Công văn 553/BHXH-QLT

To: Employing units in Ho Chi Minh city

Pursuant to the Prime Minister’s Directive No. 11/CT-TTg dated March 4, 2020 on urgent missions and solutions to addressing production and business difficulties, ensuring social security in response to the Covid-19 epidemic; the Official Dispatch No. 797/LDTBXH-BHXH dated March 9, 2020 of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, guiding the temporary suspension of contributions to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund for enterprises facing difficulties caused by the Covid-19 epidemic; the Official Dispatch No. 860/BHXH-BT dated March 17, 2020 of Vietnam Social Security (VSS) on temporary suspension of payment to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund for Covid-19-stricken persons.

In order to alleviate production and business difficulties, ensure social security in response to the Covid-19 epidemic, Ho Chi Minh city’s Social Security provides provisional instructions for agencies, units, organizations and enterprises (collectively referred to as enterprises) about temporary suspension of contribution to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund for those affected by the Covid-19 epidemic, as follows:

1. Beneficiaries:

- Businesses providing such services as passenger transportation, tourism, textile, accommodation, restaurant and other special industries that are in a difficult situation due to the Covid-19 epidemic will be granted temporary suspension of contribution to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund.

- Businesses entitled to the temporary suspension of contribution to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund (the rate of contribution is 22%) if they fall into the following circumstances:

+ They are temporarily unable to provide work for their social security-protected employees that account for at least 50% of total number of employees working for them before the date of commencement of temporary suspension of their production and business activities;    

+ It is established that they incur a loss of 50% of their gross value of assets (except land) due to this epidemic.

2. Validity term:

Qualified enterprises shall have access to the temporary suspension of contributions to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund until end of June this year. However, if the Covid-19 outbreak does not recede and these enterprises make their requests, the Ho Chi Minh city’s Social Security will allow them an extension of the temporary suspension of contribution to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund till December this year.

3. Application procedures and documentation requirements:

- Enterprises may contact Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs authorities to confirm the number of social security-protected employees temporarily laid off in comparison to the total number of employees present before the temporary suspension of production and business activities takes place, or contact finance authorities to confirm losses compared to the value of assets specified in the latest property inventory reports made before the time of incurrence of such losses in accordance with Clause 1 of Article 88 in the 2014 Law on Social Security, and Clause 1, 2, 3 and 4 of Article 16 in the Government's Decree No. 115/2015/ND-CP dated November 11, 2015 and Article 28 of Circular No. 59/2015/TT-BLDTBXH dated December 29, 2015 of the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

- Enterprises submit application documentation to social security authorities by using the sample delivery note No. 600a, enclosing the written endorsement of fulfillment of requirements for temporary suspension of contribution to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund by the competent authority to seek their decision.

4. During the period of such temporary suspension, enterprises need to make contribution making up 10% of total payroll to the sick and pregnancy fund, the occupational accident and disease fund, the health insurance fund and the unemployment fund.

In case of an employee’s resignation, labor transfer or request for settlement of his/her social security claims, an enterprise must fully pay contributions to the social insurance, health insurance, unemployment, occupational accident and disease funds or late payment interest (if any) for that employee in order to confirm their discharge of all contribution obligations in his/her social insurance book.  

5. After the term of temporary suspension expires, enterprises shall continue to make contributions to the social insurance, health insurance, unemployment, occupational accident and disease funds according to their registered approaches, and make compensatory contributions to the Pension and Death Benefit Fund with respect to contributions pending during this term. Compensatory contributions shall be exempted from late payment interest.

In order to assure rights and interest of employees, enterprises operating in Ho Chi Minh city are required to follow the aforesaid instructions. In the course of implementation of this document, any feedbacks should be sent to social security authorities to seek their decisions./.