Joint Circular No. 989 TT-LB guides the establishment and use of the tourism development fund.

 JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for the establishment and utilization of the tourism development fund

To implement Resolution No. 45/CP dated June 22, 1993 of the Government on reforming management and developing the tourism industry, the Ministry of Finance and the National Tourism Administration provide guidelines for the establishment and utilization of the tourism development fund as follows:

I. OBJECTIVES FOR ESTABLISHING THE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT FUND:

- Promoting advertising to attract tourists; contributing to implementing the State's policy of opening up and integrating with the world economy.

- Expanding and stabilizing markets, increasing the number of international visitors to Vietnam, and enhancing the business efficiency of the tourism industry.

II. OBJECTS OF COLLECTION AND SOURCES OF FORMATION OF THE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT FUND:

1. Objects of collection: All tourism service businesses, regardless of economic sector, industry, or supervising agency, are responsible for contributing to the tourism development fund.

2. Sources of formation and contribution rates for the fund:

a. Sources of formation:

- Establishing from the production and business encouragement fund of state-owned tourism enterprises according to the ratio specified in point b below.

- Allocating a certain percentage of revenue as defined in point b below to contribute to forming the fund.

b. Contribution rates:

- For tourism enterprises, including both state-owned and non-state-owned enterprises, organizations, and individual traders:

+ Contribute 0.7% of tourism and international guest service revenue.

+ Contribute 0.2% of domestic tourism and guest service revenue.

- For enterprises under the National Tourism Administration engaged in other production and business activities such as materials supply, construction, etc., and other activities of travel companies, contribute 0.1% of revenue.

Quarterly, entities required to pay into the tourism development fund must, based on actual revenue and revenue structure, contribute according to the prescribed ratios within 20 days after the end of the quarter. The contribution amount is included in production and business costs.

In cases where quarterly settlement has not been completed, units may temporarily allocate according to plans for payment. At year-end, they will settle officially based on actual figures; excess payments can be deducted from the next year, and any shortfall must be paid subsequently.

Tourism service units with foreign currency revenue may pay in foreign currency or Vietnamese dong at the buying rate published by the Bank at the time of payment.

- For state-owned tourism enterprises, in addition to the aforementioned contribution rate, they must also contribute 1% of the production and business development fund (based on the results of completing the annual plan) to the tourism development fund.

3. Collection Organization:

Units under the National Tourism Administration shall remit to the account of the National Tourism Administration.

Local tourism units and tourism units under various ministries, sectors, and other economic components shall have their contributions collected directly by the provincial tax bureaus authorized by the National Tourism Administration.

The tax bureau shall retain 5% of the actual receipts, with the remaining 95% transferred to the National Tourism Administration according to the notified account.

III. CONTENTS OF UTILIZATION OF THE TOURISM DEVELOPMENT FUND:

The tourism development fund shall be used for the following purposes:

1. Payment of membership fees for international tourism organizations of which the Vietnam National Tourism Administration is a member (such as OMT, PATA, etc.).

2. Expenses for promoting and advertising to attract tourists, mainly foreign tourists nationwide: Costs for editing, creating, printing, and distributing publications introducing Vietnamese tourism; producing promotional films about Vietnamese tourism.

3. Research and marketing of foreign tourism; organizing domestic and international seminars; receiving foreign experts to assist the Vietnam National Tourism Administration in transmitting knowledge and experience in tourism development.

4. Awards for units and individuals who have outstanding achievements in developing the tourism industry.

IV. IMPLEMENTATION ORGANIZATION:

1. The Vietnam National Tourism Administration is responsible for managing and utilizing the tourism development fund according to the above content and purposes. If used for other purposes, it must be agreed upon in writing by the Ministry of Finance. The Administration must open a separate account to monitor the receipt and expenditure of the tourism development fund.

Annually, along with preparing the budget revenue and expenditure plan, the Vietnam National Tourism Administration prepares the plan for the tourism development fund revenue and expenditure to send to the Ministry of Finance. At the end of the planning year, the Administration sends the final report on the revenue and expenditure of the tourism development fund to the Ministry of Finance. In principle, the surplus of the tourism development fund from the previous year is carried over to the next year for continued use.

2. Units subject to paying into the tourism development fund that encounter difficulties in production and business operations resulting in losses during the planning year may submit a request for deferral, reduction, or exemption of payment (confirmed by the local tax authority) to the Vietnam National Tourism Administration for consideration and resolution.

This circular takes effect from the date of issuance and applies to fiscal years starting from 1993 onwards. Any issues encountered during implementation should be reported to the Ministry of Finance and the National Tourism Administration for study and resolution./.