Does an agreement on establishment of the matrimonial property regime need to be notarized or certified in Vietnam?

1. Does an agreement on establishment of the matrimonial property regime need to be notarized or certified in Vietnam?

Article 47 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014 provides for an agreement on establishment of the matrimonial property regime, according to which:

For a married couple that selects the agreed property regime, this agreement shall be made in writing before their marriage and be notarized or certified. The agreed matrimonial property regime shall be established on the date of marriage registration.

In Article 49 of the Law on Marriage and Family 2014, modification of the agreement on the matrimonial property regime, as follows:

1. Husband and wife have the right to modify their agreement on the property regime.

2. The form of modification of the agreement on the property regime must comply with Article 47 of this Law.

In addition, Article 17 of Decree 126/2014/ND-CP stipulates modification and supplementation of contents of the matrimonial property regime:

1. In case of applying the agreed matrimonial property regime, during the marriage period, husband and wife may reach agreement to modify and supplement some or all contents of that property regime or apply the statutory matrimonial property regime.

2. The agreement modifying and supplementing the matrimonial property regime shall be notarized or certified in accordance with law.

According to this Article, when you and your husband make an agreement on establishment of the matrimonial property regime in Vietnam, it must be made in writing before their marriage and be notarized or certified.

2. What is implementation of notarization of written agreements on division of estate in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 57 of the Law on Notary 2014 stipulating notarization of written agreements on division of estate, according to which:

1. The heirs at law or under a testament which does not specify the portion of the estate to be enjoyed by each heir may request notarization of their written agreement on the division of the estate.

In the written agreement on the division of the estate, an heir may donate the whole or part of his/her portion of the estate to another heir.

2. In case the estate is land use rights or an asset subject to ownership registration under law, the notarization request dossier must comprise the papers proving the estate leaver’s land use rights or ownership of that estate.

In case of inheritance under law, the notarization request dossier must comprise the papers proving the relationship between the estate leaver and the estate heir in accordance with the law on inheritance. In case of inheritance under a testament, the notarization request dossier must comprise a copy of the testament.

3. A notary shall verify whether an estate leaver is the person having land use rights or asset ownership and the notarization requesters are estate heirs; if suspecting or having grounds to believe that the leaving and inheritance of the estate are unlawful, the notary may reject the notarization request or conduct verification or solicit assessment at the request of the notarization requester.

Notarial practice organizations shall post up information on the acceptance for notarization of written agreements on division of estate before conducting the notarization.

4. A notarized agreement on division of estate serves as a basis for competent state agencies to register the transfer of land use rights or asset ownership to estate heirs.

Thus, comparing with this provision, the notarization of written agreements on division of estate is carried out as above in Vietnam.

Best Regards!