Chương I Luật Kiểm toán nhà nước 2015: Những quy định chung

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope

This Law deals with functions, tasks, and entitlements, organizational structure, and operation of State Audit Office of Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as SAV); duties and entitlements of occupational standards; duties and entitlements of state auditors, entitlements and responsibilities of organizations and individuals related to state audit activities.

Article 2. Regulated entities

1. SAV.

2. Agencies and organizations assigned to manage and/or use public finance and/or public property.

3. Other organizations and individuals related to state audit activities.

Article 3. Interpretation of terms

In this Law, the terms below are construed as follows:

1. Audit report of SAV means the document made and published by SAV after each audit for assessing, confirming, concluding the audit contents, and giving auditors’ opinions. Audit reports of SAV are made by State Auditor General or the persons authorized by State Auditor General to append signatures and seals on the reports.

2. Audit evidence means the documents and information collected by state auditors that are related to the audit and are the basis for making assessment, confirmation, and giving auditor’s opinions.

3. Audited unit means an agency or organization assigned to manage and/or use public finance and/or public property.

4. Audit dossier includes documents collected, classified, used, made, retained, and managed by SAV as prescribed.

5. Audit activities of SAV involve assessment and determination of properness and truthfulness of information about public finance and/or public property or financial statements related to the management and use of public finance and/or public property; adherence to law and efficiency of management, use of public finance and/or public property.

6. Specialized state audit unit means a unit affiliated to SAV which audit central agencies and perform other tasks given by State Auditor General.

7. Local state audit unit means a unit affiliated to SAV which audit local agencies and perform other tasks given by State Auditor General.

8. State auditors are officials assigned to various positions of state auditors to carry out audit.

9. Positions of state auditors are the positions that reflect the capability and qualifications of state auditor, including: auditors, main auditors, and senior auditors.

10. Public finance includes: state budget; national reserve; non-state budget financial fund; finance of regulatory agency, the people’s armed forces, public service agencies, providers of public services and goods, political organizations, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations using state funding and state budget; state capital in other enterprises; public debts.

11. Public property includes: land; water resources, mineral resources; resources in territorial waters and airspace; other natural resources; state-owned property at regulatory agencies, the army, public service agencies, political organizations, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations,  social organizations, socio-professional organizations; public property allocated to enterprises; state property for reserve; property classified as infrastructure serving public interests, and other types of property under the ownership of the whole people and represented, managed by the State.

Article 4. Subjects of state audit

The subjects of state audit include management, use of public finance and/or public property, and other activities related to management, use of public finance and/or public property of audited units.

Article 5. Rules for audit activities of SAV

1. Independence and observance of law.

2. Truthfulness, objectiveness, openness, and transparency.

Article 6. State audit standards

1. State audit standards are regulations and instructions about requirements, principles, procedures for audit and settlement of relationships that occur during audit activities that must be complied with by state auditors during audit activities; they are the basis for inspection, assessment of audit quality and professional ethics of state auditors.

2. State Auditor General shall establish and promulgate the system of state audit standards in accordance with the Law on Promulgation of legislative documents.

Article 7. Legal validity of audit reports

1. Audit reports made by SAV are binding upon audited units after they are published in terms of management and use of public finance and/or public property.

2. Audit reports of SAV are the basis for:

a) The National Assembly to use during the process of considering, deciding, and supervising: the implementation of long-term and annual socio-economic development policies and objectives; policies on investment in National target programs and projects of national importance; basic policies on national finance; imposition, adjustment, or cancellation of taxes; decision on dividing revenues and obligatory expenditures between central government budget and local government budgets; limits on safety limits of national debt, public debts, government debts; making of state budget estimate and allocation of central government budget; approval for state budget statements;

b) The Government, regulatory agencies, other agencies and organizations of the State to use during their managerial tasks and performance of their duties and entitlements;

c) The People’s Councils to use during the process of considering, deciding estimates and allocation of local government budgets; approving local government budget statements; supervising the management and use of public finance and/or public property; performance of their duties and entitlements;

d) Audited units to exercise their right to lodge complaints.

Article 8. Prohibited acts

1. The following acts of SAV, state auditors, and collaborators:

a) Harassing, causing difficulties to audited units;

b) Illegally intervening normal operation of audited units;

c) Giving bribes, taking bribes, and/or brokering bribery;

d) Making false or insufficient audit reports;

dd) Misuse of power and/or position for self-seeking purposes;

e) Revealing state secrets or trade secrets of audited units;

g) Revealing information about the audit progress and result that are not officially published.

2. The following acts of audited units and relevant entities are prohibited:

a) Refusing to provide information, documents serving the audit at the request of SAV and state auditors;

b) Obstructing the work of SAV and state auditors;

c) Making false, untruthful, insufficient, unpunctual reports, or failure to provide objective information about the audit carried out by SAV;

b) Giving bribes to state auditors and collaborators;

dd) Shielding violations against regulations of law on public finance and/or public property.

3. Every organization and individual is prohibited to illegally intervene the audit and audit result of SAV, state auditors, and collaborators.