General provisions on work-trip allowances for officials and public employees in Vietnam

General provisions on work-trip allowances for officials and public employees in Vietnam (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. General provisions on work-trip allowances for officials and public employees in Vietnam

Work-trip allowances for officials and public employees in Vietnam according to Article 3 of Circular 40/2017/TT-BTC are as follows:

- Work-trip allowances, which are expenses payable to persons on domestic work trips, include travel expense, stay allowance, rent for lodgings in work-trip destinations, luggage charge, and document-carrying charge (if any).

- Time for calculating work-trip allowances is the actual period of a work trip as determined in the written approval by the person who has the power to send official/ public employee on such work trip or the invitation for joining the work trip (including weakly days off, public holidays, and New Year’s Day according to the itinerary of the work trip, and travel time).

- Eligibility requirements for work-trip allowances:

+ They must fulfill their assigned tasks;

+ They are sent on work trips by heads of their agencies or units, or they are invited to join the work trips;

+ They sufficiently present required documents for payment as regulated herein.

- The following cases are ineligible for work- trip allowances:

+ Treatment or convalescence period spent at health care facilities or sanatoria;

+ Period of participation in long-term or short-term training courses during which trainees have enjoyed entitlements as regulated;

+ Period for doing private business during the work trip;

+ Time on resident or dispatched assignment in another locality or agency under a decision of a competent authority.

- Heads of agencies/ units shall consider sending their staff on work trips (regarding the number and work-trip duration) to ensure the efficient and economical use of funding.

- Agencies and units shall pay allowances to their staff that is sent on work trips, except the cases specified in Clause 4 of Article 3 of Circular 40/2017/TT-BTC.

- During work trips, if work requires extra time, officials and public employees may, in addition to stay allowances, enjoy nigh work pay and/ or extra-time pay in accordance with effective regulations of law.

Heads of agencies and units shall specify in their internal spending regulations procedures for certification of extra working time as a basis for payment and work trips eligible for extra-time pay, on the principle that payment may be made only in case such extra working time is required by a competent authority, not for cases in which officials, public employees or contractual employees on work trips concurrently settle their personal matters during days-off and not for travel time on ship, airplanes, cars and other means of transport.

- With respect of deputies to People's Councils at all levels and deputies who are invited by the Standing Committees of People's Councils at all levels to attend sessions of People's Councils or of committees of People's Councils, conduct supervisory activities or meeting with voters and go on work trips to perform other tasks:

The Standing Committee of People’s Council of which level that inviting such deputies shall be responsible for making payments for work-trip allowances to such deputies with budget from operating funds of the People’s Council of such level.

- Officials, public employees and contractual employees who are invited by procedure-conducting agencies as witnesses in cases involving their expertise may receive payments for travel expenses and other expenses from operating funds of these agencies.

2. Supporting documents for payment of work-trip allowances in Vietnam

Supporting documents for payment of work-trip allowances according to Article 10 of Circular 40/2017/TT-BTC as follows:

- Travel warrant of person on work trip, certified by the receiving agency (or by hotel or guesthouse).

- A document or work plan approved by the head of an agency or unit; official letters or letters of invitation; official letters requisitioning officials, public employees and contractual employees to join the work-trip destination.

- Ticketing invoices or receipts as regulated by law when going on work trip by means of transport, or receipts of vehicle owners.

Particularly for documents for payment of airfares, boarding cards are required in addition to ticket counterfoils (or electronic tickets) under effective regulations of law.

In case of loss of boarding cards, certification by sending agency or unit is required (in case payment is made based on actual travel expenses).

- Table listing travel distances, which shall be submitted to heads of agencies or units for payment approval (in case payment is made based on actual travel expenses).

- Lawful invoices or receipts of lodging rents (in case payment is made based on actual lodging rents).

- Particularly for payment of fixed travel allowance for work trips as regulated in Point a Clause 2 Article 5 of Circular 40/2017/TT-BTC, documents mentioned in Clauses 2 and 4 of Article 10 of Circular 40/2017/TT-BTC are required.

>> CLICK HERE TO READ THIS ARTICLE IN VIETNAMESE