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This country’s legal measures were reviewed by our legal staff in consultation with in-country lawyers and/or CRVS legal experts. All efforts were made to ensure the accuracy of the legal analysis, however, if you consider there to be any discrepancies or if there have been changes in the law of the country since our staff last updated the legal analysis, we welcome any additional information or insights. Please contact us via this form.
Women’s & Children’s Rights
Vietnam
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Birth Registration
Universal Coverage and Definition
Universal Coverage and Definition
Is birth registration or reporting available for children born to citizens residing abroad?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
When a child is born to parents who are residing outside their country of citizenship, the country in which the birth occurred has an obligation to register the birth and issue a birth certificate. While the home country of the parents will not issue a new birth certificate, there should be a process by which the parents report the birth to the parents’ home country. This is important for purposes of establishing citizenship and receiving a passport for the child. The law should provide a process for citizens temporarily residing abroad to report the birth of a child to the registrar (or the passport agency). This is usually facilitated by a country’s embassies and consulates.
Vietnamese citizens living overseas can register the birth of their children through Vietam's diplomatic missions. Representative missions are required by the Civil Status Law to have diplomats or consuls appointed and trained to perform civil status registration.
Does the law specify the process and responsibilities for registering the birth of a child who was abandoned and whose parents are not known?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
All births should be registered, including those of a foundling (a child who has been abandoned and whose parents are unknown.) Generally, the person or the head of the institution that assumes custody of the infant should be responsible for notifying the registrar of the birth. The person reporting the birth should provide: date and place of finding, sex, approximate birth date of child, name and address of person/institution reporting finding, name given to the child by the custodian of the child, and any other information requested by registrar. The entry should be marked as "foundling" (or similar) and information about parentage left blank. If child is later identified, the foundling registration should be voided and placed under seal
The person who finds an abandoned child must immediately notify the nearest commune-level people's committee or police office. The commune-level people's committee will then make a written record of the finding including time, place, finder and condition of the child. This forms the basis of birth registration. The civil status registrar registers the birth of the abandoned child, gives the child a name and records parents fields as "unknown." A child found on Vietnamese territory whose parents are unknown is deemed a Vietnamese citizen.
Does the law clearly state the process for amending birth registrations in adoption cases?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Laws should contain clear provisions for amending the birth registration record in the case of adoption. Country laws vary regarding the legal requirements and arrangements for adoption. Many jurisdictions require that adoptions be kept confidential. Courts should be required to transmit adoption orders to the civil registrar.
If a child is adopted from a foreign country, most countries have a process by which the adoptive parents may apply for a domestic birth certificate.
For adoption cases, from the date the adoption decision takes legal effect, the adoptive parent and child have the same rights as biological parents and children. The civil registrar is required to record civil status changes, including parentage based on the adoption decision. A new birth certificate is issued after adoption, with adoptive parents listed; the old entry is archived. Similarly, children adopted from abroad are issued a new Vietnamese birth certificate showing adoptive parents. The legal process is clear and the original record is kept on file but inactive.
If surrogacy is legal, is there a defined process to register the internationally recommended data for surrogate births?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
The notification and registration of the birth should be as complete as possible including in States which permit surrogacy arrangements or [States of destination] which subsequently register the child in their national registries. Identifying information should include date and place of birth, the surrogate mother, intending parent(s) and information relating to persons providing human reproductive material if any. Medical clinics, providers and/or registries of human reproductive material should make all identifying information available to national registries.
There are two general processes for surrogacy. 1) the original birth registration record has the names of the intended parents (no amendment required). 2) the birth is registered under the name of the surrogate (gestational) mother, and then the birth registration record is amended, based on a court surrogacy decree, to have the names of the intended parents included.
In surrogacy cases, according to the law, the intended parents are recognised and legally recorded as the child's parents, based on the hospital-issued proof of surrogacy and therefore there is no need for an amendment of birth registration records. According to Decree 123/2015, the birth of a child born through surrogacy is registered the same as other birth registrations, with the intended parents' names being recorded in the register.
