Decree No. 54/2005/NĐ-CP On Resignation Regulations and Compensation for Training Costs for Civil Servants and Public Officials

DECREE

Regarding termination of employment and compensation for training costs

for civil servants and public officials

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to the Civil Servant Law dated February 26, 1998; the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Civil Servant Law dated April 28, 2000; and the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Civil Servant Law dated April 29, 2003;

At the request of the Minister of Home Affairs,

DECREE

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of application

This Decree stipulates the termination of employment and compensation for training costs for civil servants and public officials working in state agencies (hereinafter referred to collectively as "agencies") and state-run organizations (hereinafter referred to collectively as "organizations").

Article 2. Scope of application

The scope of application of this Decree includes:

1. Those persons specified in points b, c, đ, e, and h (hereinafter referred to collectively as "public officials") and those persons specified in point d (hereinafter referred to collectively as "civil servants") of Clause 1, Article 1 of the Ordinance Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Civil Servant Law dated April 29, 2003;

2. Those persons specified in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree who have been seconded to work at economic organizations, social organizations, or social-professional organizations.

Article 3. Principles for implementing termination of employment and compensation for training costs

When agencies and organizations implement the termination of employment and compensation for training costs for public officials and civil servants, they must ensure the following principles:

1. Resolving the voluntary termination requests of public officials and civil servants in accordance with the provisions of the law and using the annual regular operating expenses of the agency or organization approved by the competent authority or from the proceeds of state-run activities as prescribed by law effectively;

2. Public officials and civil servants who are sent for training (domestic and foreign) and during their study period or upon returning to the agency or organization, if they leave their job without permission or unilaterally terminate their employment contract, shall be required to compensate for the training costs;

3. Agencies and organizations must establish a Compensation Review Board; the Compensation Review Board shall base its decision on the length of service and contributions of public officials and civil servants to determine partial or full compensation for training costs as prescribed in point b, Clause 2, Article 13 of this Decree;

4. Public officials and civil servants who are granted termination benefits or required to compensate for training costs have the right to appeal to the competent authority according to the law on appeals and complaints or request the court to resolve the matter according to the law;

Agencies and organizations must respond to the appeals of public officials and civil servants according to their management level and the law on appeals and complaints;

5. Agencies and organizations responsible for managing public officials and civil servants must keep records of public officials and civil servants who have terminated their employment or are required to compensate for training costs;

Agencies and individuals responsible for managing the records of public officials and civil servants must bear responsibility under the law if they lose, damage, or alter the records of public officials and civil servants who have terminated their employment or are required to compensate for training costs.

Article 4. Termination of employment for public officials and civil servants due to organizational restructuring and reduction in staffing

Public officials and civil servants whose employment is terminated due to organizational restructuring and reduction in staffing pursuant to the decision of the competent agency or organization do not fall within the scope of implementation of the termination benefits prescribed in this Decree.

Chapter II
TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT REGIME

Article 5. Cases where public officials and civil servants are entitled to termination benefits

1. Public officials who voluntarily submit a resignation letter and obtain written approval from the competent agency or organization.

2. Civil servants are entitled to termination benefits in the following cases:

a) Civil servants recruited before July 1, 2003 who voluntarily submit a resignation letter and obtain written approval from the competent agency or organization;

b) Civil servants recruited on or after July 1, 2003 who voluntarily submit a resignation letter and obtain agreement from the head of the unit to terminate the employment contract;

c) Civil servants recruited on or after July 1, 2003 whose employment contract expires and are not renewed by the head of the unit.

Article 6. Cases where public officials and civil servants are not entitled to termination benefits

1. Public officials and civil servants who are subject to disciplinary action resulting in compulsory termination of employment.

2. Public officials and civil servants who leave their jobs without permission or submit a resignation letter without obtaining approval from the competent agency or organization.

3. Civil servants who unilaterally terminate their employment contract.

Article 7. Cases where public officials and civil servants have not yet been granted termination benefits

1. Public officials and civil servants who are currently under disciplinary review or criminal prosecution.

2. Public officials and civil servants who are currently required to compensate for material losses as prescribed by law.

3. Civil servants who are in one of the following situations and have not yet been granted termination benefits as prescribed in point c, Clause 2, Article 5 of this Decree:

a) Annual leave, leave for personal matters, and other types of leave approved by the head of the unit;

b) Illness or occupational injury undergoing treatment with confirmation from a competent health authority at the district level or higher;

c) Pregnant, on maternity leave, or caring for a child under 12 (twelve) months old.

Article 8. Severance pay

Public officials and civil servants who terminate their employment in accordance with this Decree shall receive severance pay calculated at half (one-half) of the current salary (the salary level based on rank and grade) and current allowances (if applicable, including allowances covered by social insurance) prescribed by the State for each year of service; in the lowest case, they shall receive one (one) month's current salary and current allowances (if applicable) prescribed by the State.

Article 9. Period of service for calculating severance pay

1. The period of service for calculating severance pay for public officials as prescribed in this Decree is the total period of service (cumulative) from the date of recruitment decision to the date of termination decision by the competent authority.

The total period of service includes:

a) The actual period of service at state administrative and public service agencies;

b) The period of service in state-owned enterprises and armed forces without receiving severance pay or retirement benefits;

c) The period of service under labor contracts signed by the agency or organization.

d) The time assigned by the agency or unit to attend training or further education;

đ) The time off as prescribed in Articles 73, 74, 75, and Article 78 of the Labor Code;

e) The time off for illness with a certificate from a competent health authority at the district level or higher, during which the person receives social insurance benefits;

g) The time off for maternity leave as prescribed in Clause 1 of Article 144 and Clause 1 of Article 117 of the Labor Code;

h) The time during which disciplinary action or criminal liability was imposed but subsequently determined by a competent authority to be wrongful or erroneous as prescribed in Article 45 of the Civil Servant Ordinance;

i) The time during which work was temporarily suspended as prescribed in Article 41 of the Civil Servant Ordinance;

k) The time serving a sentence pursuant to a court judgment or decision (in cases where probation or non-custodial correction is granted), during which the person is arranged to work by the agency or unit;

2. The working time eligible for severance pay for civil servants as prescribed in this Decree:

a) Civil servants recruited before July 1, 2003: is the total working time (cumulative) from the date of recruitment decision until the decision to terminate employment by the competent authority;

The total working time includes the time prescribed in Points a, b, c, d, đ, e, g, h, i, and k of Clause 1 of Article 9 of this Decree;

b) Civil servants recruited on or after July 1, 2003: is the total working time under the employment contract (cumulative) at that unit until the decision to terminate employment by the competent authority;

The total period of service includes:

- The actual working time under the employment contract at the unit where the civil servant is terminated by the competent authority;

- The time spent in military service counts as part of the working time under the employment contract at the unit where the civil servant is terminated by the competent authority, provided that such time has not been compensated for termination or received demobilization benefits or discharge benefits;

- The time prescribed in Points d, đ, e, g, h, i, and k of Clause 1 of Article 9 of this Decree counts as part of the working time under the employment contract at the unit where the civil servant is terminated by the competent authority;

3. The working time for calculating severance pay as prescribed in Article 9 of this Decree is the time during which social insurance contributions have been made at state agencies or units;

4. Calculation of working time for partial months is as follows:

a) From one month to less than seven months is counted as half a year of working time;

b) From seven months to twelve months is counted as one year of working time;

Article 10. Severance Pay Funding

The funding for severance pay is as follows:

1. In state agencies, the source of funds for severance pay for civil servants is taken from the annual operating expenses allocated by the competent authority;

2. In state-run public institutions:

a) Public institutions funded entirely by the state budget for regular operating expenses; public institutions with revenue self-funding part of their regular operating expenses shall use the institution's regular operating expenses, including allocated operating costs and income from institutional activities as prescribed by law, as the source of funds for severance pay;

b) Public institutions with revenue self-funding all regular operating expenses shall use the institution's regular operating expenses as the source of funds for severance pay;

Article 11. Other Benefits

1. Civil servants and civil employees who receive severance pay as prescribed in Article 8 of this Decree are entitled to social assistance, social insurance, and other benefits as prescribed by law;

2. Civil servants and civil employees who terminate employment as prescribed in Article 5 of this Decree are assisted by local authorities in registering residency and provided conditions to engage in business and livelihood;

Chapter III
TRAINING COSTS REIMBURSEMENT REGIME

Article 12. Circumstances requiring civil servants and civil employees to reimburse training costs

1. Civil servants and civil employees who, after being assigned to training, fail to complete the required service period as prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 13 of this Decree and voluntarily quit their job or unilaterally terminate their employment contract;

2. Civil servants and civil employees currently undergoing training who voluntarily quit their job or unilaterally terminate their employment contract;

Article 13. Training costs to be reimbursed and calculation method

1. Training costs to be reimbursed include: costs for the training course (including travel expenses) for each trainee with a duration of three months or more, funded from the state budget, foreign official development assistance to Vietnam, or the financial resources of the agency or unit;

2. Calculation of reimbursement costs:

a) For civil servants and civil employees who voluntarily quit their job or unilaterally terminate their employment contract while undergoing training, or immediately after returning to the agency or unit and then voluntarily quitting or unilaterally terminating their employment contract, they must fully reimburse the training costs of the course;

b) For other cases, the reimbursement cost is calculated as follows:

Based on the required service period and the continuous working time at the agency or unit after completing the training course and the total cost of the training course, the reimbursement amount is calculated as follows:

Wherein: the required service period is three times the duration of the training course;

Article 14. Board of Review for Reimbursement of Training Costs and Review Process

1. The Board of Review for Reimbursement of Training Costs is established by the head of the agency or unit. The board consists of five members:

a) The head of the agency or unit or a deputy of the head of the agency or unit is the Chairman of the Board;

b) A representative of the trade union organization at the same level or a representative of the trade union of the agency or unit is a member;

c) The person responsible for civil servant training and development work of the organizational cadre department of the agency or unit is a member;

d) The person responsible for the financial-accounting department of the agency or unit is a member;

đ) The person directly responsible for the agency or unit of the person required to compensate is a member;

The Council operates on the principle of collective decision-making and majority voting. The Council only convenes to examine matters when all members are present.

2. The process of examining compensation for training costs shall be carried out in the following sequence:

The Chairperson of the Council announces the membership and appoints a secretary;

The person responsible for training and development work of the organizational cadre department reports on the content related to compensation and the regulations on compensation;

The person responsible for the financial-accounting department reports on the amount of compensation as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 13 of this Decree;

The person directly responsible for the agency or unit of the person required to compensate reports on the working history of the person required to compensate;

The Council discusses and conducts secret ballot voting on the amount of compensation based on the provisions set forth in Clause 3, Article 3 of this Decree. The Council's recommendation on compensation is recorded in writing and submitted to the competent authority or the head of the state-owned enterprise for decision;

The Council dissolves itself upon completion of its tasks.

Article 15. Recovery of compensation costs

1. The person compensating for training costs is responsible for repaying the amount due to the financial-accounting department of the agency or unit within three (3) months from the date of the decision of the competent authority.

2. Compensation for training costs shall be handled as follows:

a) For state agencies and state-owned enterprises funded entirely by the state budget for regular operating expenses, the compensation for training costs shall be paid into the state budget;

b) For state-owned enterprises with revenue that self-fund their regular operating expenses, or those that partially self-fund their regular operating expenses, the compensation for training costs shall be determined by the state-owned enterprise within the revenue and expenditure balance to implement training activities according to the law;

3. In cases where the person required to compensate for training costs fails to make the payment as prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article, the agency or unit will not proceed with the procedures to transfer the insurance book and other necessary certificates, and has the right to request the court to resolve the matter.

Chapter IV
IMPLEMENTING PROVISIONS

Article 16. Effectiveness

1. This Decree shall take effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

2. This Decree replaces Government Decree No. 96/1998/NĐ-CP dated November 17, 1998, regarding the regulations on termination of employment for cadres and civil servants.

Article 17. Responsibility for guiding implementation

1. The Minister of Home Affairs is responsible for guiding the implementation of this Decree.

2. The Minister of Finance is responsible for guiding the management, use, and settlement of funds for termination benefits and recovery of compensation for training costs.

3. The competent authority of political organizations and political-social organizations shall guide the application of this Decree to agencies and units under political organizations and political-social organizations based on the provisions of this Decree.

Article 18. Responsibility for Implementation

Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees directly under the central government are responsible for implementing this Decree.