Lost High School Diploma: Is Reissuance Possible? If Not, What Document Can Serve as a Replacement?
If a high school diploma is lost, can it be reissued?
Based on Article 2 of the Regulation on the management of secondary school diplomas and high school diplomas issued with Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT stipulating the principles of management, issuance of diplomas and certificates as follows:
Principles of management, issuance of diplomas and certificates
1. Diplomas and certificates are uniformly managed, decentralized for management by the education and training departments, granting autonomy and self-responsibility to teacher training institutions, higher education institutions as stipulated in Article 3 of this Regulation.
2. Diplomas and certificates are only issued once, except for the cases stipulated in Article 18 of this Regulation.
3. Any act of fraud in the issuance and use of diplomas and certificates is strictly prohibited.
4. Ensure transparency and openness in the issuance of diplomas and certificates.
Referencing Article 18 of the Regulation on the management of secondary school diplomas and high school diplomas, issued with Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT, stipulating the reissuance of diplomas and certificates as follows:
Reissuance of diplomas and certificates
1. In the case where a diploma or certificate has been issued but is found to be mistakenly written due to the fault of the competent issuing authority, the issuing authority shall be responsible for reissuing the original diploma or certificate.
2. The head of the competent authority to issue diplomas and certificates as stipulated in Article 15 of this Regulation has the authority to reissue diplomas and certificates.
3. Procedures for reissuance of diplomas and certificates are as follows:
a) The individual requesting the reissuance of a diploma or certificate shall submit directly or by post to the competent authority a dossier including: a request form for reissuance of the diploma or certificate; the diploma or certificate to be reissued; documents proving that the competent authority has written the diploma or certificate incorrectly;
b) Within 5 working days from the date of receipt of a complete and valid dossier, the competent authority shall review and decide on the reissuance of the diploma or certificate; if not reissued, they must respond in writing stating the reasons;
c) In cases where the diploma or certificate template has changed at the time of issuance, the competent authority shall use the current diploma or certificate template to reissue to the individual.
According to the above regulations, high school diplomas and certificates are issued only once, except for cases of being reissued due to mistakes by the competent issuing authority.
Thus, if a high school diploma is lost, the original cannot be reissued, only copies of the diploma can be used.
Losing a high school diploma—can it be reissued? If not, what can be used as a replacement?
What documents are required for requesting a copy of a high school diploma?
Based on Clause 1, Article 31 of Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT regulating the dossier for requesting a copy of a high school diploma as follows:
Procedures for issuing copies of diplomas and certificates from the original register
1. The dossier for requesting a copy of a diploma or certificate from the original register includes:
a) A request form for the issuance of a copy of the diploma or certificate, providing information about the diploma or certificate that has been issued;
b) The original or certified true copy of the identity card, citizen identity card, or valid passport for verification;
c) In the case of a person authorized to request a copy of the diploma or certificate from the original register is stipulated in Clause 2, Clause 3, Article 30 of this Regulation, a power of attorney (for the authorized person) or documents proving the relationship with the person issued the original diploma or certificate must be presented;
d) In the case of a person requesting a copy of the diploma or certificate from the original register sent by post, a certified true copy of the documents stipulated in point a, b, c of this clause must be included along with one stamped envelope, clearly stating the name and address of the recipient to the competent authority issuing the copy of the diploma or certificate from the original register.
Therefore, the dossier for requesting a copy of a high school diploma from the original register includes:
(1) A request form for the issuance of a copy of the diploma or certificate, providing information about the diploma or certificate that has been issued;
(2) The original or certified true copy of the identity card, citizen identity card, or valid passport for verification;
(3) Power of attorney (for the authorized person) or documents proving the relationship with the person issued the original diploma or certificate (if not the person issued the original diploma);
(4) If the request for a copy of the diploma or certificate from the original register is sent by post, a certified true copy of the documents stipulated in points a, b, c of this clause must be included along with one stamped envelope, clearly stating the name and address of the recipient to the competent authority issuing the copy of the diploma or certificate from the original register.
What is the procedure for issuing a copy of the high school diploma?
The procedure for issuing copies of diplomas and certificates from the original register is stipulated in Clause 2, Article 31 of the Regulation on the management of secondary school diplomas and high school diplomas issued with Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT as follows:
Step 1: Submit the dossier
The individual requesting a copy of the diploma or certificate shall submit directly or by post one dossier to the competent authority issuing copies of diplomas and certificates from the original register;
Step 2: Receive results
If the dossier is sufficient, the request for the issuance of a copy of the high school diploma shall be fulfilled:
On the day the request is received or the next working day if the request is received after 3 PM, the competent authority issuing copies of diplomas and certificates from the original register shall issue the copy to the requester.
If the request for a copy from the original register is sent by post, the timeframe starts from when the competent authority receives the complete and valid dossier according to the postmark;
Time extension for issuing high school diplomas:
For cases where multiple copies from original registers are requested simultaneously, or large quantities of copies are required, and the content of the diploma or certificate is complex and difficult to verify, if the competent authority cannot fulfill the request within the timeframe specified in Step 2, the issuance time shall:
- Be extended by no more than 2 working days or
- Be longer as agreed upon in writing with the requester.
If the original register is not available or the original register does not contain the information required or the copy is not issued to the requester:
The receiving authority is responsible for responding in writing to the requester, providing reasons within the timeframe specified in point b, clause 2, Article 31 of the Regulation on the management of secondary school diplomas and high school diplomas issued with Circular 21/2019/TT-BGDDT
Note:
The competent authority issuing copies of diplomas and certificates shall base on the original register to issue a copy to the requester; the content of the copy must be consistent with the content recorded in the original register.
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