Vietnam: Is there a Law on Identification 2023 replacing the Law on Citizen identification 2014? What is the outstanding content of the Law on Identification 2023?
Vietnam: Is there a Law on Identification 2023 replacing the Law on Citizen identification 2014?
On the morning of November 27th, with 431 out of 468 (87.25%) National Assembly delegates participating in the vote of approval, the National Assembly officially passed the Law on Identification 2023. The law consists of 7 chapters and 46 articles.
According to the new Law on Identification 2023, there are several notable contents, including:
- Changing the name of the Citizen ID Card to the Identity Card.
- Prohibiting the inclusion of information such as hometown and fingerprints on the Identity Card.
- Supplementing regulations regarding the eligibility for obtaining an Identity Card.
- Updating the information in the Identity Card database.
Vietnam: Is there a Law on Identification 2023 replacing the Law on Citizen identification 2014? What is the outstanding content of the Law on Identification 2023?
What is the outstanding content of the Law on Identification 2023 in Vietnam?
(1) Changing the name of the Citizen ID Card to the Identity Card.
Accordingly, in Clause 1 and Clause 11, Article 3 of the Law on Identification 2023 is defined as follows:
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1. “Identification” means basic information about the personal record, identity and biometric identifiers of a person.
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11. “Identity card (ID card)" means an identification document containing identification and other information integrated into the card of a Vietnamese citizen and issued by an identification-managing agency according to regulations of this Law.
Accordingly, Identification means basic information about the personal record, identity and biometric identifiers of a person, including:
- Portrait photo;
- Personal identification number;
- Family name, middle name and first name;
- Date of birth;
- Gender;
- Place of birth registration;
- Nationality;
- Residence;
- Date and place of issuance, date of expiry of the ID card.
(2) Is it compulsory to renew citizen ID cards to ID card?
Article 46 of the Law on Identification 2023 stipulates as follows:
Citizen ID cards issued before the effective date hereof shall be valid until the expiry date specified in such cards, except for the case specified in Clause 3 of this Article. The citizen ID cards will be replaced by ID cards at the request of citizens.
This Law comes into force from July 1, 2024 and replace the 2014 Citizen Identification Law. Where:
- Citizen ID cards issued before July 1, 2024 shall be valid until the expiry date specified in such cards.
- The citizen ID cards will be replaced by ID cards at the request of citizens.
(3) Annuling 9-digit ID card from January 1, 2025
Clause 3, Article 46 of the Law on Identification 2023 stipulates as follows: "9-digit ID cards and citizen ID cards that expire from January 15, 2024 to before June 30, 2024 may remain valid until the end of June 30, 2024.”;
As for 9-digit ID cards that are still valid, they can be used until December 31, 2024.
Thus, 9-digit ID cards and citizen ID cards that expire from January 15, 2024 to before June 30, 2024 may remain valid until the end of June 30, 2024. 9-digit ID cards that are still valid can be used until December 31, 2024.
From January 1, 2025, the 9-digit ID cards will officially expire.
(4) Removing Place of origin information and fingerprints from the Identify card
The recently passed Law on Identification 2023 clearly states the changed information fields shown on ID cards. It includes portrait photo; personal identification number; family name, middle name and first name; date of birth; gender; place of birth registration; nationality; residence; date and place of issuance, date of expiry of the ID card..
Thus, compared to the Law on Citizen identification 2014, information about place of origin information and fingerprints have been removed and do not need to be shown on the ID card. Instead, place of origin will be integrated into the National Population Database.
(5) Issuing ID cards to people under 14 years of age from July 1, 2024
Currently, citizen ID cards are only issued to Vietnamese citizens aged 14 years or older. However, from July 1, 2024, when the Law on Identification 2023 takes effect, the person who will be issued an ID card will be:
- Vietnamese citizen.
- Age: From 14 years of age or older, you must complete procedures for issuance of an ID card; Citizens under 14 years of age, if needed, can carry out the procedures for issuance of an ID card.
Thus, according to the new regulations, people under 14 years of age from July 1, 2024 can be issued an Identification card if needed.
(6) Supplementing regulations on Identification Certificates
This is a completely new point compared to the old regulations in the Law on Citizen Identification. Accordingly, Clause 12, Article 3 of the Law on Identification 2023 stipulates as follows:
"Identity certificate" means an identification document containing identification of a Vietnamese resident of undetermined nationality and issued by an identification-managing agency according to regulations of this Law.
Thus, the regulations on this type of paper are as follows:
- Subjects: Vietnamese resident of undetermined nationality who is residing for 06 months or longer.
- Content: A national emblem of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; the words “SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM, A phrase “CỘNG HÒA XÃ HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT NAM, Độc lập - Tự do - Hạnh phúc” (THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM, Independence - Freedom - Happiness); Family name, middle name and first name; Personal identification number; Portrait photo, fingerprints; Date of birth; Gender; Place of birth; Place of origin; Nation; Religion; Marital status; Current place of residence; Date of issuance, issuing body; Date of expiry; Family name, middle name and first name, nationality of parents, spouses, legal representative, guardian, and ward.
- Authority to issue, reissue, reissue, and revoke: Supervision of the provincial police.
- Value of use: Proof of identity to conduct transactions within the territory of Vietnam, within 01 year.
(7) Electronic identification card
One of the other notable contents of the Law on Identification is the addition of eID. Accordingly, Article 31 of the Law on Identification 2023 clearly states that each Vietnamese citizen is issued with 01 electronic identification.
This is the Identity shown through an electronic identity account.
After having an electronic ID card, citizens can integrate information into the ID card through issuing, renewing, and re-issuing the ID card or VNeID application.
(8) Supplenting cases where the ID card must be replaced
Pursuant to Article 24 of the Law on Identification 2023, cases of replacement and re-issuance of identity cards are as follows:
- An ID card is replaced in the following cases:
+ Cases specified in Clause 1 Article 21 of this Law.
+ Information about family name, middle name, first name and date of birth is changed or corrected;
+ Identity information is changed; information about portrait photo and fingerprints is added; gender re-assignment or transition is carried out according to regulations of law;
+ There is incorrect information on the identity card;
+ The card holder makes request when information on the ID card is changed due to arrangement of administrative units;
+ Personal identification number is reset up;
+ The card holder makes request.
- An ID card is re-issued in the following cases:
+ It is lost or damaged and unused, except for cases specified in Article 21 of this Law;
+ The card holder has Vietnamese nationality restored under the Law on Vietnamese Nationality.
Note: In this case, it can be done online through the Public Service Portal or by going directly to the card issuing location to carry out the procedure. The information used will be the information on the most recently issued Identity Card.
(9) Shortening the time to reissue ID cards
According to Article 26 of the Law on Identification 2023 recently passed by the National Assembly, within 07 working days from the date of receipt of the complete application according to regulations of this Law, the identification-managing agency shall issue, replace or re-issue an ID card..
Currently, the time limit is specified corresponding to the following cases:
- In cities and towns:
+ New issue and replacement: No more than 07 days.
+ Reissue: No more than 15 working days.
- In highland, border and island districts: Implementation time is no more than 20 days applicable to all cases.
- In remaining areas: No more than 15 days for all cases.
(10) The Identity Card has high security, and no one can access it to retrieve information from the card.
Regarding the issuance and management of electronic identity cards (Chapter IV), according to the National Assembly Standing Committee, the current Identity Cards are manufactured using advanced technology, ensuring high security and resistance against card forgery.
The electronic chip on the Identity Card utilizes authentication technology through fingerprint or facial recognition to accurately verify the cardholder's identity.
Therefore, when someone uses a device to read the information stored in the electronic chip, they must obtain the cardholder's consent through fingerprint or facial authentication to gain access to the reading application and retrieve data. Without this process, no one can access and retrieve information from the Identity Card.
According to the statement of the Chairman of the National Assembly Committee on Judicial Affairs, to exploit the information stored in the electronic chip, specialized devices must be used, and these devices must be provided with security codes by the Ministry of Public Security to authenticate and ensure the security and confidentiality of information. In the case where other state agencies provide specialized devices to read information from the Identity Card, these devices must be inspected and provided with security codes by the specialized agency of the Ministry of Public Security.
Vietnam: When will the Law on Identification 2023 come into force?
Pursuant to the provisions of Article 45 of the Law on Identification 2023, it is stipulated as follows:
Entry into force
1. This Law comes into force from July 01, 2024, except for the case specified in Clause 2 of this Article.
2. Regulations in Clause 3 Article 46 of this Law come into force from January 15, 2024.
3. The Law on Citizen Identification No. 59/2014/QH13 amended by the Law No. 68/2020/QH14 ceases to be effective from the effective date of this Law.
Accordingly, the Law on Identification 2023 comes into force from July 1, 2024, except for the case in Clause 3, Article 46 of the Law on Identification 2023.
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