Prohibited acts of civil status officers in Vietnam

Prohibited acts of civil status officers in Vietnam (Internet image)

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

1. Prohibited acts of civil status officers in Vietnam

Specifically, Article 74 of the Law on Civil Status 2014 stipulates prohibited acts of civil status officers including:

- Being authoritarian, harassing, delaying, causing difficulties and troubles, or receiving bribes when performing civil status registration and management.

- Collecting civil status fees higher than prescribed rates or imposing charges for civil status registration.

- Imposing formalities and papers and prolonging the time for civil status registration in violation of this Law.

- Erasing, altering or tampering with information contents in the civil status database.

- Registering or granting papers related to civil status in violation of this Law.

- Revealing personal information known through civil status registration.

- Civil status officers who commit prohibited acts specified in this Article shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability in accordance with law.

2. Standards for civil status officers in Vietnam

Article 72 of the Law on Civil Status 2014 stipulates civil status officers as follows:

- Civil status officers include justice and civil status officers at commune level; civil status officers in district-level Justice Divisions of district-level People’s Committees; and diplomats and consuls performing civil status work in representative missions.

- Commune-level justice and civil status officers must meet the following criteria:

+ Possessing an intermediate or higher degree in law and having been trained in civil status work;

+ Possessing a legible handwriting and computer skills suitable to their job requirements.

Based on practical conditions of geographical area, population and justice and civil status workload in localities, the Government shall stipulate the assignment of justice and civil status officers on a full-time basis.

- Civil status officers in district-level Justice Divisions must possess a university or higher degree in law and have been trained in civil status work.

- Diplomats and consuls performing civil status work in representative missions must have been trained in civil status work.

3. Tasks and powers of civil status officers in Vietnam

Tasks and powers of civil status officers are specified in Article 73 of the Law on Civil Status 2014 as follows:

- In the field of civil status, commune-level justice and civil status officers have the following tasks and powers:

+ To comply with this Law and other relevant laws concerning civil status;

+ To take responsibility before commune-level People’s Committees and law for civil status registration;

+ To disseminate, and mobilize people to observe, the law on civil status;

+ To assist commune-level People’s Committees in performing civil status registration in a prompt, accurate, objective and truthful manner; fully update registered civil status events in the electronic civil status database;

+ To take the initiative in examination and review work to promptly register births and deaths arising in localities.

For scattered residential areas with difficult access and far away from the head offices of commune-level People’s Committees, justice and civil status officers shall report to commune-level People’s Committees for permission to organize mobile registration for births, marriages and deaths.

+ To regularly update themselves with legal knowledge to raise their civil status registration capacity and skills; to participate in professional training courses held by People's Committees or superior-level justice agencies;

+ To take the initiative in reporting to and proposing the People's Committees of the same level to coordinate with agencies and organizations in checking and verifying civil status information;

To request agencies, organizations and individuals to provide information for civil status registration verification; to coordinate with public security offices of the same level in providing basic civil status information of individuals for the national population database.

- The provisions of Clause 1 of Article 73 of the Law on Civil Status 2014 also apply to civil status officers in district-level Justice Divisions and diplomats and consuls performing civil status work in representative missions according to their tasks and powers.

Ho Quoc Tuan

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