Should the birth registration of children born in Vietnam to a Vietnamese mother and a foreign father be in Vietnamese or foreign names?

T.N.T.T., a resident of Tan Phong Ward, District 7, Ho Chi Minh City recently reported to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that her attempt to register her child’s foreign name was rejected by local civil servants.

According to T., who holds both Vietnamese and foreign citizenship, her husband is a foreign national. 

The couple lives in District 7, and earlier this month, T. gave birth to their child.

When attempting to register the birth, T. encountered difficulties as she wanted to give her child a foreign name. 

“Before giving birth, I consulted with a civil servant about naming my child,” T. recalled. 

“I wanted my child to have my husband’s surname, followed by the name ‘Mia,’ which is easy to write in Vietnamese and has a sweet meaning in foreign languages.”

T. said that initially, the civil servant had agreed to the name, but when she went to register the birth, another official rejected the name, claiming that under Vietnamese law, children with Vietnamese nationality must have Vietnamese names.

The civil servant explained that since T. is a Vietnamese citizen and gave birth in Vietnam, the child is automatically eligible for Vietnamese nationality and must therefore have a Vietnamese name that adheres to Vietnamese grammatical rules.

In response to T.’s concerns, officials at the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice stated that all children with Vietnamese citizenship must have a Vietnamese name upon birth registration.

According to the rules, since T. is Vietnamese and gave birth in Vietnam, her child automatically qualifies for Vietnamese nationality. 

However, as her husband is a foreign national, both parents must provide written agreement on whether the child will have Vietnamese or foreign nationality.

If the parents agree on Vietnamese nationality for the child, the child must have a Vietnamese name.

If they choose foreign nationality, the child can have a foreign name, officials clarified.

When can foreign names be given to Vietnamese children in Vietnam?

Lawyer Hua Thi Thao from the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association provided further clarification, saying that if T. and her husband select Vietnamese nationality for their child, the name must be Vietnamese. 

According to Circular 04/2020, Vietnamese citizens must have names in Vietnamese or one of the country’s ethnic languages, which means English names are not permitted for Vietnamese citizens.

If the couple agrees to give their child foreign nationality, they must submit written agreement to confirm the child’s foreign nationality, contact the relevant consular office in Ho Chi Minh City to confirm the nationality, and then register the birth at the district-level People’s Committee.

Thao emphasized that the parents must choose whether to grant their child Vietnamese nationality or foreign nationality, as the name registration process depends on the chosen nationality.

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