Order of Procedures for Registering Marriages Involving Foreign Elements at the District-Level People's Committees Effective from April 10, 2023
Procedure for Registering Marriages with Foreign Elements at the District People's Committee Applicable from April 10, 2023
Based on Sub-section 2, Section A, Part II of administrative procedures issued together with Decision 528/QD-BTP in 2023 as follows:
- The person requesting marriage registration submits the marriage registration dossier at the One-Stop Section/Public Administration Center of the competent District People's Committee and pays the fee if applicable.
- The officer receiving the dossier at the One-Stop Section is responsible for checking the accuracy, completeness, consistency, and legality of the dossier.
(i) If the dossier is complete and legal, it will be accepted, a Receipt Slip with a date for result return will be given to the requester, and the dossier will be transferred to the official handling civil status affairs.
After receiving the dossier in person, the receiving officer at the One-Stop Section digitizes (copy, convert into an electronic document in the information system, database) and digitally signs the document, handling the administrative procedure in accordance with regulations.
(ii) If the dossier is incomplete or not valid, the requester will be notified to supplement and complete the dossier, stating the type of documents and content that needs to be added. After the dossier is completed, step (i) will be repeated;
(iii) If the requester does not supplement and complete the dossier, the Head of the One-Stop Section will be notified to issue a notice refusing to process the marriage registration request.
- The civil status officer verifies the dossier (checks the consistency and legality of the information in the dossier, papers, documents submitted or presented by the requester).
+ If the dossier needs supplementation, completion or does not meet the conditions for handling, a notice on the dossier status will be sent to the One-Stop Section to notify the applicant – repeat step (ii) or (iii);
+ If verification or clarification is required, or for other reasons that prevent the results from being returned on time, the civil status officer will issue an Apology Slip and reschedule the result return, clearly stating the reason for the delay and the rescheduled date, and send it to the One-Stop Section to return to the requester.
In cases of complaints, accusations of marriage not meeting the marriage conditions under the Law on Marriage and Family or issues needing clarification regarding the personal identification of the parties or documents in the marriage registration dossier, the civil status officer will report to the Chief of the Justice Department to cooperate with relevant agencies for verification and clarification.
During the dossier verification and clarification process, if necessary, direct meetings with the parties to clarify their identity, voluntary marriage intent, and marriage purpose may be conducted.
+ If the dossier is complete and legal, the parties meet the marriage conditions under the Law on Marriage and Family, and there is no case for refusal of marriage registration according to regulations, and the dossier was accepted in person, the civil status officer will record the marriage registration in the Marriage Registration Book, update the registration information into the shared electronic civil status management software, and archive it officially.
- The civil status officer prints the Marriage Certificate, submits it to the District People's Committee Leader for signing, and sends it to the One-Stop Section to return to the requester.
- The requester (both parties must be present, present identification documents for verification) checks the information on the Marriage Certificate, in the Marriage Registration Book, confirms their voluntary marriage, and signs the Marriage Registration Book and Marriage Certificate. Each party receives one original copy of the Marriage Certificate.
If one or both parties cannot be present to receive the Marriage Certificate, upon written request, the civil status officer will report to the Chief of the Justice Department to extend the time for delivering the Marriage Certificate but not more than 60 days from the date the District People's Committee Chairman signs the Marriage Certificate.
If the 60 days lapses without both parties receiving the Marriage Certificate, the civil status officer will report to the District People's Committee Chairman to annul the signed Marriage Certificate. If later, both parties still wish to marry, they must undergo the marriage registration procedure from the beginning.
Procedure for Registering Marriages with Foreign Elements at the District People's Committee Applicable from April 10, 2023
What Does the Dossier for Registering Marriages with Foreign Elements at the District People's Committee Include?
Based on Sub-section 2, Section A, Part II of administrative procedures issued together with Decision 528/QD-BTP in 2023 as follows:
Contents of the Dossier:
- Marriage registration declaration according to the form, containing sufficient information of both parties. Both parties can fill in a joint Marriage Registration Declaration (if the requester chooses to submit the dossier in person);
- Interactive electronic form for marriage registration (provided by the requester following the instructions on the Public Service Portal, if the requester chooses to submit the dossier online);
- The requester submits/presents (in person) or uploads (online) the following documents:
Documents to be submitted:
- A certificate from a competent medical organization in Vietnam or abroad confirming that the parties to the marriage do not have mental illness or other diseases that impair their cognition and autonomy;
- Documents proving the marital status of the foreigner issued by the competent authority of the country of which the person is a citizen, valid for use, confirming that the person currently has no spouse. In the case the foreign country does not issue a certificate of marital status, it must be replaced by a document issued by a foreign competent authority confirming that the person is eligible for marriage under that country's law.
The validity of the documents proving the marital status of the foreigner is determined according to the date stated on those documents. If the documents do not state the validity period, these documents and the medical certificate are valid for 06 months from the date of issue.
- Foreigners and Vietnamese citizens residing abroad must submit a copy of their passport or a document equivalent to a passport.
- A marital status certificate for Vietnamese citizens residing domestically. If the marital status information is available in the National Database on Population (NDP) or the National Database on Citizenship (NDC), the certificate is not required.
Additionally, based on specific cases, the male or female must submit the following corresponding documents:
- Vietnamese citizens who have divorced or annulled illegal marriages at a competent foreign authority must submit a copied civil status extract confirming the recording of such divorce or annulment in the civil status register (Divorce Annotation Extract);
- Vietnamese citizens who are officials and public employees or serving in the armed forces must submit a document from their management agency or unit confirming that the marriage with a foreigner is not contrary to the sector's regulations;
- If the requester is working, studying, or laboring abroad for a limited time, they must submit a marital status certificate issued by Vietnam's diplomatic missions or consular offices abroad.
Documents to be presented:
- A passport, identity card, or citizen identification card or other document with a photo and personal information issued by a competent authority, valid for proving the identity of the Vietnamese citizen.
- Foreigners must present an original passport to prove their identity; if the foreigner does not have a passport, they may present an international travel document or residence card;
- Valid proof of residence information if the civil status registration authority cannot retrieve residence information through the methods specified in Clause 2, Article 14 of Decree 104/2022/ND-CP dated December 21, 2022, of the Government of Vietnam.
If residence proof information has been retrieved from the National Database on Population as per these methods, the requester does not need to present it.
What Should Be Noted When Submitting a Marriage Registration Dossier with Foreign Elements at the District People's Committee?
Based on Sub-section 2, Section A, Part II of administrative procedures issued together with Decision 528/QD-BTP in 2023 as follows:
- The receiver has the responsibility to check, compare with the information on the declaration, and take or record the information to file and return the documents to the presenter, without requiring the submission of copies or photocopies of those documents.
- The requester for civil status registration may submit certified true copies from the originals, excerpts from the original register, or copies accompanied by the originals for comparison. If the requester submits copies accompanied by the originals, the receiver is responsible for verifying, comparing the copies with the originals, and signing the confirmation, without requiring the requester to submit copies of those documents.
- Receivers are responsible for accepting accurately and adequately the civil status registration dossiers according to the provisions of the civil status law, without asking the applicant to submit additional documents that are not required by law.
- Documents issued, notarized, or certified by a competent foreign authority for use in civil status registration in Vietnam must be consular legalized according to the law, except where exempted under an international treaty to which Vietnam is a member.
- If the marriage registration requester cannot provide the prescribed documents or the documents submitted/presented are erased, corrected, or forged, the competent civil status registration authority has the right to cancel the marriage registration results.
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