Compilation of judgments on acts of forging seals in Vietnam

1. What are penalties for individuals who forge seals in Vietnam?

The act of forging seals in Vietnam may be subject to administrative penalties or criminal liability if all the elements constituting a crime are present. To be specific:

Administrative Penalties:

According to Clause 4, Article 13 of Decree 144/2021/ND-CP issued by the Government of Vietnam stipulating violations of regulations on the management and use of seals as follows:

A fine ranging from VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000 shall be imposed for one of the following acts:

- Falsifying documents to create additional seals of agencies, organizations, state titles;

- Forging seals or using forged seals;

- Illegally appropriating, buying or selling seals;

- Illegally destroying seals.

Individuals who forge seals in Vietnam may be subject to administrative penalties ranging from VND 5,000,000 to VND 10,000,000.

Additionally, violators may also face supplementary punishments such as confiscation of forged seals and deportation for foreigners who forge seals.

Criminal Liability:

In Vietnam, the act of forging seals may be subject to criminal liability for the offense of forging seals of agencies or organizations if all elements constituting a crime are present. According to Article 341 of the Vietnam Penal Code 2015 (as amended and supplemented in 2017), individuals who commit the crime of forging seals of agencies or organizations shall face criminal liability with the following penalty brackets:

- Bracket 1: Any individual who forges seals, documents, or other papers of agencies, organizations or uses forged seals, documents, or other papers to perform illegal acts shall be fined from VND 30,000,000 to VND 100,000,000, subject to non-custodial reform for up to 3 years, or imprisoned from 6 months to 2 years.

- Bracket 2: Committing the offense in one of the following cases shall be subject to imprisonment from 2 to 5 years:

- Organized manner;

- Committing the offense 2 or more times;

- Forging 2 to 5 seals, documents, or other papers;

- Using seals, documents, or other papers to commit less serious or serious crimes;

- Illegally obtaining a profit ranging from VND 10,000,000 to under VND 50,000,000;- Dangerous recidivism.

- Bracket 3: Committing the offense in one of the following cases shall be subject to imprisonment from 3 to 7 years:

- Forging 6 or more seals, documents, or other papers;

- Using seals, documents, or other papers to commit very serious or extremely serious crimes;

- Illegally obtaining a profit of VND 50,000,000 or more.

Additionally, the offender may also be fined from VND 5,000,000 to VND 50,000,000.

2. Compilation of judgments on acts of forging seals in Vietnam

Below is a compilation of judgments on the act of forging seals tried by Vietnamese courts:

Judgment 90/2023/HS-ST on the crime of forging seals and documents of agencies, organizations

- Adjudicating Body: People's Court of Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province

- Excerpt of Content: From November 2017 to July 2018, Nguyen Manh H and Pham Hai D ran a transportation service business by renting vehicles from various individuals and subleasing them at higher prices to earn a profit. Due to business losses, H and D engaged in renting 18 cars from 13 individuals and 2 enterprises within and outside the province, then hired Mach Dinh K, Huynh Tri T3, and an individual named L2 in Dong Nai to forge documents, altering the owner's name to Nguyen Manh H, Pham Hai D, and Nguyen Anh T9. These included 5 forged car registration certificates, 13 types of counterfeit documents, including bank confirmations, appointment notes from Registry Department C2, and notarized copies with signatures and red seals of agencies, organizations. Subsequently, H and D used the forged documents and rented cars as collateral, defrauding VND 2,940,000,000 from 8 victims in area P.

Judgment 38/2024/HS-ST on the crime of forging seals and documents of agencies, organizations

- Adjudicating Body: People's Court of Lien Chieu District, Da Nang City

- Excerpt of Content: Due to the need for money to spend and repay debts, Trinh Thi Thu H forged 1 land use right certificate bearing her name. Subsequently, H took this forged certificate to Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L, falsely claiming it was H's land, convincing Ms. L to pledge and lend her money 5 times. The total amount of money that Trinh Thi Thu H defrauded from Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim L was VND 130,000,000 (One hundred thirty million VND).

Judgment 93/2023/HS-ST on the crime of forging seals and documents of agencies, organizations

- Adjudicating Body: People's Court of District D, Quang Nam Province

- Excerpt of Content: On March 28, 2023, the defendant Huynh Tan T, knowing that the used truck he had purchased did not meet the required inspection standards, used his phone to contact a Facebook account named "Chuyen bang cap giay to Mr Dong" and provided personal information, vehicle images, and old inspection registration papers to order 1 forged inspection certificate and 2 counterfeit inspection stickers to use for operating his truck. While operating the vehicle, he was caught using forged registration and inspection stickers by traffic police forces.

Sincerely!

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