THE
PRIME MINISTER OF GOVERNMENT
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SOCIALIST
REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness
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No:
142/2000/QD-TTg
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Hanoi,
December 11, 2000
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DECISION
ISSUING THE REGULATION ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
AGREEMENT ON CHILD ADOPTION COOPERATION BETWEEN THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF
VIETNAM AND THE REPUBLIC OF FRANCE
THE PRIME MINISTER
Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the
Government of September 30, 1992;
Pursuant to the Law on the Promulgation of Legal Documents of November 12,
1996;
Pursuant to the Marriage and Family Law (No. 22/2000/QH10) of June 9, 2000;
Pursuant to the Ordinance (No. 07/1998/PL-UBTVQH10) on the Conclusion and
Implementation of International Agreements of August 20, 1998 of the National
Assembly Standing Committee and the Government’s Decree No. 161/1999/ND-CP of
October 18, 1999 detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the
Ordinance on the Conclusion and Implementation of International Agreements;
Pursuant to the State President’s Decision No. 120/QD-CTN of July 14, 2000
ratifying the Agreement on Child Adoption Cooperation between the Socialist
Republic of Vietnam and the Republic of France;
At the proposals of the Minister of Justice, the Minister for Foreign Affairs
and the Minister of Public Security,
DECIDES:
Article 1.- To issue
together with this Decision the Regulation on the implementation of the
Agreement on Child Adoption Cooperation between the Socialist Republic of
Vietnam and the Republic of France.
Article 2.- This
Decision takes effect 15 days after its signing. The Government Office’s
Official Dispatch No. 2077/VPCP-PC of May 15, 1999 notifying the Prime
Minister’s opinion on suspending the receipt of dossiers from French citizens
and permanent residents in France applying for adoption of Vietnamese children
now ceases to be effective.
The Minister of Justice shall direct the
prioritized settlement of dossiers of application for child adoption filed by
French citizens and permanent residents in France, which remain unsettled due
to the execution of the suspension decision mentioned in paragraph 1 of this
Article.
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PRIME MINISTER
Phan Van Khai
REGULATION
ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE AGREEMENT ON CHILD ADOPTION
COOPERATION BETWEEN THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM AND THE REPUBLIC OF
FRANCE
(Issued together with the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 142/2000/QD-TTg of
December 11, 2000)
Chapter I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1.- Scope of
application
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Article 2.- Principles
for the settlement of child adoption and the law application
1. The settlement of child adoption must serve
the humanitarian purposes as well as the best interests of children and the
respect for their fundamental rights.
It is strictly forbidden to take advantage of
the recommendation of children for adoption and the settlement of child
adoption for the purposes of trafficking, profit-seeking or other purposes
contrary to laws and social morality.
2. The processing of dossiers filed by French
citizens and foreigners permanently residing in France, including cases where
they are residing temporarily outside France for a definite term, (hereinafter
called the adopters) applying for the adoption of children who are Vietnamese
citizens residing in Vietnam must comply with the provisions of the Agreement
and other relevant provisions of the Vietnamese legislation.
Where the Agreement contains provisions on the
child adoption-settling order and procedures different from the provisions of
the Vietnamese legislation, such provisions of the Agreement shall apply.
Article 3.- Children
to be recommended for adoption
Children who may be recommended and permitted
for adoption and according to this Regulation are those who are staying at the
children-rearing establishments lawfully set up in the provinces and
centrally-run cities.
In cases where a child is orphaned or disabled
and the adopter previously adopted his/her natural sibling(s), or for other
humanitarian reasons approved by the Ministry of Justice, the adopter shall be
permitted to ask for the adoption of the very child from his/her family.
Chapter II
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Article 4.- Child
adoption application dossiers
1. Child adoption application dossiers must be
compiled in accordance with the Agreement. Foreign-language papers in a child
adoption application dossier must be translated into Vietnamese and the
translations be authenticated by the Vietnamese Embassy in France.
2. Child adoption application dossiers must be
sent by the French International Mission for Child Adoption to the Ministry of
Justice via diplomatic channels. For cases authorized by the French
International Mission for Child Adoption and consented by the Ministry of
Justice, the dossiers may be sent via French organizations already licensed to
operate in the field of child adoption in Vietnam.
3. Basing itself on the Agreement and the
Vietnamese legislation on child adoption, the Ministry of Justice shall reach
agreement with the French International Mission for Child Adoption on the kinds
of papers needed for a child adoption application dossier.
Article 5.- Receipt and
processing of child adoption application dossiers at the Ministry of Justice
Within 7 days from the date of receipt of the
child adoption application dossiers prescribed in Clause 2, Article 4 of this
Regulation, the Ministry of Justice shall consider and check thoroughly such
dossiers. If deeming that the dossiers are complete and valid, the Ministry of
Justice shall send official dispatches to the People’s Committees of the
provinces or centrally-run cities (hereinafter called the provincial-level
People’s Committees) requesting the latter to recommend children for adoption;
these official dispatches shall be duplicated and sent to the French
International Mission for Child Adoption.
Where a dossier is incomplete or invalid, the
Ministry of Justice shall request the French International Mission for Child
Adoption to supplement and complete it.
Article 6.- Procedures
for recommendation of children by the children-rearing establishments
1. Within 45 days after receiving the written
requests from the Ministry of Justice as provided for in Article 5 of this
Regulation, the provincial-level People’s Committees shall have to direct the
provincial/municipal Justice Services to identify children suitable to the
aspirations of the adopters and make replies to the Ministry of Justice. Where
there are children for recommendation, they shall make written replies enclosed
with the children’s dossiers; if there are no children suitable to the
aspirations of the adopters, they shall also reply soon to the Ministry of
Justice for notification to the adopters.
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2. Procedures for identification of children and
compilation of their dossiers are prescribed as follows:
a/ Within 20 days after receiving the written
requests from the provincial/municipal Justice Services, the children-rearing
establishments shall have to identify children to be recommended for adoption
and compile two sets of dossier for each child under the guidance of the
Ministry of Justice. Where authorized in writing by the adopter, the French
organization already licensed to operate in the field of child adoption in
Vietnam shall be allowed to make first contacts with the children and may take
the children for supplementary health check-ups if so agreed by the heads of
the rearing establishments; the costs related to the supplementary health
check-ups shall be covered by the adopters;
b/ Within 10 days after receiving the written recommendations
from the rearing establishments and the children’s dossiers, the
provincial/municipal Justice Services shall have to consider and check the
dossiers thoroughly. If deeming that the children’s dossiers are complete and
valid, they shall send written reports to the presidents of the
provincial-level People’s Committees for authorization to report the results to
the Ministry of Justice, enclosed with one dossier set of each child.
Where a child’s dossier is incomplete or invalid
or deeming the child’s background is unclear, the provincial/municipal Justice
Service shall request the rearing establishment to supplement and complete the
dossier or coordinate with the provincial police in verifying the child’s
background. The time limit prescribed for this work shall not exceed 10 days.
Article 7.- Procedures
for recommendation of children from their families
Where the adopter wishes to adopt a particular
child from his/her family in accordance with the provisions in Article 3 of
this Regulation, the provincial-level People’s Committee shall direct the
provincial/municipal Justice Service to guide the natural parents or guardian
to compile two dossier sets for the child under the guidance with the Ministry
of Justice.
The consideration and checking of the child’s
dossier and the notification of the result to the Ministry of Justice shall
comply with the provisions at Point b, Clause 2, Article 6 of this Regulation.
The time limit for recommendation of children
from their families shall be 30 days as from the date of receipt of the written
requests of the Ministry of Justice as provided for in Article 5 of this
Regulation.
Article 8.- Transfer of
child adoption application dossiers to the provincial-level People’s Committees
and notification to the adopters
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2. Within 7 days after receiving the adopters’
dossiers from the Ministry of Justice, the provincial-level People’s Committees
shall assign the provincial/municipal Justice Services to notify such in
writing directly or through the French organizations already licensed to
operate in the field of child adoption in Vietnam to the adopters.
Article 9.- Completion
of the procedures for permission of the child adoption and receipt of adopted
children at the provincial-level People’s Committees
1. Within 90 days after receiving the written
notifications from the provincial/municipal Justice Services, the adopters must
be in Vietnam to complete the child adoption procedures. If due to some
objective reasons they cannot come to Vietnam within this time limit, they may
ask the provincial/municipal Justice Services to grant an extension but the
total time must not exceed 6 months.
2. Within 5 days after the adopters come to the
provincial/municipal Justice Services, pay the child adoption registration fee
according to the law provisions and sign the written commitments to report the
development of the adopted children for supplement to the child adoption
application dossiers, the provincial/municipal Justice Services shall complete
the child adoption dossiers and submit them to the provincial-level People’s
Committee presidents for signing of the decisions to permit the child adoption.
Within 7 days after receiving the reports
together with the child adoption dossiers from the provincial/municipal Justice
Services, the presidents of the provincial-level People’s Committees shall
consider and sign the decisions to permit the child adoption.
Within 7 days after the presidents of the
provincial-level People’s Committees sign the decisions to permit the child
adoptions, the provincial/municipal Justice Services shall organize ceremonies
for the hand-over and receipt of the adopted children according to the law
provisions, hand over to the adoptive parents the original decisions to permit
the child adoption and the original minutes on the hand-over and receipt of the
adopted children as well as the civil status papers of the adopted children
under the guidance of the Ministry of Justice.
Article 10.-
Notification of the decisions to permit the child adoption
1. Within 7 days from the date of the hand-over
and receipt of an adopted child, the provincial/municipal Justice Service shall
send to the Ministry of Justice the copy of the decision on the child adoption,
the minutes of the hand-over and receipt of the adopted child and the adoptive parents’
written commitment to report on the development of the adopted child, which
shall be added up to the child adoption application dossier for archival and
general monitoring. At the same time, the provincial/municipal Justice Service
shall send a copy of the decision on the child adoption to the People’s
Committee of the locality where the child’s birth is registered for completion
of the procedures to make a note on the child adoption registration.
2. Quarterly, the Ministry of Justice shall draw
up lists of decisions on child adoption settled throughout the country under
this Agreement, and decisions on adopted children sent by the French courts to
the Ministry for Foreign Affairs for the performance of the task stated in
Clause 2, Article 12 of this Regulation.
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RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE
BODIES AND THE MECHANISM OF COORDINATION IN PROCESSING CHILD ADOPTION
APPLICATION DOSSIERS
Article 11.-
Responsibilities of the Ministry of Justice
The Ministry of Justice, being the central body of
the Vietnamese side as provided for in Article 2 of the Agreement, shall act as
the key body in the implementation of the provisions of the Agreement and have
the following tasks and powers:
1. To promulgate documents guiding the
implementation of the provisions of this Regulation;
2. To direct and guide the provincial-level
People’s Committees in processing dossiers on the adoption of Vietnamese
children.
3. To set up and lead the Vietnamese
inter-branch working team for participation in the Vietnam-France joint working
team according to the provisions in Article 20 of the Agreement.
4. To issue operation licenses to qualified
French organizations for their operation for humanitarian and non-profit
purposes in the field of child adoption in Vietnam so as to perform the tasks
authorized by the French International Mission for Child Adoption and assist
the adopters in completing the child adoption procedures; to manage activities
of French organizations already licensed to operate in the field of child adoption
in Vietnam;
5. To ensure that the child adoption application
dossiers comply with the provisions in Clause 3, Article 10 of the Agreement
and this Regulation, and take responsibility for such dossiers.
6. To make annual reports to the Prime Minister
on the implementation of the Agreement and this Regulation.
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The Ministry for Foreign Affairs shall
coordinate with the Ministry of Justice and the competent Vietnamese bodies in
implementing the Agreement and have the following tasks and powers:
1. To handle external matters arising in the
course of implementing the Agreement;
2. To direct the Vietnamese Embassy in France to
recommend the contents of the Agreement, this Regulation and relevant legal
documents of Vietnam on child adoption; to guide the adopters to complete the
dossiers of application for adoption of Vietnamese children; to facilitate the
procedures for the translation of such dossiers and the authentication of their
translations as well as the procedures for the adopters to enter Vietnam; to
closely coordinate with the domestic bodies in protecting the legitimate rights
and interests of adopted Vietnamese children in France.
Article 13.-
Responsibilities of the Ministry of Public Security
The Ministry of Public Security shall coordinate
with the Ministry of Justice and the competent Vietnamese bodies in
implementing the Agreement, and have the following tasks and powers:
1. To direct the provincial/municipal police agencies
to, when requested, closely coordinate with the provincial/municipal Justice
Services in checking dossiers and verifying the backgrounds of children
recommended for adoption; to issue passports in time and create favorable
conditions for children who have been permitted by the presidents of the
provincial-level People’s Committees for adoption to exit Vietnam;
2. To take measures to prevent and combat acts
of taking advantage of recommending children for adoption and settling the
child adoption for the purposes of trafficking in children, seeking profits,
and other illegal acts in the child adoption;
3. To coordinate with the Ministry of Justice in
managing the French organizations already licensed to operate in the field of
child adoption in Vietnam;
4. To perform other tasks and powers in the
field of child adoption involving foreigners according to law provisions.
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The ministries, the ministerial-level agencies
and the agencies attached to the Government shall, within the scope of their
respective tasks and powers, have to coordinate with the Ministry of Justice,
the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Public Security in
implementing the Agreement and this Regulation.
Article 15.-
Responsibilities of the provincial-level People’s Committees
The provincial-level People’s Committees of the
localities where the establishments rearing the children recommended for adoption
are based or where the children to be adopted reside, shall act as the bodies
competent to decide the permission of child adoption as provided for in Clause
1, Article 7 of the Agreement and have to implement the relevant provisions of
the Agreement and perform the following tasks and powers:
1. To receive dossiers of the adopters from the
Ministry of Justice; to direct the provincial/municipal Justice Services to
coordinate with the provincial/municipal police agencies and the
children-rearing establishments in processing the dossiers, ensuring that the
child adoption be effected in the humanitarian spirit and in the best interests
of children;
2. To designate the qualified children-rearing
establishments located within their respective provinces or centrally-run
cities to recommend children for adoption;
3. To ensure that the dossiers of children
recommended for adoption comply with all the provisions in Clause 1, Article 11
of the Agreement and this Regulation and to take responsibility for such
dossiers;
4. To decide the permission of child adoption
according to Clause 1, Article 7 of the Agreement and direct the
provincial/municipal Justice Services to organize the hand-over and receipt of
adopted children according to law provisions;
5. To manage the activities carried out in their
respective provinces or centrally-run cities by the French organizations
already licensed to operate in the field of child adoption in Vietnam.
In performing the above-mentioned tasks and
powers, the provincial-level People’s Committees shall have to submit
themselves to the professional direction and guidance of the Ministry of
Justice and the concerned ministries and branches.
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The children-rearing establishments designated
by the provincial-level People’’s Committees to recommend children for adoption
shall have:
1. To coordinate with the provincial/municipal
Justice Services in recommending eligible children for adoption; make
periodical reports on the recommendation of children for adoption and send them
to the provincial/municipal Services of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs
and the bodies that have issued decisions to set up the establishments;
2. To ensure that the children recommended for
adoption meet all the adoption conditions prescribed by law, have clear
backgrounds as well as complete and valid dossiers.
3. To create conditions for adoptive parents and
French organizations already licensed to operate in the field of child adoption
in Vietnam to contact the children and complete the necessary procedures for
child adoption according to law provisions.
Article 17.-
Responsibilities of the inter-branch working team
1. The inter-branch working team shall be set up
by decision of the Minister of Justice, composed of representatives who are
departmental leaders of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public
Security, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and other concerned agencies, and
headed by a Vice Minister of Justice.
2. The inter-branch working team shall have the
following powers and tasks:
a/ To coordinate activities among the concerned
ministries and branches for the implementation of the Agreement and solve
problems arising in the course of implementing the Agreement and this
Regulation;
b/ To prepare annual reports on the
implementation of the Agreement and this Regulation, which shall be presented
by the Minister of Justice to the Prime Minister;
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d/ To participate in the activities of the
Vietnam-France joint working team and perform the tasks defined in Clause 2,
Article 20 of the Agreement.
Article 18.-
Responsibilities of the French organizations licensed to operate in the field
of child adoption in Vietnam
1. The French organizations licensed to operate
in the field of child adoption in Vietnam shall have the following obligations
and powers:
a/ To strictly abide by the Vietnamese laws;
respect the Vietnamese customs and practices;
b/ To operate in compliance with the contents
and scope already prescribed in their licenses;
c/ To urge and remind the adopters to fulfill
their commitments to report on the development of their adopted children;
d/ To make bi-annual reports to the Ministry of
Justice on their operations in Vietnam; concurrently to report and supply
documents or explain questions related to their operations to the Ministry of
Justice, when so requested;
e/ At the end of every fiscal year, to send
financial settlement reports to the Ministry of Justice;
f/ To be entitled to rent working offices,
recruit Vietnamese employees to work for them according to the provisions of
the Vietnamese legislation;
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3. The Ministry of Justice shall stipulate the
dossiers and procedures for the French child adoption organizations to apply
for licenses to operate in Vietnam.
Chapter IV
HANDLING OF VIOLATIONS
Article 19.- Handling
of violations
1. Those who abuse their positions and powers in
the settlement of child adoption in contravention of this Regulation and other
law provisions shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of their
violations, be disciplined or examined for penal liability according to law
provisions.
2. Those who commit acts of violating this
Regulation and other law provisions; take advantage of the recommendation of
children for adoption and the settlement of child adoption for the purposes of
exploitation of child labor, sexual abuse or child trafficking or for other
profit-seeking purposes, shall, depending on the nature and seriousness of
their violations, be administratively sanctioned or examined for penal
liability according to law provisions.