Is it possible to organize a wedding ceremony before registering a marriage in Vietnam?

Is it possible to organize a wedding ceremony before registering a marriage in Vietnam?

According to Article 9 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014, the registration of marriage is regulated as follows:

Marriage Registration

1. Marriage must be registered and carried out by the competent state authority in accordance with the provisions of this Law and the laws on citizenship.
Marriage that is not registered according to the provisions of this clause shall have no legal validity.

2. In the case of divorced spouses who wish to establish their marital relationship again, they must register their marriage.

Therefore, the current legislation does not have specific provisions regarding the prohibition of getting married before registering the marriage.

Therefore, both men and women can still have a wedding ceremony before registering their marriage.

However, when registering the marriage, both the man and the woman must meet the conditions as stipulated, including:

- The man must be at least 20 years old, and the woman must be at least 18 years old.

- The marriage must be voluntarily decided by the man and the woman.

- They must not have lost their legal capacity of civil conduct.

- The marriage must not fall into any of the following prohibited marriage cases:

+ Fake marriage, fake divorce.

+ Forced marriage, coerced marriage, deceptive marriage, obstructed marriage.

+ Being married or cohabiting as husband and wife with someone else while already having a spouse or husband, or getting married or cohabiting as husband and wife without having a spouse or husband while the other person already has a spouse.

+ Marriage or cohabitation as husband and wife between individuals of the same bloodline; between individuals with a family name within three generations; between adoptive parents and adopted children; between individuals who were previously adoptive parents and adopted children, father-in-law and daughter-in-law, mother-in-law and son-in-law, stepfather and stepdaughter, stepmother and stepson.

Is it possible to organize a wedding ceremony before registering a marriage in Vietnam? - image from internet

In what cases do the commune People's Committee and district People's Committee have the authority to register a marriage in Vietnam?

According to Article 17 of the Law on Civil Status 2014, it stipulates the authority to register marriages and the content of the Marriage Certificate as follows:

Authority to register marriages and content of the Marriage Certificate

1. The commune People's Committee where either the man or the woman resides shall carry out the registration of marriage.

2. The Marriage Certificate must contain the following information:

a) Full name, middle name, and last name; date, month, year of birth; ethnicity; nationality; place of residence; information about the personal identification documents of both the man and the woman;

b) Date, month, year of marriage registration;

c) Signatures or fingerprints of both the man and the woman and confirmation from the registration agency of citizenship.

According to Article 37 of the Law on Civil Status 2014, it stipulates the authority to register marriages as follows:

Authority to register marriages

1. The district People's Committee where a Vietnamese citizen resides shall carry out the registration of marriages between a Vietnamese citizen and a foreigner; between a Vietnamese citizen residing in Vietnam and a Vietnamese citizen residing abroad; between Vietnamese citizens residing abroad; between Vietnamese citizens holding dual nationality with either Vietnamese citizens or foreigners.

2. In the case of a foreigner residing in Vietnam who requests to register a marriage in Vietnam, the district People's Committee where either party resides shall carry out the registration of marriage.

As regulated above, the authority to register marriages is regulated as follows:

- The commune People's Committee where either the man or the woman resides shall carry out the registration of marriage (registering marriage in cases where both the man and the woman are Vietnamese citizens).

- The district People's Committee has the authority to register marriages in the following cases:

+ Vietnamese citizens register marriages between a Vietnamese citizen and a foreigner.

+ Between a Vietnamese citizen residing in Vietnam and a Vietnamese citizen residing abroad.

+ Between Vietnamese citizens residing abroad.

+ Between Vietnamese citizens holding dual nationality with either Vietnamese citizens or foreigners.

What documents are required for marriage registration at the commune People's Committee in Vietnam?

According to Article 10 of Decree 123/2015/ND-CP, it stipulates the following:

Documents to be submitted and presented for marriage registration

The applicant for marriage registration must present documents as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree, submit documents as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 18 of the Law on Citizenship when registering marriage at the commune People's Committee, or submit documents as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 38 of the Law on Citizenship when registering marriage at the district People's Committee, and submit the original Marriage Status Confirmation Certificate according to the following provisions:

1. In the case of marriage registration at the commune People's Committee where the applicant for marriage registration is not a permanent resident in the commune, ward, or town where the marriage is registered, they must submit a Marriage Status Confirmation Certificate issued by the competent commune People's Committee as prescribed in Articles 21, 22, and 23 of this Decree.

In the case of marriage registration at the district People's Committee, the applicant for marriage registration who is currently residing in Vietnam must submit a Marriage Status Confirmation Certificate issued by the competent commune People's Committee as prescribed in Articles 21, 22, and 23 of this Decree.

According to Clause 1, Article 2 of Decree 123/2015/ND-CP, it stipulates the following:

Provisions on presenting and submitting documents for citizenship registration, issuance of citizenship extracts

1. The applicant for citizenship registration, issuance of citizenship extracts must present the original copy of one of the following documents: passport, identity card, citizen identification card, or other documents with a photo and personal information issued by the competent authority, and still valid (hereinafter referred to as personal identification documents) to prove their identity.
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As regulated above, the documents required for marriage registration include:

- Marriage registration declaration form.

- One of the following documents: passport, identity card, citizen identification card, or other documents with a photo and personal information issued by the competent authority, and still valid (hereinafter referred to as personal identification documents) to prove their identity.

- The original Marriage Status Confirmation Certificate.