Vietnam: What are the legal purposes of mobilizing and receiving sponsorships by primary schools?

What are the legal purposes of mobilizing and receiving sponsorships by primary schools in Vietnam?

According to Article 3 of Circular 16/2018/TT-BGDDT regulating sponsorships for educational institutions under the national education system:

Details of sponsorships to be mobilized and received

1. Educational institutions shall be entitled to mobilize and receive sponsorships based on the following details:

a) Donating equipment and supplies as sponsorships for teaching and learning activities; donating equipment as sponsorship for scientific researches; carrying out refurbishment, repair and construction of facilities as sponsorships for educational activities carried out at educational institutions;

b) Giving support for educational, training and scientific research activities performed at educational institutions.

2. Sponsorships shall not be mobilized to pay teaching remunerations, expenses directly relating to school administrators, teachers, lecturers and staff members, school security and safety activities; remunerations for watching student’s vehicles; remunerations for maintenance of school or class hygiene; rewards to school administrators, teachers, staff members; other overheads of educational institutions.

Except for sponsorships for paying teaching remunerations, expenses directly relating to school administrators, teachers, lecturers and staff members, school security and safety activities; remunerations for watching student's vehicles; remunerations for maintenance of school or class hygiene; rewards to school administrators, teachers, staff members; other overheads of educational institutions, a primary school can mobilize and receive sponsorships for the following purposes:

- Donating equipment and supplies as sponsorships for teaching and learning activities; donating equipment as sponsorship for scientific researches; carrying out refurbishment, repair and construction of facilities as sponsorships for educational activities carried out at educational institutions;

- Giving support for educational, training and scientific research activities performed at educational institutions.

What are the legal purposes of mobilizing and receiving sponsorships by primary schools in Vietnam? (Image from the Internet)

What are the three forms of sponsorship for primary schools in Vietnam?

According to Article 4 of Circular 16/2018/TT-BGDDT, the three forms of sponsorship for primary schools include:

(1) Cash sponsorships: Sponsors may transfer a sum of money in the Vietnam dong or another foreign currency, diamonds, gems and precious metals directly to educational institutions or into accounts of educational institutions opened at state treasuries or commercial banks.

(2) Sponsorships in kind: Sponsors may transfer to educational institutions such material objects as textbooks, notebooks, clothes, food, food supplies, materials, equipment, teaching aids, construction works and other valuable objects in order to satisfy actual needs of students and educational institutions.

As regards construction works transferred as a sponsorship, evaluation and approval of technical designs and total cost estimates, granting of construction permits, quality control of construction works, pre-acceptance testing, hand-over, warranty and insurance shall be conformable to existing legislative regulations on capital construction investment.

(3) Non-material sponsorships: Sponsors may transfer or grant rights of free use of copyrights and rights of ownership of property under intellectual property protection; land use rights; contribution of labor days; provide training services, and those relating to sightseeing tours, surveys, seminars, or consultants, free of charge to educational institutions.

What are the procedures for receipt of sponsorships by a primary school in Vietnam?

According to Article 6 of Circular 16/2018/TT-BGDDT, the procedures for receipt of sponsorships by a primary school are as follows:

Step 1: Establishment of the Sponsorship Receiving Panel

- An educational institution shall be responsible for establishing the Sponsorship Receiving Panel. The Sponsorship Receiving Panel shall comprise the following main members: the head of an educational institution, the chief accountant, the parent representative council or the Board of Representatives of Communist Youth Union of Ho Chi Minh City, the Student Association; representatives of the community at the area where the educational institution is located (if any);

- The head of an educational institution shall become the group leader;

- The Sponsorship Receiving Panel shall be responsible for widely informing and disseminating the purposes, significance and principles of sponsorship activities; provide information on the time, address, name and deposit account number of the educational institution receiving sponsorships; pre-acceptance testing, transfer and use of in-kind or non-material sponsorships;

- The Sponsorship Receiving Panel shall be automatically dissolved after completion of sponsorship tasks.

Step 2. The educational institution shall implement the process of receiving sponsorships as follows:

(1) Cash sponsorships:

- The educational institution must open the detailed accounting book to separately monitor the sponsorship amounts; open an account at a bank or state treasury to receive sponsorships through the wire transfer service;

- In case sponsorships are granted in the form of diamonds, gems, precious metals or other valuable objects, the educational institution shall collaborate with the Sponsorship Receiving Panel in selling them to commercial banks or auction organizers, and send the proceeds to that educational institution's account.

(2) In-kind sponsorships:

- The educational institution shall cooperate with the Sponsorship Receiving Panel in carrying out the procedures for receiving the transfer, site and warehousing preparations for the preservation of donated objects in a fast and convenient manner;

- As regards a capital construction project in the form of "turnkey" granted as a sponsorship, the sponsor shall be obliged to hand over dossiers, documents and other evidences related to construction activities to the educational institution and the financial body at the same level in order to enter the value of the construction project of which handover is completed into the accounting record.

The preparation of the financial report on capital according to the provisions of Circular 09/2016/TT-BTC dated January 18, 2016 of the Ministry of Finance prescribing the financial reporting of completed projects financed by the state budget shall be encouraged (Circular 09/2016/TT-BTC has now expired and been replaced by Circular 96/2021/TT-BTC);

- If equipment or machinery is granted as a sponsorship, the sponsor shall supply documents and/or technical dossiers to the educational institution according to regulations in force.

(3) As for non-material sponsorships, the educational institution shall receive, manage and use them in accordance with legislative regulations on intellectual property and other laws in force.

In case of the land use right granted as a sponsorship, the sponsor shall provide dossiers related to that land use right and complete the procedures for transfer of that land use right transfer to the educational institution for its receipt, management and use in accordance with land legislation.