Law on Public Debt Management No. 20/2017/QH14

 

LAW
MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC DEBT

On the basis of the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam;

The National Assembly enacts the Public Debt Management Law.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

1. This Law stipulates on public debt management, including borrowing activities, using borrowed funds, repayment, and public debt management operations.

2. Public debt as defined in this Law includes government debt, guaranteed debt, and local government debt.

Article 2. Applicability

This Law applies to agencies, organizations, and individuals related to borrowing activities, using borrowed funds, repayment, and public debt management operations.

Article 3. Explanation of Terms

In this Law, the following terms shall be understood as follows:

1. Government Debt is the debt arising from domestic and foreign loans contracted or issued in the name of the State or the Government.

2. Guaranteed Debt is the debt incurred by enterprises or state policy banks that have been guaranteed by the Government.

3. Local Government Debt is the debt arising from borrowing by provincial People's Committees.

4. Equipment is the process of creating debt obligations through the signing and implementation of loan agreements, contracts, or arrangements (hereinafter referred to collectively as loan arrangements) or issuance of debt instruments.

5. Official Development Assistance (ODA) Loan is a foreign loan with at least 35% favorable components for tied loans related to procurement of goods and services according to the conditions set by the foreign donor, or at least 25% for untied loans.

6. Preferential Foreign Loan is a foreign loan with more favorable conditions than commercial loans but with favorable components not meeting the criteria for ODA loans.

7. Commercial Loan is a loan made under market conditions.

8. Favorable Components is the percentage of the nominal value of the loan reflecting the preferential level of foreign borrowing calculated based on factors such as currency, loan term, grace period, interest rate, fees, and other costs compared to the corresponding discount rate of Vietnam’s Government bond yield in the market at the time of calculation.

9. Debt Instruments include treasury bonds, treasury bills, and national construction bonds that create debt obligations.

10. Government Bonds are debt instruments issued by the Government to raise funds for the state budget or to restructure debt.

11. Local government bonds are debt instruments issued by provincial People's Committees to raise funds for the local budget.

12. Government-guaranteed bonds are debt instruments issued by enterprises or state policy banks and guaranteed by the Government.

13. Treasury Bills are debt instruments issued by the State Treasury, with a maturity not exceeding 52 weeks.

14. National Construction Bonds are treasury bonds issued by the Government to mobilize domestic resources for investment in important national projects and other essential works serving production and living needs, providing material and technical foundations for the country.

15Outstanding Debt is the amount of borrowed funds that has been disbursed but not yet repaid or written off at a specific point in time.

16. Debt Obligations are principal, interest, fees, and other charges due for payment within a specified period.

17. Debt Repayment is the payment of debt, including repayment of principal, interest, fees, and other charges arising from borrowing.

18. Debt Restructuring involves implementing operations to change the terms of a debt, restructuring part or all of the debts in the public debt portfolio, including transfer, ownership conversion, write-off, debt cancellation, debt buyback, extension, swap, or other debt restructuring operations as prescribed by law.

19. Loan is when the Government lends ODA funds or preferential foreign loans to provincial People's Committees, public service units, or enterprises.

20. Government Guarantee is the Government's written commitment to guarantee lenders regarding the fulfillment of principal and interest repayment obligations if the borrower fails to fulfill these obligations upon maturity.

21. Government Guarantee Ceiling is the maximum guarantee limit of the Government for one year or five years, determined by the actual amount borrowed minus the principal repayment.

22. Risk to the Public Debt Portfolio is the possibility of loss or increase in public debt.

Article 4. Classification of public debt

1. Government debt includes:

a) Debt arising from the issuance of debt instruments by the Government;

b) Debt arising from domestic and foreign borrowing agreements signed by the Government;

c) Debt of the central budget borrowed from the State financial reserve fund, State treasury, and non-budget State financial funds.

2. Government-guaranteed debt includes:

a) Debt of enterprises guaranteed by the Government;

b) Debt of State policy banks guaranteed by the Government.

3. Local government debt includes:

a) Debt arising from the issuance of local government bonds;

b) Debt arising from the rescheduling of ODA loans and preferential foreign loans;

c) Debt of local budgets borrowed from State policy banks, provincial financial reserve funds, State treasuries, and other borrowings as prescribed by laws on State budget.

Article 5. Principles of public debt management

1. The State manages public debt uniformly, ensuring the implementation of responsibilities and authorities of agencies, organizations, and individuals related to public debt management.

2. Strictly control public debt safety indicators to ensure national financial safety, sustainability, and macroeconomic stability.

3. Proposals, reviews, approvals of loan policies, negotiations, signing of loan agreements, and issuance of debt instruments, allocation, and utilization of loan capital must be purposeful and effective. Borrowing for budget deficit compensation can only be used for development investment, not for regular expenditures.

4. Borrowers, reschedulers, and beneficiaries of Government guarantees shall fulfill their obligations related to loans, rescheduled loans, and guaranteed loans fully and on time. Rescheduled ODA loans, preferential foreign loans, and guaranteed loans cannot be converted into State budget disbursements.

5. Ensure accuracy and completeness of public debt; transparency in public debt management and accountability of agencies, organizations, and individuals involved in public debt management.

Article 6. Contents of State Management of Public Debt

1. Enactment and implementation of legal normative documents on public debt management.

2. Development and implementation of programs, plans, solutions, and policies on public debt management.

3. Implementation of public debt management, including proposals, reviews, approvals of loan policies, negotiations, signing of loan agreements, issuance of debt instruments, allocation, and utilization of loan capital, repayment, and other public debt management operations.

4. Monitoring, providing information, and evaluating the effectiveness of public debt management and utilization.

5. Inspection, auditing, and supervision of the implementation of laws on public debt management.

6. Rewarding, handling violations, and resolving complaints and denunciations regarding public debt management.

Article 7. Supervision of Public Debt Management

1. The National Assembly and People's Councils supervise the implementation of laws on public debt management according to the provisions of the Law on the Supervisory Activities of the National Assembly and People's Councils and other relevant laws.

2. The Vietnam Fatherland Front supervises the implementation of laws on public debt management according to the provisions of the Law on the Vietnam Fatherland Front and other relevant laws.

Article 8. Prohibited Acts in Public Debt Management

1. Borrowing, lending, or guaranteeing without proper authority or without permission from competent authorities, exceeding the limits decided by competent authorities.

2. Using loan capital for improper purposes, for improper recipients, exceeding standards and quotas; failing to fulfill debt repayment obligations properly.

3. Profiteering, embezzlement, corruption in public debt management and utilization.

4. Violating State regulations on public debt management; being negligent causing loss or waste of loan capital.

5. Not providing or providing incomplete, untimely, or inaccurate information about public debt as required by law.

6. Obstructing activities of supervision, inspection, auditing, and handling of violations of laws on public debt management.

Article 9. Handling Violations of Law on Public Debt Management

1. The head of an agency or organization must explain and be responsible when violations of law on public debt management occur within their agency or organization. Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, the head of the agency or organization may be subject to disciplinary action or criminal prosecution according to the provisions of the law.

2. Agencies, organizations, and individuals who commit violations of law on public debt management shall be subject to disciplinary action, administrative violation handling, or criminal prosecution depending on the nature and severity of the violation. If damage is caused, they must compensate according to the provisions of the law.

Chapter II

TASKS, POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF AGENCIES, ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS IN PUBLIC DEBT MANAGEMENT

Article 10. Tasks and Powers of the National Assembly

1. Decide and adjust the five-year plan for borrowing and repaying public debt.

2. Decide and adjust the total amount of borrowing and repayment of state budget funds annually.

Article 11. Tasks and Powers of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly

1. Provide opinions on projects and reports on public debt management presented by the Government.

2. Decide on the issuance of national bonds for building the country.

Article 12. Tasks and Powers of the President

1. Decide on negotiating, signing, approving, and adjusting agreements for ODA loans and concessional foreign loans on behalf of the State according to the provisions of the Law on International Treaties.

2. Request the Government to report on the situation of public debt, public debt safety indicators; negotiations, signing, approval, and adjustment of agreements for ODA loans and concessional foreign loans on behalf of the State when necessary.

Article 13. Tasks and Powers of the Government

1. Uniformly manage public debt on behalf of the State.

2. Present to the National Assembly:

a) Decisions and adjustments to the five-year plan for borrowing and repaying public debt;

b) Decisions and adjustments to the annual total amount of borrowing and repayment of state budget funds.

3. Present to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly:

a) Opinions on projects and reports on public debt management;

b) Decisions on the issuance of national bonds for building the country.

4. Decide on the annual limit for borrowing for refinancing and government guarantee limits.

5. Approve the project for issuing government bonds on the international capital market.

6. Report to the National Assembly, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, and the President on the situation of public debt and public debt safety indicators.

Article 14. Tasks and Powers of the Prime Minister

1. Decide on the three-year public debt management program.

2. Decide on the annual plan for borrowing and repaying public debt.

3. Decide on the issuance of government bonds on the international capital market based on the project approved by the Government.

4. Decide on the use of the accumulated repayment fund to address risks related to refinancing and government guarantees.

5. Approve the restructuring debt project.

7. Decide and direct negotiations, signing, approval, and adjustment of agreements for foreign loans on behalf of the Government.

8. Decide on refinancing ODA and concessional foreign loan funds for each program and project.

9. Decide on providing government guarantees for each program and project.

Article 15. Tasks and Powers of Ministries and Equivalent Ministries

1. The Ministry of Finance is the lead agency assisting the Government in uniformly managing public debt on behalf of the State and has the following tasks and powers:

a) Draft and submit to competent authorities for promulgation or promulgate within its authority normative legal documents on public debt management;

b) Draft and submit to the Government for decision by the National Assembly on the five-year plan for borrowing and repaying public debt; the annual total amount of borrowing and repayment of state budget funds;

c) Draft and submit to the Government for decision by the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on the issuance of national bonds for building the country;

d) Draft and submit to the Government for decision on the annual limit for borrowing for refinancing and government guarantee limits; the project for issuing government bonds on the international capital market;

đ) Draft and submit to the Prime Minister for decision on the three-year public debt management program, the annual plan for borrowing and repaying public debt, the issuance of government bonds on the international capital market, the use of the accumulated repayment fund to address risks related to refinancing and government guarantees, the restructuring debt project, negotiations, signing, approval, and adjustment of agreements for foreign loans on behalf of the Government, refinancing, and providing government guarantees for each program and project;

e) Draft and submit to the Prime Minister for decision by the President on negotiating, signing, approving, and adjusting agreements for ODA and concessional foreign loans on behalf of the State;

g) Organize the raising of funds, issuance of government debt instruments on domestic and international capital markets; take the lead in organizing the implementation of commercial loan negotiations, framework agreements, specific agreements on ODA and concessional foreign loans on behalf of the State and the Government;

h) Implement the allocation of funds for investment programs and projects from government loans according to the provisions of the law on the state budget;

i) Refinance ODA and concessional foreign loan funds according to the Prime Minister's decision;

k) Pay off principal, interest, fees, and related costs for government debts;

l) Implement and manage government guarantees according to the Prime Minister's decision;

m) Manage the accumulated repayment fund;

n) Manage the debt portfolio, implement the restructuring debt project, and handle risks according to the Prime Minister's decision;

o) Organize accounting work for government debt; statistics, reporting, and publishing information on public debt according to the provisions of the law;

p) Inspect and supervise the implementation of legal provisions on public debt management.

2. Ministries and equivalent ministries cooperate with the Ministry of Finance in performing state management tasks on public debt according to the division of labor by the Government.

Article 16. Duties and Authorities of the Provincial People's Council

1. Decide on and adjust the five-year and annual borrowing and repayment plans of local authorities in accordance with this Law and the laws on state budget.

2. Decide on the list of investment projects funded by loans from local authorities as prescribed by law; approve the issuance plan for local government bonds.

3. Supervise borrowing, re-borrowing, issuing local government bonds, using loan funds, and repaying debts of local authorities.

Article 17. Duties and Authorities of the Provincial People's Committee

1. Prepare the five-year and annual borrowing and repayment plans of local authorities to submit to the same-level People's Council for decision.

2. Develop a three-year debt management program of local authorities, send it to the Ministry of Finance for consolidation and report to the Prime Minister.

3. Organize the issuance of local government bonds, borrow from other legitimate financial sources, re-borrow Official Development Assistance (ODA) loans, and foreign concessional loans in accordance with this Law.

4. Inspect and audit the management and use of loan funds by local authorities.

5. Allocate the local budget to repay debts fully and on time.

6. Explain, provide information, and report to competent authorities on the situation of raising, allocating, managing, using loan funds, and repaying debts by local authorities.

Article 18. Duties and Authorities of the State Audit Agency

Conduct audits of activities related to public debt management and use, including raising, allocating, using loan funds, repaying debts, re-lending, and government guarantees; report and disclose audit results in accordance with the Law on State Audit.

Article 19. Responsibilities of Agencies, Organizations, and Individuals Receiving and Using Loan Funds or Being Guaranteed Loans

1. Receive and use loan funds effectively, for intended purposes, and within authorized limits as prescribed by this Law.

2. Fulfill all obligations arising from loan agreements, issuance of debt instruments, re-loan agreements, or government guarantees.

3. Implement reporting requirements under the laws on public debt management.

4. The head of agencies or organizations receiving and using loan funds or being guaranteed loans shall bear personal responsibility in case of legal violations by such agencies or organizations.

Article 20. Responsibilities of Agencies, Organizations, and Individuals in Public Debt Management

1. The Government, the Prime Minister, Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and provincial People's Committees shall be responsible under the law for performing assigned duties and authorities in public debt management.

2. The head of agencies or organizations involved in public debt management shall bear personal responsibility in case of legal violations by such agencies or organizations.

3. Agencies, organizations, and individuals involved in public debt management shall be responsible for explaining and reporting to competent authorities on proposals, appraisals, and approvals of borrowing policies; negotiations, signing of loan agreements, and issuance of debt instruments; allocation and use of loan funds; repayment of debts, and implementation of public debt management operations.

Chapter III

PUBLIC DEBT SAFETY TARGETS, FIVE-YEAR BORROWING AND REPAYMENT PLANS, THREE-YEAR DEBT MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS, ANNUAL BORROWING AND REPAYMENT PLANS

Article 21. Public Debt Safety Indicators

1. Public debt safety indicators are a system of indicators defining the ceiling and warning thresholds for public debt as decided by the National Assembly.

2. The public debt safety indicators include:

a) Public debt as a percentage of gross domestic product;

b) Government debt as a percentage of gross domestic product;

c) The government's direct repayment obligations (excluding refinancing loans) as a percentage of annual state budget revenue;

d) Foreign debt of the country as a percentage of gross domestic product;

e) The country's foreign repayment obligations as a percentage of total export goods and services turnover.

Article 22. Five-Year Borrowing and Repayment Plan

1. The five-year borrowing and repayment plan includes:

a) Public debt safety indicators;

b) Total borrowing and repayment levels of the central budget, local budgets; limits on refinancing loans and government guarantees;

c) Measures for managing public debt.

2. The main contents of the report on the five-year borrowing and repayment plan submitted to the National Assembly for decision include:

a) Evaluation of the implementation of public debt safety indicators, objectives, directions, and measures for borrowing and repayment over the previous five-year period; assessment of results, limitations, causes, and lessons learned;

b) Objectives, public debt safety indicators; directions and measures for managing public debt to ensure the safety and sustainability of the national financial system during the next five years;

c) Total borrowing and repayment obligations of the government including refinancing loans, total borrowing and repayment levels of local authorities, and government guarantee limits during the next five years;

d) Main measures to implement the plan.

3. Provincial People's Committees develop the five-year borrowing and repayment plan for local authorities, including an evaluation of the implementation of the previous five-year borrowing and repayment plan; assessment of results, limitations, causes, and lessons learned; directions and measures for managing debt, total borrowing, and repayment obligations of local authorities during the next five years, to be submitted to the provincial People's Council for comments before being sent to the Ministry of Finance for consolidation into the five-year borrowing and repayment plan.

4. The Ministry of Finance consolidates the five-year borrowing and repayment plans of local authorities, prepares the five-year borrowing and repayment plan, reports to the Government for submission to the National Assembly for decision.

5. The procedure for establishing and deciding on the five-year borrowing and repayment plan shall be carried out according to the procedure for establishing and deciding on the five-year financial plan as stipulated in the State Budget Law.

6. In cases where economic growth, inflation, exchange rates, interest rates, or the state budget deficit deviate from approved targets, leading to public debt safety indicators reaching the warning threshold for public debt safety, the Government shall implement measures to ensure that public debt safety indicators do not exceed the ceiling set by the National Assembly. If adjustments to public debt safety indicators are necessary, the Government shall prepare adjustment proposals for the National Assembly to consider and decide.

Article 23. Three-Year Public Debt Management Program

1. The three-year public debt management program is established annually together with the three-year financial and state budget plan as stipulated in the State Budget Law.

2. The main contents of the three-year public debt management program include:

a) Evaluation of the current year's public debt management situation;

b) Forecast of total borrowing and repayment levels of the government, local authorities, and government guarantee limits for the planning year and the following two years;

c) Forecast of the domestic and international capital market situation; ability and structure of borrowing sources; borrowing and repayment plans; cost of capital mobilization, and potential risks for the planning year and the following two years;

d) Main measures to implement the program.

3. The provincial People's Committee directs the Department of Finance to develop the three-year public debt management program for the provincial level within the province's three-year financial and state budget plan, to be sent to the Ministry of Finance for consolidation into the three-year public debt management program.

4. The Ministry of Finance develops the three-year public debt management program for approval by the Prime Minister.

Article 24. Annual borrowing and repayment plan for public debt

1. The annual borrowing and repayment plan for public debt includes:

a) The annual borrowing and repayment plan of the Government;

b) The annual borrowing and repayment plan of local authorities;

c) The annual limit on borrowing for loan refinancing and government guarantee limits.

2. The annual borrowing and repayment plan of the Government shall be specified as follows:

a) The annual borrowing and repayment plan of the Government is established to implement financial, budgetary, and public investment tasks for the planning year, approved by the competent authority;

b) The contents of the annual borrowing and repayment plan of the Government include borrowing to cover the central budget deficit, repayment of principal, refinancing loans, and restructuring debts; direct repayment obligations, repayment of refinanced loans; capital borrowing structure and determination of sources for repayment;

c) Annually, along with the time for preparing the state budget estimate, the Ministry of Finance establishes the Government's annual borrowing and repayment plan.

3. The annual borrowing and repayment plan of local authorities shall be specified as follows:

a) The annual borrowing and repayment plan of local authorities is established to implement financial, budgetary, and public investment tasks of the locality for the planning year, approved by the competent authority;

b) The contents of the annual borrowing and repayment plan of local authorities include borrowing to cover the local budget deficit, repayment of principal; local authority repayment obligations; capital borrowing structure and determination of sources for repayment;

c) Annually, along with the time for preparing the state budget estimate, the People's Committee of the province establishes the local authority's annual borrowing and repayment plan, submits it to the provincial People's Council for comments before sending it to the Ministry of Finance for consolidation.

4. The annual government guarantee limit shall be specified as follows:

a) The annual government guarantee limit is determined according to the principle of ensuring that the growth rate of guaranteed debt does not exceed the growth rate of the previous year's gross domestic product and within the five-year government guarantee limit decided by the National Assembly;

b) Based on the need and ability to mobilize borrowed funds, the five-year government guarantee limit decided by the National Assembly, the Ministry of Finance reports to the Government for consideration and decision on the guarantee limit for the planning year.

5. The Ministry of Finance builds the total borrowing and repayment amount for the central budget and consolidates the borrowing and repayment levels of local budgets into the state budget estimate, reports to the Government for submission to the National Assembly for decision.

6. Based on the total borrowing and repayment amount for the state budget annually decided by the National Assembly, the limit on borrowing for refinancing, the government guarantee limit, and the annual borrowing and repayment plan of the Government decided by the Government, the Ministry of Finance develops the annual public borrowing and repayment plan, submits it to the Prime Minister for approval.

7. Based on the annual public borrowing and repayment plan approved by the Prime Minister, ministries, sectors, and localities organize its implementation, ensuring within the approved plan and limits.

Chapter IV

MANAGEMENT OF THE RAISING AND USE OF LOAN FUNDS AND REPAYMENT OF THE GOVERNMENT

Article 25. Purpose of Government Borrowing

1. To cover the central budget deficit for development investment, without using borrowed funds for regular expenditures.

2. To cover temporary shortfalls in the central budget and ensure liquidity in the government bond market.

3. To repay maturing principal, restructure government debts.

4. To refinance provinces' People's Committees, public service units, and enterprises from ODA and preferential foreign loans.

Article 26. Forms of Government Borrowing

1. The forms of Government borrowing include:

a) Issuing debt instruments;

b) Signing loan agreements.

2. The Government borrows in domestic currency, foreign currency, precious metals, or goods convertible to domestic currency or foreign currency.

Article 27. Issuance of Debt Instruments in the Domestic Capital Market

1. The Government's debt instruments include:

a) Government bonds;

b) Treasury bills;

c) National construction bonds.

2. Based on the annual public debt borrowing and repayment plan approved, the Ministry of Finance organizes the issuance of the Government’s debt instruments.

3. The issuance of debt instruments is carried out through tendering, issuance guarantee, or individual issuance.

4. All borrowed funds of the Government are recorded in the central budget. The Government allocates sufficient sources for principal and interest repayments and related costs of raising funds; repaying debts when due.

5. The Government stipulates the issuance, registration, custody, listing, and trading of the Government’s debt instruments on the securities market.

Article 28. Issuance of Government Bonds in the International Capital Market

1. The Government issues government bonds in the international capital market to offset the central budget deficit for development investment according to the State Budget Law, and to restructure the Government's debt.

2. Based on the annual state budget estimate, the annual public debt borrowing and repayment plan, the Ministry of Finance builds and submits to the Government for approval the Project Plan for issuing government bonds in the international capital market.

3. The project plan for issuing government bonds in the international capital market includes the following main contents:

a) The necessity of issuing government bonds in the international capital market;

b) Demand, ability to raise capital, macroeconomic situation in the country, Vietnam's credit rating, and the situation of the international capital market;

c) Form of issuance, amount raised, term, expected interest rate, currency of issuance, fundraising market;

d) Plan for using the raised capital;

đ) Evaluation of the effectiveness of using borrowed funds and the impact of new loans on public debt indicators and public debt safety indicators.

4. Based on the project plan approved by the Government and the Prime Minister's decision on issuing government bonds in the international capital market, the Ministry of Finance organizes its implementation.

Article 29. ODA Loans and Preferential Foreign Loans

a) The necessity, objectives, scope of the program and project;

b) Estimated total amount, source structure including foreign loans and counterpart funds;

c) Loan amount, lender, and loan terms and conditions (if applicable);

d) Proposal for domestic financial mechanism; balance sheet for debt repayment sources;

đ) Estimated main results of the program and project.

5. Based on the investment policy decision on programs and projects to use ODA and preferential foreign loans made by the competent authority, the competent authority prepares a feasibility study report for investment decision according to the law.

6. The President, Government, and Prime Minister direct the negotiation and signing of ODA and preferential foreign loan agreements:

a) In case the loan agreement is an international treaty in the name of the State, the Government submits to the President for negotiation, signing, and ratification;

b) In case the loan agreement is in the name of the Government, the Prime Minister decides and directs the organization of negotiations and signing.

7. The signing of ODA and preferential foreign loan agreements for programs and projects must meet the following conditions:

a) Completion of investment procedures according to the law;

b) The ODA and preferential foreign loan agreement has been approved by the competent authority.

8. Allocation and use of ODA and preferential foreign loans ensure strictness and efficiency according to the following principles:

a) Disbursement for programs and projects under state budget expenditure;

b) Lending again to provincial People's Committees, public service units, and enterprises.

9. The Government stipulates detailed regulations on managing ODA and preferential foreign loans.

Article 30. Other Domestic Loans

1. Other domestic loans of the Government shall be implemented based on decisions of competent authorities or loan agreements, including:

a) Loans from the State financial reserve fund according to the decision of the competent authority as prescribed by the State Budget Law;

b) Loans from non-budget state financial funds, state funds, and financial organizations, credit institutions according to loan agreements.

2. Loan agreements shall be carried out in the form of loan contracts, including the following contents: amount of loan, term of loan, interest rate and related fees, repayment method, repayment period, extension of debt and late payment penalties (if applicable), rights and obligations of the parties, other terms and conditions related to borrowing.

3. Based on the annual state budget estimate decided by the National Assembly and the annual public debt borrowing and repayment plan decided by the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Finance shall have the following responsibilities:

a) Propose the Prime Minister to decide on borrowing from the State financial reserve fund to cover the State budget deficit as prescribed by the State Budget Law. In cases where borrowing occurs in the year of repayment, the Minister of Finance shall decide;

b) Decide on borrowing from the state fund according to the State Budget Law; borrow from the Debt Repayment Reserve Fund as stipulated in Clause 5, Article 56 of this Law;

c) Negotiate and sign loan agreements with non-budget state financial funds, borrow from financial organizations, credit institutions.

Article 31. Utilization of Government Borrowed Funds

1. For programs and projects that are the objects of state budget allocation and are included in the state budget estimate, they shall be submitted for approval by the competent authority as follows:

a) Central government expenditures shall be included in the central government expenditure estimate and submitted to the National Assembly for decision;

b) Targeted loans supporting local budgets shall be included in the central government expenditure estimate and submitted to the National Assembly for decision;

c) Local government expenditures shall be included in the local government expenditure estimate and submitted to the People's Council of the province for decision.

2. For entities eligible for re-lending, the Ministry of Finance shall review and conclude re-lending contracts or authorize state policy banks and credit institutions to review and conclude re-lending contracts according to this Law.

Article 32. Government Debt Repayment

1. The Government shall be responsible for allocating the central budget to repay government debt. The new borrowing limit for principal repayment shall be within the total annual borrowing limit of the state budget decided by the National Assembly.

2. Provincial People's Committees shall be responsible for allocating the local budget to repay re-lent ODA loans and foreign concessional loans fully and on time.

3. The Ministry of Finance and agencies authorized by the Ministry of Finance to re-lend shall be responsible for recovering the entire principal, interest, fees, and other related costs of programs and projects re-lent ODA loans and foreign concessional loans, and depositing them into the Debt Repayment Reserve Fund to ensure sources for foreign debt repayment.

Chapter V

MANAGEMENT OF RE-LENDING OF ODA LOANS AND FOREIGN CONCESSIONAL LOANS

Article 33. Re-lending Recipients and Re-lending Agencies

1. Entities eligible for re-lending of ODA loans and foreign concessional loans include:

a) Provincial People's Committees;

b) Public service establishments;

c) Enterprises.

2. Re-lending agencies include the Ministry of Finance; state policy banks and credit institutions authorized by the Ministry of Finance to implement re-lending.

Article 34. Principles for Refinancing Loans

1. The Government shall refinance loans from ODA loans and concessional foreign loans; it shall not issue government bonds on the international capital market or borrow foreign commercial loans to refinance.

2. The Government shall refinance all or part of ODA loans and concessional foreign loans to the subjects specified in Clause 1 of Article 33 of this Law.

3. Refinancing must ensure transparency, efficiency, appropriate targets, and purposes approved by competent authorities.

4. The amount of refinancing loan, the term of refinancing, and the maximum grace period shall be equal to the amount borrowed, the borrowing term, and the grace period stipulated in the foreign loan agreement of the Government; the currency for refinancing and debt collection shall be the currency borrowed by the Government from abroad. In cases where repayment is made in Vietnamese Dong, the selling exchange rate at the time of repayment published by the Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade shall be applied for debt collection.

5. The interest rate for refinancing loans includes the interest rate on foreign loans taken by the Government, fees as stipulated in the foreign loan agreement, management fees for refinancing, and refinancing risk reserves.

6. The refinanced borrower must have a feasible financial plan that has been appraised by a competent authority as provided for in Article 38 of this Law.

Article 35. Methods for Refinancing Loans

1. The Ministry of Finance shall refinance provincial People's Committees to implement investment programs and projects for socio-economic development within the local state budget expenditure tasks as prescribed by laws on state budgets.

2. The Ministry of Finance shall authorize state policy banks to refinance enterprises and public service units to invest in programs and projects prioritized by the State. In this case, the refinancing lender shall not bear credit risks.

3. The Ministry of Finance shall authorize credit institutions to refinance enterprises to invest in production and business projects. Credit institutions authorized to refinance must meet the following conditions:

a) Ranked by international credit rating agencies at a level equal to or lower than one notch compared to the national credit rating of Vietnam;

b) Shall bear all credit risks.

Article 36. Conditions for Refinancing

1. Provincial People's Committees must satisfy the following conditions:

a) Have investment programs and projects for socio-economic development included in the medium-term public investment plan of the locality, approved by competent authorities, and completed investment procedures in accordance with the law;

b) Investment programs and projects referred to in point a of this clause use ODA loans and concessional foreign loans;

c) Not having overdue ODA loans and concessional foreign loans exceeding 180 days;

d) The local state budget debt level at the time of requesting refinancing does not exceed the debt level of the local state budget as prescribed by laws on state budgets;

đ) The local state budget commits to fully and timely repay debts.

2. Public service units must satisfy the following conditions:

a) Self-finance regular expenses and investments; take responsibility for the effectiveness of loan usage and repayment according to the law;

b) Have investment projects permitted by competent authorities to use loans, and completed investment procedures in accordance with the law;

c) Have a feasible financial plan appraised by a competent authority as provided for in Article 38 of this Law;

d) Not having overdue debts at the time of requesting refinancing;

đ) Implement loan guarantees in accordance with the law.

3. Enterprises must satisfy the following conditions:

a) Having legal entity status, legally established in Vietnam, and operating for at least three years;

b) Have investment projects permitted by competent authorities to use loans, and completed investment procedures in accordance with the law;

c) Have a feasible financial plan appraised by a competent authority as provided for in Article 38 of this Law;

d) Having a debt-to-equity ratio not exceeding three times based on the most recent annual financial report compared to the year of appraisal;

đ) Not having losses in the three consecutive years closest to the present according to the audit report, except for losses due to implementing state policies approved by competent authorities;

e) Not having overdue debts at the time of requesting refinancing;

g) Implement loan guarantees in accordance with the law.

Article 37. Management Fee for Refinancing and Risk Reserve for Refinancing

1. The management fee for refinancing shall be stipulated as follows:

a) The management fee for refinancing at 0.25% per annum calculated on the outstanding balance of refinanced loans to be paid by the refinancing borrower;

b) The management fee for refinancing shall be used to cover costs related to lending, managing, and recovering refinanced loan funds by the refinancing lender.

2. The risk reserve for refinancing shall be stipulated as follows:

a) The level of the risk reserve for refinancing shall be calculated based on the assessment of the financial capacity of the refinancing borrower, the risk level of each program or project, but not exceeding 1.5% per annum on the outstanding balance of refinanced loans submitted by the refinancing borrower;

b) In cases where the refinancing lender does not bear credit risk, the risk reserve for refinancing shall be deposited into the Accumulation Fund for Debt Repayment. In cases where the refinancing lender bears all credit risk, the risk reserve for refinancing shall be submitted to the refinancing lender;

c) The risk reserve for refinancing shall be used to create a source of repayment for foreign loans when the refinancing borrower fails to fulfill their debt repayment obligations fully and on time.

Article 38. Review of Refinancing

1. The review of refinancing for ODA and preferential foreign loans for provincial People's Committees shall be stipulated as follows:

a) The Ministry of Finance shall review the conditions for refinancing of provincial People's Committees as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 36 of this Law;

b) Based on the report of the review results and relevant documents, the Ministry of Finance shall report to the Prime Minister to decide on refinancing for provincial People's Committees.

2. The review of refinancing for ODA and preferential foreign loans for public service units and enterprises shall be stipulated as follows:

a) The refinancing borrower shall submit a request for review along with the program and project documents using ODA and preferential foreign loans to the Ministry of Finance and the authorized refinancing agency for review. The refinancing borrower shall be responsible for the accuracy and truthfulness of the documents for the refinancing review;

b) The contents of the review include the refinancing conditions prescribed in Clauses 2 and 3 of Article 36 of this Law; the financial capacity of the refinancing borrower; the loan plan, use of loan funds, revenue, expenses, investment effectiveness, and debt repayment capability of the refinancing borrower; collateral assets of the refinancing borrower; management and disposal plans for collateral assets; evaluation of non-financial factors; risk levels, preventive measures, and risk reduction strategies;

c) The authorized refinancing agency shall conduct reviews of the contents prescribed in Point b of this Clause; provide opinions on the refinancing borrower’s debt repayment capability and propose refinancing conditions and risk reserve levels applicable to the refinancing borrower;

d) Based on the report of the review results and relevant documents, the Ministry of Finance shall report to the Prime Minister to decide on refinancing.

Article 39. Management of Credit Risk for Refinancing

1. Credit risk for refinancing arises when the refinancing borrower lacks the ability to repay or fails to repay the full amount according to the refinancing loan contract signed.

2. Handling of risks shall be considered on a case-by-case basis depending on the cause, risk level, and debt repayment capability of the refinancing borrower.

3. Measures to handle credit risk for refinancing shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of Article 55 of this Law.

4. In cases where the refinancing borrower still cannot repay the debt even after applying risk handling measures, the Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant ministries, sectors, and localities to develop a restructuring plan for debt, to be reported to the Prime Minister for decision.

Article 40. Responsibilities of the Refinancing Lending Agency and the Refinanced Borrower

1. The Ministry of Finance and the agency authorized to refinance shall have the following responsibilities:

a) Monitor and inspect the use of refinanced loan funds by the refinanced borrower;

b) Complete legal documentation, manage, and handle collateral and other assets provided by the refinanced borrower to secure the loan;

c) Apply measures and sanctions as prescribed by law to recover refinanced loan capital, including principal, interest, fees, and related costs from the refinanced borrower according to the refinancing loan contract;

d) Periodically or upon request, provide information and reports related to the implementation of programs and projects using refinanced loan funds to the competent authority; be responsible for the accuracy and truthfulness of the information and reports;

đ) For the refinancing lending agency that bears full credit risk, after applying measures and sanctions but still unable to recover part or all of the refinanced loan capital, including principal, interest, fees, and related costs, the refinancing lending agency must repay on behalf of the refinanced borrower;

2. The refinanced borrower shall have the following responsibilities:

a) Manage and use refinanced loan funds for the approved purpose as authorized by the competent authority;

b) Fully and timely repay the debt according to the refinancing loan contract. In case of failure to fully and timely repay the debt, the refinanced borrower must comply with the measures and sanctions applied by the refinancing lending agency to recover the debt and bear responsibility as prescribed by law;

c) Comply with legal provisions regarding collateral and other security measures for loans;

d) Periodically or upon request, provide information and reports related to the implementation of programs and projects using refinanced loan funds to the Ministry of Finance, the refinancing lending agency, and the competent authority; be responsible for the accuracy and truthfulness of the information and reports;

3. The Government shall specify detailed regulations on refinancing Official Development Assistance (ODA) loans and foreign concessional loans.

Chapter VI

GUARANTEE AND MANAGEMENT OF GOVERNMENT GUARANTEES

Article 41. Subjects Eligible for Government Guarantee

1. Enterprises with investment projects under the investment policy decision-making authority of the National Assembly, the Government, and the Prime Minister's investment decision as stipulated by the Investment Law and the Public Investment Law.

2. State policy banks implementing state policy credit programs.

Article 42. Policy on Issuing Government Guarantees

1. Based on loan needs and eligible subjects, they propose the issuance of government guarantees for state policy credit programs and investment projects to the Ministry of Finance for consolidation, determination of the five-year and annual government guarantee limits, and reporting to the competent authority for decision-making.

2. Based on the annual government guarantee limit decided, the Ministry of Finance reports to the Prime Minister for decision on issuing government guarantees for specific programs and projects.

Article 43. Conditions for Issuing Government Guarantees

1. Enterprises eligible for government guarantees must meet the following conditions:

a) Having legal entity status, legally established in Vietnam, and operating for at least three years;

b) Not having losses in the three most recent consecutive years according to the audit report, except for losses due to the implementation of state policies approved by the competent authority;

c) Having no overdue debts at the time of requesting the guarantee;

d) Ensuring the debt-to-equity ratio does not exceed three times according to the latest audited financial report compared to the time of evaluating the government guarantee;

đ) The guarantee amount must fall within the annual guarantee limit approved by the Government;

e) Completing investment procedures as required by laws on investment and other relevant laws;

g) Having a financial plan reviewed by the Ministry of Finance and approved by the Prime Minister;

h) Having a minimum equity participation rate of 20% of the total project investment. Equity must be allocated according to the project implementation schedule;

2. State policy banks eligible for government guarantees must meet the following conditions:

a) Established and operating in accordance with the law, with the function of raising funds for lending as stipulated in the charter issued by the competent authority;

b) The guarantee amount must fall within the annual guarantee limit approved by the Government;

c) The guaranteed loan must be used to implement state policy credit programs as prescribed by the Government;

3. In cases where enterprises issue bonds guaranteed by the Government on the domestic capital market, in addition to the conditions specified in Clause 1 of this Article, enterprises must have bond issuance documents in accordance with securities laws and other relevant laws.

Article 44. Government Guarantee Review

1. The Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to review the application documents for government guarantees for state policy credit programs, investment projects, and report the results of the review to the Prime Minister.

2. The contents of the review of government guarantee application documents include:

a) The financial situation of the guaranteed entity;

b) The financial plan of the program or project using borrowed funds and its debt repayment capability;

c) The conditions and terms of the loan being guaranteed by the government;

d) Risks associated with the program or project related to the loan being considered for government guarantee.

Article 45. Level of Government Guarantee for Investment Projects

1. The level of government guarantee for the principal amount of the loan or bond issuance for an investment project shall not exceed 70% of the approved total investment amount of the project.

2. In addition to the borrowed funds guaranteed by the government as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article, the entity receiving the government guarantee must ensure sufficient capital to implement the project according to the approved total investment amount.

Article 46. Management of Government Guarantee

1. The guaranteed entity must pay a guarantee fee based on the risk level of each program or project, but not exceeding 2% per year on the outstanding guaranteed balance. A portion of the guarantee fee will be allocated for the management of government guarantees.

2. The guaranteed entity must pledge assets in accordance with the law on registration of security measures.

3. Any transfer or assignment of rights and obligations of the lending party related to the government-guaranteed loan must ensure that it does not increase the obligations of the guarantor and must be notified in writing to the Ministry of Finance beforehand. The transferee or assignee inherits all rights and obligations related to the government-guaranteed loan.

4. Any transfer or assignment of the government-guaranteed loan by the guaranteed entity must ensure that it does not increase the obligations of the guarantor and must be approved by the lending party. The guaranteed entity must report to the Ministry of Finance for submission to the Prime Minister for decision.

5. Any division, separation, merger, consolidation, or change in business form of the guaranteed entity must ensure that it does not increase the obligations of the guarantor and must be reported to the Ministry of Finance for submission to the Prime Minister for decision.

6. Any transfer or assignment of shares or contributions of organizations or individuals holding 65% or more of the shares registered with the Ministry of Finance at the time of considering the government guarantee must be reported to the Ministry of Finance for submission to the Prime Minister for decision.

7. Any transfer or assignment of projects or project assets after investment by the guaranteed entity must ensure that it does not increase the obligations of the guarantor, nor alter the obligations of the guaranteed entity towards the lender and the guarantor. The guaranteed entity must report to the Ministry of Finance for submission to the Prime Minister for decision.

8. The guaranteed entity must implement measures to ensure full and timely repayment of the government-guaranteed loan or bond issuance.

Article 47. Risk Management of Government Guarantee

1. Loans or bond issuances guaranteed by the government must be monitored to prevent and address risks.

2. Guaranteed entities with overdue debts or arrears with the Debt Repayment Reserve Fund must be subject to supervision by the Ministry of Finance as prescribed by the Government.

3. Prevention and handling of government guarantee risks shall be carried out in accordance with Article 55 of this Law.

Article 48. Responsibilities of the Guarantee Issuing Authority, the Guaranteed Party, Ministries, Ministerial-Level Agencies, and Provincial People's Committees

1. The Government's guarantee issuing and management authority, the Ministry of Finance, shall have the following responsibilities:

a) To lead the review of proposals for guarantee policies and proposals for Government guarantees, and to implement Government guarantees;

b) To participate in negotiations and provide opinions on loan agreements and bond issuance plans based on the documents provided by the guaranteed party;

c) To supervise the use of borrowed funds; to propose measures and sanctions for handling situations where the guaranteed party encounters difficulties in repaying debts, and to report to the Prime Minister for decision-making;

d) To fulfill the guarantor's obligations arising from the guarantee document when the guaranteed party cannot repay the debt;

đ) To apply measures and sanctions prescribed by law to recover debts and costs incurred from repaying debts on behalf of the guaranteed party;

e) To compile and report to the competent authority on the situation of issuing and managing Government guarantees;

2. The guaranteed party shall have the following responsibilities:

a) To provide complete documents and be responsible for the accuracy and honesty of the documents provided to the Ministry of Finance;

b) To lead negotiations on loan agreements and bond issuances;

c) To manage and use the borrowed funds guaranteed by the Government for the approved purposes;

d) To fully perform the obligation to repay loans to lenders;

đ) To fully perform the obligations towards the guarantor. In case of inability to repay the full amount on time, it must comply with the measures and sanctions applied by the guarantor; bear responsibility according to the law if unable to repay the debt;

e) To periodically or upon request of the Ministry of Finance, provide information about the implementation of projects and the ability to fulfill obligations under loan agreements and bond issuances; be responsible for the accuracy and honesty of the information provided;

g) To promptly report on risks of violating loan agreements and guarantee documents;

3. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, and provincial people's committees shall have the following responsibilities:

a) To approve loan and bond issuance projects of enterprises under their management authority;

b) To participate in providing opinions during the review of guarantee policy proposals or Government guarantee issuance reviews conducted by the Ministry of Finance;

c) To inspect, audit, and urge the guaranteed parties under their management to fulfill their obligations; to lead the handling of issues related to violations committed by the guaranteed parties;

d) To cooperate with the Ministry of Finance in resolving disputes arising from the implementation of guarantee documents;

4. The Government shall specify detailed regulations on issuing and managing Government guarantees;

Chapter VII

LOCAL GOVERNMENT DEBT MANAGEMENT

Article 49. Purpose of Local Government Borrowing

1. To cover the local government budget deficit as stipulated by the State Budget Law;

2. To borrow to repay the principal of the local government budget as stipulated by the State Budget Law;

Article 50. Principles of Local Government Borrowing

1. Borrowing for covering the local government budget deficit can only be used for development investment to implement programs and projects in the medium-term public investment plan decided by the Provincial People's Council;

2. To ensure that the level of local government borrowing debt complies with the provisions of the State Budget Law;

3. The Provincial People's Committee shall not directly borrow from abroad.

Article 51. Forms of borrowing by local authorities

1. Issuing local government bonds in the domestic capital market.

2. Re-lending from ODA loans and concessional foreign loans.

3. Borrowing from other domestic financial sources in accordance with the provisions of the State Budget Law.

Article 52. Conditions for borrowing by local authorities

1. Borrowing domestically to invest in economic and social development within the expenditure responsibilities of the local budget as stipulated by the State Budget Law must meet the following conditions:

a) The project has completed investment procedures in accordance with the law and is included in the medium-term public investment program of the local authority as decided by the competent authority;

b) There is a borrowing plan for each source of funds for investment as prescribed by the State Budget Law and the Public Investment Law;

c) In cases of borrowing through bond issuance, the bond issuance proposal must be prepared and reviewed in accordance with the Government's regulations on bond issuance;

d) The value of the loan and the bond issuance must be within the level of local government debt and deficit as prescribed by the State Budget Law.

2. Re-lending ODA loans and concessional foreign loans must meet the conditions stipulated in Clause 1, Article 36 of this Law.

Article 53. Organization of borrowing and repayment by local authorities

1. The People's Committee of the province organizes borrowing according to the forms prescribed in Article 51 of this Law and the following provisions:

a) For issuing local government bonds in the domestic capital market, the People's Committee of the province prepares the bond issuance proposal, reports to the Provincial People's Council for approval, and sends it to the Ministry of Finance for comments on the terms and conditions of the bonds before organizing the issuance;

b) For re-lending ODA loans and concessional foreign loans, the People's Committee of the province implements in accordance with Chapter V of this Law;

c) For borrowing from state treasury funds, the People's Committee of the province prepares a loan request along with related documents and sends it to the Ministry of Finance for decision;

d) For borrowing from other domestic financial sources, the People's Committee of the province organizes negotiations and signing of loan agreements.

2. The People's Committee of the province arranges the local budget or other lawful sources as prescribed by law to repay debts fully and on time.

3. The Government shall provide detailed regulations on local government debt management.

Chapter VIII

ENSURING ABILITY TO REPAY PUBLIC DEBT

Article 54. Ensuring ability to repay public debt

1. Raising funds through borrowing must ensure public debt safety indicators and proactively arrange sufficient sources for timely repayment.

2. New loans can only be implemented after a comprehensive assessment of their impact on the scale of public debt, within the limits of public debt safety indicators and repayment capacity in the medium term.

3. Repayment of public debt by the state budget is carried out as follows:

a) Paying interest, fees, and other costs arising from the debt according to the annual state budget estimate approved by the competent authority;

b) Ensuring surplus revenue, increased revenue compared to the estimate, savings in spending, and other lawful sources to fully and timely repay principal debts;

c) New borrowing to repay principal debt must be within the total annual borrowing limit of the state budget as decided by the National Assembly.

4. The entity receiving guarantees, the entity re-borrowing ODA loans and concessional foreign loans is responsible for fully and timely repaying the debt.

Article 55. Management of risks related to public debt

1. Management of risks related to public debt involves identifying types of risks associated with the portfolio of public debt, determining the extent of their impact, and implementing appropriate preventive and handling measures to ensure the ability to repay public debt.

2. Risks related to public debt include:

a) Interest rate risk and foreign exchange rate risk;

b) Market financial fluctuation risk affecting capital raising activities;

c) Liquidity risk due to the lack of liquid financial assets to fully and promptly fulfill maturing debt obligations according to commitments, including the central government's and local governments' ability to repay debts;

d) Credit risk due to borrowers and guarantors failing to repay debts in full and on time;

đ) Other risks that may affect the safety of public debt.

3. Preventive measures for managing risks related to public debt include:

a) Providing loans through a mechanism where the lending agency bears all credit risks;

b) Implementing loan guarantees, managing collateral assets for loans related to rescheduling and government guarantees;

c) Requiring beneficiaries of government guarantees and recipients of ODA loans and preferential foreign loans to purchase credit risk insurance;

d) Implementing proactive risk management operations including buying back debt, swapping debt, using derivative instruments, and other operations.

4. Measures for handling risks related to public debt include:

a) Rescheduling debt according to the approved restructuring plan by the competent authority;

b) Disposing of collateral assets and other assets used to guarantee loans to recover debts;

c) Using the accumulated repayment fund as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 56 of this Law and having guarantors accept compulsory debt collection.

5. Based on specific risks and the degree of their impact on each debt obligation, the Ministry of Finance shall take the lead and coordinate with relevant agencies to develop and submit to the Prime Minister for decision a restructuring plan for debt including preventive and handling risk measures as follows:

a) Rescheduling domestic and foreign government debt;

b) Transferring ownership rights for enterprises with debt obligations to the government;

c) Writing off debts when borrowers and guarantors suffer losses due to force majeure resulting in partial or total loss of capital and assets.

6. For debt restructuring through measures such as buying back debt, swapping debt, and extending debt terms, the Ministry of Finance shall implement within its authority and report to the Prime Minister on the implementation.

7. Recipients of rescheduled loans and beneficiaries of government guarantees have the obligation to establish reserves to handle risks in accordance with the law; develop plans and select appropriate tools to prevent and manage risks; and be subject to inspection, audit, and supervision by authorized agencies.

8. The Government shall provide detailed regulations on the operations of managing risks related to public debt.

Article 56. Accumulated Repayment Fund

1. The Accumulated Repayment Fund is established by the Government to ensure the ability to pay off debt obligations from rescheduled loans and to cover risks arising from rescheduled loans and government guarantees.

2. Management of the Accumulated Repayment Fund must meet the following requirements:

a) Ensuring timely and full collection and use of funds in the Fund in accordance with this Law;

b) Ensuring liquidity, safety, preservation, and development of the Fund's capital, enhancing the efficiency of the Fund's operations;

c) Implementing accounting, auditing, and financial disclosure in accordance with the law.

3. Sources of income for the Accumulated Repayment Fund include:

a) Recovery of debts from rescheduled government loans;

b) Risk reserve collections for rescheduled loans;

c) Fees for managing rescheduled loans and government guarantees;

d) Recovery of capital advances from the Fund;

đ) Income from debt restructuring operations;

e) Interest from deposits, loans, entrusted management of capital, and investments of the Fund;

g) Other lawful sources of income.

4. The Accumulated Repayment Fund shall be used as follows:

a) To repay state budget and foreign debts from rescheduled loans;

b) To substitute payments for beneficiaries who fail to repay debts;

c) To finance debt restructuring and portfolio restructuring of government and guaranteed debts according to approved restructuring plans;

d) To cover costs for managing risks related to ODA loans, preferential foreign loans, and government guarantees as decided by the competent authority;

đ) To cover expenses for public debt management operations as decided by the Prime Minister.

5. Any surplus capital in the Accumulated Repayment Fund after balancing and using it for purposes specified in Clause 4 of this Article shall be temporarily idle capital of the Fund, which can be used for state budget borrowing when state budget revenues are not concentrated in time; deposit services; entrusted management of capital; investment in government bonds. Management and use of temporarily idle capital in the Accumulated Repayment Fund shall be decided by the Minister of Finance and must be preserved and utilized effectively.

6. The guarantee of foreign currency sources for the Accumulated Repayment Fund is regulated as follows:

a) The Fund must maintain a minimum foreign currency structure equivalent to one repayment period of the government's foreign debt in a year;

b) In cases where the foreign currency income of the Accumulated Repayment Fund does not meet the foreign currency expenditure needs of the Fund, the shortfall will be adjusted by the foreign currency reserve of the state budget.

7. In cases where the Accumulated Repayment Fund lacks sufficient sources to repay debts after applying risk management measures as prescribed by this Law, the Government shall report to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on the situation of revenue and expenditure, debt obligations, reasons for the Accumulated Repayment Fund lacking sufficient sources to repay debts, propose solutions, and submit to the National Assembly for consideration and decision in accordance with the State Budget Law.

8. The Accumulated Repayment Fund shall conduct accounting records in accordance with the law on accounting.

9. The Government shall provide detailed regulations on the management mechanism of the Accumulated Repayment Fund.

Chapter IX

ACCOUNTING, AUDITING, STATISTICS, REPORTING AND DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION ON PUBLIC DEBT

Article 57. Public Debt Accounting

1. Government loans, debt repayment, outstanding debts, and local government debts must be recorded in accordance with the provisions of the Accounting Law, the State Budget Law, and other relevant laws.

2. Borrowers and guarantors must carry out accounting records in accordance with the law and report to the Ministry of Finance for statistical purposes and monitoring.

3. The Minister of Finance shall provide detailed regulations on the accounting system for government loans and debt repayments, local government debts; statistics and monitoring of rescheduled loans and government guarantees.

Article 58. Audit of Public Debt

1. The State Audit Organization shall perform its duties and powers as stipulated in Article 18 of this Law.

2. Program and project managers are responsible for signing audit contracts with auditing firms to conduct annual financial statement audits and final investment settlement audits in accordance with the independent audit law.

Article 59. Statistics and Construction of Public Debt Database

1. Public debt statistics must ensure truthfulness, objectivity, accuracy, completeness, timeliness; no duplication, no overlap; transparency and comparability as prescribed by law.

2. Information technology should be applied in public debt management to meet the objectives and tasks of state management of public debt; priority should be given to researching and applying advanced management tools, models, and operations according to international standards and practices suitable for economic and social development conditions at each stage.

3. The Ministry of Finance shall build and manage a unified database on public debt; develop information technology applications in public debt management.

Article 60. Reporting on Public Debt Information

1. Annually or upon request, the Government shall report to the National Assembly, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly, and the President of the State on public debt information, including:

a) The situation of public debt and the implementation of public debt safety indicators, including data on outstanding debt, debt structure, creditors, and currency borrowed;

b) The situation of implementing the government's borrowing and repayment plan, local government borrowing and repayment plans, and the annual limit of government guarantees;

c) The situation of negotiating and signing international treaties on public debt;

d) The situation of rescheduling loans, issuing and managing government guarantees, including projects with rescheduled loans, government guarantees facing difficulties in repayment, and the detailed breakdown of the Repayment Reserve Fund advances paid on behalf of each project;

đ) The situation of managing and using the Repayment Reserve Fund, including beginning period balances, income and expenses during the period, and ending period balances;

e) The implementation of resolutions of the National Assembly and the Standing Committee of the National Assembly on public debt;

g) Other related information.

2. Annually, ministries and agencies equivalent to ministries have the responsibility to report to the Government on the implementation of state management tasks regarding public debt as assigned by the Government.

3. Annually, provincial People's Councils shall report to their respective People's Councils, the Ministry of Finance, and competent authorities on public debt information, including:

a) The situation of local government debt, including the implementation of local government borrowing and repayment plans, debt obligations, and outstanding local government debt;

b) The implementation of programs and projects using borrowed funds by local governments;

c) Management and supervision of local government debt;

d) Other related information.

Article 61. Disclosure of Public Debt Information

1. The debt indicators and public debt figures to be disclosed include:

a) Government debt, including foreign debt from each lending party; government debt instruments according to each method of raising funds;

b) Local government debt, including local government bond issuance, re-lending of ODA loans, preferential foreign loans, borrowing from state treasury, other loans;

c) Guaranteed debt, including outstanding loan balances and advance payments from the Accumulation Fund for Repayment to repay on behalf (if any).

2. The provision and disclosure of information about public debt that falls under the category of state secrets shall be carried out in accordance with the laws on protecting state secrets.

3. The authority to disclose public debt information is stipulated as follows:

a) The Ministry of Finance discloses public debt information;

b) The Chairman of the People's Committee of the province discloses local government debt information.

4. Forms of disclosing public debt information include:

a) The Ministry of Finance’s website, the provincial People's Committee’s website;

b) Press conferences, press releases;

c) Public debt bulletins.

5. The public debt bulletin is issued twice a year in Vietnamese by the Ministry of Finance and translated into English as a publication and data on the Ministry of Finance’s website.

6. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, provincial People's Committees, re-lending agencies, and related agencies have the responsibility to cooperate with the Ministry of Finance to verify and confirm public debt figures and related figures.

Chapter X

IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 62. Effect of enforcement

1. This Law takes effect from July 1, 2018.

2. The Public Debt Management Law No. 29/2009/QH12 ceases to be effective from the date this Law comes into force.

3. In cases where there are different provisions on the same issue between this Law and the Public Investment Law No. 49/2014/QH13, and the State Bank of Vietnam Law No. 46/2010/QH12, the provisions of this Law shall apply.

Article 63. Transitional Provisions

Loan agreements signed, debt instruments issued, or guaranteed by the Government before this Law takes effect shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of the Public Debt Management Law No. 29/2009/QH12.

This Law was passed by the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, the 14th term, fourth session, on November 23, 2017.