Circular No. 54/2005/TT-BTC guiding the implementation of Decision No. 107/2005/QD-TTg dated May 16, 2005 of the Prime Minister on piloting the allocation of staff quotas and operating funds for the General Department of Taxation from 2005 to 2007.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for Implementing Decision No. 107/2005/QD-TTg dated May 16, 2005 of the Prime Minister on Pilot Implementation of Staff Quotas and Operating Costs for the General Department of Taxation during the Period 2005-2007

Pursuant to Decree No. 60/2003/NĐ-CP dated June 6, 2003 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of the State Budget Law;

Pursuant to Decree No. 77/2003/NĐ-CP dated July 1, 2003 of the Government stipulating functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Pursuant to Decision No. 107/2005/QD-TTg dated May 16, 2005 of the Prime Minister on Pilot Implementation of Staff Quotas and Operating Costs for the General Department of Taxation during the Period 2005-2007.

The Ministry of Finance hereby provides guidelines for the pilot implementation of staff quotas and operating costs for the General Department of Taxation as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS:

1. Pilot implementation of staff quotas and operating costs for the General Department of Taxation under the Ministry of Finance according to Decision No. 107/2005/QD-TTg dated May 16, 2005 of the Prime Minister from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2007.

Do not implement staff quotas and operating costs for affiliated public service units of the General Department of Taxation, including: Information Technology and Statistics Center, Tax Training Center, Tax Magazine. These units shall operate under the financial management mechanism for public service units.

2. The pilot implementation of staff quotas and operating costs for units within the Tax System must ensure the following objectives and requirements:

a) Effectively implement tax laws, exploit revenue sources, and combat tax evasion to ensure the completion and strive to exceed the state budget revenue targets set by the government.

b) Reform the management mechanism for staff quotas and operating costs of the General Department of Taxation; promote organizational restructuring, build a clean, strong, and highly qualified workforce; allocate funds based on performance and efficiency in organizing state budget revenue collection; grant autonomy and responsibility to unit heads in organizing work, labor utilization, and financial resource management.

c) Ensure financial resources proactively, practice thrift and prevent waste in fund usage; focus on modernizing information technology and equipping advanced techniques to enhance effectiveness and modernize management technology to fulfill assigned functions and tasks, meet international integration conditions; strengthen training and supplement income for civil servants.

d) Implement transparency and democracy in accordance with the law, ensuring the legitimate rights of civil servants in the Tax System.

3. Funding for the activities of the General Department of Taxation includes: allocated funding from the state; state budget funding for non-allocated items and other lawful sources of funding as prescribed by law.

4. The General Department of Taxation is responsible for managing and utilizing staff quotas, assets, and operating funds allocated in accordance with current state regulations and the guidelines provided in this Circular.

5. Within the scope of allocated staff quotas and funding, based on the characteristics and nature of each unit's operations, the Director of the General Department of Taxation shall decide to allocate staff quotas to units within the Tax System appropriately.

II. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

1. Staff Quota Allocation:

a) The number of staff quotas allocated to units implementing quotas within the Tax System shall be implemented according to the Decision of the Minister of Finance and included in the total quota of state administrative personnel allocated to the Ministry of Finance.

b) Within the scope of allocated staff quotas, the General Department of Taxation may proactively organize, restructure, reduce staff quotas, manage, and utilize civil servants in accordance with the Civil Servant Law, current state guidance documents, and those of the Ministry of Finance.

The General Department of Taxation is responsible for allocating staff quotas to units implementing quotas within the Tax System, ensuring that the total number of staff quotas allocated to these units does not exceed the quota allocated by the Minister of Finance to the General Department of Taxation.

In addition to the allocated staff quotas, during the quota period, based on assigned functions, job requirements, and financial capacity, the General Department of Taxation has the right to enter into contracts for outsourced work in accordance with the Labor Code and employment contracts for certain positions as stipulated in Decree No. 68/2000/NĐ-CP dated November 17, 2000 of the Government on Implementing the Contract System for Certain Types of Work in Administrative Agencies and Public Service Units.

c) The staff quota allocated to the General Department of Taxation will be reviewed and adjusted in cases where new tax agencies are established (or merged) at provincial and centrally-administered city levels or when additional functions and responsibilities are added according to decisions made by competent authorities.

When it is necessary to adjust the allocated staff quota, the Director of the General Department of Taxation is responsible for reporting to the Minister of Finance for review and coordination with the Minister of Home Affairs to submit to the Prime Minister for decision.

2. Allocation of Operating Costs:

a) The level of operating costs allocated to units implementing quotas within the Tax System is 2% of the total annual revenue collected into the state budget organized by the General Department of Taxation; including:

- Revenue from crude oil (excluding export taxes).

- Domestic revenue and taxes (excluding crude oil).

+ Revenue from enterprises and individuals engaged in business across all economic sectors,

+ Agricultural land use tax,

+ Income tax on high-income earners,

+ Lottery revenue,

+ Revenue from real estate (property tax, land transfer fees, rent for land use rights, sale and lease of state-owned housing, depreciation of basic housing assets),

+ Fuel surcharges,

+ Revenue from entrusted collections submitted to the state budget from fishing activities, private businesses, and non-state commercial services, and taxes on foreign contractors operating in Vietnam,

+ Various fees and charges submitted to the state budget,

+ Other state revenues.

Annually, the Ministry of Finance will determine the total revenue collected into the state budget organized by the General Department of Taxation as the basis for calculating the operating cost quota the General Department of Taxation will enjoy that year.

b) The operating costs allocated to the General Department of Taxation shall be used for the following purposes:

- Regular operational expenses:

+ Personal payment expenses: Wages, salaries, allowances, contributions (including social insurance, health insurance, trade union fees) and other payments to individuals as prescribed by state regulations.

+ Administrative management expenses: Payment for public services; office supplies; information, propaganda, communication; expenses supporting taxpayers; conferences; travel expenses; rental expenses; major repairs, maintenance, and regular upkeep of fixed assets and other administrative management expenses.

+ Professional activity expenses: Specialized technical equipment; expenses for preventing revenue loss; seals; uniforms and labor protection; expenses for tax collection mandates; expenses for implementing and coordinating tasks; other professional activity expenses.

- Non-recurring activity expenses:

+ Outbound and inbound expenses.

+ Modernization expenses for the industry, procurement of fixed assets to serve professional activities; support construction expenses (including construction of tax offices); major repairs of working premises, equipment, and other fixed assets according to the program and plan of the General Department of Taxation and the Ministry of Finance.

+ Expenses for developing applications and modernizing information technology according to the program and plan of the General Department of Taxation and the Ministry of Finance.

+ Training and professional development expenses for Tax officials according to the program and plan of the General Department of Taxation and the Ministry of Finance.

+ Special expenses as prescribed by the Minister of Finance.

c) Standards, norms, and expenditure regimes for the implementation of budgetary allocations:

- For salary expenses: Based on the staffing level and allocated budget, the General Department of Taxation may allocate average salary expenses for the entire sector not exceeding 1.8 times the state-prescribed salary system for officials, civil servants, and employees.

Allowances are adjusted based on salary expenses and additional income, including position allowances, regional allowances, responsibility allowances, and seniority allowances beyond the framework as stipulated.

The implementation of the system for collecting and remitting contributions according to wages shall be carried out in accordance with current state regulations (excluding salary and income adjustments).

- For administrative management expenses, professional activity expenses, and training and professional development expenses for Tax officials: Based on applying standards, norms, and systems according to current regulations within the allocated budget, the Director of the General Department of Taxation shall establish internal expenditure standards, norms, and systems suitable for specific operations and report to the Minister of Finance for approval before issuance.

- For non-recurring activity expenses (excluding training and professional development expenses for Tax officials), the General Department of Taxation shall implement according to current standards, norms, systems, and financial management mechanisms.

d) The General Department of Taxation may utilize savings from allocated expenses to fund the following items:

- Supplementary expenses for strengthening material and equipment infrastructure for tax management; expenses for applying and developing information technology.

- Supplementary training and professional development expenses for Tax officials according to the program and plan of the General Department of Taxation and the Ministry of Finance.

- Additional subsidies for those voluntarily retiring during the restructuring and reorganization process.

- Reward and welfare expenses. The annual reward and welfare expenses shall not exceed three months' salary.

- Support expenses for subordinate public institutions under the General Department of Taxation.

- Establishing a reserve fund for stable income and a development fund for industry activities. The contribution rate and usage details are regulated by the Minister of Finance.

- Supplementing income for Tax officials, civil servants, and employees.

In addition to the salary expenses implemented as specified in point c above, the General Department of Taxation may use savings to supplement income for officials and civil servants; the supplementary income amount for Tax officials and civil servants is determined by the Minister of Finance.

đ) The payment of salaries and income to Tax officials shall be based on the results and quality of work completion by each official and civil servant, ensuring fairness and reasonableness, linked to work effectiveness after the Director of the General Department of Taxation and heads of units under the Tax system have reached consensus with the trade union organization at their respective units.

e) Based on the allocation levels and contents, standards, norms, and systems stipulated in points a, b, c, and d above, the Director of the General Department of Taxation shall allocate funds to units under the Tax system to ensure clear definition of the content and budget levels for regular activities and non-recurring task expenses.

g) During the period of implementing staff allocation and operational budget allocation, when the state changes policies and systems, the General Department of Taxation must cover additional costs according to new policies and systems.

h) The allocation level of the state budget for the General Department of Taxation will be reviewed and adjusted in certain cases where the allocated budget is insufficient to ensure minimum salary expenses as prescribed by the state and maintain the operation of the Tax system's machinery; specifically:

- Changes in the state's tax policy,

- Adding functions and responsibilities according to the decision of the competent authority,

- Natural disasters and other objective reasons.

The Director of the General Department of Taxation has the responsibility to report to the Minister of Finance for review and submission to the Prime Minister for appropriate adjustment to ensure that the General Department of Taxation can fulfill its assigned tasks.

3For non-allocated funds: In addition to the allocated budget as stipulated in point a of clause 2 above, the General Department of Taxation annually uses the following sources of funds:

a) Budget funds provided by the state budget to implement specific tasks:

- Centralized construction expenses funded by the state budget.

- Expenses for national-level scientific research projects;

- Expenses for national target programs; training and professional development expenses for officials and civil servants according to the state program and other government programs and projects.

- Operating expenses of subordinate public institutions under the General Department of Taxation as prescribed by the state for public institutions.

- Expenses for streamlining staff according to the state-prescribed system.

- Expenses for printing cigarette tax stamps according to the Prime Minister's regulations.

b) Other legitimate sources of funds as prescribed by law to finance related tasks of the Tax system.

The management and utilization of non-allocated funds mentioned above shall be carried out by the General Department of Taxation in accordance with current state standards, norms, and systems.

4. Budget preparation, allocation, distribution, withdrawal, and settlement:

1. Supplementing Point 6a following Article 6 of Circular No. 02/2019/TT-BVHTTDL dated July 5, 2019 of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the procedures for legal expertise regarding copyright and related rights as follows: Article: Budget Preparation: Annually, the General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for preparing the budget estimates for revenue and expenditure of the State Budget to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance (Level I) for review and consolidation, which will then be forwarded to the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and other relevant agencies in accordance with the provisions of the State Budget Law and guiding documents.

The Standing Office of the Council for International Cooperation on Non-Governmental Organizations (Vietnam Friendship Association) is the agency responsible for receiving registration dossiers, leading, and coordinating with member agencies of the Council to examine dossiers and return results of reviews of registration dossiers of foreign non-governmental organizations in Vietnam.Submit budget estimate:

B. Allocation of Budget:

- For allocated funds:

+ Annually, based on the state budget revenue estimate decided by the National Assembly (the portion assigned to the General Department of Taxation for implementation) and the allocated fund level at 2%, the Ministry of Finance shall allocate the absolute amount of the allocated fund to the General Department of Taxation for implementation.

+ At the end of the fiscal year, based on the confirmation from the State Treasury regarding the actual revenue collected into the state budget organized by the General Department of Taxation and the allocated fund level at 2%, the General Department of Taxation shall calculate and request the Ministry of Finance to officially approve the actual amount of the allocated fund used during the year. In cases where the allocated fund at the beginning of the year was not fully allocated, the Ministry of Finance shall allocate additional budget for the difference to the General Department of Taxation for continued use; in cases where the allocated fund at the beginning of the year exceeds the stipulated allocated fund, the General Department of Taxation shall be responsible for returning the excess amount to the state budget or the Ministry of Finance shall deduct it from the next year's budget of the General Department of Taxation.

- For non-allocated funds: Based on the state budget expenditure estimate assigned by the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Finance shall allocate the budget expenditure to the General Department of Taxation in accordance with current regulations.

c. Budget Allocation:

Based on the budget allocation received from the Ministry of Finance, unused allocated funds from the previous year (if any), assigned tasks, and guidance from the Ministry of Finance, the General Department of Taxation shall implement the budget allocation for units under the Tax System and submit it to the Ministry of Finance for review in accordance with the State Budget Law and current guiding documents. The budget allocation must ensure the following contents:

- Defined by funding sources, including: allocated operational funds; expenditures for non-allocated content.

- Divided into four categories: personal payment expenses; specialized professional expenses; procurement and repair expenses; other expenses.

- Additionally, for allocated operational funds, the budget allocation implementation ensures the definition of two aspects: funds to ensure regular expenditure activities; funds to implement irregular expenditure tasks.

After the Ministry of Finance reviews the budget allocation, the General Department of Taxation shall allocate the budget to budget units under the Tax System in accordance with current regulations.

- For the budget of allocated operating funds:

d. Budget Adjustment:

+ Regular activity expenditure budget: Budget units under the Tax System that have allocated operational funds may adjust the budget among personal payment expense categories, specialized professional expense categories, and other expense categories within the scope of allocated funds or adjust from these three expense categories to increase procurement and repair expense categories according to the approved plan.

When there is a need to adjust between these expense categories, the budget unit prepares an adjustment budget proposal and sends it to the State Treasury (ST) where the unit has its transaction account; ST is responsible for making payments and settlements according to the head of the unit's request.

+ For cases requiring adjustments in the budget for irregular expenditure items, adjustments from irregular activity expenditure to regular activity expenditure, and adjustments in the allocated budget of Tax Bureaus; units implementing allocations prepare an adjustment budget proposal and send it to the General Department of Taxation for consolidation and submission to the Ministry of Finance for review in accordance with current regulations.

- For budget adjustments for non-allocated items: The General Department of Taxation implements in accordance with current regulations.

e. Unspent Funds at Year-End:

For allocated funds at the end of the fiscal year, if there are remaining funds, the unit can transfer them to the next year for continued use. Implementation of transferring surplus funds is carried out as follows:

+ For expenses where the unit has withdrawn provisional budget advances at ST during the year: the unit must promptly complete all settlement documents to carry out final settlement according to regulations. Specifically, for cash provisional advances withdrawn but not spent (or without spending content) by December 31, the unit must return the provisional budget advance to ST where the unit has its transaction account to complete the procedures for transferring the surplus budget to the next year.

+ The General Department of Taxation consolidates the surplus budget at ST (including recovered surplus budgets) for each unit implementing allocations and by expense category (with ST's confirmation) and submits it to the Ministry of Finance to process the transfer of surplus budget to the next year according to regulations.

- For non-allocated funds: at the end of the fiscal year, if there are remaining unspent funds, the unit must return them to the state budget according to current regulations. If necessary to transfer funds to the next year for continued implementation, the General Department of Taxation reports and explains the reasons clearly to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and decision.

III. IMPLEMENTATION:

1. The Director of the General Department of Taxation is responsible for guiding and organizing the pilot implementation of staff allocation and operational funding for units under the Tax System in accordance with Decision No. 107/2005/QĐ-TTg dated May 16, 2005 of the Prime Minister, the guidance provided in this Circular, and the regulations of the Minister of Finance.

2. Annually, the General Department of Taxation shall organize inspections, interim summaries, and evaluations to draw lessons from the pilot implementation of staff allocation and operational funding.

In August 2007, the Director of the General Department of Taxation shall organize a comprehensive evaluation of the results of the pilot implementation of staff allocation and operational funding for the period 2005-2007 and the staffing and operational funding allocation plan for the subsequent period, and report to the Minister of Finance for presentation to the Prime Minister for decision.

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its publication in the Official Gazette. The Circulars No. 114/2002/TT-BTC dated September 4, 2002, and No. 82/2004/TT-BTC dated August 16, 2004, guiding the implementation of the pilot scheme for staffing quotas and operating expenses for the General Department of Taxation from 2002 to 2004 are hereby abolished.

During the process of implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, units are requested to report them to the Ministry of Finance for timely study and resolution.