Joint Circular No. 20/2003/TTLT-BTC-BVHTT-BNV guiding financial management regulations for public cultural information units with revenue operating in the field of Culture and Information.

Joint Resolutions, Circulars

Joint Circular of the Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism - Ministry of Home Affairs
No. 20/2003/TTLT/BTC-BVHTT-BNV dated March 24, 2003 guiding financial management regulations for units operating in the cultural and information sector
with revenue
field of Culture - Information

Implementing the Government's Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2002 on financial regulations applicable to units with revenue; the Ministry of Finance has issued Circular No. 25/2002/TT-BTC dated March 21, 2002.

To align with the specific characteristics of the cultural and information sector, the joint circular of the Ministry of Finance - Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism - Ministry of Home Affairs provides additional guidance on financial management regulations for public service units with revenue operating in the cultural and information sector as follows: as follows:

I. Objectives:

The subjects of this Circular are public cultural and information service units with revenue that operate with part of their operational expenses covered by the state budget or self-fund all operational expenses (collectively referred to as Cultural and Information Service Units with Revenue - abbreviated as CSVHTTCT), including:

- Art units: Specialized theaters (cheo, tuong, cải lương, ca-múa-nhạc, kịch, rối nước, xiếc...), comprehensive art groups at various levels (including symphony orchestras).

- Museums, heritage management units, and scenic spot management units.

- Press agencies and magazines.

- Film Arts Institute and Film Archive, National Film Exhibition Center.

- Public libraries.

- Information and exhibition centers, exhibition houses, information and culture houses.

- Other service units with revenue: Management Board of the National Theater, writers' house, International Press and Communication Cooperation Center.

- Other special cultural and information service units at central and local levels in fields such as film, book distribution, propaganda...

The above-mentioned service units fall under the scope of implementing Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP when they meet the following conditions:

- Having a decision on establishment by a competent authority in writing;

- Possessing legal personality and having a separate seal;

- Having an account at the Treasury or Bank;

- Having a financial and accounting organizational structure;

- Having legitimate sources of income.

Competent authorities have the responsibility to create favorable conditions for cultural and information institutions to implement Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2002 of the Government.

Budgetary units directly subordinate to CSVHTTCT such as training centers, research and application technology centers, research institutes are subject to Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2002 of the Government, and shall apply this Circular and other Circulars guiding in accordance with the fields of activity (education and training, scientific research...).

For CSVHTTCT with independent budgetary units, the competent authority may allocate stable budgets to the first or second level budgetary units to grant autonomy to subordinate budgetary units.

Cultural and information institutions without revenue from service activities do not fall within the scope of applying this Circular. Regular operational expenses of cultural and information institutions without revenue are funded by the state budget (both at the central and local levels) and managed according to the current financial management mechanism.

II. Sources of revenue for public cultural and information institutions:
Public cultural and information institutions have the following sources of revenue:

1- Current fees and charges as prescribed:

1.1- Library fees, fees for using archival materials in libraries.

1.2- Fees for film and screenplay evaluation, copyright registration fees, advertising activity permit fees, content assessment and cultural product import/export permit fees, fees for issuing labels for artistic program releases (audio tapes, video tapes, CDs, VCDs, DVDs)...

2- Revenues tied to unit activities:

2.1- Revenue from ticket sales for performances; movie tickets; tickets for exhibitions, museum tours, heritage site visits...

2.2- Revenue from performance contracts between the unit and organizations and individuals both domestically and internationally; Revenue from service and performance activities organized by staff and performers within the unit and submitted to the unit under a quota system.

2.3- Revenue from service activities linked to the unit's service activities: Exploitation of facilities (theaters, workshops, conference halls, equipment); provision of printing, dubbing, film restoration services, film material exploitation services; exploitation of museum and library materials...

2.4- Revenue from advertising publication, broadcasting, and information dissemination activities on newspapers, magazines, and publications; from newspaper and magazine distribution and information dissemination activities...

2.5- Other lawful revenues retained for use as prescribed by the State.

The amount of revenue from the above sources is agreed upon by the head of the unit in contracts with service requesters, based on the principle of reasonable cost recovery and accumulation.

3- Revenue from subordinate units to support common activities: Subordinate budgetary units may retain a portion of their revenue to support higher-level budgetary units in conducting common activities, the retention ratio being decided by the head of the lower-level unit.

4- Other revenues as prescribed by law, such as interest from bank deposits from production and service supply revenues...

In addition to the aforementioned revenue sources, CSVHTTCT are permitted to legally raise funds from domestic and foreign organizations and individuals to serve production and service supply activities in accordance

with current regulations. current regulations.

III. Contents of regular operational expenditures:

CSVHTTCT may use state budget allocations and unit revenue to cover regular operational expenditures as follows:

1- Expenditures for cadres, civil servants, and contractual workers: Salaries; wages; bonuses; allowances; collective welfare; contributions to social insurance, health insurance, trade union fees according to current regulations.

2- Administrative management expenditures: Electricity, water, fuel, environmental sanitation, office supplies, public services, travel expenses, conference fees, telecommunications, propaganda, telephone and fax charges...

3- Expenditure for direct professional activities in accordance with the functions and tasks assigned to the unit.

4- Expenditure for scientific and technological research projects at the grassroots level of the unit.

5- Expenditure for training and upgrading the qualifications of workers within the unit (excluding expenditure on training according to state targets).

6- Rental expenses: Renting transportation means, renting houses, land, various types of equipment; hiring experts both domestic and foreign, hiring labor, hiring cadres, other rentals.

7- Direct costs for production and service activities of the unit, including: wages; raw materials and supplies; depreciation of fixed assets; commissions; taxes (if applicable) as prescribed by law.

8- Regular expenses related to fee collection and charges as stipulated currently.

9- Expenditure for regular procurement and maintenance: Procurement of replacement tools, regular repair of fixed assets serving professional work and maintenance, upkeep of infrastructure works.

10- International cooperation expenditure: Outbound and inbound delegations.

11- Other expenditures: Payment of principal and interest on loans from organizations and individuals both domestic and foreign (if applicable); using revenue from public welfare contributions, security and public order expenses...

Non-recurring expenses implemented in accordance with Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2002 of the Government and Circular No. 25/2002/TT-BTC dated March 21, 2002 of the Ministry of Finance.

IV- Public cultural information institutions with income shall be financially autonomous, make their own decisions and
bear responsibility as follows:

1- Regarding the use of budget funds from the State and revenue from public services:

1.1- For cultural information institutions that self-fund all regular operational costs: The competent authority shall allocate a stable budget estimate for three years to subordinate units as follows:

a) Allocation of estimates for fees and charges under the State budget, including:

- Total amount of fees and charges collected.

- Amount of fees and charges retained by the unit for use in accordance with regulations of the competent State agency for each type of fee and charge.

- Amount of fees and charges to be remitted to the State budget.

For those types of fees and charges that are retained and remitted to the State budget at a certain percentage, the competent authority shall adjust the annual estimate of revenue collection to suit the unit's operations.

The supervising authority does not allocate production and service provision revenue to cultural information institutions. Units develop plans for revenue collection to manage throughout the year. For units with only production and service provision revenue and no fee and charge revenue, the competent authority allocates a production and service provision revenue estimate as the basis for managing revenue and expenditure.

b) Allocation of expenditure estimates:

- Allocation of total regular expenditure from retained fees and charges for the unit to use in accordance with regulations of the competent State agency.

- Non-regular expenditure from the State budget: Funding for national-level scientific research projects, Ministry-level and sectoral projects; funding for national target programs; funding for commissioned projects under State regulations; funding for staff reduction; matching funds for foreign projects; investment capital; funding for major asset purchases and repairs; other non-regular expenditures. The central ministry (for centrally-managed revenue-generating public service units) and local supervising authorities (for locally-managed revenue-generating public service units) allocate budgets to public service units in accordance with current regulations.

In cases where units exceed the allocated fee and charge revenue, they may use the entire surplus (retained portion) to supplement the salary fund and operating expenses of the unit in accordance with regulations.

If units fall short of the allocated fee and charge revenue, they must correspondingly reduce their expenditures.

For units with production and service provision revenue allocated by the competent authority, if there is a surplus, the unit may use the entire surplus to increase income and strengthen material resources, and when revenue decreases, the unit must correspondingly reduce its expenditures.

1.2- For cultural information institutions that partially self-fund regular operational costs: The competent authority shall allocate stable revenue and expenditure estimates for three years as follows:

1.2.1- Allocation of estimates for fees and charges under the State budget, including:

- Total amount of fees and charges collected.

- Amount of fees and charges retained by the unit for use in accordance with regulations of the competent State agency.

- Amount of fees and charges to be remitted to the State budget.

For those types of fees and charges that are retained and remitted to the State budget at a certain percentage, the competent authority shall adjust the annual estimate of revenue collection to suit the unit's operations.

The supervising authority does not allocate production and service provision revenue. Units develop plans for revenue collection to manage throughout the year. For units with only production and service provision revenue and no fee and charge revenue, the competent authority allocates a production and service provision revenue estimate as the basis for managing revenue and expenditure.

1.2.2- Allocation of expenditure estimates:

a) Regular expenditure:

- Allocation of total regular expenditure from retained fees and charges for the unit to use in accordance with regulations of the competent State agency.

- Allocation of total regular expenditure from the State budget for the first year of the stable period, increased annually according to the rate decided by the competent authority.

b) Non-regular expenditure from the State budget: Funding for national-level scientific research projects, Ministry-level and sectoral projects; national target programs; State-commissioned projects; staff reduction funding; matching funds for foreign projects; basic construction investment; funding for major asset purchases and repairs: The central ministry (for centrally-managed revenue-generating public service units) and local supervising authorities (for locally-managed revenue-generating public service units) allocate budgets to public service units in accordance with current regulations.

1.2.3- In cases where units save on regular expenditure or increase retained fee and charge revenue compared to the allocated estimate, the unit may use the entire saved funds and additional revenue to supplement the salary fund and operating expenses of the unit. If revenue falls short of the allocated estimate, the unit must correspondingly reduce its expenditures.

For units with production and service provision revenue allocated by the competent authority, if there is a surplus, the unit may use the entire surplus to increase income and strengthen material resources, and when revenue decreases, the unit must correspondingly reduce its expenditures.

After the three-year stable budget period, revenue-generating public service units report a summary to the competent authorities for review and decision on allocating a stable budget for the next period. The staffing level used as the basis for building the salary fund budget estimate is the number of staff allocated by the competent authority up to December 31 of the preceding year.

2- During the course of operation, the head of a revenue-generating public service unit may decide on the plan for labor utilization as follows:

During the course of operation, the Head of a service unit with revenue shall decide on the labor utilization plan as follows:

2.1- Reorganize cadres, civil servants, and public officials (including those who have signed labor contracts within the staffing quota) assigned to improve the efficiency and quality of unit operations. Those individuals subject to reduction in staffing quotas shall enjoy policies and benefits according to current regulations.

2.2- For self-financing units that fully cover their regular operational expenses, based on job requirements and financial capacity of the unit, the Head may sign indefinite-term labor contracts in accordance with labor laws; individuals signing such contracts must meet the required standards, structure of job titles, and expertise as stipulated by sectoral management agencies and be classified under the administrative-subsidized salary scale prescribed in Decree No. 25/ND-CP dated May 23, 1993 of the Government and enjoy rights and obligations as provided by law.

2.3- For self-financing units that partially cover their regular operational expenses, based on job requirements and financial capacity of the unit, the Head may sign labor contracts in accordance with labor laws but must comply with staffing norms issued by competent authorities; individuals signing indefinite-term contracts must meet the required standards, structure of job titles, and expertise as stipulated by sectoral management agencies and be classified under the administrative-subsidized salary scale prescribed in Decree No. 25/ND-CP dated May 23, 1993 of the Government and enjoy rights and obligations as provided by law.

2.4- Heads of cultural, information, and tourism units may terminate labor contracts with individuals hired by the unit. The procedures for terminating labor contracts shall follow the provisions of labor laws.

2.5- Implement democratic and transparent practices as prescribed by law.

3- Salary and income fund: The salary and income fund of cultural, information, and tourism units shall be sourced from two origins:

3.1- State budget funds allocated for salaries, wages, and allowances linked to salaries of cadres, civil servants, and public officials within the staffing quota and labor contracts (for units that partially cover their regular operational expenses) shall be implemented according to Decree No. 25/ND-CP dated May 23, 1993 of the Government and current guiding documents on salaries and allowances.

3.2- Based on financial performance (revenue from public services and savings on regular expenses) and the implementation of specialized tasks, the salary and income fund of cultural, information, and tourism units shall be determined according to Point 1, Section IV of Circular No. 25/2002/TT-BTC dated March 21, 2002 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of Decree No. 10/2002/NĐ-CP dated January 16, 2002 of the Government on financial systems applicable to revenue-generating public service units. Units shall establish internal payment rules for salaries and wages, discuss them openly, and reach consensus at staff meetings.

Based on the unit's internal payment rules for salaries and wages and the determined salary fund, the Head of the unit shall decide on the monthly payment levels for cadres, civil servants, public officials, and labor contract workers based on their work performance.

3.3- At year-end, any unused salary funds shall be transferred to the income reserve fund and carried over to the next year for continued use.

4- Establish internal expenditure regulations:

- Within the scope of the unit's financial resources (including state budget allocations and public service revenues), the Head of the cultural, information, and tourism unit shall establish standards, norms, and internal expenditure regulations for management and specialized activities higher or lower than the national standards, appropriate to the unit's specific operations.

- In internal expenditure regulations, cultural, information, and tourism units should prioritize expenditures on specialized activities to ensure the quantity and quality of professional cultural and information activities.

- The aforementioned standards, regulations, and expenditure norms shall be discussed openly within the unit; internal expenditure regulations serve as the basis for the Head to manage and settle accounts for funds from the state budget and public service revenues, providing a legal foundation for the State Treasury to control expenditures.

5- Allocate funds from the state budget:

Based on the state budget allocation plan, the finance agency shall allocate regular funds (for units that partially cover their expenses) through the State Treasury under Item 134 "Other Expenditures" according to the corresponding sections of the state budget classification.

If allocations have been made according to the state budget classification items, the unit Head granted authority may adjust the expenditure items within the total regular funds allocated.

For non-regular funds, the finance agency shall implement allocations according to the current state budget classification.

6- Regarding depreciation of fixed assets: Cultural, information, and tourism units engaged in service provision and production, supply of services, and labor must carry out depreciation of fixed assets according to Decision No. 166/199/QĐ-BTC dated December 30, 1999 of the Minister of Finance on the management, use, and depreciation of fixed assets and current guiding documents of the State.

In special cases, the unit Head may decide to apply a higher depreciation rate to recover capital promptly, but it must align with the asset's lifespan, technical capabilities, and service users' payment capacity.

The entire amount of fixed asset depreciation shall be recorded as service costs. in contracts between cultural, information, and tourism units and parties requesting service production.

7- State budget financial and trading units (CSVHTTCT) with the need to liquidate assets: Establish an Asset Liquidation Council pursuant to Decision No. 55/2000/QĐ-BTC dated April 19, 2000 of the Minister of Finance on the issuance of regulations on the management of the disposal of state assets at administrative and public service agencies. The proceeds from asset liquidation, after deducting liquidation costs (weighing, measuring, transporting, determining technical parameters, overtime pay if applicable...), shall be transferred into the development fund for public service activities of the unit. In cases where assets formed from borrowed funds are liquidated and the loan has not been fully repaid, the unit shall use the proceeds from the liquidation (after deducting liquidation costs) to repay the loan; if the loan is fully repaid, the proceeds may be transferred into the development fund for public service activities of the unit.

8- At year-end, regular operating funds allocated from the state budget and income from public service activities of CSVHTTCT that have not been fully expended shall be carried over to the next year for continued expenditure and settlement in the accounting period of the following year. Based on reconciliation between the National Treasury and the unit by December 31, the National Treasury shall process the transfer of unspent funds to the next year for CSVHTTCT according to Circular No. 81/2002/TT-BTC dated September 16, 2002 of the Ministry of Finance, and simultaneously notify the corresponding financial authority in writing for management purposes.

9- Units of CSVHTTCT shall implement accounting records in accordance with Circular No. 121/2002/TT-BTC dated December 31, 2002 of the Ministry of Finance guiding accounting for revenue-generating public service units.

V- Implementation Provisions:

This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2003.

Other contents regarding financial management shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Circular No. 25/2002/TT-BTC dated March 21, 2002 of the Ministry of Finance.

Vietnam Radio, Vietnam Television, and Vietnam News Agency shall implement their own financial management mechanisms pursuant to the Prime Minister's Decision, and shall not follow the guidelines set out in this Circular.

During implementation, if there are difficulties, CSVHTTCT shall report to the Joint Ministries for amendment and supplementation to ensure appropriateness.