Is DNA Testing Mandatory for Establishing Paternity?

Based on the current legal provisions on civil status, DNA testing is not mandatory. This is because providing evidence to prove the parent-child relationship includes one of the documents specified in Article 11 of Circular 15/2015/TT-BTP, specifically:

- A document from a domestic or foreign healthcare agency, assessment agency, or another competent authority confirming the parent-child relationship.- Letters, photos, tapes, disks, other items proving the parent-child relationship, and a written statement from the father and mother confirming the child is their biological child, with at least two relatives of the father and mother as witnesses.

Thus, without DNA testing, there are still other documents and items that can prove the parent-child relationship and can be presented as evidence when processing the parent-child recognition procedure. The procedure for registering parent-child recognition includes:

- The applicant for parent-child recognition submits the dossier and presents documents as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 2 and Article 19 of Decree 123/2015/ND-CP at the Commune People's Committee (UBND).- Within 07 working days from the date of receiving a complete and valid dossier, the Civil Status - Judicial official examines the dossier, publicly announces the parent-child recognition at the UBND office, and reports to the Chairman of the Commune People's Committee for a decision. In cases requiring verification, the resolution period shall not exceed 12 working days.- If the parent-child recognition is deemed correct and there are no disputes, the Civil Status - Judicial official records the details in the Civil Status Register, and the applicant signs and clearly writes their name in the Civil Status Register; the Chairman of the Commune People's Committee signs and issues each party one official copy of the Civil Status Extract.

Related documents:

Law on Civil Status 2014

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