Application and procedures for marriage registration in Vietnam

Hello, Lawnet would like to answer the following:

1. What is getting married? Fundamental principles of the marriage and family regime in Vietnam

Pursuant to the provisions of Articles 2 and 3 of the Law on Marriage and Family, the fundamental principles of the marriage and family regime and the definition of getting married are as follows:

- Getting married means a man and a woman’s establishment of the husband and wife relation according to the provisions of this Law on marriage conditions and registration.

- Fundamental principles of the marriage and family regime:

+ Voluntary, progressive and monogamous marriage in which husband and wife are equal.

+ Marriage between Vietnamese citizens of different nationalities or religions, between religious and non-religious people, between people with beliefs and people without beliefs, and between Vietnamese citizens and foreigners shall be respected and protected by law.

+ To build prosperous, progressive and happy families; family members have the obligation to respect, attend to, care for, and assist one another; to treat children without discrimination.

+ The State and society and families shall protect and support children, elderly people and persons with disabilities in exercising marriage and family rights; assist mothers in properly fulfilling their lofty motherhood functions; and implement family planning.

+ To perpetuate and promote the Vietnamese nation’s fine cultural traditions and ethics on marriage and family.

2. Application for marriage registration in Vietnam 

- An application for marriage registration shall be made as prescribed in Clause 1 Article 38 of the Law on civil status as follows:

+ The both partners may fill out in one single application form for marriage registration;

+ A document certifying marital status of a foreigner is a document which is issued by a foreign competent authority, remains valid, and certifies that the holder is being single.

If the foreign country does not issue a document certifying marital status, an equivalent document issued by the foreign competent authority certifying the holder’s eligibility for marriage as prescribed in law of such country is required.

If the document certifying marital status of a foreigner has an indefinite term, such document and the certificate issued by the health facility as prescribed in Clause 1 Article 38 of the Law on Civil Status shall only remain valid in 6 months from the date of issue.

-  If the foreigner has no passport for presentation as prescribed in Clause 1 Article 2 of Decree 123/2015/ND-CP, he/she may present an international travel paper or a residence card.

- Apart from the documents prescribed above, if the partner being Vietnamese citizen obtained divorce or granted marriage annulment at a the foreign competent authority, he/she shall also submit a copy of vital records about such divorce or marriage annulment;

If the partner being Vietnamese citizen is an official/public employee or an armed force official, he/she shall also submit a document issued by the authority certifying that his/her marriage to the foreigner is conformable with regulations of such sector.

Thus, when registering the marriage, both sides need to fill in the marriage registration declaration form according to the form, along with a certificate of marital status, if the person is divorced, it is necessary to submit a copy of vital records about such divorce or marriage annulment.

3. Marriage registration procedures in Vietnam

According to the provisions of Clauses 2, 3 and 4, Article 38 of the Law on Civil Status, the marriage registration procedure shall be as follows:

- Within 10 working days starting from the date of receipt of the adequate application, the district-level justice authority shall review and appraise the application for marriage registration.

- If the application is valid, the parties are eligible to get married in accordance with the Law on Marriage and Family.

- Based on the specific situation, when necessary, the Ministry of Justice shall report to the Prime Minister to prescribe additional interview procedures when handling marriage registration requests in order to ensure the legitimate rights and interests of the parties and effectively manage the state.

Thus, right on the day of receiving the application, if the application is received after 15 hours and cannot be resolved immediately, the results will be returned on the next working day. In the event that it is necessary to verify the marriage conditions of the two parties, the time limit for settlement shall not exceed five working days.

In addition, marriage registrants can choose to submit an online application. Those who require marriage registration can access the National Public Service Portal or the Provincial Public Service Portal and register an account (if you do not have an account), authenticate the user according to the instructions, log in to the system, and correctly identify the competent commune-level People's Committee.

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