Can a Foreign Trader’s Representative Office Use Multiple Seals? Required Documents to Register an Additional Seal

Can a foreign trader’s representative office use multiple seals?

(1) Under Article 1 of Decree 99/2016/ND-CP — Scope of regulation

“1. This Decree regulates the management and use of seals of state agencies, people’s armed forces units, agencies in the organizational system of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, economic organizations, associations, social funds, charitable funds, non-governmental organizations, religious organizations, foreign organizations operating in Vietnam, and other organizations established and operating in accordance with the law (hereinafter collectively referred to as agencies and organizations), and state titles.

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2. This Decree does not regulate:

a) The management and use of seals of enterprises registered and operating in accordance with the Law on Enterprises and the Law on Investment;

b) Title seals; date, month, year seals; incoming-document receipt seals; signature seals.”

(2) Under Article 5 of Decree 99/2016/ND-CP on the conditions for use of seals by representative offices as follows:

“1. Agencies, organizations and state titles may only use seals when there are provisions permitting the use of seals in normative legal documents or decisions of competent authorities; and must register the seal specimen before use.

2. The use of seals bearing the national emblem must be provided for in a law, ordinance, decree or decision of the Prime Minister prescribing the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the agency or organization, or provided for in an international treaty to which Vietnam is a member.

3. Agencies, organizations and state titles having the function of issuing diplomas, certificates and documents with affixed photos or sealing documents as prescribed by law are permitted to use embossed seals, reduced-size seals or wax seals.

4. Agencies, organizations and state titles may only use one seal in the specimen prescribed by the competent state authority.

Where it is necessary to use additional seals of the same type as the issued seal (wet-ink seal, embossed seal, reduced-size seal, wax seal), the following shall apply:

a) Agencies, organizations and state titles using additional wet-ink seals must obtain permission from the competent authority;

b) Agencies, organizations and state titles shall decide by themselves on the use of additional embossed seals, reduced-size seals or wax seals;

c) Economic organizations shall decide by themselves on the use of additional seals.”

Thus, in your case, the law does not restrict a representative office from obtaining an additional new seal.

What documents are included in the dossier to register an additional seal for a representative office?

Under Article 16 of Decree 99/2016/ND-CP, the dossier to request registration of an additional seal of a representative office is as follows:

– For agencies, organizations and state titles registering additional wet-ink seals: A written permission from the competent authority permitting the use of additional wet-ink seals.

– For agencies, organizations and state titles registering additional embossed seals, reduced-size seals or wax seals: A written request for registration of additional seals from the head of the agency or organization or the state title.

– For economic organizations registering additional wet-ink seals, embossed seals, reduced-size seals or wax seals: A written request for registration of additional seals from the head of the economic organization.

Accordingly, in your case, only a written request for registration of additional seals from the head of the economic organization is needed.

Which authority receives the dossier for registration of seal specimens of a representative office?

Under Clause 2, Article 12 of Decree 99/2016/ND-CP, the seal specimen registration authority is as follows:

– The Police Division for Administrative Management of Social Order of the provincial/municipal Department of Public Security is responsible for registering seal specimens; issuing, replacing and re-issuing seal specimen registration certificates for agencies and organizations, including:

+ People’s Councils and People’s Committees at all levels; National Assembly delegations, Offices of National Assembly delegations of centrally-run provinces and cities; Offices of provincial People’s Councils;

+ Agencies in the organizational system of central ministries and sectors at the locality;

+ Provincial/municipal People’s Procuracies; district, town, provincial-city People’s Procuracies and equivalents; units affiliated with these agencies;

+ Provincial/municipal People’s Courts; district, town, provincial-city People’s Courts and equivalents; units affiliated with these agencies;

+ Provincial/municipal Departments of Public Security; provincial/municipal Fire Prevention and Fighting Police; district, town, provincial-city Police; commune, ward, town Police; units affiliated with these agencies;

+ Criminal judgment enforcement agencies of the provincial-level Public Security, criminal judgment enforcement agencies of the district-level Public Security, temporary detention camps under the provincial-level Public Security, units affiliated with these agencies;

+ Security Investigation Agencies, Police Investigation Agencies of the provincial-level Public Security; Police Investigation Agencies of the district-level Public Security; units affiliated with these agencies;

+ Military Commands at commune level, Military Commands of grassroots agencies and organizations;

+ Provincial-level and district-level civil judgment enforcement agencies;

+ Specialized agencies and public service units affiliated with provincial-level and district-level People’s Committees, units affiliated with these agencies and organizations;

+ Agencies in the organizational system of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the Vietnam Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, socio-political-professional organizations, social organizations, socio-professional organizations, religious organizations, social funds, charitable funds, non-governmental organizations established by local competent authorities or licensed to operate, organizations affiliated with these agencies and organizations;

+ Economic organizations established by local competent authorities or granted operation registration certificates or operation licenses, and their affiliated organizations;

+ Foreign organizations without diplomatic functions licensed to operate by local competent authorities;

+ Election Councils at provincial, district and commune levels, Election Boards for National Assembly deputies, Election Boards for provincial-level People’s Council deputies, Election Boards for district-level People’s Council deputies, Election Boards for commune-level People’s Council deputies, Election Teams;

+ Other organizations established by local competent authorities or licensed to operate;

+ Certain cases under authorization of the seal specimen registration authority prescribed in Clause 1 of this Article.

Thus, in this case, the Police Division for Administrative Management of Social Order of the provincial/municipal Department of Public Security is responsible for registering seal specimens for representative offices of foreign traders.