Cases in Which Employees Receive Free Identity Cards from 1 July 2024

Under the latest legal regulations, from 1 July 2024, employees will be issued identity cards free of charge if they fall into one of the following cases:

1. Re-issuance of identity cards for employees upon reaching the prescribed age
Vietnamese employees who have been issued identity cards must carry out the re-issuance procedure when they reach 14, 25, 40, and 60 years of age.

(Clause 1 Article 21, point a clause 1 Article 24, and point a clause 3 Article 38 of the Law on Identity 2023)

2. Re-issuance of identity cards for employees when changes arise from administrative unit rearrangement
Upon the request of employees issued identity cards, when the information on the identity card changes due to administrative unit rearrangement.

(Point dd clause 1 Article 24 and point a clause 3 Article 38 of the Law on Identity 2023)

3. Re-issuance of identity cards for employees due to errors by the identity management authority
Employees will be re-issued identity cards free of charge where the identity card contains errors in the printed information caused by the identity management authority.

(Point b clause 3 Article 38 of the Law on Identity 2023)

4. Procedures for re-issuance and re-granting of identity cards for employees in 2024

(i) The procedure for re-granting identity cards where the person regains Vietnamese nationality under the law on Vietnamese nationality, and the procedure for re-issuing identity cards, are carried out in accordance with Article 23 of the Law on Identity 2023.

(ii) Where identity cards are re-issued due to gender re-determination or gender transition, or due to changes or corrections to information on family name, middle name, birth name; or date of birth of the employee, where such information has not been updated or adjusted in the National Population Database, the employee applying for the identity card must present legally valid documents proving the changed information to update and adjust the information in the National Population Database.

(iii) The identity management authority collects the citizen identity cards or identity cards previously used by the employee in cases of identity card re-issuance.

(iv) The re-granting of identity cards where the identity card is lost or damaged and unusable, except for cases under Article 21 of the Law on Identity 2023, is carried out online via the public service portal, the national identification application, or in person at the place where identity card issuance procedures are handled. The identity management authority uses facial image, fingerprint, and iris information most recently collected, as well as existing information in the National Population Database and the Identity Database, to re-grant the identity card.

(Article 25 of the Law on Identity 2023)

5. Time limits for issuance, re-issuance, and re-granting of identity cards for employees in 2024
Under Article 26 of the Law on Identity 2023, within 7 working days from the date of receipt of a complete dossier as prescribed by the Law on Identity 2023, the identity management authority must issue, re-issue, or re-grant the identity card to the employee.

Article 20. Validity of identity cards — Law on Identity 2023

1. Identity cards have the value of proving the identity and other information integrated into the identity card of the cardholder for carrying out administrative procedures, public services, transactions, and other activities within the territory of Vietnam.

2. Identity cards may be used in place of immigration documents where the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and a foreign country have signed a treaty or international agreement allowing citizens of the signatory countries to use identity cards in place of immigration documents on each other’s territory.

3. Identity cards or personal identification numbers are used by agencies, organizations, and individuals to check the information of cardholders in the National Population Database, other national databases, and specialized databases in accordance with the law.

Where a cardholder is required to present the identity card at the request of a competent agency, organization, or individual, such agency, organization, or individual may not require the cardholder to present documents or provide information already printed on or integrated into the identity card; where the information has changed compared with the information on the identity card, the cardholder must provide legally valid documents proving the changed information.

4. The State protects the lawful rights and interests of identity card holders in accordance with the law.