Circular No. 93/1998/TT-BTC stipulates the expenditure regulations for conferences

CIRCULAR

OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE NUMBER 93/1998/TT-BTC DATED JUNE 30, 1998 REGULATING THE EXPENSES FOR CONFERENCES

To implement the Ordinance on Thrift and Anti-Waste, to create conditions for heads of units to be proactive in using funds for conference expenses, ensuring efficiency, the Ministry of Finance hereby regulates the expenses for conferences in state management agencies, public service units, Party organizations of the Communist Party of Vietnam, political-social organizations, social organizations, and social-professional organizations that use funds from the State budget (hereinafter referred to as agencies and units) as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS:

1. Agencies and units organizing national-level conferences for summary and general meetings must obtain permission through a written document from the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau or the Prime Minister.

Conferences at the provincial level must obtain permission through a written document from the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee or the Chairman of the People's Committee of the province or centrally-administered city. Conferences convened at the district level must obtain permission through a written document from the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee or the Chairman of the People's Committee of the district.

2. All agencies and units when organizing conferences must reasonably arrange locations, combine multiple contents, prepare high-quality content, consider the composition and number of delegates. The duration of the conference shall not exceed three days, and training sessions shall not exceed ten days. When organizing conferences, agencies and units must comply with the expenditure regulations stipulated in this Circular and budget the expenses within the approved annual budget of the agency or unit.

3. Delegates attending conferences shall pay for their meals and accommodation out of their travel allowance and part of their salary; the organizing agency shall subsidize meals and accommodation for delegates who do not receive salaries from the State budget, compensating for the difference in meal costs as specified in this Circular.

4. Financial agencies and State Treasury have the responsibility to inspect conference expenditures of units before, during, and after spending to ensure compliance with the prescribed regulations.

5. Sessions of the National Assembly and Congresses of the Communist Party of Vietnam are not subject to this Circular and will have separate regulations.

II. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

1. Meal and accommodation allowances for delegates attending conferences and training sessions:

a. Meal Allowance: The daily meal allowance for each delegate attending conferences and training sessions is set at a maximum according to the scope and location of the conference or training session as follows:

- Central-level conferences

+ Organized in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City: 30,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in other provinces: 25,000 VND/day/person.

- Provincial-level conferences, conferences organized by central or provincial departments to implement policies and regulations, specialized training sessions organized by central or provincial departments, district, or urban area departments, the daily meal allowance for delegates is:

+ Organized in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City: 25,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in other provinces: 20,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in districts or urban areas: 15,000 VND/day/person.

b. Accommodation Allowance: The accommodation allowance for delegates attending conferences is applied according to the accommodation allowance for civil servants on business trips, with a maximum not exceeding the following amounts:

- Central-level conferences:

+ Organized in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City: 90,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in other provinces: 60,000 VND/day/person.

- Provincial-level conferences, training sessions, specialized conferences, conferences organized by district or urban area departments:

+ Organized in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City: 60,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in other provinces: 50,000 VND/day/person.

+ Organized in districts: 40,000 VND/day/person.

c. Contributions from delegates attending conferences:

- Delegates attending conferences who register for meals and accommodation with the organizing agency must pay the full meal and accommodation fees to the organizing agency.

- For delegates who do not receive salaries from the State budget, the organizing agency shall pay the meal and accommodation fees according to the maximum amounts specified above.

Heads of Ministries and Departments, Chairmen of People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities shall base on the meal and accommodation allowances specified above and taking into account specific circumstances and annual budget capacity to detail and specify the accommodation allowances for delegates attending various types of conferences in different regions in accordance with this Circular but not exceeding the specified limits.

2. Expenditures of the organizing agency: The organizing agency may incur the following expenses:

- Venue rental fees during the conference days (if applicable).

- Printing costs for conference materials. For training materials, the organizing agency prints and sells them to delegates and others interested in purchasing them to cover costs without profit.

- Expenses for meals and accommodation, and transportation costs for delegates attending conferences who do not receive salaries from the State budget.

- Compensation for meal costs at 10,000 VND/day/person for conferences held in provinces and centrally-administered cities; 5,000 VND/day/person for conferences held in districts for delegates registered for accommodation at the conference venue.

- Renting cars to transport delegates from their accommodation to the conference venue (if applicable).

- Other expenses such as water for delegates and speakers, overtime pay, medical supplies, hall decoration, etc.

3. All conferences and seminars should be organized with thrift, avoiding ostentation, and shall not provide allowances or lunch for local delegates receiving salaries from the State budget, nor shall they fund sightseeing, rest and recreation, cultural activities, or photography outside the regulations.

4. Prior to organizing a conference, agencies and units must submit a budget for conference expenses to the financial agency at the same level and the State Treasury where the agency or unit conducts transactions.

Financial agencies at all levels are responsible for reviewing the conference budgets of units to ensure compliance with the regulations stipulated in this Circular and based on the annual budget item 112 "Conferences," they process notifications of expenditure limits for units.

The State Treasury checks the documentation and payment orders issued by the head of the unit regarding conference expenses, ensuring the legality of the documentation and compliance with the conference expense budget limit of the unit, and processes the payment of conference expenses for the unit.

5. The agency or unit organizing the conference shall be responsible for collecting receipts of income and expenditure and settling the conference expenses together with the quarterly and annual settlement of the unit.

Conference expenditure funds are allocated in the annual budget of the agency or unit. At the end of the year, any unspent funds may be reallocated to other work items after reaching agreement with the same-level financial authority.

Financial authorities at all levels shall be responsible for auditing the settlement of conference expenditure of the agencies and units organizing conferences and training sessions to ensure compliance with prescribed regulations. In cases where expenditures are made contrary to regulations or exceed the prescribed limits, the financial authority has the right to disallow such unauthorized or excessive expenditures. Any person who orders unauthorized expenditures shall be subject to penalties as provided for in the Ordinance on Thrift and Anti-Waste.

III. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS:

1. State-owned enterprises shall apply this Circular for expenditures related to conferences serving their business operations; enterprise conference expenditures must be economical and effective in accordance with the state-owned enterprise financial regulations issued by the Government.

2. This Circular shall take effect fifteen days from the date of signature. All previous Circulars regulating conference systems are hereby repealed.