From July 16, 2020, grandparents do not need authorization to register their grandchildren's birth. This is one of the notable new provisions in Circular 04/2020/TT-BTP, which provides detailed guidance on the implementation of certain articles of the Law on Civil Status and Decree 123/2015/ND-CP, replacing Circular 15/2015/TT-BTP.
Article table of contents
From July 16, 2020, grandparents can register the birth for their grandchildren without a power of attorney - Illustrative photo
Currently, regarding the authorization for civil status registration, Article 2 of Circular 15/2015/TT-BTP stipulates as follows:
Article 2. Authorization for Civil Status Registration
1. Individuals requesting a copy of the civil status extract or registering civil status events as stipulated in Article 3 of the Law on Civil Status can authorize others to perform these actions, except in cases of marriage registration, re-marriage registration, and registration of parent-child acknowledgment.
2. The authorization must be made in writing, notarized, and certified according to legal regulations; the scope of authorization can cover all procedures from submission to receiving the civil status registration results.
If the authorized person is a grandparent, parent, child, spouse, or sibling of the authorizer, the written authorization does not need to be notarized or certified but must include documents proving the relationship with the authorizer.
Inheriting this provision from Circular 15/2015/TT-BTP, Circular 04/2020/TT-BTP also stipulates that the authorization must be made in writing and certified according to legal regulations. If the authorized person is a grandparent, parent, child, spouse, or sibling of the authorizer, the written authorization does not need to be certified.
Additionally, Circular 04 also adds a provision regarding the authorization for birth registration of children, specifically:
Article 2. Authorization for Civil Status Registration
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2. In cases where the person registering the birth for a child is a grandparent or other relative as stipulated in Clause 1, Article 15 of the Law on Civil Status, no written authorization from the child’s parents is required, but there must be an agreement with the child’s parents on the birth registration details.
Thus, according to this provision, from July 16, 2020, grandparents, other relatives, or individuals and organizations currently caregiving the child can register the child's birth without needing a written authorization from the child’s parents.
Article 15. Responsibility for Birth Registration
1. Within 60 days from the date of birth of the child, the father or mother is responsible for registering the birth of the child; if the parents cannot register the birth for the child, the grandparent or other relatives or individuals and organizations currently caregiving the child are responsible for registering the birth for the child.
Nguyen Trinh
