Vietnam Criminal Record Certificate: How to Apply, Fees and Processing Times

You have agreed on a start date, gathered your documents and finally feel that your move to Vietnam is coming together. Then someone asks for a criminal record certificate. A quick search produces several names, two certificate types and conflicting advice about where to apply.

For a small business owner hiring a foreign employee, that confusion can interrupt onboarding. For an individual preparing an overseas application, it can mean ordering a document in a format the receiving authority will not accept.

The timing matters. Vietnam’s amended Law on Judicial Records, took effect on the first of July two thousand and twenty-six. It changed application procedures, processing times and how organizations may request criminal record information. This guide reflects those changes as of the fifteenth of October two thousand and twenty-six.

What Is a Vietnam Criminal Record Certificate?

A Vietnam criminal record certificate, also called a judicial record certificate or police clearance certificate, is an official document confirming a person’s criminal record status. It can also contain information about court-imposed restrictions on holding positions or establishing and managing enterprises or cooperatives.

Although people commonly call it a police check, it is a specific certificate issued through Vietnam’s judicial records system. It is not a residence confirmation or a general character reference.

The system is now managed by the Ministry of Public Security. Issuing authorities are its Records Department and provincial or centrally governed city police authorities. Older instructions directing applicants to a Department of Justice should not be treated as current guidance.

Type One and Type Two: Which One Do You Need?

Vietnam retains two certificate types. The difference is the information disclosed, not how quickly the application is processed.

The underlying disclosure distinction remains important: an expunged conviction can still appear on Type Two. Do not select it simply because it sounds more comprehensive.

Since July two thousand and twenty-six, the law expressly prohibits agencies, organizations and individuals from requiring someone to supply Type Two. Requests for Type One or criminal record information are also restricted to circumstances authorized by specified legislation. A company’s internal hiring policy alone is not enough.

For overseas applications, obtain the receiving authority’s exact instructions and clarify any mismatch with Vietnam’s rules before paying for a certificate.

Is the Process Different for Foreigners and Vietnamese Citizens?

Both Vietnamese citizens and foreigners who currently reside, or previously resided, in Vietnam can request their own certificates from age sixteen. Foreigners do not receive a separate category of certificate.

The practical differences concern identification, access to digital services and where documents are sent.

Online filing is the default under the amended law. However, foreigners and people without electronic identification can apply in person or by post. This distinction matters if you are an expat without usable access to the online application service.

A Vietnamese certificate should not be assumed to replace every police certificate requested from your home country or another country where you lived. Ask the receiving authority which jurisdictions it needs covered.

Why It Matters for Individuals and Small Businesses

Criminal record documentation can arise in foreign-worker applications, regulated professional activities and overseas immigration or study procedures. The requirement depends on the particular application, so begin with its current checklist.

For example, criminal record documents older than six months can cause problems in foreign-worker applications. That is a requirement of that procedure, not a reason to assume every certificate has the same universal expiry date.

For a founder, the business risk is often a sequence of small delays: the wrong certificate, an inconsistent passport number, then a translation that needs correcting. Each can affect a planned start date.

There is also a privacy obligation. Criminal record information is sensitive personal data under the amended framework. Before adding a police check to your recruitment checklist, establish the legal basis, decide who needs access and avoid circulating it through general team chats.

Where and How to Apply

There are three submission channels, but they are not interchangeable for every applicant.

Online: Use VNeID or the National Public Service Portal. With the required electronic identification, choose the criminal record certificate service, complete the declaration, check your details, submit and follow the payment and tracking instructions. Online applications produce electronic certificates.

In person: Eligible applicants can submit to an authorized issuing office where they reside or the nearest authorized office. Check the police authority’s current reception location before travelling. A neighbourhood police station should not automatically be assumed to issue the certificate.

By post: Foreigners living in Vietnam send applications to the competent authority where they reside. Foreigners who have left Vietnam send them to the Ministry of Public Security’s competent issuing authority. Vietnamese citizens use the authority for their permanent residence, or temporary residence if they have no permanent residence; those living abroad use their last residence before departure. Postal applications require authentication of the applicant’s signature.

For Vietnamese citizens with level-two electronic identification, online filing is the normal personal application route. Family applications and authorized representatives provide additional routes where the conditions are met.

What Should You Prepare?

Start with the current application form or online declaration. Use the form supplied by the receiving authority rather than a saved template from an older guide.

Have your passport or Vietnamese identity document available so you can enter and verify your details accurately. Foreign applicants should also have their Vietnam residence history and relevant residence documents ready in case clarification is needed. Do not assume that every supporting document must be submitted in every application.

Depending on your route, prepare:

• A completed declaration, with an authenticated signature for postal filing.
• A notarized or certified authorization document when a non-family representative applies.
• Evidence supporting any fee reduction or exemption.
• The receiving institution’s instructions if you need a particular certificate type or paper format.

One correction to older advice is especially useful: authorization is now possible for both Type One and Type Two applications. The amended framework replaced the former prohibition on authorizing another person to request Type Two.

Applications for a parent, spouse, child or person under guardianship do not require the same written authorization as an unrelated representative. Other authorized representatives apply in person or by post.

Before submitting, compare your full name, date of birth and passport number across the application and the documents that will accompany it. A five-minute check here can save a second round of paperwork.

Electronic or Paper: Decide Before Applying

Electronic and paper certificates have equal legal value under Vietnamese law. Online filing produces an electronic certificate; direct and postal filing produce paper certificates. Authenticated criminal record information displayed on VNeID also has legal value under the new framework.

The practical question is whether your receiving institution can use the electronic format. An overseas process may still require paper, translation and consular formalities.

In August two thousand and twenty-six, the Ministry of Public Security confirmed an interim arrangement for Vietnamese citizens already issued an electronic certificate: an additional paper certificate can be considered when they demonstrate both the purpose of use and a foreign diplomatic mission’s requirement for paper.

That is more specific than saying everyone must prove a purpose for every paper application. Keep the mission’s written checklist or instructions, and ask the issuing authority which route applies to your circumstances.

Do not assume that printing an electronic certificate yourself creates the official paper certificate required overseas.

Fees and Processing Times

The standard government fee is 200,000 VND. The reduced rate is 100,000 VND for qualifying groups, including students and specified beneficiaries. Exemptions also apply where the conditions are met.

If more than two certificates are requested at once, an additional VND five thousand applies from the third certificate onward. The earlier online rates of VND one hundred and seventy thousand and VND eighty thousand applied only through the thirty-first of December two thousand and twenty-five.

Budget separately for postage, translation, certification, consular procedures and any professional assistance. An agency’s package price is not the government application fee.

Since the first of July two thousand and twenty-six, the statutory processing period is five working days from receipt of a valid request. Where conviction information or new criminal conduct requires verification, the period can extend, but must not exceed fifteen days.

This is the issuance period. It does not include the time you spend correcting an incomplete application, delivery or preparing documents for overseas use. Build your schedule around the complete process.

Before You Submit, Check the Destination

The most useful first question is simple: what exactly does the receiving authority need?

Confirm the certificate type, permitted format, document-age requirement and any translation or consular steps. If your company is requesting it, confirm the legal basis as well.

Then work backwards from your deadline. Keep the application reference, payment receipt and final document together, and check the issued certificate immediately for errors.

Vietnam’s criminal record system has become more digital, but getting the right result still depends on matching the application to its purpose. For expats and small business owners, that preparation can make the difference between a routine administrative task and a delayed next step.

If you need help understanding your application or finding a legal, immigration or translation professional, EasyTiger can help you find the right specialist in Vietnam.