Joint Circular No. 34/2005/TTLT-BLDTBXH-BTC-BKHĐT guiding certain provisions of Decision No. 71/2005/QD-TTg dated April 5, 2005 of the Prime Minister on the management and operation mechanism for loans from the National Employment Fund.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for some provisions of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg dated April 5, 2005 of the Government on the management and operation mechanism of the capital for loans of the National Employment Fund

Implementing Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg dated April 5, 2005 of the Government on the management and operation mechanism of the capital for loans of the National Employment Fund, the Ministries of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, Finance, Planning and Investment provide guidance as follows:

National Employment Fund

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I. LOAN ELIGIBILITY

The loan eligibility shall be implemented in accordance with Article 55 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg dated April 5, 2005 of the Government on the management and operation mechanism of the capital for loans of the National Employment Fund (hereinafter referred to as Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg).

II. PROJECT DEVELOPMENT AND LOAN APPLICATION DOCUMENTATION

Project development and loan application documentation shall be carried out in accordance with Clause 1 of Article 9 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, as follows:

1. Project Development:

Borrowers must develop projects, clearly stating the objectives, contents, and economic benefits of the project, and commit to using the funds for their intended purpose, attracting the specified number of workers, specifically:

- For the entities mentioned in Clause 1 of Article 5 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, the project owner must develop the project according to Model No. 1a issued together with this Circular;

- For the entities mentioned in Clause 2 of Article 5 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, the project owner must develop the project according to Model No. 1b issued together with this Circular, specifically:

+ For households participating in a joint project (group household project), the household head (the borrower) must submit a participation application form according to Model No. 02 issued together with this Circular to the project owner (who is the representative of the group household or the local authority or the representative of the mass organization);

+ For individual households developing their own projects, the household head is the project owner.

2. Loan Application Documentation:

The loan application documentation shall be prepared in four copies, specifically:

a. For the entities mentioned in Clause 1 of Article 5 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, the loan application documentation includes:

- A project with confirmation from the People's Committee of the commune, ward, or town (hereinafter referred to as the People's Committee of the commune) regarding the current location of the entity within the administrative area;

- A certified copy of the Certificate of Ownership of assets used as collateral, pledge, and guarantee for the pledge;

Additionally, depending on specific cases, one of the following documents may be required: + A certified copy of the Production and Business Cooperation Contract with confirmation from the People's Committee of the commune (for Production Groups);

+ A certified copy of the document proving that the criteria for determining a farm as stipulated in Section III of Circular Joint Circular No. 69/2000/BNN-TCTK dated June 23, 2000 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - General Statistics Office "Guidelines for Criteria to Determine Farm Economy" (for Farm Owners);

+ A certified copy of the Business Registration Certificate or license to practice (for Individual Business Households; Cooperatives; Small and Medium Enterprises operating under the Enterprise Law; Production and Business Units of Disabled Persons);

+ A certified copy of the Decision on Establishment (for Vocational Education Centers - Social Work Centers);

b) For the entities mentioned in Clause 2 of Article 5 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, the loan application documentation includes:

- A project with confirmation from the People's Committee of the commune regarding the permanent residence registration of the project owner;

- An application form for each household participating in the project with confirmation from the People's Committee of the commune regarding the permanent residence registration of the entity within the administrative area (in the case of a group household project).

III. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF PROJECTS

Review and approval of projects shall be carried out in accordance with Clause 2 and 3 of Article 9 of Decision No. 71/2005/QĐ-TTg, as follows:

1. Hierarchical Review and Approval of Projects:

a. For projects managed by local authorities:

- Projects with a loan amount up to 100 million VND: The Department of Civil Affairs, Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs shall lead the review in collaboration with the Branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, then submit to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the district, province, city under provincial jurisdiction for approval.

- Projects with a loan amount over 100 million VND to 500 million VND: The Department of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs shall lead the review in collaboration with the Branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, then submit to the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province, centrally governed city for approval.

b) For projects managed by political-social organizations and social organizations:

- Projects with a loan amount up to 100 million VND: The implementing agency at the district level (commonly referred to as the implementing agency at the district level) shall lead the review in collaboration with the Branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, then submit to the Head of the implementing agency at the provincial level (commonly referred to as the implementing agency at the provincial level) for approval.

In cases where there is no implementing agency at the district level, the provincial-level implementing agency shall lead the review and submit to the Head of the central implementing agency for approval.

- Projects with a loan amount over 100 million VND to 500 million VND: The provincial-level implementing agency shall lead the review in collaboration with the Branch of the State Bank of Vietnam, then submit to the Head of the central implementing agency for approval.

Depending on the actual situation in the locality and of the central implementing agencies, the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province/city under central governance and the Head of the central implementing agency may delegate lower levels to review and approve projects with a loan amount over 100 million VND to 500 million VND.

c. For projects managed by the Ministry of Defense, the delegation of authority will be guided by the Head of the Ministry of Defense based on specific circumstances.

2. Receipt of Documentation, Review, and Approval of Projects:

- The leading reviewing agency shall be responsible for guiding the development of projects, receiving loan application documentation, and issuing a receipt to the project owner (or authorized person). The receipt shall clearly state the date and time of receipt, the documents included in the application, the number of sets of documentation, and the response deadline.

- The leading agency responsible for reviewing shall be responsible for guiding the preparation of projects, receiving loan application files, and issuing a receipt to the project owner (or the authorized representative). The receipt shall clearly state: the date of file submission; the documents included in the file; the number of files submitted; and the response deadline.

- The leading agency responsible for review shall cooperate with the corresponding Policy Bank to organize the review of the project (in accordance with Forms 3a and 3b issued together with this Circular) and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

- Within fifteen working days from the date of receipt of complete files, the leading agency responsible for review shall organize the review of the project file and submit it to the competent authority for approval.

If no decision on approval of the project is made within the above time limit, the leading agency responsible for review shall be responsible for providing a written response stating the reasons.

- Decisions approving projects by the Chairman of the People's Committee or the Head of the Agency implementing the Program at all levels, along with the consolidated project form as Form 04 issued together with this Circular (accompanied by the loan application file that has been reviewed), shall be sent: one copy to the project implementer; one copy retained by the leading agency responsible for review; one copy kept by the corresponding Policy Bank responsible for disbursing funds; one copy sent to the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (for projects funded by local management) or the Central Agency implementing the Program (for projects funded by the Central Agency implementing the Program) for monitoring and consolidation.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION

1. Responsibilities of agencies:

a. Provincial People's Committees directly under the Central Government:

- Direct relevant agencies to guide the construction of feasible projects, effective use of capital, and ensure strict review procedures;

- Allocate funding sources, assign job creation targets to lower-level agencies; decide on project approval and delegate approval authority according to regulations;

- Direct relevant agencies, Program implementation agencies, and local Policy Banks to inspect and evaluate the implementation status and lending results of the Fund.

b. Central Agencies implementing the Program:

- Direct subordinate agencies to organize reviews and approve projects promptly and smoothly for borrowers;

- Allocate funding sources, assign job creation targets to lower-level agencies; decide on project approval and delegate approval authority according to regulations;

- Monitor the implementation of lending, compile and report quarterly, semi-annually, and annually to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs according to Forms 5a and 5b issued together with this Circular.

c. Policy Bank:

- Direct subordinate Policy Banks to cooperate with labor agencies and Program implementation agencies in reviewing projects, primarily responsible for financial plans and repayment plans of customers' loans, implement project disbursements, recover debts, and handle non-performing loans in accordance with the law;

- Monitor the implementation of lending, compile and report monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs according to Forms 06, 07, 08, and 09 issued together with this Circular.

d. Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs:

- Lead and coordinate with the Department of Planning and Investment, the Department of Finance to develop plans for allocating job creation targets and new capital and recovered capital of the province, submit to the provincial People's Committee for consideration and decision-making, direct county-level labor agencies to implement in accordance with this Circular;

- Lead and coordinate with the Branch of the Policy Bank to review projects for loans delegated, submit to the Chairman of the provincial People's Committee for approval, primarily responsible for borrower eligibility, project feasibility, employment targets, and cooperate with related agencies to audit risky projects as prescribed; inspect and evaluate the lending results of the Fund;

- Coordinate with the Branch of the Policy Bank to consider the recovery of capital and the use of funds;

- Compile and report regularly quarterly, semi-annually, and annually on the lending results of locally managed projects to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs according to Forms 5a and 5b issued together with this Circular.

e. Department of Planning and Investment:

- Coordinate with the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Department of Finance to allocate job creation targets and loan capital targets to various levels and mass organizations, submit to the provincial People's Committee for consideration and decision-making;

- Coordinate with related agencies to inspect and evaluate the implementation and lending results from the Fund.

f. Department of Finance:

- Coordinate with the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Department of Planning and Investment to develop plans for allocating budget estimates for new capital to each district, to consolidate and submit to the provincial People's Committee for consideration and decision-making;

- Allocate management expenses for the employment generation loan fund in the annual administrative management budget for local state management agencies;

- Inspect and supervise the use of management and operational expenses of the Fund at the local level in accordance with regulations;

- Coordinate with the Branch of the Policy Bank to appraise collateral assets of borrowers.

2. Effective Date:

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette. All conflicting regulations are hereby abolished.

Any difficulties encountered during implementation should be reported promptly to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Planning and Investment for consideration and resolution.