Under what circumstances can a person sentenced to life imprisonment in Vietnam have their sentence reduced?

In Vietnam, individuals sentenced to life imprisonment can still have their sentences reduced if they meet the conditions stipulated in the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015.

1. Under what circumstances can a person sentenced to life imprisonment in Vietnam have their sentence reduced?

According to Article 39 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015, life imprisonment is an indefinite prison sentence applied to those who commit particularly serious crimes, but not to the extent of receiving the death penalty. Therefore, if sentenced to life imprisonment, the convict will be imprisoned for their entire life.

However, Vietnamese law also stipulates that individuals sentenced to life imprisonment can have the pronounced sentence reduced.

Individuals sentenced to life imprisonment can have the duration of their sentence reduced if they meet the conditions stipulated in Article 63 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015 as follows:

- They have served a certain portion of their sentence

- They have shown significant improvement

- They have compensated for part of the civil obligations

The minimum period of time they must serve before being considered for a first reduction is 12 years for life imprisonment.

Additionally, per Article 63 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015, a person can be granted multiple reductions, but they must ensure they have served at least half of the pronounced sentence.

A person sentenced to life imprisonment can have their sentence first reduced to 30 years in prison, and even with multiple reductions, they must ensure that the actual time served is 20 years.

If an individual is sentenced for multiple crimes including a life imprisonment sentence, the Court will first reduce the sentence to 30 years in prison after they have served 15 years, and even with multiple reductions, they must ensure that the actual time served is 25 years.

If a person, who has already had their sentence reduced, commits a new, less serious crime intentionally, the Court will only first consider a reduction after they have served half of the combined sentence.

If a person, who has already had their sentence reduced, commits a new serious, very serious, or particularly serious crime, the Court will only consider a first reduction after they have served two-thirds of the combined sentence, or if the combined sentence is life imprisonment, the reduction will be executed as stipulated in Clause 3, Article 63 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015.

Thus, if a person sentenced to life imprisonment meets the legal conditions and has served at least 12 years of their sentence, they may have their sentence reduced to 30 years for the first time.

Furthermore, depending on the specific case, the minimum period for which a person serving life imprisonment can be considered for sentence reduction is 12, 15, or a maximum of 25 years.

2. What is the statute of limitations for executing a life imprisonment sentence in Vietnam?

The statute of limitations for executing a criminal sentence is the period after which the convicted individual or the convicted commercial entity does not have to serve the pronounced sentence.

Based on Article 60 of the Criminal Code of Vietnam 2015, the statute of limitations for executing a criminal sentence for a convicted individual is as follows:

- 05 years for cases of fines, non-custodial reform, or prison sentences of up to 3 years;

- 10 years for prison sentences from over 3 years to 15 years;

- 15 years for prison sentences from over 15 years to 30 years;

- 20 years for life imprisonment or death penalty cases.

Therefore, the statute of limitations for executing a life imprisonment sentence as per the above regulation is 20 years. The statute of limitations is calculated from the date the sentence becomes legally effective.

If during the stated period, the convicted individual commits a new crime, the statute of limitations is recalculated from the date the new crime is committed. If the convicted individual deliberately evades and a warrant for arrest is issued, the statute of limitations is recalculated from the date they surrender or are arrested.

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