New Financial Policies Effective in March 2017

Inspection Funds Allocation from Recovered Amounts Paid into the State Budget

According to Circular 327/2016/TT-BTC issued by the Ministry of Finance on the preparation, management, usage, and settlement of funds allocated from recovered amounts paid into the state budget discovered through inspection activities, state inspection agencies are entitled to allocate a portion of the recovered amounts.

Specifically, the Government Inspectorate is allocated up to 30% of the total recovered amounts paid into the state budget for amounts up to VND 50 billion/year; additionally, up to 20% for amounts between VND 50 billion and VND 80 billion/year; and up to 10% for amounts above VND 80 billion/year.

Inspections by ministries, central authorities, and local authorities are allocated up to 30% of the total recovered amounts paid into the state budget for amounts up to VND 10 billion/year; additionally, up to 20% for amounts between VND 10 billion and VND 20 billion/year; and up to 10% for amounts above VND 20 billion/year.

For inspections by provincial departments and district-level towns: allocated up to 30% of the total recovered amounts paid into the state budget for amounts up to VND 2 billion/year; additionally, up to 20% for amounts between VND 2 billion and VND 3 billion/year; and up to 10% for amounts above VND 3 billion/year.

This Circular is effective from March 1, 2017.

Workers Insurance Coverage on Construction Sites Minimum VND 100 Million/Person

According to Circular 329/2016/TT-BTC effective from March 1, 2017, issued by the Ministry of Finance, construction contractors must purchase mandatory insurance for workers on construction sites before they commence work. The minimum insurance amount in this case is VND 100 million/person/incident.

When workers suffer injuries or die due to labor accidents or occupational diseases arising from performing work on construction sites, the insurer must compensate the construction contractor for the amounts paid to the workers.

The insurance period for workers on construction sites starts from the commencement of work until the end of the construction project's warranty period according to legal regulations. The specific insurance period is determined based on the labor contract and written confirmation from the construction contractor on the actual working time of the worker on the construction site.

Management of Enforcement Costs for Administrative Penalty Execution

The Ministry of Finance recently issued Circular 05/2017/TT-BTC guiding the management, advance, and reimbursement of enforcement costs for executing decisions on administrative penalties.

This Circular guides the management, advance, and reimbursement of enforcement costs for executing decisions on administrative penalties, and decisions imposing remedial measures for administrative violations in cases where penalties are not applied (coercion) as regulated in Decree 166/2013/ND-CP issued by the Government of Vietnam on coercion for executing decisions on administrative penalties.

The Circular clearly stipulates the allowance for individuals directly mobilized to participate in coercion and protection of coercion. For officials of the compulsive execution decision-making body, mobilized police forces, militia, and local government representatives directly participating in coercion: the leader gets VND 150,000/person/day, and other participants get VND 100,000/person/day.

Representatives of residential groups, hamlet leaders, and other individuals mobilized by the coercive decision-maker to participate in coercion are allocated VND 100,000/person/day.

This Circular is effective from March 2, 2017.

Regulations on Exemption from Late Tax Payment

An additional case of exemption from late tax payment has been issued by the Ministry of Finance in Circular 06/2017/TT-BTC, amending and supplementing Clause 1, Article 34a of Circular 156/2013/TT-BTC dated November 6, 2013, guiding the implementation of some articles of the Law on Tax Management (supplemented in Clause 10, Article 2 of Circular 26/2015/TT-BTC).

Specifically, the Circular stipulates cases where taxpayers providing goods and services to be paid from the state budget but have not been paid yet and thus fail to pay taxes on time, leading to tax debt, are exempt from coercive tax measures and late tax payment on the unpaid tax amount, but not exceeding the unpaid amount from the state budget.

The tax authority is responsible for monitoring tax obligation compliance by taxpayers. If it is discovered that the taxpayer has been paid by the unit using the state budget funds but did not promptly pay the tax debt into the state budget, a notice of tax debt, fines, and late payment penalties will be issued.

Circular 06/2017/TT-BTC is effective from March 6, 2017.

Guidance on Management and Use of Environmental Rehabilitation Deposit

On January 24, 2017, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular 08/2017/TT-BTC providing detailed guidance on managing and using deposits for environmental rehabilitation in mineral exploitation activities at the Environmental Protection Fund.

According to the Circular, the deposit-receiving entity (Environmental Protection Fund) must open a separate account to monitor the deposits, which should be deposited in commercial banks of good quality according to credit ratings from the State Bank of Vietnam. The deposit interest rate is adjusted according to the receiving entity’s lending rate. The non-term interest rate applies to amounts deposited before March 31, 2015, and the lending rate applies from April 1, 2015 onwards. The deposit-receiving entity is not allowed to use the deposit money for lending.

The depositor (organizations and individuals involved in mineral exploitation) can only withdraw the interest once after receiving a certificate of completion of all contents of the environmental rehabilitation plan or supplemental environmental rehabilitation plan. The withdrawal plan must be submitted to the deposit-receiving entity three (03) months in advance of the date the deposit must be refunded as per Clause 5, Article 8 of Decree 19/2015/ND-CP.

Circular 08/2017/TT-BTC is effective from March 10, 2017.

Source: Vietnam Financial Times Online

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