Circular No. 73/2011/TT-BTC on the financial management regime for the Fund to Support and Mobilize Overseas Vietnamese Communities

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the financial management system for the support fund and mobilizing the overseas Vietnamese community

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The Minister of Finance issues this Circular regulating the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds supported by the State budget for organizations assigned or authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to perform tasks of selecting, introducing, and managing Vietnamese workers working for foreign organizations and individuals in Vietnam.

Pursuant to Decree No. 118/2008/NĐ-CP dated November 27, 2008, of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance;

Implementing Decision No. 990/QD-TTg dated October 30, 2002 of the Prime Minister on the establishment of the Support Fund for Mobilizing the Overseas Vietnamese Community;

The Ministry of Finance stipulates the financial management regime for the Support Fund for Mobilizing the Overseas Vietnamese Community as follows:

Article 1. Scope of Application

This Circular regulates the financial management of the Support Fund for Mobilizing the Overseas Vietnamese Community (hereinafter referred to as the Fund), established and operating under Decision No. 990/QD-TTg dated October 30, 2002 of the Prime Minister on the establishment of the Support Fund for Mobilizing the Overseas Vietnamese Community.

Article 2. Financial operation principles of the Fund

1. Purpose: The Fund operates without profit-making objectives, complies with the current State Budget Law and relevant state financial policies related to the Fund's activities. The Fund must publicly disclose its fundraising, management, and usage of capital as prescribed.

2. The Fund has legal personality, separate bank accounts, and seals. The Fund opens domestic currency and foreign currency accounts at the State Treasury or domestic commercial banks to receive and utilize funds from the state budget, contributions from organizations and individuals both within and outside the country.

3. Financial assistance from the Fund must be carried out in accordance with the Fund’s financial assistance objectives and through the implementation of projects approved by competent authorities. For projects funded according to the authorization of organizations and individuals both within and outside the country, the Fund is responsible for implementing in accordance with the authorization of the funding organizations and individuals and in compliance with the law.

4. The Fund shall not be used to cover regular operational expenses of agencies and units under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs based on their functions and responsibilities; it shall not be used for business activities; nor shall it be lent or engaged in activities inconsistent with the Fund's charter and purposes.

Article 3. Objectives of Financial Assistance of the Fund

The objective of financial assistance of the Fund aims to support the overseas Vietnamese community and activities to mobilize overseas Vietnamese, help stabilize and develop the community, preserve the Vietnamese national identity, look towards the homeland, and contribute to building the hometown and the country.

Article 4. Sources of Financial Resources of the Fund, including:

1. Funding from the State Budget:

The initial funding from the State Budget is seven billion (7 billion) Vietnamese dong; annual supplementary funding from the state budget is provided according to the approved budget by the competent authority.

2. Revenue from the Fund's activities:

a) Money and assets voluntarily contributed or sponsored to the Fund by organizations and individuals both within and outside the country in accordance with the law.

b) Money and assets of organizations and individuals both within and outside the country authorized to the Fund for sponsorship with specific addresses in accordance with the Fund's charter and purpose and the law.

c) Interest income from deposit accounts and other lawful revenues (if any).

Article 5. Content of Fund Usage and Expenditure Standards

1. Content of Fund Usage:

1.1. Activities supported by the Fund:

a) Organizing the implementation of projects aimed at preserving and developing traditional cultural heritage; maintaining and promoting the Vietnamese language among overseas Vietnamese communities.

b) Organizing exchange activities: summer camps for young people, sports competitions, exhibitions, artistic performances.

c) Supporting information and cultural activities serving the community.

d) Supporting efforts to mobilize overseas Vietnamese to return home for investment, economic, and scientific cooperation.

đ) Supporting individual experts and intellectuals from overseas Vietnamese communities returning home to work and engage in scientific cooperation.

e) Supporting the activities of associations and organizations of overseas Vietnamese.

g) Other activities decided by the Prime Minister or the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

h) Other supportive activities consistent with the Fund's charter and purpose.

1.2. Expenditures for managing the Fund.

2. Expenditure Standards:

2.1. Expenditures for managing the Fund: Implemented in accordance with Article 7 of this Circular.

2.2. Activities supported by the Fund as specified in Clause 1.1 of this Article are implemented in accordance with the current state expenditure regulations; the agency or unit implementing the project must prepare a detailed budget proposal for approval by the Fund Director before implementation.

In addition, this Circular supplements certain special expenditure levels as bases for preparing budgets, managing, and settling accounts for project implementation costs from the Fund's support as follows:

a) For projects inviting overseas Vietnamese to return home for work, conferences, seminars:

- Apply the standard for hosting guests of category C as stipulated in Circular No. 01/2010/TT-BTC dated January 6, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance on the regulations for receiving foreign guests for work in Vietnam; organizing international conferences and seminars in Vietnam; and hosting domestic guests for work at agencies, units, and organizations. For Vietnamese staff participating in welcoming guests, hosting events, and serving conferences and seminars, they shall follow the expenditure standards set forth in the first and second bullet points of point a, Clause 3 of Article 3 of Circular No. 01/2010/TT-BTC mentioned above.

- Expenditures for conferences and seminars: Implemented according to the contents and expenditure standards stipulated in Circular No. 01/2010/TT-BTC dated January 6, 2010 issued by the Ministry of Finance.

b) For the pilot program "Strengthening Vietnamese Language Work for Overseas Vietnamese from now until 2020":

- Expenditures for organizing domestic workshops and training sessions to provide feedback and improve specialized training materials on Vietnamese language work and other professional materials of the pilot program:

Apply the contents and expenditure standards for organizing meetings in state agencies and public service units as stipulated in Circular No. 97/2010/TT-BTC dated July 6, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance on travel expense regulations and meeting organization expense regulations for state agencies and public service units.

- Expenditures for survey and research activities:

For the construction of investigation tools; provision of information to answer survey forms; data entry, and compilation of investigation results: Based on the content and expenditure levels specified in Circular No. 137/2007/TT-BTC dated November 28, 2007 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the expenditure level for creating electronic information, the Fund Director shall submit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for decision on specific expenditure levels but not exceeding the expenditure levels stipulated in Circular No. 137/2007/TT-BTC mentioned above. In cases where external agencies must be hired to carry out these tasks, contracts must be signed and contract procedures must be ensured in accordance with regulations.

For writing comprehensive reports on investigation results (including data compilation, analysis of investigation data): Based on the expenditure levels specified in Circular No. 120/2007/TT-BTC dated October 15, 2007 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the management, use, and settlement of funds for investigations from state budget sources; based on the nature and scale of the investigation, the Fund Director shall submit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for decision on specific expenditure levels but not exceeding the expenditure levels stipulated in Circular No. 120/2007/TT-BTC mentioned above.

- For expenditure levels in organizing overseas training workshops for volunteer teachers:

+ Renting conference halls and training venues: Payment shall be made according to the contract and lawful invoices of the host country and must be approved by the competent authority before implementation.

+ Printing materials for trainees: Payment shall be made according to the contract and lawful invoices and must be approved by the competent authority before implementation.

+ Water expenses for trainees: Apply the hospitality expenditure standard for Class C guests as stipulated in Circular No. 01/2010/TT-BTC dated January 6, 2010 of the Ministry of Finance.

+ Supporting accommodation costs for trainees (volunteer teachers attending training): Implemented through lump-sum payments; based on the maximum accommodation allowance rate specified in Circular No. 91/2005/TT-BTC dated October 18, 2005 of the Ministry of Finance regulating travel allowances for civil servants and public officials traveling abroad for short-term assignments funded by the state budget, the Fund Director shall approve the lump-sum accommodation support for trainees in accordance with the characteristics of each location.

Article 6. Provisions on Approval Authority for Expenditure

1. The Minister of Foreign Affairs decides the annual plan for using the Fund's budget based on the budget plan that has been reviewed by the Ministry of Finance.

2. Based on the annual plan for using the Fund's budget approved by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Fund Director is responsible for guiding relevant agencies and units using the Fund to prepare detailed plans, accompanied by project budgets for submission to the Fund Director for approval as the basis for implementation in accordance with the plan already approved by the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

3. In cases of urgent tasks outside the plan or registered tasks requiring funding beyond the allocated limit; the decision-making authority for each case is as follows:

a) For projects or tasks with a budget under VND 200,000,000, the Fund Director decides and reports to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for record-keeping and monitoring.

b) For projects or tasks with a budget over VND 200,000,000, the Fund Director reports to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for decision.

At year-end, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will compile and report to the Ministry of Finance on the use of the Fund's budget for urgent tasks outside the plan mentioned above.

Article 7. Fund Management Operating Expenses

Annually, based on the next year's management work plan for the Fund and current expenditure regulations, the Fund prepares a budget for management expenses to be combined with the Fund's operational budget, submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for approval and allocation. The maximum budget for management activities shall not exceed 10% of the approved annual Fund budget.

Contents and standards for management activity expenditures include:

1. Allowance for the position of Fund Director under the concurrent position regulations stipulated in Circular No. 78/2005/TT-BNV dated August 10, 2005, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs guiding the implementation of allowances for concurrent positions for officials, civil servants, and employees holding leadership positions in other agencies or units.

2. Salaries, insurance, and allowances as prescribed by law for contractual staff of the Fund (if any).

3. Payment for overtime work (if any) according to current regulations.

4. Expenditure for promotional activities to solicit contributions to the Fund.

5. Survey and information collection costs for project preparation.

6. Expenditure for outbound and inbound delegation activities serving fundraising efforts for the Fund.

7. Purchase, repair, and maintenance costs for equipment directly serving the operations of the Fund.

8. Office supply costs; payment for public service fees directly serving the operations of the Fund.

9. Regular and extraordinary rewards for organizations and individuals who have contributed to fundraising or directly to the Fund, or who have achieved outstanding results in Fund activities.

Forms, recipients, and criteria for rewards are implemented according to the guidance provided in Circular No. 02/2011/TT-BNV dated January 24, 2011, issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs guiding the implementation of Decree No. 42/2010/NĐ-CP dated April 15, 2010, of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Competition and Rewards and the Law Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of the Law on Competition and Rewards.

The establishment, management, and use of the competition and reward fund are carried out according to Circular No. 71/2011/TT-BTC dated May 24, 2011, issued by the Ministry of Finance guiding the establishment, management, and use of the competition and reward fund according to Decree No. 42/2010/NĐ-CP dated April 15, 2010, of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Competition and Rewards. The source of the competition and reward fund is from the operational management budget allocated and assigned annually by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and from contributions by organizations and individuals for the purpose of competition and rewards.

10. Expenditures for the activities of the Fund's Advisory Board:

a) Payment of travel expenses for Advisory Board members when traveling domestically and abroad according to current regulations.

b) Support for mobile phone charges:

- Maximum amount not exceeding VND 400,000 per month: For those who hold the position of Chairman or Vice-Chairman of the Fund's Advisory Board and are not civil servants or state employees;

- Maximum amount not exceeding VND 250,000 per month: For those who are members of the Fund's Advisory Board and are not civil servants or state employees.

The Fund Director decides the specific support level for each case based on the principle of work efficiency; those invited to join the Advisory Board but do not regularly perform their duties as stipulated by the Advisory Board shall not receive telephone charge support.

11. Other expenditures directly serving the management of the Fund.

The above expenditure items are implemented according to the current State expenditure regulations and standards.

Article 8. Establishing the Budget Estimate, Allocating the Budget Estimate, and Finalizing the Budget for the Fund

1. Budget preparation and budget allocation:

a) Annually, based on specific objectives and tasks, the Fund establishes the budget estimate (for each project and management task of the Fund) to be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for consolidation and to the competent authority as prescribed by the State Budget Law and guiding documents thereof. The annual supplementary budget estimate requested from the state budget is determined based on the sources of funds raised from organizations and individuals both domestically and internationally, other sources (if any), and the state budget's balancing capacity.

b) Based on the allocated budget estimate, the Minister of Foreign Affairs proposes a plan to allocate the budget estimate for the Fund (accompanied by a detailed explanation of the Fund's usage according to each project and management task), to be sent to the Ministry of Finance for review as prescribed.

Based on the budget estimate allocated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Fund implements the withdrawal of the budget estimate at the State Treasury to fund the management of the Fund and the implementation of approved projects.

2. Finalizing the Budget for the Fund:

a) Annually, the Fund is responsible for finalizing the budget expenditure as prescribed by the State Budget Law and other state regulations related to budget finalization concerning the Fund's activities. The Director of the Fund is responsible for urging agencies and units implementing projects funded by the Fund to promptly finalize their budgets and submit original expense receipts to the Fund Office for finalization of the utilized budget and compilation of the final report to be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

b) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for reviewing the finalization of the Fund's income and expenditures and consolidating them in the annual final report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be submitted to the Ministry of Finance for examination as prescribed by the State Budget Law and guiding documents.

Unspent funds of the Fund at year-end may be carried over to the next year for use according to the specified purpose and content of the Fund's usage as prescribed. Based on the reconciliation results, the State Treasury branch where transactions take place is responsible for transferring the previous year's remaining budget balance to the next year as prescribed.

Article 9. Accounting Work and Management of the Fund

1. The Fund must organize accounting work and bookkeeping in accordance with Decision No. 19/2006/QD-BTC dated March 30, 2006, issued by the Minister of Finance regarding the Accounting System for Administrative and Public Services.

2. The Fund conducts separate bookkeeping for operational activities funded by the Fund for management purposes.

3. Currency for Bookkeeping: Bookkeeping and finalization shall be conducted in Vietnamese Dong.

4. In cases of using foreign currency: If the Ministry of Finance uniformly allocates funds for use at the Treasury Exchange Branch, the exchange rate for bookkeeping as published monthly by the Ministry of Finance shall apply; if purchasing foreign currency from a bank, the conversion rate according to the bank's documentation at the time of purchase shall be applied.

5. When deciding on budget disbursements, the Director of the Fund must base it on current financial expenditure standards and regulations to ensure that the use of funds aligns with the Fund's objectives and the approved usage plan. The Director of the Fund is legally responsible for managing and utilizing the Fund and ensuring the legality and validity of expense documentation as prescribed by law.

6. The Fund complies with current state regulations regarding the inspection and audit of its financial activities. Accounting records and books must be stored as prescribed.

Article 10. Implementation Organization

This Circular takes effect from July 15, 2011, replacing Decision No. 60/2003/QD-BTC dated April 21, 2003, issued by the Minister of Finance on the Financial Management Regulations of the Overseas Vietnamese Community Support Fund. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for guiding the Fund in implementing this Circular.

For current expenditure standards and norms referred to in this Circular, when there are adjustments by the state, the Fund shall apply the corresponding adjusted expenditure levels.

During implementation, if any issues arise, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for promptly reporting to the Ministry of Finance for guidance and resolution./.