Circular No. 68/2022/TT-BTC Amends and supplements some Articles of Circular No. 58/2016/TT-BTC dated March 29, 2016 detailing the use of state capital for procurement to maintain the regular operation of state agencies, units under the people's armed forces, public service organizations, political organizations, political-social organizations, social-political-professional organizations, social organizations, and social-professional organizations.

CIRCULAR

AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF CIRCULAR NO. 58/2016/TT-BTC DATED SEPTEMBER 29, 2016 ON DETAILING THE USE OF STATE CAPITAL FOR PROCUREMENT TO MAINTAIN REGULAR OPERATIONS OF STATE ORGANIZATIONS, UNITS UNDER THE PEOPLE'S ARMED FORCES, PUBLIC SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS, POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS, POLITICAL-SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS, POLITICAL-SOCIAL-PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS, AND SOCIAL-PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Pursuant to the State Budget Law No. 83/2015/QH13 dated June 25, 2015;

Pursuant to the Law on Bidding No. 43/2013/QH13 dated November 26, 2013;

Pursuant to the Law on Management and Use of State Property No. 15/2017/QH14 dated June 21, 2017;

Pursuant to Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP dated June 26, 2014 of the Government detailing implementation of certain provisions of the Law on Bidding regarding selection of contractors;

Pursuant to Decree No. 151/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 26, 2017 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Management and Use of State Property;

Pursuant to Decree No. 165/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2017 of the Government on management and use of property at Party organizations of Vietnam Communist Party;

Pursuant to Decree No. 87/2017/NĐ-CP dated July 26, 2017, issued by the Government, stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

At the proposal of the Director of the Department of Administrative and Public Financial Affairs;

The Minister of Finance promulgates this Circular amending and supplementing certain provisions of Circular No. 58/2016/TT-BTC dated March 29, 2016 detailing the use of state capital for procurement to maintain regular operations of state organizations, units under the People's Armed Forces, public service organizations, political organizations, political-social organizations, political-social-professional organizations, social organizations, and social-professional organizations.

Article 1. Amending and supplementing certain provisions of Circular number

1. Amend and supplement Article 1 as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Application

State organizations, political organizations, political-social organizations, political-social-professional organizations, social-professional organizations, social organizations, and other organizations established in accordance with laws on associations, units under the People's Armed Forces, and public service organizations (hereinafter referred to as organizations and units) and related individuals involved in the use of state capital for procurement as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular to maintain regular operations.

2. Amending and supplementing Article 2 as follows:

a) Amending and supplementing Point d of Clause 1, Article 2 as follows:

"d. Procurement of raw materials, chemicals, in vitro diagnostic reagents, consumables, tools, and equipment necessary to ensure regular operations;"

b) Amending and supplementing Points d, đ, g, and h of Clause 2, Article 2 as follows:

"d. Official Development Assistance (ODA) funds including loan funds and non-reimbursable aid included in regular government budget expenditures; non-reimbursable aid from foreign non-governmental organizations, individuals, and organizations within and outside the country under the state budget (except where international agreements on ODA to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a party provide otherwise);"

đ) Revenue from fees that can be deducted or retained according to laws on fees;

g) Financial resources from the Health Insurance Fund; costs for managing social insurance, health insurance, and unemployment insurance;

h) Legally permissible financial resources according to laws."

c) Amending and supplementing Point d of Clause 3, Article 2 as follows:

"d. Centralized procurement (including national-level centralized procurement and centralized procurement at the ministry, sector, and local levels) carried out in accordance with Clause 3, Article 31 of the Law on Management and Use of State Property, Decree No. 151/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 26, 2017 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Management and Use of State Property, implemented in accordance with the Law on Bidding, Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP dated June 26, 2014 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Bidding regarding the selection of contractors (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP), and guiding documents."

d) Supplementing Points đ, e, g, h, and i of Clause 3, Article 2 as follows:

"đ. Procurement of various types of medicines in accordance with the Law on Medicines No. 105/2016/QH13 dated April 6, 2016 and implementing guiding documents;

e. Other provisions on medical equipment procurement as detailed in Decree No. 98/2021/NĐ-CP dated November 8, 2021 of the Government on medical equipment management and guiding documents issued by the Ministry of Health;

g. Procurement of assets, goods, and services under projects using Official Development Assistance (ODA) funds arising from international treaties and agreements, implemented in accordance with the Law on Bidding, Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP, and guiding documents;

h. Procurement of assets to implement scientific and technological tasks in accordance with Decree No. 70/2018/NĐ-CP dated May 15, 2018 of the Government on the management and use of assets formed through the implementation of scientific and technological tasks funded by state capital;

i. For sectors where there are specialized laws on asset, goods, and service procurement, such laws shall apply to each sector."

e) Supplementing Clause 4 of Article 2 as follows:

"4. Online contractor selection procedures shall be carried out in accordance with Chapter VII of the Law on Bidding, Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP, and guiding documents issued by the Ministry of Planning and Investment."

3. Amending and supplementing Clause 2 of Article 3 as follows:

"2. Based on the annual state budget expenditure plan (including supplementary plans during the year), legitimate financial resources of the organization and unit, and the procurement decision of the competent authority as stipulated in Article 5 of this Circular, the head of the organization and unit shall apply the appropriate bidding method to organize the procurement of assets, goods, and services in compliance with regulations."

4. Amending and supplementing Article 5 as follows:

Article 5. Authority, Procedures, Formalities, and Content of Procurement Decisions

1. The authority, procedure, process, and content of the decision on the procurement of state assets at agencies and units shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of Article 3 and Article 37 of Decree No. 151/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 26, 2017 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Management and Use of State Assets, and Article 13 of Decree No. 165/2017/NĐ-CP dated December 31, 2017 of the Government on the management and use of assets at Party organizations in Vietnam.

2. The authority, procedure, process, and content of the procurement of assets, goods, and services other than state assets (as specified in Clause 1, Point 2 of this Circular) shall apply the regulations for the procurement of state assets.

5. Amending and supplementing Article 8 as follows:

a) Amend Point a, Clause 1, Article 8 as follows:

“a. For tender packages for the procurement of assets, goods, and services within the approval authority of the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee shall direct the Department of Finance or a specialized agency under the People's Committee in accordance with Clause 2, Article 20 and Clause 1, Article 22 of the Law on Organization of Local Administration to take the lead in reviewing the bidding plan; specifically, for tender packages for medical supplies where the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee has the authority, the Department of Health shall take the lead in reviewing the bidding plan in accordance with Clause 3, Article 104 of Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP.”

b) Add Clause 3 and Clause 4 to Article 8 as follows:

“3. The responsibility for reviewing the bidding plan for tender packages for the procurement of assets, goods, and services within the approval authority of the Chairman of the District People's Committee shall be implemented in accordance with Clause 5, Article 104 of Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP.

4. For sectors that have specific laws regulating the responsibility for reviewing the bidding plan for tender packages for the procurement of assets, goods, and services, such responsibilities shall be implemented according to the specific regulations for each sector.”

"Article 10. Collateral for Loans

"2. The application for ship inspection includes: one original or electronic form according to Model No. 03 attached to this Circular."

“2. The decision on the procurement of assets, goods, and services by the competent authority (as stipulated in Article 5 of this Circular).”

b) Amend and supplement Clause 5 of Article 10 as follows:

“5. The regular procurement budget is approved by the competent authority within the scope of legitimate financial resources available to the agency or unit.”

7. AMENDING AND SUPPLEMENTING CLAUSE 2 OF ARTICLE 11 AS FOLLOWS:

“2. Tender package price.”

a) Based on the approved procurement budget, the tender package price shall be determined based on at least one of the following documents to reflect market prices:

- Market prices referenced from at least three quotations from different suppliers in the locality at the nearest time point, not exceeding 90 days before submitting the plan for review by the competent authority; in cases where there are fewer than three suppliers in the locality, references can be made from other localities or from information sources published by authorized agencies or organizations established in accordance with Vietnamese law;

- The results of price reviews conducted by competent state authorities or enterprises authorized to conduct price reviews for assets, goods, and services that require price reviews under the Price Law;

- The winning bid price of the most recent similar procurement tender package, not exceeding 90 days;

In cases where the tender package consists of several separate parts, the estimated price for each part shall be clearly stated in the tender package price.

b) If there is evidence that market prices have fluctuated compared to the approved prices (referenced from quotations, price review results, or winning bid prices of similar procurement tender packages), the authority approving the bidding plan shall decide to update the tender package price within 28 days before the tender opening if necessary.

c) If specific laws provide for determining the tender package price, such laws shall be followed.

8. Amend and supplement Article 24 as follows:

“Article 24. Conditions for applying the selection of contractors in special cases

In cases where tender packages for the procurement of assets, goods, and services present unique and special conditions that cannot be applied through the forms of contractor selection prescribed in Articles 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 of the Public Procurement Law, the person with authority shall submit proposals for the selection of contractors in special cases to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision, except for cases already provided for in Decision No. 17/2019/QĐ-TTg dated April 8, 2019 of the Prime Minister regarding certain tender packages and procurement contents aimed at maintaining regular operations, which may apply the form of contractor selection in special cases as prescribed in Article 26 of the Public Procurement Law.”

9. Amend and supplement Clause 1 of Article 25 as follows:

“1. The person with authority shall clarify the unique and special conditions of the tender package to serve as the basis for proposing the selection of contractors in special cases, and submit it to the Ministry of Planning and Investment for review in accordance with Point b, Clause 1, Article 104 of Decree No. 63/2014/NĐ-CP.”

Article 2. Transitional Provisions

For procurement contents that have been approved and allocated funds prior to the effective date of this Circular, they shall continue to be implemented in accordance with existing legal regulations on the management and use of funds until final settlement of the procurement content.

Article 3. Implementation Provisions

1. This Circular takes effect from November 14, 2022.

2. During implementation, if the regulatory documents cited for application in this Circular are amended, supplemented, or replaced, they shall be applied according to the amended, supplemented, or replaced documents.

3. In case of difficulties or obstacles, agencies and units are requested to report to the Ministry of Finance for research and appropriate amendments or supplements.