Procedures for converting a notary bureau into a notary office in Vietnam

Procedures for converting a notary bureau into a notary office in Vietnam​ (Image from the internet)

On September 27, 2024, the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam issued Decision 1782/QD-BTP regarding the announcement of supplementing internal administrative procedures within the state administrative system under the management function of the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam.

Procedures for converting a notary bureau into a notary office in Vietnam

(1) Implementation sequence:

- For provinces and centrally governed cities with 05 or more notary bureaus, the Department of Justice will lead and coordinate with the Department of Finance, Department of Home Affairs, Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs to develop a plan for converting the notary bureaus, submitting it to the People's Committee of the province or centrally governed city (hereinafter referred to as the provincial People's Committee) for approval;

- The provincial People's Committee decides to approve the plan for converting the notary bureaus; if necessary, they will seek written opinions from the Ministry of Justice before making a decision;

- The Department of Justice will lead and coordinate with the Department of Finance, Department of Home Affairs, Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, and the professional-social organization of notaries to organize meetings with notaries, public employees, and workers currently working at the notary bureaus intended for conversion, to consider and discuss issues related to the conversion of the notary bureau.

- Based on the results of the meeting, the Department of Justice will lead and coordinate with the Department of Home Affairs, Department of Finance, Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs to develop a conversion scheme for the notary bureau, submitting it to the provincial People's Committee;

The provincial People's Committee decides to approve the conversion scheme for the notary bureau;

- The Department of Justice submits to the provincial People's Committee the application requesting the conversion of the notary bureau into a notary office;

- The provincial People's Committee issues a decision to convert the notary bureau into a notary office.

(2) Method of implementation: Direct, through postal services, or online (if available).

(3) Composition and quantity of the application:

- Decision approving the plan for transformation of the notary bureau into a notary office;

- Decision approving the scheme on transformation of the notary bureau into a notary office.

More details can be found in Decision 1782/QD-BTP, which comes into force in Vietnam from September 27, 2024.

Procedures for establishment and operation registration of notary offices in Vietnam

- Notaries establishing a notary office must submit a application requesting the establishment of a notary office to the provincial People's Committee for consideration and decision. The establishment request application for the notary office includes the application for establishment and the establishment scheme of the notary office, which outlines the necessity for establishment, expected organization, name, personnel, location of headquarters, material conditions, and implementation plan; a copy of the decision to appoint notaries to participate in establishing the notary office.

- Within 20 days from the date of receiving the complete establishment application for the notary office, the provincial People's Committee will consider and decide on the permission to establish the notary office; in case of refusal, they must notify in writing and state the reasons.

- Within 90 days from the date of receiving the decision permitting establishment, the notary office must register its operation at the local Department of Justice where the decision permitting establishment has been issued.

The content of the notary office operation registration includes the name of the notary office, the name of the notary office head, the address of the notary office headquarters, the list of partnership notaries of the notary office, and the list of notaries working under contract policies of the notary office (if any).

- The operation registration application of the notary office includes the operation registration application, documents proving the headquarters of the notary office complying with the content stated in the establishment scheme, and practice registration applications of partnership notaries, notaries working under contract policies at the notary office (if any).

Within 10 working days from the date of receiving the complete operation registration application, the Department of Justice issues the operation registration certificate of the notary office; in case of refusal, they must notify in writing and state the reasons.

- The notary office is allowed to perform notarial activities from the date the Department of Justice issues the operation registration certificate.

(Article 23 of the Law on Notarization 2014)

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