Circular No. 92/2020/TT-BTC on the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of costs for mediation and dialogue at courts

CIRCULAR
Regulations on the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure inspection, handling, review, and systematization of regulatory legal documents
mediation and dialogue funds at the Court

Pursuant to the Law on Mediation and Dialogue at the Court dated June 16, 2020;

Pursuant to the State Budget Law dated June 25, 2015;

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

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

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular stipulating the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of mediation and dialogue funds at the Court.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation

This Circular stipulates the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of mediation and dialogue funds at the Court provided by the state budget according to Clause 1, Article 6 of the Law on Mediation and Dialogue at the Court.

Article 2. Applicability

1. People's Courts at all levels, mediators at the Court, parties participating in mediation and dialogue at the Court.

Article 3. Costs for conciliation and discussion at courts as stipulated in

Article 3. Sources of mediation and dialogue funds at the Court

Funds ensuring the operation of mediation and dialogue at the Court include state budget sources and other lawful funding sources as stipulated in Article 6 of the Law on Mediation and Dialogue at the Court.

Article 4. Contents and expenditure limits for implementing mediation and dialogue at the Court

1. Expenditure for organizing training and capacity building:

a) Expenditure for organizing training and capacity building for Judges responsible for mediation and dialogue, Court Secretaries serving mediation and dialogue activities at the Court: Implemented according to Circular No. 36/2018/TT-BTC dated March 30, 2018 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds allocated for staff training and capacity building.

b) Expenditure for organizing training, instruction, and guidance on business operations for mediators: Implemented according to Circular No. 40/2017/TT-BTC dated April 28, 2017 of the Ministry of Finance stipulating travel expenses and conference expense regulations (hereinafter referred to as Circular No. 40/2017/TT-BTC dated April 28, 2017 of the Ministry of Finance).

c) Expenditure for printing certificates (for training and capacity building courses that issue certificates): Implemented based on legal invoices and documents and actual occurrences.

2. Expenditure for information and communication activities related to mediation and dialogue at the Court: Based on the content and tasks of communication about mediation approved by competent authorities and assigned according to regulations, People's Courts at all levels are responsible for selecting forms and contents of information and communication activities to ensure economy and effectiveness within the scope of the budget assigned by competent authorities. The expenditure limit is implemented according to current laws on regular procurement to maintain the operation of state agencies and units.

3. Expenditure for organizing conferences, exchanges of business experience related to mediation and dialogue activities at the Court; expenditure for inspection and supervision of mediation and dialogue activities at the Court: Implemented according to Circular No. 40/2017/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance dated April 28, 2017.

4. Expenditure for rewarding collectives and individuals with outstanding achievements in mediation and dialogue work at the Court: Implemented according to Decree No. 91/2017/NĐ-CP dated July 31, 2017 of the Government detailing certain provisions of the Law on Competition and Rewards and detailed regulations of the Supreme People's Court.

5. Expenditure for purchasing equipment and means of transportation serving mediation and dialogue activities at the Court: Implemented according to laws on public asset management and use, state budget laws, and bidding laws.

6. Expenditure for office supplies, drinking water, and other direct administrative costs related to mediation cases: Implemented based on actual occurrences and legal invoices and documents.

7. Expenditure for organizing the selection of persons to be included in the list for training to obtain mediator certification and appointing mediators: Implemented according to the content and expenditure limits of conference expense regulations stipulated in Circular No. 40/2017/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance dated April 28, 2017.

8. Expenditure for remuneration of mediators: The expenditure limit for mediator remuneration is implemented according to the Government's Decree detailing the level of fees, procedures for collection, submission, management, and use of mediation and dialogue fees at the Court and mediator remuneration.

9. Expenditure for issuing cards for mediators: Implemented according to laws on regular procurement under bidding regulations.

10. Expenditure for interpreting minority languages and vice versa to serve mediation activities; expenditure for interpreting languages, symbols, and special characters for people with disabilities when necessary: The interpreter fee rate is applied according to the guide rate for tour guides and minority language interpreters stipulated in Circular No. 109/2016/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance dated June 30, 2016 on preparing budgets, managing, using, and settling expenses for national statistical surveys.

11. Expenditure for inviting reputable persons (outside the Court system) to participate in mediation and dialogue at the Court: In cases where reputable persons are invited to participate in mediation and dialogue at the Court as necessary according to the Law on Mediation and Dialogue at the Court, travel expenses and accommodation expenses (if any) are settled according to the travel expense regulations stipulated in Circular No. 40/2017/TT-BTC of the Ministry of Finance dated April 28, 2017 and specific regulations of the Supreme People's Court.

The number and criteria for selecting reputable persons to participate in mediation for each case are implemented according to regulations of the Supreme People's Court.

12. Expenditure for overtime pay for Judges, Secretaries, and workers of the Court when performing support activities for mediation and dialogue at the Court. The payment of night shift and overtime wages is implemented according to the Labor Code, guiding documents, and Joint Circular No. 08/2005/TTLT-BTC-BNV dated January 5, 2005 of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Home Affairs guiding the implementation of night shift and overtime wage regulations for civil servants and public officials.

13. Costs for renting equipment, machinery, or hiring units or organizations with relevant functions (if necessary) to serve the examination of the current status of assets related to civil cases or administrative complaints where the assets are within the administrative boundaries of the province where the court with jurisdiction has its headquarters: Implement according to the current laws on regular procurement to maintain the operations of state agencies and units, and lawful invoices and documents as prescribed.

Article 5. Preparation of Budget Estimates, Allocation of Budget Estimates, and Settlement of Mediation and Dialogue Expenses at Courts

The preparation, allocation of budget estimates, and settlement of expenses for mediation and dialogue activities at courts shall be carried out in accordance with the current laws on state budget, accounting laws, and existing guiding documents. This Circular provides additional guidance as follows:

1. Preparation of Budget Estimates:

Annually, based on the assigned functions and tasks, people's courts at all levels prepare detailed budget estimates for mediation and dialogue expenses at courts; these are included in the overall annual operating expense budget of the court agency; submitted to the Supreme People's Court and consolidated in the overall annual operating expense budget sent to the Ministry of Finance for approval by the competent authority and allocation of the annual state budget according to regulations. The preparation of budget estimates shall be carried out in accordance with the laws on the state budget.

2. Management, utilization, and settlement of expenses serving mediation and dialogue activities at courts shall be implemented in accordance with the laws on the state budget and accounting laws. Expenses serving mediation and dialogue activities at courts shall be consolidated in the annual operating expense settlement of the Supreme People's Court as prescribed.

Article 6. Effective Date

1. This Circular takes effect from January 1, 2021.

2. When regulations on expenditure systems and standards referred to for application in this Circular are amended, supplemented, or replaced by new documents, they shall be applied according to the amended, supplemented, or replacing documents.

3. For mediation and dialogue expenses at courts that must be borne by the parties participating in mediation and dialogue at courts as stipulated in Clause 2, Article 9 of the Mediation and Dialogue at Courts Law, implementation shall be in accordance with the Government Decree detailing the collection rates, procedures, submission, management, use, and expenses for mediation and dialogue at courts and remuneration for mediators at courts.

4. During the implementation process, if there are any difficulties, they should be promptly reflected to the Ministry of Finance for study and resolution./.