THE GOVERNMENT

DECREES:

Article 1.- Scope of application

This Decree prescribes the quantity of the commune, ward and district township officials and public employees (hereinafter referred collectively to as the commune-level officials and public employees); the regimes and policies towards the commune-level full-time officials and public employees, regimes towards the commune-level part-time officials and officials of hamlets and villages as well as ward and district township population groups (hereinafter referred collectively to as hamlets and population groups).

Article 2.- Subjects of regulation

This Decree applies to the following subjects:

1. The commune-level full-time officials, including:

a/ The commune-level Party Committee secretaries, deputy-secretaries and standing members (for localities where there are no full-time deputy-secretaries in charge of Party work) as well as commune Party cell secretaries and deputy-secretaries (for localities where the commune-level Party Committees have not yet been set up);

b/ Chairmen and vice-chairmen of the People's Councils;

c/ Presidents and vice-presidents of the People's Committees;

d/ Presidents of Fatherland Front Committees;

e/ Secretaries of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Unions, presidents of Women's Unions, presidents of Peasants' Associations, and presidents of War Veterans' Associations.

2. The commune-level public employees, including:

a/ Police chiefs (for localities where the regular public-security forces have not yet been arranged);

b/ Military commanders;

c/ Officials of the Office-Statistics Bureaus;

d/ Officials of the Cadastral-Construction Bureaus;

e/ Officials of the Finance-Accounting Bureaus;

f/ Officials of the Justice-Civil Status Bureaus;

g/ Officials of the Bureaus for Culture and Social Affairs.

3. The commune-level part-time officials, including:

a/ Chiefs of the Party's Boards for Organization, directors of the Party's Boards for Inspection, chiefs of the Party's Boards for Ideological Propagation and Education, and 01 official of the Party Committee Office;

b/ Police deputy chiefs (for localities where the regular public-security forces have not yet been arranged);

c/ Military deputy commanders;

d/ Officials of the Planning, Communications, Irrigation, Agriculture, Forestry, Fishery, Salt-Making Bureaus;

e/ Officials of the Bureaus of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs;

f/ Officials of the Boards for Population, Family and Children;

g/ Cashiers, paperwork personnel, archivists;

h/ Officials in charge of the public-address stations;

i/ Cultural house managers;

j/ Vice-presidents of the Fatherland Front Committees; deputy-chiefs of the commune-level mass organizations: Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Unions, Women's Unions, Peasants' Associations and War Veterans' Associations;

k/ Presidents of the Elderly Associations; presidents of Vietnam Red Cross societies.

4. The hamlet and population group part-time officials, including: secretaries of the hamlet Party cells; hamlet chiefs; hamlet security personnel as well as ward and district township Party cell secretaries and population group chiefs.

Article 3.- The quantity of the commune-level full-time officials and public employees

The number of the commune-level full-time officials and public employees prescribed in Clauses 1 and 2, Article 2 of this Decree is stipulated as follows:

1. For delta communes as well as wards and district townships:

- With less than 10,000 inhabitants, no more than 19 officials and public employees;

- With 10,000 inhabitants or more, 01 official or public employee shall be additionally arranged for an addition of 3,000 inhabitants, but the number of officials and public employees shall not exceed 25.

2. For mountainous, highland, deep-lying, remote or island communes:

- With less than 1,000 inhabitants, no more than 17 officials and public employees;

- With between 1,000 and under 5,000 inhabitants, no more than 19 officials and public employees;

- With 5,000 inhabitants or more, 01 official or public employee shall be additionally arranged for an addition of 1,500 inhabitants, but the number of officials and public employees shall not exceed 25.

3. The additional arrangement of the commune-level officials and public employees in each commune according to population increaseshall be decided by the presidents of the provincial-level People's Committees under the guidance of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Article 4.- Salary regimes for the commune-level full-time officials and public employees

1. The commune-level full-time officials prescribed in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree shall enjoy the salary regimes as follows:

a/ For secretaries of the commune-level Party Committees or Party cells (for localities where the communal Party Committees have not yet been set up): Co-efficient of 2.0 of the minimum salary shall apply;

b/ For deputy-secretaries of the commune-level Party Committees or Party cells (for localities where the communal Party Committees have not yet been set up), chairmen of the People's Councils and presidents of the People's Committees: Co-efficient of 1.9 of the minimum salary shall apply;

c/ For vice-chairmen of the People's Councils, vice-presidents of the People's Committees and Party Committee standing members (for localities where there are no full-time deputy-secretaries in charge of Party work), and presidents of Fatherland Front committees: Co-efficient of 1.8 of the minimum salary shall apply;

d/ For secretaries of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Unions, presidents of Women's Unions, presidents of Peasants' Associations, and presidents of War Veterans' Associations: Co-efficient of 1.7 of the minimum salary shall apply;

e/ If the persons holding the above-said positions are re-elected, they shall enjoy an additional monthly allowances equal to 5% of the salary levels applicable to their positions as from the second term (as from the 61th month);

f/ In cases where the commune-level public employees are elected to hold positions as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree, if their salaries paid according to the elected positions are lower than those of the professional titles they are enjoying, they shall be entitled to enjoy salaries applicable to such positions and have their co-efficient of difference between professional salary level and position-salary level reserved.

2. The commune-level public employees prescribed in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Decree shall enjoy the salary regimes as follows:

a/ The commune-level public employees who have university or higher degrees compatible with the professions of their titles shall enjoy salaries under the table of administrative salaries, specialist's rank; who have the immediate-vocational training degrees compatible with the professions of their titles shall enjoy salaries according to junior-staff member's rank; who have elementary-vocational training degree compatible with the professions of their titles shall enjoy salaries according to paperwork personnel's rank. They shall have their salaries raised according to the seniority as for officials and public employees of equivalent ranks at the district or higher level;

b/ The commune-level public employee probationers shall enjoy 85% of salaries of equivalent public-employee's ranks; the duration for enjoying probation salaries shall comply with the State's current regulations;

c/ The incumbent commune-level public employees who have not yet graduated from any professional training courses as prescribed shall enjoy the salary co-efficient of 1.09 of the minimum salary;

d/ Particularly for the police chiefs and military commanders, who enjoy salaries according to their titles, if their salaries are lower than the cost-of-living allowance levels they are enjoying, the difference thereof shall be reserved to be equal to the cost-of-living allowance levels they are enjoying till the end of 2005, then they shall enjoy salaries according to their titles.

Article 5.- Social insurance and medical insurance regimes

1. The commune-level full-time officials and public employees shall be entitled to social insurance regime under the Social Insurance Regulation promulgated together with the Government's Decree No. 12/CP of January 26, 1995 and Decree No. 01/2003/ND-CP of January 9, 2003 amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Social Insurance Regulation promulgated together with the Government's Decree No. 12/CP of January 26, 1995, and medical insurance regime under the Medical Insurance Regulation promulgated together with the Government's Decree No. 58/1998/ND-CP of August 13, 1998; when they reach the retirement ages as prescribed by the Labor Code, if having paid social insurance premiums for full 15 years or more, they shall be entitled to pension regime.

2. The commune-level full-time officials, when retiring from their posts and having paid social insurance premiums for full 10 years or more but lacking 5 years at most to reach the retirement ages who have not yet received social insurance lump-sum allowances and voluntarily continue to pay 15% of the monthly social insurance premiums according to the salary grades they enjoy before they retire from their posts to the social insurance bodies in the localities where they reside until they complete the duration of paying social insurance premiums and reach the retirement age, shall be entitled to pension regime.

Article 6.- Regimes applicable to the commune-level full-time officials and public employees being those who are enjoying pension regime or working capacity loss allowance

The commune-level full-time officials and public employees being those who are enjoying pension regime or working-capacity loss allowance shall enjoy 40% of the title salaries according to the provisions in Clause 1, Article 4 of this Decree as from January 1, 2005 and not have to pay the social insurance or medical insurance premiums.

Article 7.- Allowance regimes for the commune-level, village or population-group part-time officials

The commune-level, village or population-group part-time officials shall enjoy monthly allowances.

Basing themselves on the practical situation in their respective localities, the provincial-level People's Committees shall decide on the specific number of part-time officials for each commune, ward or district township and specific level of allowance for each title of part-time officials.

Article 8.- Training and fostering

The commune-level full-time officials and public employees as well as commune, hamlet or population group part-time officials, who are sent for training or fostering, shall enjoy regimes like for the superior-level officials and public employees sent for training or fostering. The commune-level full-time officials and public employees as well as commune or hamlet part-time officials in highland, deep-lying, remote, border or island communes shall be allocated funding to cover all expenses for their study, meals, accommodations and travel.

Article 9.- Funding sources for implementation of regimes and policies

Funding sources for implementation of regimes for the subjects prescribed in this Decree shall comply with the provisions of the State Budget Law and the current documents guiding the State Budget Law.

Article 10.- Implementation effect

This Decree takes effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette.

This Decree replaces the Government's Decree No. 50/CP of July 26, 1995 on the regime of cost-of-living allowances for the commune, ward or district township officials and Decree No. 09/1998/ND-CP of January 23, 1998 amending Decree No. 50/CP of July 26, 1995.

To annul the regimes for the commune, ward or district township officials prescribed in Article 12 of the Government's Decree No. 40/1999/ND-CP of June 23, 1999 on the commune security chiefs; Item 3, Clause 1 and Item 1, Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 46/2000/ND-CP of September 12, 2000 amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree No. 35/CP of June 14, 1996 detailing the implementation of the Ordinance on Militia and Self-Defense Force.

Article 11.- Implementation responsibilities

The Ministry of Home Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs as well as the concerned ministries and branches in guiding the implementation of this Decree.

Article 12.- The ministers, the heads of the ministerial-level agencies, the heads of the agencies attached to the Government and the presidents of the People's Committees of the provinces and centrally-run cities shall have to implement this Decree.

On behalf of the Government
For the Prime Minister
Deputy Prime Minister
NGUYEN TAN DUNG