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The National Assembly has passed a law amending 10 laws on security and order, effective from July 1, 2026. Among the amended laws is the Law on Exit and Entry of Vietnamese Citizens.
Adding cases for passport revocation and cancellation.
Notably, the new law adds three more cases for revoking or invalidating passports. Specifically, it invalidates valid ordinary passports that have already been issued.
Revoke or invalidate passports issued to individuals with incorrect information. Invalidate passports of individuals who are wanted by the authorities.
According to current regulations, cases for revoking or invalidating passports include the invalidation of a valid passport that has been lost, or in cases where more than 12 months have passed since the date the authorities scheduled the passport return but the citizen has not received the passport and has not provided written notification of the reason for not receiving it.
The passports of individuals who have renounced Vietnamese citizenship, been stripped of Vietnamese citizenship, or had their decisions granting Vietnamese citizenship revoked shall be withdrawn or invalidated.
Revocation and invalidation of valid diplomatic passports and official passports for those who are no longer eligible to use them.
Revoke and invalidate passports issued to individuals falling under the cases specified in Clause 1, Article 21 of the Law on Exit and Entry of Vietnamese Citizens.
In the report explaining, receiving feedback, and revising the draft law before it was passed by the National Assembly, the Government stated that there were suggestions to consider a provision to invalidate the passports of wanted individuals.
If the person is in a country without a Vietnamese diplomatic mission, they cannot apply for a replacement passport.
Therefore, it is suggested that regulations be studied to ensure flexibility and appropriateness in cases where wanted persons voluntarily return home to surrender.
Regarding this matter, the Government clearly states that the regulation invalidates the passports of wanted persons to restrict their freedom of movement for the purpose of investigation, prosecution, trial, or execution of sentences.
For individuals who are wanted but have not yet left the country, invalidating their passports will prevent them from leaving.
In cases where a wanted person has left the country, invalidating their passport serves as grounds for Vietnam to request the competent foreign authority to deport or extradite the wanted person.
When a wanted person wishes to return to Vietnam to surrender or to cooperate with criminal proceedings, the Vietnamese diplomatic mission abroad will issue a regular passport to that person through an expedited procedure.
The government stated that the responsibility to inform citizens about incorrect passport information is stipulated in the law. Accordingly, when there is evidence to determine that a passport issued to a citizen contains incorrect personal details, the passport issuing authority will check and request the passport holder to return the passport for cancellation.
The government clarifies that currently, passports issued to individuals aged 14 and above are valid for 10 years, while passports issued to individuals under 14 are valid for 5 years. When a passport expires, it does not need to be canceled.
However, in practice, there are many cases where citizens request a renewal even though their passport has not expired, for various reasons. These include damaged passports, incorrect personal information, lost passports, passports with no more pages for verification stamps, or passports with no more pages for visa stickers, etc.
In the above cases, the passport needs to be invalidated, especially if the passport cannot be recovered and needs to be canceled in the data system for management purposes. However, these cases are not yet regulated by law, so there is no basis for implementation.
Passports or other documents that indicate an expiration date will automatically become invalid once that date (unless renewed), and the system will automatically update the passport's status to "expired."
New regulations on ordinary passports issued under expedited procedures.
Another point is that the new law stipulates that ordinary passports issued under the expedited procedure are valid for no more than 12 months, cannot be renewed, and are only valid for one-time use when exiting or entering Vietnam.
The new law adds regulations regarding the issuance of ordinary passports within the country. Accordingly, applicants must submit a completed application form, two passport-sized photos, and relevant documents; and present their citizen identification card, national identity card, electronic identity card, or valid passport.
The regulations have been amended to include documents related to the issuance of ordinary passports abroad. Specifically, a photocopy of the citizen identity card, national identity card, electronic identity card, or other relevant documents issued by a competent authority of Vietnam is required in cases where there is a change in personal information compared to the information in the most recently issued passport.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cac-quy-dinh-moi-ve-cap-thu-hoi-huy-gia-tri-su-dung-ho-chieu-tu-1-7-2026-20251214103017405.htm
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