According to the law in Vietnam, is it permissible to change to the mother's family name when the father gets married with another woman?

According to the law in Vietnam, is it permissible to change to the mother's family name when the father gets married with another woman?

Pursuant to Article 27 of the Civil Code in 2015 stipulating right to change family names as follows:

1. An individual has the right to request a competent authority to recognize a change of a family name in any of the following cases:

a) Changing the family name of a natural child from biological father’s to biological mother's or vice versa;

b) Changing the family name of an adopted child from biological father’s or mother’s to adoptive father's or mother’s at the request of the adoptive parents;

c) If a person ceases to be an adopted child and such person or his/her biological father or mother request to reclaim the family name which is given by the biological father or mother;

d) Changing the family name of a person whose biological parents have been identified upon the request on that father or mother or such person;

dd) Changing the family name of a lost person who has discovered the origin of his/her bloodline;

e) Changing the family name of a person to his/her spouse’s in the marriage and family relations involving foreign elements in accordance with law of the country in which the foreign spouse is a citizen or retrieves his/her family name before the change;

g) Changing the family names of children upon the change of family names of their father’s or mother’s;

h) Other cases prescribed in by law on civil status affairs.

2. The changing of the family name of a person who is nine years of age or older shall be subject to the consent of such person.

3. The changing of a family name shall not change or terminate the civil rights and obligations which were established in the former family name.

Pursuant to Article 7 of the Decree 123/2015/NĐ-CP stipulating conditions for changes and correction of civil status affairs as follows:

1. An application for change of full name of a person less than 18 years of age prescribed in Clause 1 Article 26 of the Law on civil status shall be subject to his/her parents’ consent which is specified in such application. An application for change of full name of a person aged 9 or older shall also be subject to his/her consent.

2. Civil status correction prescribed in the Law on civil status means correction of personal information in vital records or originals of civil status documents which have been carried out only when there are substantial grounds to prove presence of mistakes at the civil status official’s faults or at the applicant’s faults.

As regulations above, a full-18 person has the right to request comepetent agency to change father's family name to mother's family name.

If the person is under 18, the change must be allowed by the father. The changing of the family name of a person who is nine years of age or older shall be subject to the consent of such person.

What are procedures for changing to the mother's family name in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 28 of the Law on Civil Status in 2014 stipulating procedures for registration of civil status change and correction as follows:

1. Requesters for registration of civil status change or correction shall submit declarations, made according to a set form, and relevant papers to the civil status registration agency.

2. Within 3 working days after receiving complete papers specified in Clause 1 of this Article, if seeing that the civil status change or correction is proper and compliant with civil and relevant laws, the justice and civil status officer shall record such change or correction in the civil status book and together with the registration requester sign in the civil status book, and report to the chairperson of the commune-level People's Committee to issue an extract to the requester.

In case of civil status change or correction related to birth certificates or marriage certificates, the justice and civil status officer shall record the change or correction content in these certificates.

In case of necessity to verify, the time limit may be prolonged for no more than 3 working days.

3. In case of registering civil status change or correction not at previous places of civil status registration, commune-level People's Committees shall issue written notices together with civil status extract copies to People's Committees of previous places of civil status registration for recording in the civil status book.

In case the previous place of civil status registration is a representative mission, the commune-level People's Committee shall issue written notices together with civil status extract copies to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for forwarding to the representative mission for recording in the civil status book.

In order to carry out the procedure for surname change, the requester must submit the civil status correction declaration and the original birth certificate of the child to the civil status registration office and follow-up procedures shall be carried out according to the above provisions.

Does the father have to support the child after the child has changed his/her family name to his/her mother's family name in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 3 Article 27 of the Civil Code in 2015 stipulating right to change family names as follows:

3. The changing of a family name shall not change or terminate the civil rights and obligations which were established in the former family name.

Pursuant to Article 82 of the Law on Marriage and Family in 2014 stipulating obligations and rights of the parent who does not directly raise children after divorce as follows:

1. The parent who does not directly raise a child shall respect the child’s right to live with the person who directly raises him/her.

2. The parent who does not directly raise a child shall support this child.

3. After divorce, the person who does not directly raise a child has the right and obligation to visit and care for this child without being obstructed by any person.

The parent who directly raises a child has the right to request a court to restrict the right of the other parent who does not directly raise this child if the latter takes advantage of his/her visit to and care for the child to obstruct or adversely affect the looking after, care for, raising and education of this child.

As regulations above, the changing of family name doesn't affect the relationship between your child and the father. Therefore, the father still has to support the child.

Best regards!