English
Tiếng ViệtCriminal Record Certificate, or Police Check Certificate, is a compulsory document that foreigners must provide when applying for a work permit in Vietnam. Learn what is a valid criminal record certificate to be used in Vietnam, and how to obtain it.
What is a valid criminal record certificate for a Vietnam work permit application?
A criminal record certificate is considered valid for a work permit application in Vietnam if it meets the following requirements:
- Being a certificate issued by a competent authority in Vietnam or overseas, which certifies that a foreigner is not: in the period of serving imprisonment; or having a criminal record that has not been expunged; or in the process of being prosecuted for criminal liability;
- Being issued no more than 06 months as of submission date for a Vietnam work permit application.
Option 1: Using criminal record certificates issued abroad
Foreigners can use criminal record certificates issued abroad to apply for a work permit in Vietnam. This option is suitable for foreigners who have never been resided in Vietnam.
- This document may have different names depending on each country, such as: Police Check Certificate, Certificate of Clearance, National Police Certificate, Police Clearance Certificate, and so on.. In addition, some criminal record certificates’ content will include the purpose of using the document, for example: to apply for a work permit in Vietnam. Please contact the competent agency issuing criminal records in your home country for further guidance, such as in Australia, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia.
- In addition, criminal record certificates issued by foreign agencies need consular legalization and notarized translation into Vietnamese to be used legally in Vietnam.
Option 2: Using criminal record certificates issued in Vietnam
1. Conditions for foreigners to be granted criminal record certificates in Vietnam
Pursuant to Article 7 of the Law on Judicial Records, a foreigner who resided or is currently residing in Vietnam may apply for a Criminal Record Certificate No. 1 (Phieu Ly Lich Tu Phap So 1) in order to confirm whether or not the foreigner has criminal records in Vietnam in the period of residing in Vietnam.
2. Required documents to apply for a Vietnam criminal record certificate No. 1
- An application form No. 03 provided in Circular 16/2013/TT-BTP
- The applicant’s passport (all pages)
- A Certificate of temporary residency certified by a local police
- An authorization letter made in a Vietnam public notary office (if the foreigner authorizes a Vietnamese to submit the application)
- A copy of authorized person’s ID card (if any)
3. Procedures by direct submission
- Step 1: Prepare the required documents
- Step 2: Submit the documents to the Department of Justice where the applicant resides
- Step 3: Receive the result after 12 working days
4. Procedures by online submission
- Step 1: The requester accesses the National Public Service Portal
- Step 2: Login, find the procedure “Issuing a criminal record certificate”, select the province/city where the foreigner resides, and proceed to submit the application as prescribed.
- Step 3: Choose the form for submitting the application and receiving results by postal delivery
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, foreigners can authorize other Vietnamese individuals to carry out the procedures for applying for a criminal record certificate, if parties have an authorization letter made in a Vietnam public notary office.
For foreigners, the time to consider and approve the application for a criminal record card shall not exceed 20 working days from the date of receiving valid documents. If registering to receive results by delivery, foreigners will need an additional 1-3 days to be sent to the registered address.
The fee for issuance of a criminal record certificate to foreigners is VND 200,000/time/person. If requesting to issue 3 or more criminal record certificates at one time, the 3rd certificate onward will have to pay an additional VND 5,000/certificate. In addition, if registering to submit documents and return results in Vietnam by post, foreigners must pay an additional delivery fee from VND 20,000 to VND 60,000.
Conclusion
The criminal record certificate is an important document for Vietnamese employers and authorities to check the background of foreigners before approving them to work in Vietnam.
If you find it difficult in the process of applying for a criminal record certificate or want to use the service to save time, please contact Nova Law to get our service quotation.
