Procedures for Issuance of Marital Status Certification for Vietnamese Citizens During Overseas Residency

Procedures for Issuance of Marital Status Certification for Vietnamese Citizens During Overseas Residency​ (Image from the internet)

Regarding this issue, LawNet provides the following clarification:

On May 20, 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam issued Decision 1275/QD-BNG announcing the amendments and supplements to administrative procedures in the consular field under the management of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.

Procedures for Issuance of Marital Status Certification for Vietnamese Citizens During Overseas Residency

(1) Procedures

- The individual requesting the Certificate of Marital Status prepares the application dossier in accordance with regulations and submits it at the Vietnamese representative mission abroad responsible for the consular area where the Vietnamese citizen resides.

- The officer receiving the dossier is responsible for thoroughly checking the dossier and cross-referencing the information within:

(i) If the dossier is complete and valid, the dossier is accepted;

(ii) If the dossier is incomplete or invalid, the officer will guide the applicant on how to supplement and complete it in accordance with regulations. After completing the dossier, step (i) is repeated; if immediate supplementation is not possible, a written guide detailing the necessary documents and content to be supplemented must be provided, signed, and clearly stating the name of the consular officer.

(iii) If the dossier cannot be supplemented and completed, a notice of refusal to process the application is given.

- The officer processing the dossier is responsible for re-checking the entire dossier to ensure it is complete and valid:

+ If further supplementation or completion is required, a notice about the status of the dossier is sent to the applicant to re-perform step (ii); or if the application cannot be processed, a notice must be sent to the applicant.

+ In cases where verification is needed to clarify details or due to other reasons results in not being able to deliver the results on the promised date, an apology note and a new date for result delivery, clearly stating the reason for the delay, must be sent to the applicant.

+ If the applicant requests a new Certificate of Marital Status for the purpose of marriage but fails to return a previous Certificate of Marital Status, they must provide a clear reason. Within 03 working days after receiving the dossier, the representative mission sends a written request to the Consular Department for verification with the place of intended marriage registration. If verification is not possible or no result is received, the representative mission allows the applicant to submit a sworn statement on their marital status.

+ If the dossier is deemed complete and valid, it is recorded in the Marriage Status Certificate Register, and the Head of the representative mission signs the Certificate of Marital Status for the applicant.

(2) Methods of Execution

- The individual requesting the Certificate of Marital Status may submit the dossier directly or authorize another person to submit it either directly or via postal system to the Vietnamese representative mission abroad responsible for the consular area where the Vietnamese citizen resides.

- Additionally, if the Vietnamese representative mission abroad uses the common electronic civil registration and management software and connects with the National Population Database, the dossier may be submitted online via the electronic environment where technical infrastructure conditions allow.

(3) Components of the Dossier

* Documents to be presented:

- Passport or substitute passport document, ID card, citizen identity card, or other documents with photo and personal information, issued by competent authorities, that are valid for proving the identity, nationality of the individual requesting the Certificate of Marital Status.

- Proof of residence document of the individual requesting the Certificate of Marital Status to determine jurisdiction.

If submitting via postal system, copies of the aforementioned documents must be certified as valid.

If the individual is a Vietnamese citizen and has been issued a Citizen Identity Card with a personal identification number, the original document may be presented (if submitting directly) or a copy may be submitted (if submitting via postal system or online electronic civil registration system) to prove identity, provided the technical infrastructure allows the Vietnamese representative mission abroad to connect with the National Population Database.

* Documents to be submitted:

- Application form for the Certificate of Marital Status as per the Appendix of Circular 04/2020/TT-BTP (if the requesting individual chooses to submit the dossier directly).

- If the requesting individual has had a spouse but has divorced, a copy of the legally effective divorce documents must be submitted; if the spouse has died, a copy of the Death Certificate or documents proving the death must be submitted.

- If requesting a Certificate of Marital Status for marrying at a competent authority abroad, additional documents must be submitted:

+ Certificate of Marital Status issued by the Commune People’s Committee where the individual resided before departing if they were of marriageable age according to the Vietnamese Law on Marriage and Family before exiting Vietnam; if they were married before departing and then divorced or their spouse has died after moving abroad, relevant proving documents must be submitted (If the requesting individual has had a spouse but has divorced, a copy of the legally effective divorce documents must be submitted; if the spouse has died, a copy of the Death Certificate or documents proving the death must be submitted).

- Certificate of Marital Status issued by the Vietnamese representative mission abroad responsible for the consular area where the Vietnamese citizen previously resided if the individual has resided in multiple locations. If it is not possible to obtain a Certificate of Marital Status from previous residences, a sworn statement on their marital status at those residences must be submitted, and the individual takes full legal responsibility for the declaration.

- If the requesting individual has been issued a personal identification number, and their information has been updated into the National Population Database and the representative mission utilizes the common electronic civil registration and management software, the representative mission extracts information online following the guidance of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Public Security.

(4) Requirements and Conditions for Executing Administrative Procedures

- If requesting a Certificate of Marital Status for marriage purposes, the individual must meet all marriage conditions as stipulated by the Vietnamese Law on Marriage and Family; one Certificate is issued per marriage request.

- If requesting a Certificate of Marital Status for other purposes, the number of certificates issued will correspond to the request.

* Note:

- Vietnamese representative missions abroad accept and process online civil registration requests suitable to the level of service deployment and utilization of the common electronic civil registration and management software. If not accepting online civil registration requests, it must be announced on their electronic portal or a written notice must be sent to the applicant, clearly stating the reason; the notice may be sent via email if an email address is provided by the applicant.

- Documents issued by competent authorities of the host country used for civil registration at Vietnamese representative missions abroad do not require consular legalization. If there are doubts about the authenticity of these documents, the Vietnamese representative mission may request consular certification from the issuing competent authority. Documents issued by third-country authorities used for civil registration at Vietnamese representative missions abroad must be legalized according to regulations. Documents in foreign languages used in civil registration must be translated into Vietnamese or English as required.

- For documents submitted directly if the applicant submits the dossier in person:

+ If the documents submitted are copies issued from the original registers or certified copies from the originals, the consular officer cannot request the presentation of the originals; if only photo copies are submitted with the originals presented, the consular officer checks, compares the photo copies with the originals, and signs the photo copy confirming the comparison, not requiring notarized copies from the applicant.

+ If the law requires the presentation of documents for civil registration, the consular officer checks the presented documents, compares them with the information in the Application Form, and returns the documents to the presenter, without requiring additional copies of the documents. The consular officer keeps one copied document for filing, confirming the comparison with the original.

- For documents submitted online if the applicant submits the dossier electronically:

+ Photo copies of the documents submitted online must be clear, complete, and intact in content, either photographed, scanned by an electronic device, from documents duly issued and valid for use.

+ If the online submission requires documents to be sent and the documents already exist in electronic form or the electronic civil registration documents have been issued, the applicant may use the electronic versions.

+ When receiving the results at the civil registration office, the applicant must present identity documents and submit the required documents for the civil registration dossier as stipulated by law.

+ If the applicant fails to provide the required documents or the submitted/presented documents are altered, forged, or falsified, the representative mission will cancel the issued Certificate of Marital Status.

- Consular officers are responsible for receiving the correct, complete civil registration dossiers as stipulated by civil registration law.

Nguyen Ngoc Que Anh

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