Decree No. 06/1998/ND-CP Amending some Articles of Decree No. 37-HĐBT dated February 5, 1990 detailing the implementation of the Law on Vietnamese Citizenship

DECREE

Amending some articles of Decree No. 37-HĐBT dated February 5, 1990

detailing the implementation of the Law on Vietnamese Citizenship

______________

THE GOVERNMENT

Pursuant to Article 103 of the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam 1992;

Pursuant to the Government Organization Law dated September 30, 1992;

Pursuant to the Law on Vietnamese Citizenship dated June 28, 1988;

On the basis of the Law on Enacting Legal Normative Documents dated November 12, 1996;

At the proposal of the Minister of Justice,

DECREE:

Article 1. Amend Article 5 of Decree No. 37/HĐBT as follows:

The legitimate reason stipulated in Clause 1, Article 9 of the Law on Vietnamese Citizenship for Vietnamese citizens to be able to renounce Vietnamese citizenship is having the citizenship of another country or to acquire the citizenship of another country.

Article 2. Amend Clause 1, Article 7 of Decree No. 37/HĐBT as follows:

Those who apply to enter, renounce, or reacquire Vietnamese citizenship within the country shall submit their application to the provincial people's committee or the municipal people's committee directly under the central government where they reside; those outside the country shall submit their application to the diplomatic mission, consular office of Vietnam in the host country or directly to the Ministry of Justice.

Article 3. Amend and supplement Clause 2, Article 8 of Decree No. 37/HĐBT as follows:

Along with the application to renounce Vietnamese citizenship as provided in Article 9 of the Law on Vietnamese Citizenship, the applicant must submit the following documents:

a) A statement of personal history;

b) A copy of the birth certificate or other equivalent document.

In cases where the application is to renounce Vietnamese citizenship to acquire the citizenship of another country, in addition to the documents specified in points a and b above, the applicant must also submit a Certificate issued by the competent authority of the foreign country guaranteeing that the person will be granted citizenship.

In cases where the application is to renounce Vietnamese citizenship due to already holding the citizenship of another country, in addition to the documents specified in points a and b above, the applicant must submit a copy of the passport (the original passport must be presented for verification) or other documents proving foreign citizenship.

In cases where the application is to renounce Vietnamese citizenship for minor children, the applicant must also submit a copy of the birth certificate of the minor children. The Ministry of Justice shall uniformly prescribe the format of the application to renounce Vietnamese citizenship and the documents mentioned in point a, Clause 1 of this Article, after consultation with relevant agencies.

Article 4. Amend and supplement Clause 4, Article 8 of Decree No. 37/HĐBT as follows:

Documents issued or certified by an agency or organization of a foreign country must be legalized by the diplomatic mission, consular office of Vietnam abroad or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam; documents in a foreign language must be translated into Vietnamese and certified in accordance with Vietnamese law.

Article 5. Amend Article 12 of Decree No. 37/HĐBT as follows:

1. Within thirty days from the date of receipt of complete and valid files for applications to enter or reacquire Vietnamese citizenship or from the date of completion of files for cases that may result in revocation of decisions to grant Vietnamese citizenship or deprivation of Vietnamese citizenship, the diplomatic mission, consular office of Vietnam abroad or the provincial people's committee (for local files) must send the files to the Ministry of Justice along with comments and recommendations for each specific case.

2. Within thirty days from the date of receipt of complete and valid files for applications to enter or reacquire Vietnamese citizenship, revoke decisions to grant citizenship or deprive citizenship, the Ministry of Justice shall coordinate with relevant agencies to examine the files and proceed with the necessary procedures.

Article 6. Supplement Clause 12a as follows:

Article 12a

1. Within seven days from the date of receiving complete and valid application files for renunciation of Vietnamese nationality, the provincial/municipal People's Committee, diplomatic missions, and consular offices of Vietnam abroad must send the files to the Ministry of Justice along with recommendations on how to process these files.

2. Within forty-five days from the date of receiving complete files from diplomatic missions, consular offices of Vietnam abroad, or from provincial/municipal People's Committees, or directly from the applicant, the Ministry of Justice shall coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security and the Supreme People's Procuracy to verify the files and proceed with the necessary procedures.

3. Within thirty days from the date of receiving the files and the verification request letters from the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Supreme People's Procuracy shall respond in writing to the Ministry of Justice regarding the issues requested for verification.

4. Applicants for renunciation of Vietnamese nationality who fall under any of the following cases are exempted from the verification procedure stipulated in Clause 3 of this Article:

a) Individuals under eighteen years old;

b) Individuals born and raised outside Vietnam;

c) Individuals who have left Vietnam to reside abroad for ten years or more;

d) Individuals who have been granted exit permits under family reunification programs. In the case specified in Point d, the Ministry of Justice only needs to send the file to the Ministry of Public Security for notification; if there are reasons to prevent the renunciation of Vietnamese nationality, the Ministry of Public Security shall send a letter to the Ministry of Justice within ten days from the date of receipt of the file.

5. For approved cases, the Decision on Renunciation of Vietnamese Nationality shall be issued by

, Clause 1, Clause 2 Article 7a of this Regulation.

1. This Decree shall take effect fifteen days from the date of signature.

2. The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government-affiliated agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial/municipal People's Committees are responsible for implementing this Decree./.