Circular stipulates the preparation of budget estimates, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work.

CIRCULAR

Regulations on the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work

On the basis of Law on State Budget number 89/2025/QH15;

On the basis of Civil Judicial Assistance Law number 102/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to the Law on Legislative Acts number 64/2025/QH15, amended and supplemented by Law number 87/2025/QH15;

Pursuant to Decree number 73/2026/NĐ-CP of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions of the State Budget Law;

Pursuant to Decree number 158/2026/NĐ-CP of the Government detailing certain provisions and measures for implementing the Civil Judicial Assistance Law;

Pursuant to Decree number 29/2025/NĐ-CP of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Finance, amended and supplemented by Decree number 166/2025/NĐ-CP;

1. Scope of Regulation:

The Minister of Finance issues this Circular regulating the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work.

Article 1. Scope of Regulation and Applicability

Thông tư này quy định chi tiết khoản 4 Điều 38 Luật Thủy sản số 18/2017/QH14 đã được sửa đổi, bổ sung tại điểm c khoản 21 Điều 14 Luật số 146/2025/QH15.

This Circular regulates the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work.

Thông tư này áp dụng đối với tổ chức, cá nhân có liên quan đến hoạt động kinh doanh đối tượng thủy sản nuôi chủ lực trên lãnh thổ Việt Nam.

a) This Circular applies to agencies authorized to carry out civil judicial assistance work; organizations, individuals related to the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work as prescribed in the Civil Judicial Assistance Law number 102/2025/QH15 (hereinafter referred to as Law number 102/2025/QH15) and Decree number 158/2026/NĐ-CP of the Government dated May 15, 2026 detailing certain provisions and measures for implementing Law number 102/2025/QH15 (hereinafter referred to as Decree number 158/2026/NĐ-CP).

b) This Circular does not apply to the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds to ensure extradition work, transfer of persons serving custodial sentences, and criminal judicial assistance work carried out in accordance with the Extradition Law number 100/2025/QH15, Transfer of Persons Serving Custodial Sentences Law number 101/2025/QH15, Criminal Judicial Assistance Law number 103/2025/QH15, and guiding documents for these Laws.

Article 2. Contents and expenditure levels as the basis for preparing budgets, managing, using, and settling state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work

1. Expenses for organizing international conferences and seminars; expenses for translating materials related to civil judicial assistance work shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 35/2026/TT-BTC dated March 31, 2026, of the Minister of Finance stipulating the reception regulations for foreign visitors working in Vietnam, conference and seminar organization expense regulations, and domestic reception regulations.

2. Expenses for organizing foreign delegations serving civil judicial assistance work shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 140/2025/TT-BTC dated December 30, 2025, of the Minister of Finance stipulating travel expense regulations for short-term overseas trips funded by the state budget.

3. Expenses for organizing domestic delegations serving civil judicial assistance work; expenses for organizing meetings, conferences, seminars, and roundtable discussions shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 40/2017/TT-BTC dated April 28, 2017, of the Minister of Finance stipulating expense regulations and travel expense regulations for conferences, amended and supplemented by Circular number 12/2025/TT-BTC.

For expenses for participants in meetings, conferences, seminars, and roundtable discussions, the following shall apply:

a) Chairperson: VND 150,000/person/session;

b) Other participants: VND 100,000/person/session.

4. Expenses for verification, collection, and provision of evidence to implement requests for civil judicial assistance shall be implemented in accordance with laws on litigation costs.

5. Expenses for organizing training, instruction, and capacity building for staff engaged in civil judicial assistance work shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 100/2025/TT-BTC dated October 28, 2025, of the Minister of Finance guiding the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds allocated for training and capacity building for civil servants and officials.

6. Expenses for drafting international treaties; other activities in the field of international treaty work in civil judicial assistance shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 43/2022/TT-BTC dated July 19, 2022, of the Minister of Finance on guidelines for managing and using state budget funds to ensure international treaty work and international agreement work, and Decree number 289/2025/NĐ-CP dated November 6, 2025, of the Government guiding the implementation of Resolution number 197/2025/QH15 dated May 17, 2025, of the National Assembly on special mechanisms and policies to create breakthroughs in legislative work and enforcement (hereinafter referred to as Decree number 289/2025/NĐ-CP).

7. Expenses for scientific, technological, innovation, and digital transformation tasks in civil judicial assistance activities shall be implemented in accordance with laws on science, technology, innovation, digital transformation, public procurement, state asset management and utilization, and relevant laws.

8. Expenses for reviewing, systematizing regulatory acts to serve as legal databases for civil judicial assistance work shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 09/2023/TT-BTC dated August of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of2 year 2023 of ||| Article 2. General provisions regarding foreign non-governmental organizations operating in Vietnam (as stipulated from Article 5 to Article 15 of the Decree): the Ministry of Finance on the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of state budget funds to ensure inspection, handling, review, and systematization of regulatory acts and Decree number 289/2025/NĐ-CP.

9. Expenses for legal awareness raising and dissemination, international treaties on civil judicial assistance activities shall be implemented in accordance with Circular number 56/2023/TT-BTC dated August 8, 2023, of the Minister of Finance on the preparation of budgets, management, use, and settlement of funds to ensure legal awareness raising, education, access to justice, and grassroots mediation.

10. Expenses for foreign witnesses and experts (if any) shall be carried out in accordance with agreements with Vietnamese judicial authorities.

11. Expenses for processing civil judicial assistance requests (including activities to process one set of civil judicial assistance request files in accordance with Law No. 102/2025/QH15): The head of the agency or unit primarily responsible for processing civil judicial assistance requests shall examine and decide on specific expenditure levels, not exceeding VND 600,000 per set of files.

12. Expenses for obtaining opinions from experts in cases where civil judicial assistance involves complex issues requiring opinions from relevant competent agencies: VND 1,500,000 per document/expert.

13. Payment for night work and overtime pay shall be implemented in accordance with the Labor Code and Decree No. 145/2020/NĐ-CP dated December 14, 2020 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of certain provisions concerning labor conditions and labor relations.Labor Code14. Other expenses directly serving civil judicial assistance work include: expenses for sending entrusted files, postal charges for transferring documents and civil judicial assistance files abroad and from Vietnamese representative offices abroad back to Vietnam, expenses for sending civil judicial assistance files from Vietnamese representative offices or authorized agencies and organizations of foreign countries; postal service fees for delivering foreign documents; printing and office supply costs and other related expenses in accordance with laws on public bidding, price laws (if applicable), and other relevant laws; payment according to contracts, invoices, and valid expense receipts within the approved budget.

Article 3. Budgeting, managing, using, and settling accounts for state budget funds to ensure civil judicial assistance work

1. State budget funds ensuring civil judicial assistance work of agencies and organizations at which level are guaranteed by the state budget at that level and are consolidated into the annual budget estimates of the competent authority implementing civil judicial assistance work in accordance with Law No. 102/2025/QH15 and Decree No. 158/2026/NĐ-CP.

2. Annually, based on the requirements of civil judicial assistance work and the types and levels of expenditure specified in Article 2 of this Circular, agencies preparing budget estimates for ensuring civil judicial assistance work shall consolidate them into their annual budget estimates and submit them to the competent authority in accordance with the State Budget Law and guiding documents.

3. Management, use, and settlement

a) The management, use, and settlement of state budget funds ensuring civil judicial assistance work shall be carried out in accordance with laws on state budgets, accounting laws, and guiding documents.

b) The State Treasury shall make payments for civil judicial assistance work in accordance with Decree No. 347/2025/NĐ-CP dated December 29, 2025 of the Government on administrative procedures under the jurisdiction of the State Treasury.

1. This Circular takes effect from July 1, 2026.

Article 4. Implementation provisions

2. Circular No.

144/2012/TT-BTCdated September 4, 2012 of the Minister of Finance on the preparation of budget estimates, management, use, and settlement of funds to ensure judicial assistance work shall cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect.a) For tasks already approved and allocated funds before this Circular takes effect, they shall continue to be implemented according to the approval decisions of the competent authority and the provisions of Circular No.

3. Transitional Provisions

until the completion of the tasks.dated September 4, 2012 of the Minister of Finance on the preparation of budget estimates, management, use, and settlement of funds to ensure judicial assistance work shall cease to be effective from the date this Circular takes effect. b) For the year 2026, ministries, central agencies, and localities shall proactively arrange and organize within the scope of the state budget spending plan for 2026 assigned by the competent authority to implement civil judicial assistance work.

4. In cases where the legal normative documents cited in this Circular are amended, supplemented, or replaced by other legal normative documents, they shall be implemented in accordance with the provisions of those amended, supplemented, or replacing documents.

5. During the implementation period, if there are difficulties or obstacles, agencies, organizations, and units are requested to promptly reflect them to the Ministry of Finance for research, guidance, and resolution./.

- Units under the Central Committee of the Party;