Decree No. 81/2014/NĐ-CP detailing certain provisions of the Ordinance on examination and valuation costs; costs for witnesses and interpreters in proceedings

DECREE

Detailed regulations on some provisions of the Ordinance on Appraisal and Valuation Costs; Costs for Witnesses and Interpreters in Litigation

 costs for witnesses, interpreters in litigation

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

Based on the Criminal Procedure Code dated November 26, 2003;

Based on the Civil Procedure Code dated June 15, 2004;

Pursuant to the Administrative Litigation Law on November 24, 2010;

Pursuant to the Law on Forensic Examination dated June 20, 2012;

Based on the Ordinance on Appraisal and Valuation Costs; Costs for Witnesses and Interpreters in Litigation dated March 28, 2012;

At the proposal of the Minister of Finance,

The Government issues this Decree to detail some provisions of the Ordinance on Appraisal and Valuation Costs; Costs for Witnesses and Interpreters in Litigation.

PART I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Decree stipulates the determination of appraisal costs, valuation costs of assets, the amount of costs for witnesses, the amount of costs for interpreters, and procedures for payment of costs as specified in Article 9, Article 35, Article 46, Article 52, and Article 57 of the Ordinance on Appraisal and Valuation Costs; Costs for Witnesses and Interpreters in Litigation.

Article 2. Applicability

This Decree applies to Vietnamese agencies, organizations, individuals, foreign agencies, organizations, and individuals related to appraisal, valuation, witnessing, and interpreting in litigation.

Chapter II

SPECIFIC PROVISIONS

Section 1

APPRAISAL COSTS AND PROCEDURES FOR PAYMENT OF COSTS

Article 3. Determination of Appraisal Costs

Depending on the nature of the object and the specific content of the appraisal, appraisal costs include one or more of the following costs:

1. Salary and remuneration costs for the person conducting the appraisal.

2. Depreciation costs for machinery, equipment, and facilities.

3. Consumable material costs.

4. Service usage costs.

5. Other costs as stipulated in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of Article 6 of this Decree.

Article 4. Salary and Remuneration Costs for the Person Conducting the Appraisal

1. Determination of salary costs:

a) Salary costs are applied in cases where the judicial procedure agency issues a decision requesting an appraisal from a public judicial appraisal organization, a non-public judicial appraisal organization, and a judicial appraisal organization per case (hereinafter referred to as the appraisal implementation organization).

b) The appraisal implementation organization bases its determination of salary costs on the content of the appraisal request, workload, time required to conduct the appraisal, and current salary regulations applicable to itself, and uses this as the basis to notify the judicial procedure agency.

2. Determination of remuneration costs:

a) Remuneration costs are applied in cases where the judicial procedure agency issues a decision requesting an appraisal from a judicial appraiser, a judicial appraiser per case who does not receive salary from the state budget, and a judicial appraiser per case who receives salary from the state budget.

b) A judicial appraiser, a judicial appraiser per case who does not receive salary from the state budget bases their determination of reasonable remuneration on the content of the appraisal request, workload, time required to conduct the appraisal, and their actual salary and income, and notifies the judicial procedure agency.

c) A judicial appraiser, a judicial appraiser per case who receives salary from the state budget bases their determination of remuneration for judicial appraisal on legal regulations regarding judicial appraisal allowances, and notifies the judicial procedure agency.

Article 5. Depreciation costs of machinery, equipment, and consumable material costs

1. When conducting an appraisal, if machinery, equipment, and devices are required to be used, the depreciation costs of such items shall be determined as follows:

a) In cases where machinery, equipment, and devices are fixed assets, the depreciation costs shall be determined according to the legal regulations on the management, utilization, and depreciation of fixed assets for each type of machinery, equipment, and device of the appraisal organization and the actual time of use serving the appraisal.

b) In cases where machinery, equipment, and devices do not meet the conditions to be classified as fixed assets, the depreciation costs of such items shall be determined through gradual allocation into production and business activity costs within a maximum period of two years but not exceeding the actual time of use serving the appraisal.

2. Appraisal organizations; judicial appraisers, individual judicial appraisers involved in specific cases who do not receive salaries from the state budget; judicial appraisers, individual judicial appraisers involved in specific cases who receive salaries from the state budget (hereinafter referred to as the appraisal organizations and individuals) when conducting an appraisal, if they use materials, their consumable material costs shall be determined based on the material consumption standards and the volume of work generated by the appraisal in each specific field.

In cases where there are no legal provisions on material consumption standards, the appraisal organizations and individuals shall determine the material consumption levels based on relevant regulations and the conditions of material usage for the appraisal and notify the investigative authority issuing the request for appraisal. The appraisal organizations and individuals must bear responsibility for the appropriateness of the material consumption levels they have notified.

Article 6. Service usage costs and other costs

1. Service usage costs shall be applied in cases where it is necessary to use supplementary experimental, testing results, or specialized conclusions performed by other individuals or organizations, and other outsourced service costs aimed at directly serving the appraisal process.

2. Other costs include expenses related and directly serving the judicial appraisal process in accordance with the nature and content of each specific case in various fields.

3. Service usage costs and other costs stipulated in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of this Article shall be determined based on the actual occurrence of each specific case, based on having sufficient contracts (if any) and invoices, documents in accordance with the law.

Article 7. Procedures for advance payment of appraisal costs

1. In cases where there is a need for advance payment of appraisal costs, within five working days from the date of receiving the decision requesting an appraisal from the investigative authority, the appraisal organizations and individuals shall submit the application for advance payment of appraisal costs in accordance with Clause 2 of this Article to the investigative authority.

2. The advance payment application file for expert examination costs includes:

a) The application for advance payment of appraisal costs shall include the following main contents: Name, address, tax code of the appraisal organization or individual; the amount requested for advance payment; the time and method of advance payment of appraisal costs.

b) A calculation of the total cost of performing the appraisal and the basis for calculating the cost of performing the appraisal.

3. Within ten days from the date of receipt of the complete application for advance payment from the appraisal organizations and individuals, the investigative authority requesting the appraisal shall be responsible for reviewing and making the advance payment according to the application for advance payment to the appraisal organizations and individuals. The maximum advance payment shall not exceed the appraisal costs calculated and submitted by the appraisal organizations and individuals in the application for advance payment in accordance with Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 8. Procedures for Payment of Appraisal Costs

1. Within fifteen days from the date of receiving the appraisal results, the organization or individual conducting the appraisal shall submit the Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article to the judicial authority to process payment procedures.

2. The Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs includes:

a) A payment request form containing the following main contents: Name, address, tax code of the organization or individual conducting the appraisal; total cost of the appraisal; amount temporarily advanced; amount still payable and payment method.

b) Supporting documents attached to the payment request form are original invoices and valid vouchers related to the actual reasonable expenses incurred during the appraisal process according to the requirements of the judicial authority.

3. Within a maximum period of fifteen days from the date of receipt of the complete Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article, based on the appraisal results, the determination of appraisal costs, and opinions of relevant agencies (if any), the judicial authority is responsible for reviewing the file and paying the appraisal costs to the organization or individual that has conducted the appraisal.

In cases where the temporarily advanced funds for appraisal costs are insufficient to cover the costs, the judicial authority shall pay the remaining amount.

In cases where the temporarily advanced funds exceed the appraisal costs, the organization or individual conducting the appraisal must return the excess amount within a maximum period of two working days from the date of submitting the Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

Section 2

APPRAISAL FEES AND PAYMENT PROCEDURES

Article 9. Determination of Appraisal Fees

Based on the nature of the subject being appraised, the appraisal fees of the asset appraisal organization and the asset appraisal council in litigation include one or more of the following costs:

1. Wages and remuneration for the person conducting the appraisal.

2. Costs for collecting and analyzing information about the object to be appraised.

3. Consumable material costs.

4. Service usage costs.

5. Other costs as prescribed in Clause 3 and Clause 4 of Article 12 of this Decree.

Article 10. Wages and Remuneration for the Person Conducting the Appraisal

1. Determination of wages for conducting the appraisal:

a) Wages are applied in cases where the judicial authority requests the asset appraisal organization to conduct the appraisal.

b) The determination of wages for the asset appraisal organization is carried out in accordance with Point b of Clause 1 of Article 4 of this Decree.

2. Determination of remuneration for conducting the appraisal:

a) Remuneration is applied in cases where the judicial authority requests the asset appraisal council to conduct the appraisal.

b) The asset appraisal council bases its determination of remuneration for the members conducting the appraisal on the legal regulations regarding meeting allowances for state agencies and public service units, overtime allowances for civil servants and employees (in cases of working beyond regular hours), and the actual time spent on the appraisal, and then notifies the judicial authority.

Article 11. Costs for collecting and analyzing information about the subject to be appraised

1. Costs for collecting and analyzing information about the subject to be appraised include one or more of the following costs:

a) Costs for generally identifying the property to be appraised.

b) Costs for preparing an appraisal plan for the property.

c) Costs for on-site surveys and collecting information related to the property to be appraised.

d) Costs for analyzing information related to the property to be appraised.

2. Costs for collecting and analyzing information about the subject to be appraised shall be determined based on the actual occurrence of each specific property appraisal case and the content of specialized services provided for the collection and analysis of information about the appraisal subject, based on having sufficient contracts (if any) and invoices, certificates in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 12. Consumable material costs, service usage costs, and other costs

1. In the process of conducting appraisals, if appraisal organizations or asset appraisal councils use materials, they shall determine consumable material costs. Consumable material costs shall be determined based on the volume of work; the appraisal review procedures, appraisal review standards prescribed for each appraisal subject; and the material consumption quotas applicable to the field of appraisal.

In cases where there are no legal provisions on material consumption quotas, appraisal organizations or asset appraisal councils shall base their determination of material consumption levels on relevant regulations and conditions for using materials to serve appraisals, and notify such levels to the investigative agencies requesting asset appraisals. Appraisal organizations and asset appraisal councils must bear responsibility for the appropriateness of the material consumption levels they have notified.

2. Service usage costs shall be applied when it is necessary to use specialized conclusions made by experts or appraisal organizations as references for asset appraisal activities and other outsourced service costs aimed at directly serving the appraisal of assets.

3. Other costs are those costs related and directly serving the work of conducting appraisals in line with the nature and content of each specific case in various fields.

4. The service usage costs and other costs stipulated in Clause 2 and Clause 3 of this Article shall be determined according to the provisions of Clause 3 of Article 6 of this Decree.

Article 13. Procedures for advance payment of appraisal costs

1. In cases where there is a need for advance payment of appraisal costs, within five working days from the date of receiving the request for asset appraisal from the investigative agency, the appraisal organization or asset appraisal council shall submit the Advance Payment Request Form as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article to the investigative agency.

2. The Advance Payment Request Form for appraisal costs includes:

a) A request for advance payment of appraisal costs containing the following main contents: Name, address, tax code of the appraisal organization, representative individual of the asset appraisal council; amount requested for advance payment, time and method of implementing advance payment of appraisal costs.

b) A calculation of total costs for conducting the appraisal and the basis for calculating the costs of conducting the appraisal.

3. Within ten days from the date of receipt of the complete Advance Payment Request Form from the appraisal organization or asset appraisal council, the investigative agency shall be responsible for making the advance payment. The maximum advance payment shall not exceed the appraisal costs calculated and submitted in the Advance Payment Request Form as prescribed in Clause 2 of this Article.

Article 14. Procedures for Payment of Appraisal Costs

1. Within fifteen days from the date of receiving the appraisal results, the appraisal organization or the Asset Appraisal Board that has conducted the asset appraisal shall submit the Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article to the judicial authority to process payment procedures.

2. The Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs includes:

a) A payment request form containing the following main contents: Name, address, tax code of the appraisal organization, representative individual of the Asset Appraisal Board; total costs incurred for conducting the appraisal, amount temporarily advanced, remaining amount to be paid and payment method.

b) Supporting documents attached to the payment request form include original invoices and legitimate vouchers related to actual reasonable expenses incurred during the appraisal process as required by the judicial authority.

3. Within a maximum period of fifteen days from the date of receipt of the complete Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article, based on the appraisal results, the determination of appraisal costs, and opinions of relevant agencies (if any), the judicial authority is responsible for reviewing the file and paying the appraisal costs to the appraisal organization and the Asset Appraisal Board that have conducted the appraisal.

In cases where the temporarily advanced appraisal cost payments are insufficient to cover the costs, the judicial authority shall pay the outstanding amount.

In cases where the temporarily advanced amount exceeds the appraisal costs, the appraisal organization and the Asset Appraisal Board must refund the excess amount within a maximum period of two working days from the date of submitting the Application File for Payment of Appraisal Costs as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article.

Section 3

EXPENSES FOR WITNESSES AND INTERPRETERS AND PAYMENT PROCEDURES

AND THE PAYMENT PROCEDURES FOR FEES

Article 15. Content of Expenses for Witnesses and Interpreters

1. Based on specific circumstances, the expenses for witnesses and interpreters shall include one or more of the following costs:

a) Salary or remuneration for witnesses; fees for interpreters;

b) Travel expenses (if applicable);

c) Accommodation expenses (if applicable);

d) Other incidental expenses (if applicable) as prescribed in Clause 2 of Article 18 of this Decree.

2. The expenses for witnesses and interpreters shall be calculated based on the actual number of days and hours spent participating in court sessions, meetings, and other litigation activities resolving criminal, administrative, and civil cases.

3. Witnesses and interpreters participating in meetings resolving civil cases, administrative cases, and other litigation activities resolving criminal cases shall be entitled to a salary or remuneration equivalent to fifty percent of the expenses for witnesses and interpreters when participating in court sessions as stipulated in Articles 16 and 17 of this Decree.

Article 16. Salary and Remuneration Expenses for Witnesses

1. Salary expenses for witnesses participating in court sessions resolving criminal, administrative, and civil cases are as follows:

a) Salary expenses apply in cases where the judicial authority summons individuals involved in appraisals or valuations to participate in court sessions as witnesses.

b) The witness's salary shall be equal to two hundred percent of the basic salary for officials, civil servants, public employees, and armed forces personnel, calculated according to the daily wage rate set by the State.

2. Remuneration for witnesses participating in court sessions resolving criminal, administrative, and civil cases is as follows:

a) Remuneration for witnesses applies to cases where they do not receive salary as stipulated in Clause 1 of this Article.

b) The witness's remuneration shall be equal to one hundred percent of the basic salary for officials, civil servants, public employees, and armed forces personnel, calculated according to the daily wage rate set by the State.

Article 17. Remuneration for Interpreters

The remuneration for interpreters participating in criminal cases, administrative cases, and civil proceedings shall be determined as follows:

1. The remuneration for interpreters who interpret spoken language and translate foreign-language documents shall be implemented according to the provisions of the law on translation costs within the budget for receiving foreign guests working in Vietnam and organizing international conferences and seminars in Vietnam.

2. The remuneration for interpreters who interpret spoken language and translate minority ethnic language documents shall be implemented according to the provisions of the law on remuneration for interpreting minority ethnic languages and translation costs for disseminating and educating the law to ensure the dissemination and education of the law.

Article 18. Travel Expenses, Accommodation Costs, and Other Costs for Witnesses and Interpreters

1. Travel expenses and accommodation costs shall be determined based on the actual occurrence of each specific case, based on contracts (if any), invoices, and other supporting documents according to the provisions of the law on travel expense allowances and conference organization expense allowances for state agencies and public service units.

2. Other costs related directly to and serving the work of testifying and interpreting shall be determined based on the actual occurrence of each specific case, based on having valid contracts (if any) and invoices, and other supporting documents according to the provisions of the law.

Article 19. Procedures for Paying Expenses to Witnesses and Interpreters

1. Immediately after completing the work of testifying or interpreting at court hearings or meetings to resolve criminal cases, administrative cases, and civil matters, witnesses and interpreters shall submit the Payment Claim File as stipulated in Clause 2 of this Article to the judicial authority to process payment.

2. The Payment Claim File for witnesses and interpreters includes:

a) The Payment Claim Form for witnesses and interpreters shall include the following main contents: Name, address, tax code of the person claiming payment for witness and interpreter expenses; amount claimed for payment and method of payment.

b) Supporting documents attached to the Payment Claim Form for witnesses and interpreters are original invoices and other legitimate documents to prove reasonable actual expenses incurred by witnesses and interpreters when testifying or interpreting.

3. The judicial authority has the responsibility to accept the Payment Claim File for witnesses and interpreters and check the completeness and legality of the file according to the provisions of Clause 2 of this Article. In cases where the Payment Claim File for witnesses and interpreters does not meet the requirements set out in Clause 2 of this Article, the judicial authority must notify the witnesses and interpreters and specify the reasons for supplementing the file according to the regulations. If the Payment Claim File for witnesses and interpreters is complete and legal, the judicial authority shall make payments to witnesses and interpreters according to the legal provisions on the control and payment of state budget expenditures through the State Treasury.

Chapter III

Article 30. IMPLEMENTATION AND ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 20. Effective Date

This Decree takes effect from October 1, 2014.

Article 21. Responsibilities of the investigative authority

1. Annually, based on the actual costs of forensic examination, asset valuation; costs for witnesses and interpreters in the previous year, the investigative authority shall prepare a budget estimate for the payment of forensic examination costs, asset valuation costs; costs for witnesses and interpreters under their responsibility according to the contents stipulated in this Decree, to be consolidated in the budget draft of the agency or unit and submitted to the financial authority at the same level for consolidation and submission to the competent authority in accordance with the State Budget Law and related guiding documents.

2. Based on the approved budget estimate, the head of the investigative authority shall be responsible for paying the costs under their responsibility to organizations and individuals performing forensic examinations; asset valuation organizations, Asset Valuation Councils; witnesses and interpreters involved in proceedings that have carried out tasks according to their requirements as stipulated in this Decree, ensuring economy, efficiency, and bearing full responsibility for their decisions; while also ensuring complete invoices and supporting documents for settlement and finalization in accordance with the provisions of the law.

Article 22. Implementation organization

1. The Minister, Head of a ministry equivalent to a ministry shall be responsible for implementing this Decree.

2. The Ministry of Finance shall be responsible for guiding matters related to its functions, duties, and management scope as prescribed in this Decree.

3. Based on their functions, duties, and powers, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, and other ministries and agencies equivalent to ministries shall be responsible for guiding the implementation of this Decree./.