Documents proving persons exempted from notary training in Vietnam

Documents proving persons exempted from notary training in Vietnam (Internet image)

Regarding this issue, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. Who is exempt from notary training?

According to Clause 1, Article 10 of the Law on Notarization 2014, notary training shall be exempted for the following persons:

- Those who have worked as judges, prosecutors or investigators for at least 5 years;

- Lawyers who have been engaged in legal practice for at least 5 years;

- Law professors and associate professors; doctors of law;

- Senior verifiers of courts, senior examiners of procuracies; senior experts, senior researchers and senior lecturers in the legal sector.

2. Documents proving persons exempted from notary training in Vietnam

Specifically, in Clause 2, Article 3 of Circular 01/2021/TT-BTP, proof of persons exempted from notary training as prescribed in clause 1 Article 10 of the Law on Notarization 2014 is one of the following documents:

- A decision on appointment or re-appointment of a judge, procurator, or investigator, or the identity card of the judge, the identity card of the procurator, the certificate of the investigator, enclosed with papers proving the working time as a judge, procurator or investigator for 5 years or more;

- A decision on appointment of the title of Professor, Associate Professor of Law, Doctorate Degree of Law; in case the Doctorate Degree of Law is granted by a foreign educational institution, the degree must be recognized according to the regulations of the Ministry of Education and Training;

- A decision on appointment of senior examiner of the court branch and senior examiner of the procuracy branch; senior expert, senior researcher, senior lecturer in the field of law;

- Lawyer practicing certificate and lawyer’s card, accompanied by proof of lawyer practicing time of 5 years or more;

- Other documents the person is exempt from notarization training as prescribed by law.

The documents specified in this Clause are certified copies or photocopies enclosed with the originals for comparison.

3. What are the cases of persons ineligible for appointment as notaries in Vietnam?

In the following cases, notaries may not be appointed:

- Those who are being examined for penal liability or have been convicted under a court’s legally effective sentence of an unintentional crime but have not yet had their criminal records written off, or of an intentional crime.

- Those who are being subjected to administrative handling measures in accordance with the law on handling of administrative violations.

- Those who have their civil act capacity lost or restricted.

- Cadres who have been disciplined in the form of removal from office; civil servants or public employees who have been disciplined in the form of dismissal;

Officers, professional army men, workers and public employees of agencies and units under the People’s Army, and officers, non-commissioned officers, workers and employees of units under the People’s Public Security Force who have been disciplined in the form of deprival of the title of army man or people’s policeman or have been expelled from the service.

- Those who have their legal practice certificates revoked after they are disciplined in the form of disbarment;

Those who have been deprived of the right to use their legal practice certificates and the 3-year period, counting from the effective date of the decision on revocation of legal practice certificates or the date of completing the serving of the decision on deprival of the right to use legal practice certificates, has not yet expired.

(Article 13 of the Law on Notarization 2014)

4. Rights and obligations of notaries in Vietnam

4.1. Rights of notaries

According to Clause 1, Article 17 of the Law on Notarization 2014, notaries have the following rights:

- To have their right to notarial practice protected by law;

- To participate in the establishment of notary offices or work under contracts for notarial practice organizations;

- To notarize contracts, transactions and translations in accordance with this Law;

- To request related individuals, agencies and organizations to provide information and documents serving the notarization;

- To refuse to notarize contracts, transactions and translations which violate law or are contrary to social ethics;

- To have other rights as prescribed in this Law and other relevant laws.

4.2. Obligations of notaries

Notaries have the following obligations:

- To abide by the principles of notarial practice;

- To practice at a notarial practice organization;

- To respect and protect lawful rights and interests of notarization requesters;

- To explain to notarization requesters their lawful rights, obligations and interests, and legal significance and consequences of notarization; if refusing notarization requests, to clearly state the reasons to notarization requesters;

- To keep secret contents of notarized documents, unless otherwise agreed in writing by notarization requesters or provided by law;

- To attend notary re-training courses every year;

- To take responsibility before law and notarization requesters for documents they have notarized; to take responsibility before law for operations of notary offices of which they are partners;

- To join socio-professional organizations of notaries;

- To be managed by competent state agencies, notarial practice organizations where they work and the notaries’ socio-professional organization of which they are members;

- To have other obligations as prescribed by this Law and other relevant legal documents.

(Clause 2, Article 17 of the Law on Notarization 2014)

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