Legalising Marriage and Birth Certificates for Use in Vietnam

Marriage certificates, birth certificates and certificates of single status issued abroad usually need consular legalisation and a notarised Vietnamese translation before Vietnamese authorities accept them. You typically need them to marry a Vietnamese citizen, to get a TT (family) visa or temporary residence card, a 5-year visa exemption, or to register a child’s birth. This guide covers each document and the two ways to legalise it: in the issuing country or in Vietnam.

Contents

When do civil status documents need legalisation?

Document	Typical use in Vietnam
Marriage certificate	TT residence card or TT visa, 5-year visa exemption for the spouse of a Vietnamese citizen; recording a foreign marriage in Vietnam
Birth certificate	Proving the parent–child relationship for a TT card or 5-year exemption; proving Vietnamese origin
Certificate of no impediment / single status	Registering a marriage with a Vietnamese citizen

Option 1 (recommended): in the issuing country

Step 1: obtain the original or a certified copy of the marriage, birth or single-status certificate from your civil registry.
Step 2: have the seal and signature certified by that country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (or authorised body).
Step 3: submit it to the Vietnamese embassy or consulate in that country for consular legalisation.
Step 4: bring it to Vietnam and have it translated into Vietnamese and notarised.

This is the fastest and safest route because everything is done where the document was issued.

Option 2: in Vietnam

Step 1: the document must first be certified by the issuing country’s authority, usually its Ministry of Foreign Affairs or its embassy in Vietnam.
Step 2: apply for legalisation at the Consular Department (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hanoi) or the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Foreign Affairs, with the application form.
Step 3: collect the result, then have it translated into Vietnamese and notarised.

Processing at the Consular Department usually takes 1 working day, up to 5 working days for many documents. Details: consular legalisation in Vietnam.

Notes for each document

Single status certificate: Vietnamese civil registries usually only accept one issued within the last 6 months if no validity is stated. Get it close to the date you file your marriage application.
Marriage certificate issued abroad: if one spouse is Vietnamese, after legalisation the marriage should be recorded in the Vietnamese civil registry.
Birth certificate: use the full (long-form) version showing the parents’ names.
Names must match the passport: check the spelling on the documents against the passport before translation.

When is legalisation not needed?

Countries with a judicial assistance agreement with Vietnam on civil and family matters, such as Russia, China, France, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine, Belarus, Bulgaria, Laos, Cambodia, Mongolia and Kazakhstan: civil status documents are usually exempt. Check with the receiving authority first.
Apostille Convention countries: since 11 September 2026, public documents with an apostille can be used in Vietnam instead of consular legalisation (except from countries that objected to Vietnam’s accession). A notarised Vietnamese translation is still required.

FAQ

How long does legalising a marriage certificate take?

Usually 1 working day at the Consular Department if the document was correctly certified by the issuing country. The total time depends on the certification step abroad and shipping.