Decree No. 333 of 2015 Issuing the Implementing Regulations

 

Implementing Regulations of Law No. 23 of 2015 establishing the State Bureau for Financial Control

Having audited:

• The Constitution.
• Law No. 30 of 1964 establishing the State Bureau for Financial Control and its amendments.
• Decree-Law No. 31 of 1978 on the Rules for Preparing Public Budgets, Oversight Their Implementation, and the Final Accounts, and its amendments.
• Decree-Law No. 15 of 1979 on the Civil Service and its amendments.
• Decree-Law No. 116 of 1992 on Administrative Organization, Defining and Delegating Jurisdictions.
• Law No. 23 of 2015 establishing the State Bureau for Financial Control.
• The Decree issued on April 4, 1979, on the Civil Service System and its amendments.
• Based on the proposal of the Supreme Committee.
• Based on the presentation of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and after obtaining the approval of the Council of ministers.

We have decreed the following:

Article (1)

 

The provisions of the Implementing Regulations of Law No. 23 of 2015, referred to above, and whose texts are attached to this decree, shall be implemented.

Article (2)

The Ministers, each within his jurisdiction, shall apply this decree, which shall come into effect from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette

 

 

 

Deputy of Emir of Kuwait

Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

Prime Minister

Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Anas Khaled Al-Saleh

Issued at Seif Palace on: 11 Rabi' al-Awwal 1437 AH

Corresponding to: 22 December 2015 AD

 

Article (1)

For the purposes of these Regulations, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings assigned to them next to each:

• Minister: The Minister of Finance.
• Competent Minister: The relevant minister to whom the entity subject to oversight reports.
• Bureau: the State Bureau for Financial Control.
• Head of Bureau: The Head of the State Bureau for Financial Control
• Supreme Committee: The Supreme Committee of the Bureau.
• Financial Controllers: The technical staff working at the Bureau.
• Entities subject to oversight: Ministries, government departments, entities with attached and independent budgets, and entities that the Minister assigns the Bureau to oversee.
• Office: The Financial Controllers Office
• The Form: The financial transaction used in disbursement, supply, and recording operations. This meaning applies to any similar terms, even if the name differs in some of the entities subject to it.

 

 

Article (2)

The Supreme Committee is responsible for the following:

1. Establishing the organizational structure of the Bureau and amending it as required by the interests of the work.
2. Establishing the necessary financial and administrative regulations for the proper functioning of the Bureau and the achievement of its objectives, and amending them as required by the interests of the work.
3. Proposing a special staff structure for the Bureau's employees, specifying the job grades, the conditions for filling them, the order of career progression, promotion rules, salaries, allowances, incentives, and monetary and in-kind benefits, and amending it as required by the interests of the work.
4. Proposing amendments to the law and its implementing regulations.
5. Proposing and studying the subjection of any other entity or activity that it deems should be subject to the Bureau's oversight, and submitting it to the Minister.

The Supreme Committee shall establish its own work system.

Article (3)

The head of the Bureau shall manage and conduct its affairs and represent it in communication with relevant parties. The Head may take any decisions he/she deems necessary to achieve the purpose for which the Bureau was established, and in particular the following

1. Proposing the Bureau's budget
2. Determining the work location of financial controllers and transferring them in accordance with the terms and standards stipulated in these regulations.
3. Appointing the secretary of the Supreme Committee, whose duties and responsibilities shall be defined in accordance with the Supreme Committee's operating procedures
4. Forming the necessary committees and working groups for financial oversight, studies, fact-finding, or any other tasks and issues falling within the Bureau's purview, and submitting the results of the committees' and working groups' work to the Bureau's head.
5. Preparing a periodic report every six months on the Bureau's work and performance, to be submitted to the Minister, in accordance with the procedures of these regulations, or the controls issued by the Bureau's head in this regard.
6. Engaging experts, specialists, and consultants in fields related to the Bureau's work.
7. Receiving notification that the competent Minister or the head of the entity has not adopted the financial controller's opinion, in accordance with the procedures stipulated in these regulations and the decisions issued by the Bureau's head.
8. Issuing decisions to establish offices in the entities subject to oversight.
9. Assigning financial controllers to represent the State of Kuwait in financial oversight bodies and committees of Arab, regional, and international bodies, organizations, and institutions in which the State participates.

Article (4)

The Deputy Head of the Bureau shall replace the Head in his/her absence, and the Head of the Bureau may assign to him some of the powers stipulated in the Law and its Executive Regulations. When necessary, one of the heads of sectors may be assigned to perform the duties of the Deputy Head.

 

 

Article (5)

The Head of the Bureau shall form a technical office consisting of a sufficient number of Kuwaiti technical members working in the Bureau with no less than 15 years of experience, which shall be responsible for the following:

1. Verifying the commitment of the Bureau's employees to perform their duties stipulated in the Law and these Regulations
2. Conducting prior financial audits of the Bureau's operations, in accordance with the law and these regulations.
3. Studying matters referred to it by the head of the Bureau.

Article (6)

Without prejudice to the powers vested in the Audit Bureau in accordance with the provisions of Law No. (30) of 1964 referred to above, the powers of the Financial Controller shall be as follows:

 

1. Oversight the implementation of the budget, both revenue and expenditure, as well as assets and liabilities, in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, approved systems, and accounting standards, including the commitment system, and studying the objectives of uses and resources to verify the efficiency of financial performance.
2. Signing disbursement, entry, and supply forms, after auditing them with all supporting documents and ensuring the accuracy and integrity of the procedures and accounting guidelines, and their conformity with reality, financial laws and instructions, and the entity's regulations and bylaws, within five working days from the day following receipt of the form and the necessary supporting documents. For this purpose, they may audit all documents and files they deem important in the audit process
3. Signing the final accounts and financial statements for the past fiscal year prepared by entities subject to the oversight of the Bureau, and providing an opinion before their submission to the Ministry of Finance, in accordance with the procedures outlined in these regulations and the decisions of the Head of the Bureau regulating this matter.
4. Verifying that accounting and financial settlements are made in accordance with the financial regulations, approved systems, and instructions issued thereunder, particularly when closing the accounts for the fiscal year, while observing generally accepted accounting principles.
5. Auditing the issued internal control systems governing the work, assessing their efficiency and adequacy in ensuring control over financial operations, proposing appropriate remedies to address and rectify any shortcomings, and submitting the necessary recommendations to the competent authorities, in accordance with the procedures outlined in these regulations and the decisions issued by the head of the Bureau in this regard.
6. To provide an opinion on the draft budget of the entity under oversight before its submission to the Ministry of Finance.
7. To attend the bidding, practice, and tender committees formed by the entity to which he/she is assigned, to verify the procedures followed, the decisions taken, and their compliance with the regulations governing them, and to provide opinions and observations, provided that he/she does not participate in the award decision.
8. To audit all contracts and commitments within the limits of the amounts that require submission to the Central Tenders Committee and bidding contracts before their conclusion, and to verify that the contracts and commitments have obtained the necessary approvals and that their procedures are valid in accordance with the laws, regulations, and instructions. This also applies to the renewal, extension, or amendment of contracts that have a financial impact
9. Verifying the applying of penalty clauses against suppliers or contractors in case of their breach of contract terms, and approving the refund of penalties or fines to suppliers or contractors, after verifying the validity of the decision to refund the value of penalties or fines to contractors or suppliers based on supporting documents, and that the decision to cancel or reduce them was issued by the competent Bureau.
10. Auditing requests for the disbursement of personal cash advances, and authorizing their disbursement in light of the provisions of financial instructions.
11. Oversight the collection of revenues by the entity subject to its oversight and verifying that the collection and remittance of these revenues are carried out regularly and in accordance with financial laws and instructions.
12. Participating in and approving periodic and surprise inventory committees for cash on hand, financial and postal stamps, prepaid cards, and similar items.
13. Auditing accounting records and books to ensure the regularity of accounting entries.
14. Oversight the implementation of recommendations from various oversight bodies in the country and procedures for addressing their observations, in accordance with the role of the Bureau
15. Preparing periodic reports on the results of prior financial audit work in accordance with the procedures set out in these regulations, and the decisions issued by the head of the Bureau in that regard
16. Overseeing grants, subsidies, gifts, donations, awards, and support provided by individuals and local or foreign entities to ensure their compliance with laws and regulations and adherence to applicable rules and the terms stipulated in their agreements or contracts.
17. Participating with the entity under oversight in investigating incidents of theft, embezzlement, or fires, auditing the results of investigations, proposing necessary control systems to prevent such incidents, and submitting a report on these incidents and investigation results to the head of the Bureau. In the event of losses, the responsible party shall bear their cost. The head of the Bureau shall determine the mechanism and procedures for implementing this responsibility.
18. Verifying the validity of the procedures followed in inventorying and listing assets of all types and ensuring their proper disposal in accordance with laws and financial instructions.

Article (7)

The financial controller shall ensure that the creation of financial obligations or the imposition of a burden on the public treasury has been authorized by the competent Bureau. If such authorization is not available, the financial controller shall refrain from signing the form, stating the reasons for refusal in writing, in accordance with laws, decisions, and financial instructions, and after obtaining the required supporting documents.

Article (8)

The financial controller shall submit their opinion to the office director in writing, along with the reasons preventing them from signing the form. The director will then present this opinion to the competent Bureau. If the competent Bureau does not adopt the financial controller's opinion, the matter will be referred to the relevant minister or the head of the entity, including both opinions.

If the relevant minister or the head of the entity does not approve the financial controller's opinion, the opinion of the relevant minister or the head of the entity shall be implemented without any liability on the part of the financial controller. The head of the Bureau shall be notified according to the procedures they determine in this regard

Article (9)

The Director of the Office may request the entity subject to legal action regarding certain serious observations and violations, and provide the Office with the actions taken, after coordinating with the Head of the Sector to verify the validity of the procedure.

 

Article (10)

The Head of the Bureau shall issue an executive guide regulating the mechanism for exercising the powers of financial controllers and the related procedures.

 

Article (11)

The financial controllers’ entities in which they work shall be determined by a decision of the Head of the Bureau, according to the needs of the work in the offices.

Article (12)

The periodic transfer of financial controllers between offices shall be in accordance with the following principles and standards:

1. The minimum term of service for a financial controller in an office shall be two years, and the maximum shall be five years.
2. Transfers shall be made at the sector level unless the interest of the work requires otherwise.
3. The number of those transferred from an office shall not exceed half the number of financial controllers in that office.
4. A financial controller may not be assigned to work in the office of the entity where they worked before their appointment to the Bureau until five years have passed since they left that employment
5. The head of the Bureau may, in accordance with the interests of the work, decide on transfers in the manner and at the time required by those interests.

Article (13)

The office shall prepare semi-annual reports on the results of prior financial audits of the entities subject to it, in accordance with the powers stipulated in the law, these regulations, and the decisions and controls issued by the head of the Bureau in this regard.

The head of the Bureau may assign the offices to prepare other periodic reports if the interests of the work require that.

Article (14)

Financial auditors shall sign the final accounts and financial statements for the past fiscal year, which are prepared by the entities subject to it in accordance with the circulars issued by the Ministry of Finance in this regard.

The office shall express its opinion on the final accounts and financial statements through a report prepared by the office in accordance with the powers stipulated in the law, these regulations, and the decisions of the head of the Bureau regulating this matter, and in a manner that does not conflict with the powers of the Ministry of Finance.

Article (15)

The office shall submit its report on the final accounts to the Bureau in accordance with the procedures and mechanisms issued by the head of the Bureau in this regard

Article (16)

The periodic reports prepared by the offices shall be audited by the entity designated by the Head of the Bureau, in accordance with the competencies of the relevant administrative units within the Bureau. The Head of the Bureau shall address the entities subject to its oversight regarding these reports, requesting their response to any observations contained therein within one month of being notified.

Article (17)

The Head of the Bureau shall prepare a periodic report every six months on the Bureau's work and performance, to be submitted to the Minister for presentation to both the Council of ministers and the National Assembly.

Article (18)

The Head of the Bureau shall establish the rules and procedures governing the periodic reports.

Article (19)

The Head of the Bureau, his deputy, the heads of sectors and the financial controllers may not be appointed to the entities they previously oversaw before five years have elapsed from the date they left their positions therein.

Article (20)

Without prejudice to the provisions of the law, the Head of the Bureau shall issue the decisions, regulations, systems, and manuals that govern the job duties of the Bureau's employees, the rules of conduct, and the procedures for accountability and discipline

 

 

Article (21)

Entities subject to the oversight of the Bureau shall cooperate with the Bureau, its offices, and their representatives, in accordance with the provisions of this Law and its Implementing Regulations, and in particular in the following aspects:

1. Enabling financial controllers to exercise their powers stipulated in this Law and these Regulations, and removing all difficulties and obstacles to enable them to perform their duties and responsibilities optimally.
2. Submitting financial transactions and their supporting documents to the Office promptly and not delaying such transactions until the end of the fiscal year to avoid their accumulation and delay in completion or settlement.
3. Responding to the observations or correspondence of the Bureau and its offices, and not delaying the response without an acceptable excuse.
4. Responding to the observations contained in the Bureau's reports within a maximum of one month from the date of notification.
5. Providing the Offices with any regulatory decisions issued that affect the financial transactions of those entities immediately upon their issuance.

Article (22)

The entity subject to this shall provide all facilities, data and documents to the committees and working groups formed by the head of the Bureau for oversight, verification and study of tasks or issues related to oversight of those entities and their affiliated administrative units or entities inside and outside the country.

 

Article (23)

The entity subject to audit shall submit the draft budget to the office ten days prior to the meeting of the committee responsible for auditing the draft budget with representatives of the Ministry of Finance, for audit and feedback.

 

Article (24)

The entity subject to audit shall inform and invite the office director or their representative to participate with the entity in investigating incidents of theft, embezzlement, or fires, and shall promptly inform them of the results of the investigations and the procedures taken to hold those responsible accountable in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations.

Article (25)

Entities subject to audit shall not grant financial controllers any monetary or in-kind bonuses or benefits.

The approval of the oversight body is required in the event of granting any benefits that fall under the administrative services provided according to the approved systems for administrative levels equivalent to the offices.

Article (26)

Entities subject to audit shall configure their automated systems so that no amounts are approved, deducted, or recorded except after automated approval by the financial controllers

 

 

Article (27)

A committee called the "Committee for Financial Controllers' Affairs" shall be formed, responsible for their technical, administrative, and financial affairs. Its jurisdiction and powers shall be determined by a decision issued by the head of the Bureau.

Article (28)

Financial controllers shall be considered as department directors, and furnishing their offices and related administrative services shall be the responsibility of the entities to which they are attached. This shall not apply to employees of the Bureau's headquarters, whose offices shall be furnished and provided with related administrative services according to their assigned administrative level