A dossier for applying for Vietnamese nationality in case of individuals of Vietnamese origin not re

Legal situation: Dear Lawyer, my biological parents are Vietnamese, and I was born in Vietnam, but my birth was not registered there. As a result, I do not have Vietnamese nationality. Currently, I have been living and working in Korea with Korean nationality. I want to return to Vietnam and apply for Vietnamese nationality. I would like Lawyer to provide consultation on the conditions, required documents, and procedures for acquiring Vietnamese nationality. I sincerely thank you.

FDVN’s opinion:

Thank you for trusting and submitting your consulting request to the FDVN Law Firm ("FDVN"). Regarding your inquiry, after researching the legal regulations, we have the following information to exchange:

[1]. Conditions for foreigners to acquire Vietnamese nationality

Based on the information you provided, you are the natural offspring of Vietnamese parents. Therefore, pursuant to Clause 2, Article 19 of the 2008 Law on Vietnamese Nationality, foreign nationals who apply for Vietnamese nationality may be permitted to naturalize in Vietnam if they fall into one of the following cases:“a/ Being spouses, natural parents or natural offsprings of Vietnamese citizens;”

You need to meet the following conditions to be naturalized in Vietnam:

1. Having the full civil act capacity as prescribed by Vietnam’s laws;
2. Obeying the Constitution and laws of Vietnam; respecting the traditions, customs and practices of the Vietnamese nation;
3. Persons applying for Vietnamese nationality may not be permitted for naturalization if such naturalization is detrimental to Vietnam’s national interests.
3. Persons applying for Vietnamese nationality must have Vietnamese names. These names may be selected by the applicants and written in the decisions on naturalization in Vietnam.

​Normally, persons naturalized in Vietnam shall renounce their foreign nationality, except in special cases permitted by the State President to retain their foreign nationality. The special cases are: 

1. He/she satisfies the conditions for naturalization of Vietnamese nationality according to Law of Vietnamese Nationality.
2. He/she has made meritorious contribution to Vietnam’s national construction and defense and the naturalization of Vietnamese nationality with retention of foreign nationality is beneficial to the Government of Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

3. Retention of his/her foreign nationality upon naturalization of Vietnamese nationality is satisfactory to regulations and law of said foreign country.

4. Renunciation of foreign nationality leads to impacts on his/her rights and benefits in the foreign country.

5. He/she does not utilize foreign nationality to harm legal rights and benefits of agencies, organizations and individuals; harm national security and benefits, social order and safety of the Government of Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

[2]. Dossier for applying for Vietnamese nationality

According to Article 20 of the Law on Vietnamese Nationality 2008, a dossier for applying for Vietnamese nationality includes: 

1. An application for Vietnamese nationality;

2. A curriculum vitae;

3. A judicial record issued by a competent Vietnamese authority for the period the applicant resides in Vietnam and a judicial record issued by a competent foreign authority for the period the applicant resides in the foreign country. Judicial records must be issued within 90 days before the date of filing the dossier;

4. Passport of the person who apply for Vietnamese nationality or other valid papers proving that person's foreign nationality.

5. Copies of birth certificates or other valid papers to evidence their father/mother-child relations;

You were not registered for birth in Vietnam, so you must submit other valid papers to evidence your father/mother-child relations. In particular, according to clause 1 Article 14 of Circular No.04/2020/TT-BTP, proof of parent-child relationship are: “1. Written confirmation of the father-child or mother-child relationship from a competent domestic or foreign regulatory body, organization, health authority or testing authority.”

Usually, written confirmation from the health authority or testing agency is required to confirm the father-child or mother-child relationship based on DNA test results. Therefore, in order to obtain a document proving that you are a natural child of a Vietnamese citizen, you need to undergo DNA testing. 

A dossier to prove that a person is a natural child of Vietnamese citizen include: A confirmation document issued by the health authority, testing agency determining the relations of father, mother, children is all based on result of the DNA testing.

Notes:

• Dossier of application for Vietnamese nationality must be made in 3 sets and stored at the Office of the President, the Ministry of Justice, and the agency receiving the dossier.
• According to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 3 of Decree No. 16/2020/ND-CP, as for the procedure for applying for Vietnamese nationality, persons applying for Vietnamese nationality can either directly submit the dossier or send it via postal system to the Department of Justice in their place of residence, are not allowed to authorize others to submit the dossier.

The above is the advisory opinion of FDVN regarding your consulting request based on the research of legal regulations. We hope that FDVN's advice will be helpful to you. 

By Tran Thi Ha – FDVN LawFirm

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