Joint Circular No. 40/2015/TTLT-BTC-BGDĐT stipulates the level of collection, collection system, payment, management, and use of examination fees and application fees (admission fees).

JOINT CIRCULAR

Regulations on the amount of fees for examination and recruitment registration (admission fees)

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Pursuant to the Higher Education Law No. 08/2012/QH13

Pursuant to the Ordinance on Fees and Charges No. 38/2001/PL-UBTVQH10 dated August 28, 2001;

Pursuant to Decree No. 57/2002/NĐ-CP dated June 3, 2002 and Decree No. 24/2006/NĐ-CP dated March 6, 2006 of the Government detailing the implementation of the Ordinance on Fees and Admission Fees;

Pursuant to Decree No. 215/2013/NĐ-CP dated December 23, 2013, promulgated by the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decree No. 32/2008/NĐ-CP dated March 19, 2008 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Education and Training;

The Minister of Finance and the Minister of Education and Training issue this joint circular to regulate the amount of fees for examination and recruitment registration (admission fees) as follows:

Article 1. Scope of application

1. Candidates belonging to the following categories must pay the examination and recruitment registration fee (admission fee) as prescribed in this Circular:

a) Candidates participating in the national high school graduation examination with the purpose of using the examination results for admission to college, university, and vocational training programs;

b) Candidates participating in examinations and recruitment for specialized fields;

c) Candidates participating in examinations and recruitment for schools with independent admissions;

d) Candidates participating in examinations and recruitment for master's and doctoral programs at educational institutions within the national education system that organize entrance examinations and admissions according to regulations;

e) Candidates applying for overseas training funded by the state budget.

2. No examination and recruitment registration fee (admission fee) shall be collected from candidates participating in the national high school graduation examination solely for the purpose of obtaining a high school graduation certificate.

Article 2. Methods of collecting examination and recruitment registration fees (admission fees)

1. For the national high school graduation examination, the fee shall be paid together with the application form for the examination to the unit receiving the application form as stipulated in the National High School Graduation Examination Regulation;

2. For candidates applying for admission to specialized fields and candidates applying to schools with independent admissions through competitive examinations, the fee shall be paid together with the application form for the examination to the educational institution where the candidate applies;

3. For cases of admission based on assessment, the fee shall be paid together with the application form for admission to the educational institution where the candidate applies;

4. For preliminary selection, the fee shall be paid together with the preliminary selection application form at the unit receiving the preliminary selection application form;

5. For master's and doctoral examinations and recruitment, the fee shall be paid together with the application form for the examination to the educational institution where the candidate applies;

6. For applications for overseas training funded by the state budget, the fee shall be paid to the agency receiving the application form when the candidate applies for admission.

Article 3. Amount of examination and recruitment registration fees (admission fees)

1. Candidates participating in the national high school graduation examination with the purpose of using the examination results for admission to colleges, universities, and vocational training programs:

- Examination: VND 35,000 per subject;

- Recruitment: VND 30,000 per application form.

2. Candidates admitted directly or through assessment to colleges, universities, and vocational training programs shall pay VND 30,000 per application form.

3. Candidates applying for admission to specialized fields or to schools with independent admissions:

a) Applying for admission through assessment: VND 30,000 per application form.

b) Applying for admission through competitive examinations:

- For cultural subjects: VND 35,000 per subject;

- For specialized subjects: VND 300,000 per application form (including all specialized subjects).

4. Candidates applying for preliminary selection to defense and security schools, in addition to the examination and recruitment fees as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article, shall also pay VND 50,000 per application form when applying for preliminary selection.

5. Candidates applying for master's and doctoral program admissions:

- Application for examination: VND 60,000 per candidate per application form;

- Master's examination: VND 120,000 per subject;

- Doctoral recruitment: VND 200,000 per candidate per application form.

6. Candidates applying for overseas training funded by the state budget shall pay VND 200,000 per candidate per application form for recruitment.

Article 4. Distribution, management, and use of examination registration fees (admission fees)

1. The distribution of examination registration fee revenue from the national high school graduation examination, college, university, master's, and doctoral level examinations shall be as follows:

a) All revenue from the national high school graduation examination registration fees collected by Departments of Education and Training and the School Administration Bureau (Ministry of National Defense) shall be distributed as follows:

- A portion shall be remitted to the Ministry of Education and Training to supplement funds for the implementation of admission work and other related work of the Ministry as follows:

+ VND 8,000 per application for applications registering for the national high school graduation examination to be admitted to colleges and universities;

+ VND 4,000 per application for applications registering for admission to junior colleges.

- A portion shall be retained by the Departments of Education and Training and the School Administration Bureau - Ministry of National Defense to supplement funds for the implementation of admission work at the local level and the Bureau as follows:

+ VND 8,000 per application for applications registering for the national high school graduation examination to be admitted to colleges and universities;

+ VND 6,500 per application for applications registering for admission to junior colleges.

- The remaining amount of the national high school graduation examination registration fee revenue shall be transferred to universities assigned by the Ministry of Education and Training to host examination centers no later than twenty days after the end of the application period.

b) All examination registration fees for undergraduate, college, and junior college admissions (for schools organizing independent admissions, schools admitting students with special talents through entrance exams or a combination of entrance exams and assessments), graduate and doctoral admissions, and overseas training funded by the state budget collected directly by educational institutions shall be retained to cover admission expenses.

2. Use of examination registration fees (admission fees) for the national high school graduation examination, doctoral, master's, undergraduate, college, and junior college admissions:

Agencies and units directly involved in admission work may use the examination registration fees allocated according to this Circular for admission expenses as follows:

a) Organizing candidates to register for the examination and serving preparatory work for the examination, including:

- Expenses for implementing admission work from the Ministry of Education and Training to Departments of Education and Training and educational institutions;

- Expenses for meetings, training staff, inspections, and audits;

- Expenses for receiving and processing registration applications;

- Expenses for entering and processing data on computers;

- Expenses for preparing, printing, and securing examination questions;

- Expenses for renting examination rooms, transportation, medical care, drinking water, security, and office supplies;

- Expenses for printing examination notices and room lists;

- Expenses for public relations on mass media (including the Internet);

- Expenses for purchasing scratch paper, examination paper, and fee receipts;

- Other expenses directly related to organizing admission work.

b) Serving the examination process, including:

- Expenses for managing and operating examination centers;

- Expenses for organizing invigilation, inspection, and auditing;

- Expenses for grading, rechecking, and reviewing grades;

- Expenses for preliminary screening, assessment, and summoning successful candidates;

- Expenses for printing scores and certificates of examination results;

- Expenses for public relations on mass media (including the Internet);

- Expenses for purchasing fee receipts and office supplies;

- Other expenses directly related to organizing the national high school graduation examination and examinations conducted by schools using entrance exams or a combination of entrance exams and assessments.

c) Serving the assessment process, including:

- Expenses for collecting and processing registration applications for assessment;

- Expenses for entering and updating assessment data into the system and on the school's website;

- Expenses for printing and sending admission notices;

- Expenses for checking and reviewing admission applications;

- Expenses for reviewing research and internship proposals;

- Other expenses related to the assessment process.

The expenditure standards for these items shall be stipulated by the Ministry of Education and Training after obtaining written agreement from the Ministry of Finance.

3. Management of examination registration fees (admission fees):

Agencies and units directly involved in admission work shall be responsible for:

a) Publicly posting the examination registration fee rates at the collection points and collecting fees according to the rates specified in Article 3 of this Circular. When collecting examination registration fees, a receipt must be issued to the payer in accordance with the regulations of the Ministry of Finance. Receipts obtained from the local Tax Authority where the unit is located (or self-printed receipts after agreement with the Provincial Tax Bureau) shall be managed and used in accordance with the receipt management regulations for fee collections established by the Ministry of Finance.

b) Every ten days, agencies and units collecting fees must deposit all collected examination registration fees into their temporary holding accounts at the State Treasury where they conduct transactions.

c) Implement accounting records and vouchers to track the collection and management of examination registration fees according to the Accounting Regulations for Administrative and Public Institutions issued with Decision No. 19/2006/QD-BTC dated March 30, 2006 of the Minister of Finance (for public educational institutions) and Circular No. 140/2007/TT-BTC dated November 30, 2007 of the Ministry of Finance (for private educational institutions). The recording of state budget revenues and expenditures for examination registration fees of public educational institutions shall be carried out when the unit is assigned an annual budget revenue and expenditure plan regarding the amount of revenue and expenditure for examination registration fees.

d) Each year, a budget for the collection and expenditure of examination registration fees must be prepared simultaneously with the financial budget. The preparation and compliance with the budget, as well as the management and expenditure of collected fees, must be carried out in accordance with current financial regulations and summarized in the periodic financial reports of the agency or unit according to the budget management hierarchy, ensuring the principles of financial transparency and democracy.

d) For independent admission schools or schools admitting students based on special talents; for master's and doctoral training programs, self-balance revenue according to regulations to cover the costs of organizing admissions. In cases where income does not cover expenses, educational institutions may use existing unit funds to cover admission costs; for institutions assigned the task of recruiting students for overseas training funded by the state budget, they will be reimbursed by the state budget.

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

1. This Circular takes effect from May 11, 2015. For registration files submitted from April 1, 2015, the fee levels prescribed in Article 3 of this Circular shall apply.

This Circular replaces Joint Circular No. 21/2010/TTLT-BTC-BGDĐT dated February 11, 2010, stipulating the collection and use of examination fees and application fees (admission fees) for university, college, and vocational high school programs, and Joint Circular No. 25/2013/TTLT-BTC-BGDĐT amending and supplementing Joint Circular No. 21/2010/TTLT-BTC-BGDĐT.

2. Other contents related to the collection, payment, management, and public disclosure of non-guided fees under this Circular shall be implemented in accordance with the guidance provided in Circular No. 63/2002/TT-BTC dated July 24, 2002, issued by the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of laws on fees and charges; Circular No. 45/2006/TT-BTC dated May 25, 2006, amending and supplementing Circular No. 63/2002/TT-BTC dated July 24, 2002; Circular No. 156/2013/TT-BTC dated November 6, 2013, issued by the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Tax Administration; the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Tax Administration and Decree No. 83/2013/NĐ-CP dated July 22, 2013, issued by the Government; Circular No. 153/2012/TT-BTC dated September 17, 2012, issued by the Ministry of Finance guiding the printing, issuance, management, and use of various types of receipts for fees and charges belonging to the state budget and any subsequent amendments and supplements (if any).

3. Agencies, organizations, individuals subject to fees, and relevant agencies are responsible for implementing this Circular.

4. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, organizations and individuals are requested to promptly report them to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education and Training for review and guidance./.