Subject eligible to register for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam

Subject eligible to register for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam (Internet image)

On October 2, 2023, the Minister of Justice issued Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP on notarial apprenticeship.

1. Subject eligible to register for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam

Specifically, Clause 1, Article 17 of Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP stipulates that an apprentice may register for an examination if:

- He/she has received the recognition of apprenticeship completion as per Article 12 of Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP;

- He/she was qualified to take the previous examination but later applied to postpone participation and was approved by the Apprenticeship Examination Council;

- He/she failed the previous examination, except that he/she failed three previous examinations but he/she has not taken another apprenticeship.

2. Subject ineligible to register for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 17, Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP stipulates that an apprentice may not register for an examination if:

- He/she has not been recognized as completing the notarial apprenticeship;

- He/she was recognized as completing notarial apprenticeship but the recognition was cancelled later;

- He/she copied another person's apprenticeship performance report or committed fraudulent or dishonest acts to register for the examination.

3. Procedures for registering for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam

According to Clauses 3, 4 and 5, Article 17, Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP, procedures for registering for notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam are as follows:

- The registrant for the examination must submit a set of registration documents to the Department of Justice where the apprentice is registered, either directly, by mail, or through the online public administrative center. Required registration documents:

+ A registration form to take the notarial apprenticeship examination (Form TP-TSCC-10);

+ A decision on recognition of notarial apprenticeship completion;

+ An apprenticeship performance report;

+ Proof of payment of fees for the appraisal of notary standards and requirements.

The documents specified in Points b, c and d, Clause 1 of Article 17, Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP are certified copies or photocopies accompanied by originals for comparison. People who were postponed from taking the previous examination only need to submit a registration form stating the postponement.

- Within 15 days of receiving complete and valid documents, the Department of Justice shall notify the registrant of their eligibility to request the Ministry of Justice to take the examination. In case of refusal, the Department of Justice shall provide explanation in writing.

- The person who is notified by the Apprenticeship Examination Council as eligible to take the examination is called the examinee.

A person who is ineligible to take the examination or who is qualified but does not take the examination will not have their documents and paid fees returned. If they re-register for the next examination, they must submit documents and pay fees as prescribed in Clause 3 of Article 17, Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP.

4. Contents and formats of notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam

Contents and formats of notarial apprenticeship examination in Vietnam are specified in Article 16 of Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP as follows:

- Examination contents include:

+ Laws on notarization and authentication, Code of ethics of notarial practice and relevant regulations on notarization;

+ Performance of notarial skills and tasks as prescribed in Article 6 of Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP.

- Examination formats include:

+ The first part is a written test. The allotted time is 180 minutes.

+ The second part is a computer-based multiple-choice test; or a paper-based multiple-choice test if the computer-based examination is unavailable.

The Ministry of Justice shall decide and announce the format of the second test in the proposed examination plan.

More details can be found in Circular 08/2023/TT-BTP taking effect November 20, 2023, replacing Circular 04/2015/TT-BTP.

Ho Quoc Tuan

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