A birth certificate in paper version. — Photo luatminhkhue.vn

HCM CITY — The HCM City Department of Justice has proposed the Ministry of Justice pilot the issuance of electronic civil status records instead of a paper version as part of efforts to enhance satisfaction with civil status registration.

Nguyễn Triều Lưu, head of the department’s Civil Status Registration Agency, said under a 2020 government decree regulating online civil status registration, Vietnamese citizens are able to register for civil status online. 

But no cities or provinces have been able to implement online civil status registration yet since the electronic civil status database system has not been synchronised nationwide, he added.

As a result, the issuance of civil status on paper must still be done in person at the People’s Committee of the province or commune where the birth was originally registered.

According to Lưu, it is much more convenient to use electronic civil status documents in transactions, administrative procedures or when travelling by plane. 

He said, for example, when travelling by plane, parents only need to provide an electronic copy of their child’s birth certificate (including a QR Code) instead of a paper version.

According to the Ministry of Justice, the ministry would continue improving its electronic civil status registration system to connect with the national population administration database managed by the Ministry of Public Security to enable online civil status registration.

According to the law, to register civil status online, people first need to create an account at the national public service portal or provincial public service portals; second, provide information; third, attach images or copies of documents required; then pay the fee online or in other forms; and lastly receive the electronic civil status.

Civil status papers include birth certificate, death certificate, marriage certificate, divorce certificate and certificate of registered partnership, among others.

Since June 2022, the city authorities have piloted issuing online copies of civil status papers (or extracts of civil status papers). After three months of implementation, 206,000 copies of civil status papers have been issued electronically.

Online civil status registration is expected to help people handle administrative procedures easily without having to queue for a long time. 

The use of online public services will also help reduce bureaucracy and increase the transparency of State agencies. — VNS