Circular No. 32/TT-LB1 guiding the implementation of Decree No. 62/CP dated September 22, 1993 of the Government on the management and use of seals.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for Implementing Decree No. 62/CP dated September 22, 1993 of the Government

Regarding the Management and Use of Official Seals

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Pursuant to Article 13 of Decree No. 62/CP dated September 22, 1993 of the Government on the management and use of official seals, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Government Organization and Cadre Department jointly issue guidelines for certain aspects of implementing the Government's Decree as follows:

I. TYPES OF OFFICIAL SEALS AND ORGANIZATIONS PERMITTED TO USE THEM AS PROVIDED IN GOVERNMENT DECREE NO. 62/CP.

A. TYPES OF OFFICIAL SEALS MANAGED UNDER GOVERNMENT DECREE NO. 62/CP.

1- Decree No. 62/CP of the Government stipulates that official seals shall be used by state agencies, economic units, political-social organizations, mass organizations, non-governmental organizations, armed forces units (hereinafter referred to as agencies and organizations), and certain positions, which are affixed to official documents bearing the signature of authorized officials of agencies and organizations or administrative procedures to confirm the legal validity of such documents and procedures in transactions between agencies, organizations, and citizens.

2- The types of official seals of agencies and organizations mentioned in point 1 include embossed seals, raised seals, and wet seals.

Types of title seals, date seals, signature seals... of organizations and individuals not falling within the scope of this Decree.

B. ORGANIZATIONS PERMITTED TO USE OFFICIAL SEALS.

1. Agencies and organizations permitted to use official seals with the national emblem:

1.1- Agencies with state management functions under the Government, as specified in paragraph 5, Clause 1, Article 2 of Decree No. 62/CP, which use official seals with the national emblem are those agencies responsible for state management in specific sectors nationwide, performing tasks and powers as prescribed in Article 21 of Decree No. 15/CP dated March 2, 1993 of the Government (on the tasks, powers, and responsibilities of state management by Ministries and agencies equivalent to Ministries) including: General Statistics Office, General Customs Department, General Post Office, General Land Administration, General Meteorology and Hydrology Service, General Tourism Administration, General Sports Administration, Government Religious Council, Government Border Committee, Government Price Control Board, State Economic Arbitration, National Survey and Mapping Bureau.

1.2- In special cases (as provided in Clause 2, Article 2 of Decree No. 62/CP) wishing to use official seals with the national emblem must submit a document to the Prime Minister through the Government Organization and Cadre Department. Only after receiving the Prime Minister's approval can the Ministry of Home Affairs proceed with engraving seals with the national emblem.

2. Agencies and organizations permitted to use official seals without the national emblem (as provided in Article 3 of Decree No. 62/CP):

2.1- Agencies under the Government without state management functions such as: Natural science, social science, cultural, educational, and training research centers... agencies assisting the Government in overseeing certain areas like National Reserves, Commendation and Reward, etc.

2.2- Agencies and organizations of Ministries, agencies equivalent to Ministries, and government agencies tasked with assisting Ministers, Heads of agencies equivalent to Ministries, and heads of government agencies in performing state management functions; General Departments under Ministries, Bureaus, Inspections, Offices.

2.3- Agencies and organizations directly subordinate to People's Public Prosecution Offices and People's Courts at all levels.

2.4- Specialized agencies of Provincial People's Committees and Municipal People's Committees directly under the Central Government (Bureau, Department, Committee, Bureau, etc.); of District People's Committees, Urban District People's Committees, and Provincial City People's Committees (Office, Bureau, Bureau, etc.).

2.5- Non-profit organizations engaged in scientific research, education, training, culture, and social activities such as Institutes, Schools, Hospitals, Centers, etc. These organizations are established at central ministries and departments and at local levels.

2.6- Mass organizations including: mass associations, occupational and creative social organizations, friendship associations, humanitarian and social welfare associations licensed by the Government (operating nationwide); or by the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee or Municipal People's Committee directly under the Central Government (operating locally).

Non-governmental organizations permitted to operate by competent authorities according to current laws.

2.7- Economic organizations: State-owned enterprises (including State Corporations, Associations of Enterprises, and their affiliated units); Enterprise Organizations; Private Enterprises; Joint Stock Companies; Limited Liability Companies; economic joint ventures including those with foreign entities and wholly foreign-owned enterprises; collective economic organizations (Cooperatives, Cooperative Groups, etc.); branches and representative offices of economic organizations.

2.8- Subordinate units of the aforementioned agencies and organizations, while performing duties and tasks, may act in their own name to transact and communicate regularly with other agencies, organizations, and citizens or perform supervisory functions such as issuing certificates, collecting payments, and issuing receipts, such as Posts, Stations, Camps, Transaction Rooms, Stores, Savings Funds, Hospitals, Health Resorts, etc.

The subordinate units referred to in Article 2.8 must be direct units of the superior organization and must be specified in the organizational system or Charter of central ministries and departments or of Provincial People's Committees or Municipal People's Committees directly under the Central Government.

3. Agencies and organizations permitted to engrave and use official seals with their own symbols or foreign characters (as provided in Article 4 of Decree No. 62/CP):

3.1- Agencies and organizations with their own symbols that have been defined or approved by competent state authorities; symbols of international organizations that Vietnam participates in or has direct relations with and are permitted by the state.

3.2- Agencies and organizations permitted to cooperate and form joint ventures with foreign organizations and individuals; agencies and organizations permitted by the Vietnamese state to establish and operate abroad may add foreign characters to their official seals.

4. Agencies and organizations permitted to use official seals must engrave them according to models (size, shape, content) prescribed by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

5. The Ministry of Home Affairs, after consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will prescribe models and manage official seals of Vietnamese agencies and organizations used in external affairs work as provided in Article 6 of Decree No. 62/CP.

6. The organs and organizations of foreign countries using seals in Vietnam as stipulated in Article 7 of Decree 62/CP shall be understood as follows:

7. a) Organs, diplomatic representatives, consular organs, representatives of international organizations, consular sections of embassies, and other foreign diplomatic representative organs in Vietnam when using seals must notify the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in accordance with the format prescribed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

b) Non-diplomatic organs and organizations of foreign countries bringing seals into or engraving seals for use in Vietnam must obtain permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, in accordance with the format prescribed by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

7. Political and social organizations within the Vietnam Fatherland Front shall establish seal models within their organizational systems according to specific regulations, after reaching consensus with the Government’s Organizational-Cadre Department and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

II- ON MANAGEMENT AND USE OF SEALS.

A- THE HEAD OF THE MINISTRY, HEAD OF THE GOVERNMENT’S EQUIVALENT ORGAN, HEAD OF THE GOVERNMENT’S SUBORDINATE ORGAN, THE HEAD OF POPULAR ORGANIZATIONS, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS WITHIN THE VIETNAM FATHERLAND FRONT, AND THE CHAIRMAN OF THE PROVINCE LEVEL PEOPLE'S COMMITTEE AND ABOVE SHALL MANAGE THE SEALS OF THE ORGANS AND ORGANIZATIONS UNDER THEIR CONTROL AS FOLLOWS:

1- Granting written permission to organs and organizations under their control to use individual seals.

2- Inspecting the management and use of seals of organs and units under their control in accordance with Decree 62/CP and the guidance of this Circular.

3- Deciding to recall the seal of an organ or organization established under their authority when such organ or organization is dissolved, merged, or for any other reason must cease using the seal. The decision to recall the seal must also be sent to the district police station that issued the engraving permit.

B- ORGANS AND ORGANIZATIONS MANAGING AND USING THEIR OWN SEALS MUST FOLLOW THE FOLLOWING REGULATIONS:

1. Must obtain a decision from the competent authority granting permission to use individual seals in accordance with the Government's regulations for each type of organ or organization.

2. Clause 1, Article 10 of Decree 62/CP stipulates that "each organ or organization may only use one seal of the same type... which means: Each organ or organization may only use one seal according to the prescribed model. If there is a need for an additional seal of the same type as the first seal (similar in shape, size, and content), it must be approved by the competent authority (the authority that granted permission to use the seal at the time of establishment) but must have a separate identifier to distinguish it from the first seal. The separate identifier must be agreed upon by the authority issuing the engraving permit.

3. Organs and organizations may be allowed to engrave additional embossed, raised, or reduced-size seals, with the content of the seal being identical to the currently used seal, to serve specific work or business purposes, but must obtain approval from the competent authority.

4. When applying for seal engraving procedures, they must follow the provisions and guidance of this Circular.

5. After completing the seal engraving, the model must be registered with the authority that issued the engraving permit. Only after obtaining a registration certificate for the new seal model can the organ or organization be notified to use the new seal. When starting to use the new seal, the old seal must be returned to the district police station.

6. Ink for stamping shall uniformly be red ink as guided by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

7. Seals may only be affixed on documents and papers after having been signed by the competent authority (head, deputy head, or directly authorized subordinate of the head of the organ or organization). Stamping without signatures from the competent authority (blank stamping) or stamping on documents and papers without content is not allowed.

8. Seals must be kept at the organ or unit and must be strictly managed. In cases where it is necessary to take the seal away from the organ or unit to handle matters, the head of the organ or organization may carry the seal, but must carefully preserve it and bear responsibility for taking the seal out of the organ or unit.

9. The person entrusted with keeping and preserving the seal of the organ or organization must be responsible, trustworthy, have expertise in documentation, and must bear legal responsibility for keeping and stamping, specifically:

9.1- Placing the seal in the designated place, preserving it carefully, and not deforming the seal.

9.2- Not entrusting the seal or stamping duties to those who are not responsible.

9.3- When stamping on documents and papers, it must be clear, and the seal must be placed on the left third of the signature.

9.4- If the seal is lost, stamped incorrectly, or if the seal is misused for illegal activities while being preserved or used, administrative penalties or prosecution will be pursued.

10. When the seal is lost, it must be reported immediately to the nearest police station, and simultaneously reported to the police station that issued the engraving permit to cooperate in searching and announcing the cancellation of the lost seal. If the currently used seal is worn out, damaged, or does not conform to the prescribed model, a new seal must be requested and the old seal must be returned.

11. Shall be responsible for implementing requests and creating conditions for police officers and organizational-cadre officers to conduct inspections on compliance with regulations regarding the preservation and use of seals.

C- RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IN SEAL ENGRAVING AND PRESERVATION.

1- Issuing engraving permits:

1.1- When issuing engraving permits to organs and organizations, the police department must base it on the following procedures and documents:

a) For organs and organizations permitted to engrave seals with the national emblem; specialized and service organs, mass organizations, political and social organizations, and non-governmental organizations must have:

- The establishment decision of the organ with authority in accordance with the State's regulations for each type of organ or organization.

- The decision granting permission to use seals from the competent authority as stipulated in Clauses 1, 2, and 3 of Article 9 of Decree 62/CP for each type of organ or organization (if the establishment decision already grants permission to use a seal, then a separate decision granting permission to use a seal is not required).

- For mass organizations, occupational associations, political-social organizations, and non-governmental organizations, they must have additional articles of operation approved by the competent authority. Research organizations must have an additional certificate of registration for activities issued by the state management agency for science and technology, environment.

- In cases where agencies and organizations are established without clearly defining their organizational form, they must have a document from the Council of Ministers, or the Head of the Government Organization and Cadre Department (if the agency or organization belongs to a locality).

b) For economic organizations;

- The decision (or permit) to establish issued by the competent authority.

- Business registration certificate (for joint ventures with foreign countries and Investment License, Representative Office Establishment Permit... in Vietnam) issued by the competent state agency.

- Certificate of the provincial People's Committee or the municipal People's Committee under the central government allowing establishment of the office in the locality (if it is a Branch, Representative Office, unit of the enterprise located in another province or city).

- All types of documents mentioned above require agencies and organizations to present the original and submit one copy (certified by a notary public agency).

c) In cases where a seal is re-engraved due to loss, wear, or damage, the agency or organization must provide a document explaining the reason and requesting the police agency to engrave a new seal, without having to submit other types of documents.

d) Staff members sent by agencies or organizations to engrave seals must carry a letter or introduction letter from the agency or organization and present their personal identification card.

e) For foreign agencies and organizations that are not diplomatic missions:

- They must send a document to the Ministry of Interior specifying the reasons and scope of seal usage in Vietnam, along with a sample of the seal (if it is an office or representative body, they must also have a permit from the competent state agency in Vietnam).

Foreign agencies and organizations that are not diplomatic missions bringing seals from abroad for use in Vietnam must register the seal model before using it (the content of the seal must be translated into Vietnamese).

1.2- Competence to issue seal engraving permits and organize seal engraving:

a) The Administrative Management Police Bureau - General Police Corps - Ministry of Interior (C.13) issues seal engraving permits for central agencies and organizations; agencies and organizations engraving seals with foreign symbols and characters; seals of foreign organizations that are not diplomatic missions in our country; seals used in foreign affairs work and seals of other Vietnamese organizations permitted to use seals abroad.

b) The Administrative Management Police Department - Provincial Public Security (PC.13) issues seal engraving permits for local agencies and organizations and some seals of central agencies and organizations but located in localities according to the classification of the Ministry of Interior.

c) After reviewing, if all procedures are complete, the public security agency will issue a seal engraving permit for agencies and organizations to engrave seals at the engraving facility managed by the public security agency. If there is no engraving facility in the locality, the public security agency will issue a seal engraving permit and introduce them to the provincial or municipal public security agency with an engraving facility or refer them to the Ministry of Interior (General Police Corps) for resolution.

The time to review and process seal engraving applications shall not exceed seven days from the date of receipt of the application documents from the agencies and organizations.

d) The seal engraving permit shall be in a unified format of the General Police Corps of the Ministry of Interior.

2. Inspection of seal management and use:

2.1- Content of inspection: Inspect compliance with regulations on seal management and use as stipulated in Decree 62/CP of the Government and the contents guided in this Circular.

2.2- Forms of inspection:

- The inspection must be conducted openly, regularly or suddenly; it can involve sending cadres directly to the agencies and organizations for inspection or requiring the agencies and organizations using seals to send cadres with seals to the public security agency for inspection. After the inspection, regardless of whether violations are found or not, a record (according to the prescribed format) detailing the inspection results (with confirmation by the head of the agency or organization) must be made and given to the inspected agency or organization.

2.3- Police officers have the right to inspect:

a- Heads and Deputy Heads of Administrative Management Police Departments, Public Security Departments of provinces and centrally-administered cities.

b- Heads and Deputy Heads of Public Security Departments of counties, towns, and cities under provinces.

c- Administrative Management Police officers assigned by the heads of public security agencies at the provincial level or higher to oversee seal management work and other police officers entrusted by the heads of public security agencies at the levels mentioned in points a and b above.

d- When conducting inspections, cooperation with cadres from organizational and cadre departments of various sectors and levels is required.

3- Handling of violations

3.1- Acts of administrative violations related to seal management and use by organizations and individuals are applied and implemented according to Decree 141/HĐBT dated April 25, 1991 of the Council of Ministers (now the Government). Additionally, for individual violators, internal administrative disciplinary measures may also be imposed.

3.2- Pursue criminal responsibility according to the provisions of the Penal Code for cases of using counterfeit seals or exploiting seals for illegal activities.

3.3- Seize seals if agencies and organizations have decisions on merger, division, dissolution but fail to hand over seals to the public security agency as prescribed; use seals without registering seal models with the public security agency issuing the seal engraving permit; continue to use seals illegally after a decision to suspend use and confiscate has been made by the competent authorities.

III- IMPLEMENTATION

1- To strictly implement the Government Decree, bring seal management and use into a regular and strict system, the Government Organizational and Cadre Department and the Ministry of Interior propose:

a- Heads of Ministries, agencies equivalent to ministries, directly subordinate agencies of the Government, heads of central agencies and organizations, Chairmen of People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities guide subordinate levels, sectors, and units to fully implement the provisions of Government Decree 62/CP dated September 22, 1993, and this guiding circular.

b- The heads of political and social organizations within the Vietnam Fatherland Front shall exchange and reach consensus with the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Government Organizational and Cadre Department to review and supplement regulations and guidelines on the management and use of seals within their organizational systems; take measures to correct any loopholes and deficiencies to ensure that seal management and use comply with government regulations.

c- The Ministry of Home Affairs shall coordinate with the Government Religious Board to guide religious organizations permitted by the State to operate on the model of seals, scope of seal usage within their organizational systems, and must register the seal model with the police authority before use.

d- The Ministry of Home Affairs shall coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to review agencies and organizations currently using seals in diplomatic work to jointly revise seal models and standardize seal management and use in accordance with current diplomatic practices; manage the use of seals by other Vietnamese agencies and organizations permitted to use seals abroad outside the scope of diplomatic work, and oversee the use of seals by foreign agencies, organizations, and individuals in Vietnam.

e- The Ministry of National Defense shall re-examine the engraving, management, and use of seals by military units; take measures to correct any loopholes and deficiencies in seal management and storage, and cooperate with the Ministry of Home Affairs to implement seal management according to Decree No. 62/CP dated September 22, 1993 of the Government.

2- Personnel departments at all levels shall be responsible for examining and determining new agencies and organizations requesting permission to use seals that do not yet fall under any category in the State administrative machinery or economic-social organizations; recommend to the Government or People's Committees of provinces and centrally-administered cities whether to approve or disapprove establishment, and issue formal documents for the police authority to guide seal models, handle engraving, and inspect seal management and use by these agencies and organizations.

3- The General Police Force of the Ministry of Home Affairs shall provide specific guidance on seal models; organize and guide the engraving process and the start date for using new seal models for agencies and organizations, ensuring compliance with national regulations, and coordinate with personnel departments to inspect the implementation of this Circular.

4- This Circular takes effect from the date of signature. All previous circulars issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Government Organizational and Cadre Department regarding seal management and use that conflict with this Circular are hereby abolished.