Regulations on the destruction of documents and items containing state secrets of the Ministry of Planning and Investment

Regulations on the destruction of documents and items containing state secrets of the Ministry of Planning and Investment (Image from the internet)

On December 29, 2023, the Ministry of Planning and Investment issued Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT on the Regulation of State Secret Protection of the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Regulations on the destruction of documents and items containing state secrets of the Ministry of Planning and Investment in Vietnam

(1) Cases for carrying out the destruction of documents and items containing state secrets include:

- Cases where there is no need to retain them and the destruction does not harm national interests.

- Case where they would harm national interests, if not destroyed immediately,

(2) The destruction of documents and items containing state secrets must meet the following requirements:

- Not to expose or lose state secrets.

- For confidential documents printed on paper, they must be burned or shredded to the extent that they cannot be pieced back together.

- For confidential documents stored in the form of tapes, floppy disks, photographic films, USB storage devices, and similar storage media, the destruction must alter the entire shape and function so as to make them irrecoverable, exploitable, or usable.

(3) The authority to destroy documents and items containing state secrets is defined as follows:

- Persons authorized as specified in points a and b of Article 4, Section 2 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT have the authority to decide on the destruction of documents and items containing state secrets.

- Persons currently managing documents and items containing state secrets have the right to decide on their destruction in cases specified in point b of Article 13, Section 1 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT and must immediately report the destruction in writing to the authority defined in point a of Article 13, Section 3 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT.

(4) The process of destroying documents and items containing state secrets in cases specified in point a of Article 13, Section 1 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT is as follows:

- The authority specified in point a of Article 13, Section 3 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT decides on the establishment of a Council for the Destruction of Documents and Items Containing State Secrets.

- The Council for the Destruction of Documents and Items Containing State Secrets includes a representative from the leadership of the agency or unit directly holding the documents and items containing state secrets as the Council Chair; the person directly holding the documents and items, and representatives from relevant agencies or organizations.

- The Council is responsible for reviewing the documents and items containing state secrets proposed for destruction, reporting to the authority specified in point a of Article 13, Section 3 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT to issue a decision on destruction.

- The Council for destroying confidential documents is responsible for creating an inventory record detailing each confidential document to be destroyed, including the document number, number of copies, and summary. The record must reflect the method, order, and person carrying out the destruction according to legal requirements. The record must be fully signed by all Council members.

- The destruction file must be stored, including the decision to establish the Council for Destruction; the list of documents and items containing state secrets proposed for destruction; the meeting record of the Council for Destruction; the decision on destruction, the destruction record, and other relevant documents.

(Article 13 of the Regulation issued with Circular 16/2023/TT-BKHDT)

More details can be found in Circular 25/2023/TT-NHNN, taking effect on February 28, 2024, replacing Circular 17/2019/TT-NHNN.

Ho Quoc Tuan

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