Who are public servants and civil servants in VietNam?: Here's all the facts about them - Ai là công chức, ai là viên chức

As there are quite a lot of people confused about the distinction between public servants and civil servants, today I would like to make a list of existing regulations on them.

* PUBLIC SERVANT is  a Vietnamese citizen who is recruited and appointed to a rank, post or title, included in the payroll and salaried from the state budget or the salary fund of a public non-business unit under law, and work in agencies, organizations and units specified in the Decree No.06/2010/ND-CP. Specific regulations shall be as follows:

Public servants  in agencies of the Communist Party of Vietnam	At the central level	- Holders of posts and titles of deputy, assistant and secretary of heads, and persons working in the offices, agencies and departments, and standing agencies in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang city, of the Office of the Party Central Committee, Central Party Committee's Inspection Commission and other Commissions at the central level; - Holders of posts and titles of head and deputy head, and persons working in the offices, inspection commissions and other commissions of sectoral party committees, and the Party Committee for Civil Affairs in Foreign Countries under the Party Central Committee; - Persons working in the assisting apparatuses of agencies and organizations established under decisions of the Political Bureau or Party Secretariat, and agencies established under decisions of the Party Central Committee.
	At the level of provinces and centrally run cities (below collectively referred to as provincial level)	-  Holders of posts and titles of head and deputy head, and persons working in the offices, inspection commissions and other commissions of provincial-level or municipal-level party committees; -  Holders of posts and titles of head and deputy head, and persons working in the offices, inspection commissions and other commissions of sectoral party committees under provincial-level party committees; -  Persons working on a full-time basis in the offices, organization, propaganda and inspection commissions of grassroots party committees which are vested superior powers, under provincial-level party committees.
	At the level of urban districts, rural districts, towns and provincial cities (below collectively referred to as district level)	Holders of posts and titles of head and deputy head, and persons working in the offices, inspection commissions and other commissions of district-level or municipal-level party committees.
Public servants in the State President Office, the National Assembly Office and the State Audit of Vietnam		- Vice Chairman of the State President Office, - Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Office, - Deputy General Auditor of the State; - Holders of head and deputy posts and persons working in organizations other than public non-business units.
Public servants in ministries, ministerial-level agencies and other organizations established by the Government or the Prime Minister		- Deputy Ministers and holders of equivalent posts and titles; holders of head and deputy posts and persons working in the offices, departments, inspectorates and organizations other than public non-business units under ministries and ministerial-level agencies. - General Directors of General Departments or Directorates and holders of equivalent posts, Deputy General Directors of General Departments or Directorates and holders of equivalent posts, holders of head and deputy posts of and persons working in the offices, departments and inspectorates under General Departments or Directorates and equivalent. - General Directors, Deputy General Directors of Departments, Authorities or Agencies, holders of head and deputy posts, and persons working in the offices, divisions, inspectorates and sub-departments under Departments, Authorities or Agencies. - Heads and deputy heads of and persons working in organizations established by the Government or the Prime Minister other than public non-business units.
;  Public servants in provincial- and district-level administrative agencies	At the provincial level	-  Office Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs, holders of head and deputy posts, and persons working within the organizational structure of the Offices of National Assembly deputy delegations. People's Councils and People's Committees; -  Heads and deputy heads of specialized agencies under People's Committees; holders of head and deputy posts of and persons working in organizations other than public non-business units within the organizational structure of specialized agencies of People's Committees; -  Chairmen and Vice Chairmen of, holders of head and deputy posts and persons working in organizations other than public non-business units under, Management Boards of industrial parks, export-processing zones and economic zones under People's Committees.
	At the district level	- Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs of and persons working in the Offices of People's Councils and People's Committees; - Chairpersons and Vice Chairpersons of district-level People's Committees, Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs of and persons working in the Offices of district-level People's Committees of localities which pilot non-organization of People's Councils; - Holders of head and deputy posts and persons working in specialized agencies under People's Committees.
Public servants in the people's court system		- Vice Chief Justices of the Supreme People's Court; Chief Justices and Vice Chief Justices of courts and specialized tribunals; Judges of the Supreme People's Court; court secretaries; persons working in the offices, departments, divisions and courts and specialized tribunals under the Supreme People's Court; - Chief Justices and Vice Chief Justices of provincial-level People's Courts; Chief Justices and Vice Chief Justices of specialized tribunals; Judges of provincial-level People's Courts; court secretaries; persons working in the offices, divisions, departments and specialized tribunals under provincial-level People's Courts; - Chief Justices and Vice Chief Justices of district-level People's Courts; Judges of district-level People's Courts; court secretaries; persons working in district-level People's Courts.
Public servants in the People's Procuracy system		- Vice Prosecutor General of the Supreme People's Procuracy; prosecutors, investigators; persons working in the offices, departments, agencies, divisions and professional institutes of the Supreme People's Procuracy; - Prosecutor Generals, Vice Prosecutor Generals of the Supreme People's Procuracy; prosecutors, investigators; persons working in the offices, departments, agencies, divisions and professional institutes of the Supreme People's Procuracy; - Prosecutors Generals and Vice Prosecutor Generals of district-level People's Procuracies; prosecutors, investigators and persons working in district-level People's Procuracies.
Public servants in agencies of socio­political organizations (except those entitled to monthly retirement pensions and social insurance benefits under the Law on Social Insurance.)	At the central level	- Office chiefs and deputy chiefs, Department Directors and Deputy Directors and persons working in the offices and departments of the central Vietnam Fatherland Front, Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, Vietnam Farmers Association, Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union; Vietnam Women's Union and War Veterans Association (below referred to as socio­political organizations); - Persons working in the assisting apparatuses of committees under socio-political organizations.
	At the provincial level	Office Chiefs and Deputy Chiefs, Department Directors and Deputy Directors and persons working in the offices and departments within the organizational structure of socio-political organizations and equivalent organizations.
	At the district level	Persons working in the agencies of socio­political organizations and equivalent organizations.
Civil servants in agencies and units of the People's Army and the People's Public Security of Vietnam		Persons working in agencies and units under the People's Army other than officers, career soldiers and defense workers; and in agencies and units under the People's Police other than officers and career non-commissioned officers.
Public servants in the leading and managerial apparatuses of public non-business units		- Heads and deputy heads; holders of head and deputy posts of organizations of public non-­business units under the Political Bureau, the Party Secretariat, the National Assembly Standing Committee and the Government - Heads and deputy heads of state budget-funded public non-business units under commissions and equivalent agencies of the Party Central Committee, the State President Office, the National Assembly Office, the State Audit of Vietnam, the Supreme People's Procuracy, the Supreme People's Court, central agencies of socio-political organizations, ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies and the Prime Minister. - Heads of state budget-funded public non-­business units under general departments or directorates, departments, authorities or agencies and equivalent under ministries and ministerial-level agencies; provincial-level party committees; provincial-level People's Committees; provincial-level socio-political organizations; district-level party committees; specialized agencies under provincial- and district-level People's Committees. - Holders of posts associated with state management tasks in public non-business units assigned to perform state management tasks.
Specific titles
Civil enforcement public servants		- Senior-ranking civil enforcement officers - Middle-ranking civil enforcement officers - Junior-ranking civil enforcement officers - Senior-ranking examiners - Principal examiners - Examiners - Law enforcement secretaries - Middle-ranking law enforcement secretaries
Communal-level public servants		- Chiefs of Police; - Military commanders; - Desk – statistics officers; - Cadastral – construction – urban and environment officers (at the ward or town level) or cadastral – agriculture – construction and environment officers (at the communal level); - Finance – accounting officers; - Judicial and civil status officers; - Culture – society officers.
Administrative officers		- Senior-ranking officers - Principal officers - Officers - Executives - Staff members
Archives officers		- Principal archives officers - Archives officers - Middle-ranking archives officers

* Civil servant is a Vietnamese citizen recruited according to working positions, working in a public non-business unit under working contracts and salaried from a salary fund of a public non-business unit in accordance with law.

Public non-business units are organizations established and managed by competent authorities of the Party, state regulatory entities and socio-political organizations under law, having legal personality, stamp and account, operating in education, training, healthcare, scientific research, culture, physical activity and sports, tourism, labor – war invalids and social affair, information and communication, and other public service sectors prescribed by law.

Legal bases:

- 2008 Law on Public Servants and CivilServants;

- Law on Civil Servants;

- Decree No. 06/2010/ND-CP prescribing persons who are public servants;

- Circular No. 08/2011/TT-BNV regarding instructions for implementation of Decree No. 06/2010/ND-CP prescribing persons who are public servants;

Decree No. 92/2009/ND-CP regarding titles, quantities, regimes and policies for public servants and civil servants at communes, wards, towns and persons working part time at the communal level;

Circular No. 03/2017/TT-BTP prescribing titles, codes of tiers and professional standards for tiers of civil servants specializing in civil law enforcement; 

Circular No. 11/2014/TT-BTP prescribing titles, codes of tiers and professional standards for tiers of civil servants specializing in civil law enforcement; 

>>> Reading in Vietnamese: Ai là công chức, ai là viên chức: Tất tần tật tại đây