale as prescribed by the State within the staffing quota funded by the State budget in special nature associations as prescribed in Decree No. 45/2010/NĐ-CP dated April 21, 2010, promulgated by the Government on the organization, operation, and management of associations and Decision No. 68/2010/QĐ-TTg dated November 1, 2010, issued by the Prime Minister on associations with special characteristics.

The subjects mentioned in Points a, b, c, and d of this Clause shall be collectively referred to as public officials, civil servants, state employees, and laborers hereinafter.

2. Non-applicable Subjects:

a) Public officials classified under the position-based salary scale who have already been classified according to the term of office.

b) Commune-level public officials currently enjoying retirement benefits or disability allowances as prescribed in Point c Clause 1 Article 5 of Decree No. 92/2009/NĐ-CP and Clause 1 Article 1 of Decree No. 29/2013/NĐ-CP dated April 8, 2013, promulgated by the Government amending and supplementing certain articles of Decree No. 92/2009/NĐ-CP.

c) Commune-level civil servants who have not yet completed the required professional training as prescribed in Point b Clause 2 Article 5 of Decree No. 92/2009/NĐ-CP.

Article 2. Regular Salary Increment System

The subjects specified in Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular, if they have not yet been assigned to the highest salary grade within their cadre (hereinafter referred to as "cadre") or position title, shall be eligible for a regular salary increment when they meet the conditions of time spent at the current grade or position title and satisfy the criteria for regular salary increments stipulated in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article during the period of holding the current salary grade as follows:

1. Conditions regarding the time spent at the current grade or position title:

a) Time spent at the current grade for regular salary increment consideration:

- For senior specialist positions: If not yet assigned to the highest salary grade within the senior specialist pay scale, after five years (sixty months) of holding a grade within the senior specialist pay scale, they will be eligible for a regular salary increment;

- For cadres and position titles requiring a college education or higher: If not yet assigned to the highest salary grade within the cadre or position title, after three years (thirty-six months) of holding a grade within the cadre or position title, they will be eligible for a regular salary increment;

- For cadres and position titles requiring a secondary education or lower and administrative staff: If not yet assigned to the highest salary grade within the cadre or position title, after two years (twenty-four months) of holding a grade within the cadre or position title, they will be eligible for a regular salary increment.

b) Cases included in the time for regular salary increment consideration include:

- Time off work with full pay as prescribed by labor laws;

- Time off work for maternity leave as prescribed by social insurance laws;

- Time off work due to illness, workplace accidents, occupational diseases, and cumulative sick leave up to six months (during the period of holding the grade) as prescribed by social insurance laws;

- Time spent working as an expert, studying, training, working, or surveying both domestically and abroad (including time spent accompanying spouses under government regulations) while still on the payroll of the agency or unit;

- Time spent by officials, civil servants, employees, and workers serving in the military according to the Law on Military Service.

c) Time not included in the time for regular salary increment consideration includes:

- Time off work without pay;

- Time spent working as an expert, studying, training, working, or surveying both domestically and abroad exceeding the period decided by the competent authority;

- Time spent suspended from duty, detained, imprisoned, and other non-working periods outside those specified in Point b, Clause 1 of this Article;

- Probationary period (including cases where the individual receives 100% of the cadre's salary);

- Time spent by officials, civil servants, employees, and workers deserting during military service;

- Probationary period for officials, civil servants, employees, and workers who were sentenced to suspended imprisonment but ordered to serve probation; in such cases, if the probation period is shorter than the extended period for regular salary increment, the extended period for regular salary increment shall apply;

- Time off work waiting to reach the retirement age as currently prescribed by law.

All types of time not included in the time for regular salary increment consideration as stipulated in this Point (if applicable) shall be rounded to the nearest month. If there is partial time less than a full month, it shall be calculated as follows: less than eleven working days (excluding weekly holidays and time off work with full pay as prescribed by labor laws) shall not be counted; eleven working days or more shall be counted as one month.

2. Criteria for Regular Salary Increments:

The subjects specified in Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular, who meet the time conditions at the current grade or position title stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article and are assessed to have met the following two criteria throughout the period of holding the current salary grade, shall be eligible for a regular salary increment:

a) For officials and civil servants:

- Criterion 1: They are evaluated and rated by the competent authority at a level of completing tasks or above;

- Criterion 2: They do not violate discipline through reprimand, warning, demotion, or dismissal.

b) For employees and workers:

- Criterion 1: They are evaluated by the competent authority at a level of completing tasks or above;

- Criterion 2: They do not violate discipline through reprimand, warning, or dismissal.

3. Extended Period for Regular Salary Increment Consideration:

During the period of holding the current salary grade, if officials, civil servants, employees, and workers have received a notice or decision in writing from the competent authority stating that they have failed to complete their annual tasks or have been disciplined through reprimand, warning, demotion, or dismissal, the period for regular salary increment consideration will be extended compared to the period stipulated in Point a, Clause 1 of this Article as follows:

a) Extended by twelve months for the following cases:

- Officials who have been dismissed;

- Civil servants who have been demoted or dismissed;

- Employees and workers who have been dismissed.

b) Extended by six months for the following cases:

- Officials, civil servants, and workers who have been reprimanded or warned;

- Employees who have been warned;

- Officials, civil servants, employees, and workers who have been rated by the competent authority as failing to complete their annual tasks; in such cases, if they fail to complete their tasks for two consecutive years during the period of holding the grade, each year of failure will result in an extension of six months.

c) Extended by three months for employees who have been reprimanded.

d) In cases where individuals are simultaneously rated as failing to complete their annual tasks and disciplined, the extended period for regular salary increment consideration will be the total of the extended periods specified in Points a, b, and c of this Clause.

d) In case of being rated and classified as not completing tasks due to disciplinary action (for the same violation act), the extended period for regular salary increment shall be calculated according to the corresponding disciplinary form prescribed in points a, b, c of this clause.

e) In case civil servants, public officials, employees who are Party members are disciplined by the Party: if there is a decision on administrative disciplinary action, the extended period for regular salary increment shall be implemented according to the administrative disciplinary form; if there is no administrative disciplinary decision, the extended period for regular salary increment shall be implemented according to the corresponding Party disciplinary form as stipulated in this clause.

4. In cases where there is a conclusion from the competent authority that the person was wrongfully suspended, detained, or disciplined (reprimanded, warned, demoted, dismissed) and later exonerated, the time periods shall be recalculated for regular salary increment as follows:

a) The time spent under wrongful suspension, detention shall be recalculated into the time for considering regular salary increment.

b) There shall be no extension of the time for considering regular salary increment for disciplinary actions taken due to wrongful acts.

c) The person shall be entitled to back pay and social insurance contributions (including the portion paid by the agency or unit) according to the recalculated salary grades.

Article 3. Early Regular Salary Increment System

1. Early Regular Salary Increment System for outstanding achievements in performing duties:

a) Conditions and entitlements:

The subjects specified in Clause 1, Article 1 of this Circular, who meet the two criteria set out in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular and have made outstanding achievements in their duties recognized in writing by the competent authority, if they have not yet reached the final grade in their position or rank and still lack less than 12 months to qualify for regular salary increment as of December 31 of the year under consideration, may be considered for an early salary increment of up to 12 months ahead of schedule compared to the time specified in Point a, Clause 1, Article 2 of this Circular.

b) Proportion of early salary increments:

The proportion of civil servants, public officials, employees (excluding those specified in Clause 2 of this Article) who can receive early salary increments for outstanding achievements in performing duties in one year shall not exceed 10% of the total number of civil servants, public officials, employees in the payroll list of the agency or unit. The payroll list of the agency or unit is determined based on the decision of the competent authority assigning personnel quotas (for civil servants) or approving the number of staff (for public officials and employees) as of December 31 of the year under consideration.

c) Calculation of the number of people within the proportion eligible for early salary increments:

- For every 10 people in the payroll list (excluding the remainder under 10 people after dividing the total number of people in the payroll list of the agency or unit by 10), the agency or unit is determined to have one person eligible for an early salary increment for outstanding achievements.

- Based on the above calculation, in the fourth quarter of each year, the agency or unit (including those with fewer than 10 people in the payroll list) shall submit a report to the direct superior management body to monitor and check the number of people within the proportion eligible for early salary increments for outstanding achievements of the following year and the remainder under 10 people of their own agency or unit.

- The direct superior management body shall base its decision on the total number of people in the payroll list remaining under 10 people (including those with fewer than 10 people in the payroll list) reported by subordinate agencies and units, and the additional number of people in the payroll list approved by the competent authority for subordinate agencies and units during the year, to allocate additional people eligible for early salary increments for outstanding achievements beyond the 10% ratio of subordinate agencies and units (with priority given to units with fewer than 10 people in the payroll list and agencies and units that have performed well in their work), but ensuring that the total number of people eligible for early salary increments for outstanding achievements at subordinate agencies and units does not exceed 10% of the total number of people in the payroll list as of December 31 of the year under consideration of the agencies and units under their management.

- By the end of the first quarter of the following year, if the agency or unit has not fully utilized the number of people within the proportion eligible for early salary increments of the year under consideration (including any additional people allocated by the direct superior management body, if applicable), it will not be counted towards the proportion of early salary increments for outstanding achievements for subsequent years.

d) It is not allowed to implement consecutive early salary increments for outstanding achievements in performing duties.

đ) Determining achievements for early salary increments for outstanding achievements:

- Achievements for early salary increments are determined based on the date of issuance of the decision recognizing the achievements obtained in the most recent six-year period for positions requiring a college degree or higher and the most recent four-year period for positions requiring a secondary vocational school degree or lower as of December 31 of the year under consideration.

For those who have already received an early salary increment, all achievements obtained before the decision on the early salary increment within the specified period (six years and four years) shall not be counted towards eligibility for an early salary increment for the next time.

- The consideration for early salary increments shall be based on the highest achievement of civil servants, public officials, employees; if the highest achievements are equal, other achievements shall be considered; in cases where multiple individuals have the same achievements, priority shall be given according to the early salary increment regulations of the agency or unit.

Example: Mr. Nguyen Van A was promoted to grade 4 with a salary coefficient of 5.42 from the Specialist rank (code 01.002) ahead of schedule due to outstanding achievements in performing tasks at grade 3 with a salary coefficient of 5.08 from January 1, 2010. On August 1, 2010, President signed Decision awarding Mr. A the Labor Medal, third class, for his work achievements during the period of 2005-2009 (this achievement of Mr. A was recorded after January 1, 2010 and will be considered for future early promotion). According to the regulations of the agency where he works, the award of the Labor Medal, third class, allows for an early promotion of twelve months, but according to the regulation, early promotions cannot be granted consecutively within the same rank, so Mr. A was only eligible for regular promotion from grade 4 to grade 5 of the Specialist rank starting from January 1, 2013. By January 1, 2015 (after holding grade 5 of the Specialist rank for twenty-four months), if Mr. A meets the conditions for early promotion due to outstanding achievements in the Specialist rank, his work achievements from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2015 (including the Labor Medal, third class awarded on August 1, 2010) will be considered for early promotion.

e) Criteria for early promotion:

The criteria and levels regarding outstanding achievements in performing tasks and the corresponding time for early promotion based on different levels of achievements of cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees shall be specifically stipulated in the early promotion regulations of the agencies and units by the heads of those agencies and units after consulting with the same-level Party committees and Trade Union Executive Committees. Based on this provision, cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees eligible for annual early promotion through collective selection shall not exceed ten percent of the total number of cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees listed for payment in the agencies and units.

2. Early promotion system for cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees who have been notified of retirement:

Cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees who have been notified of retirement, if they meet the two criteria specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular during their tenure at the current grade, have not yet reached the final grade in the rank or position, and from the date of notification of retirement until the actual retirement date, there remains less than twelve months to reach the next grade under the regular promotion regulations, shall be promoted one grade ahead of schedule by twelve months compared to the time specified in Point a, Clause 1, Article 2 of this Circular.

3. In cases where cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees are eligible for early promotion both due to outstanding achievements in performing tasks and due to notification of retirement, such individuals may choose one of the two early promotion systems stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 4. Organization of Implementation

1. The head of the agency or unit managing cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees shall be responsible for consulting with the same-level Party committee and Trade Union Executive Committee to implement:

a) Issuing the early promotion regulations of the agency or unit due to outstanding achievements in performing tasks, which must clearly specify the criteria and levels regarding outstanding achievements in performing tasks, the corresponding time for early promotion based on different levels of achievements of cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees, and the priority order for early promotion among those with similar outstanding achievements, serving as the basis for early promotion of the subjects under management. This regulation must be publicly disclosed within the agency or unit and submitted to the immediate superior supervisory authority for management and inspection during implementation.

b) Deciding or proposing the competent authority to decide according to the current hierarchical division to promote regularly and early (due to outstanding achievements in performing tasks and due to notification of retirement) cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees listed for payment in the agency or unit.

c) Publicly announcing the list of those promoted regularly and early in the agency or unit.

d) Annually, in the fourth quarter, submitting a report to the immediate superior supervisory authority on the situation and difficulties in implementing the regular promotion and early promotion systems for cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees in the agency or unit according to Model 1 issued along with this Circular; the number of people eligible for early promotion due to outstanding achievements and the number of excess people under ten of the agency or unit for the following consecutive year.

2. The head of the immediate superior supervisory agency or unit of the agency or unit shall be responsible for:

Checking the results and resolving according to their authority any difficulties in implementing the regular promotion and early promotion systems for cadres, civil servants, public officials, and employees under management; compiling and reporting to the Ministry, central sector (if under central management), People's Committee of province or centrally-administered city (if under local management) the results of implementing the regular promotion and early promotion systems in all agencies and units under management according to Model 1 issued along with this Circular.

3. The Minister, Head of a ministry-equivalent agency, Head of an agency under the Government, Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court, Procurator General of the Supreme People's Procuracy, Chairman of the People's Committee of province or centrally-administered city shall be responsible for:

a) Examine and resolve within their authority any issues arising from the implementation of the regular salary increment system and early salary increment system at Ministries, sectors, and localities; ensure that the annual ratio of early salary increments due to outstanding achievements does not exceed 10% of the total number of officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers on the payroll who are eligible for such increments.

b) Decide or delegate authority to decide on regular salary increments and early salary increments for officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers under their management (including senior specialist ranks and equivalent civil servant ranks and public employee positions).

c) Decisions regarding regular salary increments and early salary increments for positions managed by the Politburo, Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and the Standing Committee of the National Assembly shall be implemented according to current delegation levels.

d) Annually, in the fourth quarter, compile and report to the Ministry of Home Affairs the results of implementing regular salary increments and early salary increments for officials, civil servants, and public employees with senior specialist ranks and equivalent ranks and positions, using form number 2 issued together with this Circular.

4. The General Director of the Vietnam Social Security shall direct provincial and centrally-administered city social security agencies to collect social insurance premiums and calculate social insurance benefits for officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers in accordance with the regular salary increment and early salary increment systems stipulated in this Circular. If irregularities in regular salary increments and early salary increments are discovered, the provincial and centrally-administered city social security directors shall request the competent authorities managing officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers to re-implement according to the prescribed regulations before processing social insurance benefits for those entitled (simultaneously sending one copy to the Ministry of Home Affairs for monitoring and verification).

5. The Ministry of Home Affairs shall inspect the implementation of the regular salary increment and early salary increment systems in Ministries, sectors, and localities; and require Ministries, sectors, and localities to revoke decisions on regular salary increments and early salary increments for officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers that contravene the provisions of this Circular.

Article 5. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from September 15, 2013.

The early salary increment system due to outstanding achievements in performing duties from 2013 for officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers shall be implemented according to the guidelines set out in this Circular.

2. Circular No. 03/2005/TT-BNV dated January 5, 2005, of the Ministry of Home Affairs guiding the implementation of the regular salary increment and early salary increment systems for officials, civil servants, and public employees, and Section I of Circular No. 83/2005/TT-BNV dated August 10, 2005, of the Ministry of Home Affairs guiding amendments and supplements to the salary increment system and other salary allowances for officials, civil servants, and public employees cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect.

3. Subjects belonging to the armed forces and personnel engaged in confidential work in confidential organizations shall have separate guidelines.

4. Officials, civil servants, public employees, and workers employed in state-owned public institutions of the Communist Party of Vietnam and political-social organizations shall implement the regular salary increment and early salary increment systems according to the guidelines of the Central Organization Department.

During the implementation process, if any issues arise, Ministries, sectors, localities, and organizations and individuals shall reflect them to the Ministry of Home Affairs for research and resolution./.