I entered into a "love contract" with a man for 5 years and the terms stated the responsibilities for mental and physical care between the two parties. The contract is exchanged via email, not signed or authenticated. So I want to ask if the act of entering into a "love contract" is legal or illegal according to Vietnam’s regulations?
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LawNet would like to give advice on this issue as follows:
Currently, the law of Vietnam does not clearly stipulate the type of "love contract" or "amorous contract". In principle, a "love contract" is made in writing, agreed on the rights, benefits, and responsibilities of two parties in a romantic relationship. Thus, a "love contract" is understood as a civil transaction.
According to Article 116 of the Civil Code 2015 of Vietnam, civil transaction is a contract or a unilateral legal act which gives rise to, changes or terminates civil rights and/or obligations.
Besides, a civil transaction shall be effective when it satisfies all of the following 03 conditions:
- Participants in the transaction have legal personality and/or legal capacity in conformity with such transaction;
- Participants in the transaction act entirely voluntarily;
- The purpose and contents of the transaction are not contrary to the law and/or social ethics.
Thus, Vietnam’s law has no prohibitions for “love contracts” and these contracts still apply according to the provisions of the Civil Code. However, whether a "love contract" is legally valid or not depends on the content and form of the contract, if the terms of the love contract include the exchange of material benefits for sexual intercourse (intercourse), then it can be considered an act of prostitution.
Thus, according to Clauses 1, 2 Article 4 of the Ordinance on prostitution prevention and combat 2003 and Decree No. 167/2013/NĐ-CP of Vietnam’s Government, the act of buying and selling sex is strictly prohibited by law. Depending on each case, the person buying or selling sex will be subject to administrative sanctions or criminal liability for this act.
Besides, according to Article 123 of the Civil Code 2015 of Vietnam, civil transactions with objectives and contents which breach legal prohibitions or which contravene social ethics shall be invalid.
Thus, with the above analysis, it can be seen that the "love contract" you have entered into is understood as a civil transaction and is concluded based on the agreement of both parties. However, if the terms in your "love contract" show that the parties agree to pay money or other material benefits to have sex (intercourse), the contract shall not be recognized by law and is considered a violation of the law, in which case you will be subject to administrative sanctions or criminal liability according to the law.
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- Civil Code 2015
