Guidance on court fees in resolving marriage and family cases in Vietnam under Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP

Guidance on court fees in resolving marriage and family cases in Vietnam under Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP (Internet image)

The Council of Judges of Supreme People's Court passed Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP dated April 24, 2024 guiding the application of certain legal regulations on resolving marriage and family cases in Vietnam.

Guidance on court fees in resolving marriage and family cases in Vietnam under Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP

According to Article 11 of Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP, guidance on court fees in resolving marriage and family cases in Vietnam is as follows:

- The litigants must bear court fees in disputes involving the determination of paternity or maternity in accordance with Article 26 of "Resolution 326/2016/UBTVQH14 dated December 30, 2016 of Standing Committee of the National Assembly on court fees and charges, exemption, reduction, management and use thereof, except for disputes involving the determination of paternity or maternity for minor children or adult children who are legally incapacitated persons.

- In a divorce case where the parties agree to divorce according to the provisions of the law on marriage and family, it is necessary to distinguish as follows:

= If the parties agree to divorce before the first instance hearing, they shall bear 50% of the prescribed court fees (each party shall bear 25% of the prescribed court fee);

= If the parties agree to divorce at the first instance hearing, they shall bear 100% of the prescribed court fees (each party shall bear 50% of the prescribed court fee).

- In cases where the parties voluntarily agree to divorce before the first instance hearing but fail to reach an agreement on child custody and property division, and the Court conducts a trial and issues a first instance judgment, the parties shall bear 50% of the prescribed court fees for the divorce request (each party shall bear 25% of the prescribed court fee); regarding property relations, the court fee each party shall bear shall correspond to the value of the property portion they are entitled to as per the law on court fees.

Guidance on resolution of divorce cases involving defendants who are overseas Vietnamese with unknown addresses

According to Article 10 of Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP, in divorce cases where a Vietnamese citizen residing in Vietnam seeks a divorce from an overseas Vietnamese and can only provide the defendant's last known address in Vietnam but cannot provide the defendant's address abroad, the Court shall proceed as follows:

- If there is a basis to determine that the defendant has contacted with their relatives in Vietnam, but these relatives do not provide the defendant's address to the Court or fail to comply with the Court's request to inform the defendant, such actions shall be considered intentional concealment of the defendant's address.

If the Court has requested the defendant's relatives to provide the defendant's address twice, and they still fail to comply or inform the defendant, the Court shall proceed with the case and conduct the trial in the defendant's absence in accordance with the general procedure.

- After the trial, the Court shall send a copy of the judgment and decision to the defendant's relatives for them to forward to the defendant. The Court shall also publicly post a copy of the judgment and decision at the headquarters of the People's Committee of the commune where the defendant last resided and where the defendant's relatives reside, so that the parties may exercise their right to appeal in accordance with the law of civil procedure.

Resolution 01/2024/NQ-HDTP was passed by the Council of Judges of Supreme People's Court on April 24, 2024 which will take effect on July 1, 2024.

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