In many wards and communes of Ho Chi Minh City, the image of people lining up in long lines waiting for leaders to sign each set of certified documents has almost disappeared. Instead, civil servants are authorized to sign and return results right at the reception counter. These changes come from the implementation of Resolution 29/2025 of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council regulating the duties and powers of commune-level People's Committee Chairmen authorized to civil servants to perform in the judicial field.
Giving more power to civil servants not only helps shorten the time for processing documents, but also reduces the workload, creating conditions for ward and commune leaders to focus on management work and bring satisfaction to people and businesses.
Sign on the spot, people receive documents after just a few minutes
With a population of over 204,000 people, Ba Diem is one of the most populous communes in Ho Chi Minh City after the reorganization, so the volume of files processed every day is always very large.
Sitting in the waiting row, Mr. Le Van Giau carefully flipped through his application file, occasionally looking at the electronic board waiting for his turn. When his name was called, he quickly walked to the reception counter to receive notarized copies. The officer reviewed it, confirmed the information, then handed the file to Mr. Nguyen Van Hau, Deputy Director of the Commune Administrative Service Center, who was directly signing at the desk. Just a few minutes later, the red stamp was printed on the paper, the file was complete.
“From the time of submitting the application to receiving the application, it only takes about 15 minutes, mainly waiting for your turn, but the processing is very fast” - Mr. Giau commented.
A few rows away, Mr. Ho Van Thanh also came to certify his job application. When his name was called to receive the results, he received back the stamped application, and the staff guided him to check the information one last time. “Now doing paperwork feels much easier than before. The staff gave clear instructions, it was done quickly, no need to wait or go back and forth many times like before,” Mr. Thanh said.
At a corner of the Tan Son Nhat Ward Public Administration Service Center, Mr. Thai Truong Vu, a civil servant of the center, is checking and certifying two sets of job application documents and a university diploma for Mr. Le Minh (residing in Tan Son Nhat Ward). "Before, when going for certification, we had to wait quite a long time, sometimes after submitting the documents we didn't know when the leader would sign. Now, civil servants sign directly at the counter, it takes less than 10 minutes to finish" - Mr. Minh shared.
Mr. Tran Ngoc Dang Khoa, a representative of a company in Tan Son Nhat ward, brought 16 sets of documents to be certified. He shared that the company often has to carry out procedures for copying and certifying documents, so it is quite familiar with this process. "Recently, I have seen that the staff work very flexibly, handle things quickly while still checking carefully, helping businesses save a lot of time," said Mr. Khoa.
Fast, smooth process
In Binh Dong ward, since mid-September, the ward leaders have authorized Mr. Huynh Huu Liem, Deputy Director of the Public Administration Service Center, to directly sign and return results for four administrative procedures, mainly certifying copies from originals and certifying signatures on documents.
Mr. Liem said that according to the previous process, civil servants received documents, then checked, compared, and submitted them to the ward People's Committee leaders to sign and return the results, so the processing time was long. Since being authorized to sign directly, the processing has been much faster.
“On average, I sign nearly 130 documents every day. Many people only need to wait a few minutes to get the results,” he shared, saying that the leaders’ bold decentralization of power to subordinates not only helps reduce pressure on the ward but also brings satisfaction to the people.
Mr. Thai Truong Vu, a judicial officer of the Tan Son Nhat Ward Public Administration Service Center, was also authorized to sign and return notarized and certified documents. Having worked for many years at the Justice Department of Tan Binh District (formerly), Mr. Vu clearly understood the pressure of this job. “In the past, when we were not authorized, all documents had to be submitted to the leaders for signature. When leaders were in meetings, we had to go to the meeting room or wait, making people wait for a long time,” he recalled.
Since being authorized, Mr. Vu can process people's documents as soon as they receive them. "Many people who have previously gone to certify are surprised that now it only takes a few minutes to complete," he said.
Despite the large number of documents, Mr. Vu still strictly followed the regulation of only certifying when there was an original for comparison, and if the documents did not meet the requirements, he would explain and request additional documents to avoid errors.
At the Ba Diem Commune Public Administration Service Center, the notarization counter receives 200-250 documents every day, with peak weeks exceeding nearly 2,000 documents per week. Allowing commune leaders to authorize civil servants to directly sign and return results has brought about clear results.
Previously, from the beginning of October, implementing Resolution 29/2025 of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council and the guidance of the Department of Justice, the commune leaders authorized six contents of notarization and certification to the deputy director of the Public Administration Service Center and a deputy chief of the office of the People's Council - People's Committee of the commune to sign on their behalf.
Mr. Nguyen Van Hau, Deputy Director of Ba Diem Commune Public Administration Service Center, said that on the days he was assigned to work, he was almost "stuck" at the copy and certification counter. "Since the arrangement of leaders to sign on duty, a file only takes 5-10 minutes to complete instead of half an hour like before. There is no more waiting or congestion" - Mr. Hau commented.
Although the workload has increased, Mr. Hau still maintains a spirit of continuous work to avoid backlog of documents. For difficult or arising cases, he receives and immediately discusses with the professional department to agree on a handling direction, helping people understand clearly and avoid having to go back and forth many times.
Also authorized to sign the documents, Mr. Tran Minh Tuan, Deputy Chief of the Office of the People's Council - People's Committee of Ba Diem commune, said that this authorization was completely reasonable. He has many years of experience, having held the position of Chairman of the People's Committee of the commune before the arrangement, so signing the documents is not difficult in terms of professional skills, but the challenge lies in time. "I am assigned two days a week to sign copies and certify. Sometimes there are dozens of files, which must be classified and prioritized according to the deadline to avoid delays for the people" - he shared.
Delegate the right person to the right job
Speaking with Ho Chi Minh City Law , Mr. Nguyen Thanh Danh, Vice Chairman of Tan Son Nhat Ward People's Committee, said that since the beginning of October, after receiving instructions from the Department of Justice, the ward has deployed authorization for five contents related to notarization and certification to two civil servants of the Public Administration Service Center.
According to Mr. Danh, the selection of authorized officers was carried out very carefully, prioritizing those who directly serve the people every day, understand the process and have solid expertise and skills. "The two selected officers both held similar jobs at their previous units, so we are completely assured," said Mr. Danh.
The representative of Tan Son Nhat ward also said that in order for administrative reform to be truly effective, it is not only necessary to stop at the authorization stage, but agencies and units also need to limit the requirement to certify unnecessary documents.
“Many places still force people to make certified copies of all documents, while according to regulations, only a photocopy with the original for comparison is enough. If we take advantage of electronic data and look it up via CCCD or VNeID, it will save a lot of time for people,” said Mr. Nguyen Thanh Danh.
Mr. Nguyen Tuan Anh, Chairman of the People's Committee of Ba Diem Commune, said that the implementation of the authorization mechanism has created a clear change, both reducing pressure on leaders and significantly shortening the waiting time of the people. To ensure efficiency and responsibility, the commune sets the criteria for selecting authorized officials to be management officials with experience in this field.
However, according to Mr. Tuan Anh, due to the high volume of documents, the two officials assigned to the authority, the deputy director of the Public Administration Service Center and the deputy chief of the office of the People's Council - People's Committee of the commune, also had to work almost continuously all day to ensure progress. "The commune then decided to reassign, rotating between the chairman, two vice chairmen, deputy chief of the office and deputy director of the center, each person in charge of signing one day a week" - Mr. Tuan Anh informed.
The Chairman of Ba Diem Commune also said that the pressure in the current certification work does not only come from the volume of documents but also from many agencies and organizations that still require people to copy and certify documents that are not really necessary. "I think it is necessary to review the regulations to reduce procedures, avoid wasting time and effort for people" - he suggested.
14 authorized content
According to Resolution 29/2025 of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council passed at the end of August, the chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level is authorized to authorize civil servants of the People's Committee at the commune level to carry out 14 contents in the judicial field.
By October 18, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice had issued a document providing detailed instructions on the implementation of authorization. The Chairman of the Commune People's Committee shall, based on the needs of individuals, organizations, and local practices, consider and decide to authorize one or several civil servants to perform the tasks of certifying copies from originals and certifying signatures.
Regarding the certification of contracts and transactions, the Chairman of the People's Committee at the commune level shall consider and decide on the authorization for civil servants to perform when ensuring sufficient standards and conditions to perform the task such as qualifications, professional capacity, expertise, experience, ability to connect to the database to view civil servant transaction history, legal responsibilities, etc. For localities that have transferred the authority to certify contracts and transactions to notary organizations, authorization is not performed.
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Two-level government operates more effectively thanks to the delegation mechanism.
The authorization of commune-level civil servants to perform a number of tasks and powers of commune-level People's Committee Chairmen in the field of administrative justice according to Resolution 29/2025 of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council has created a clear change in the authentication work in the area.
Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Justice Nguyen Thi Phuong Ngoc said that up to now, 110 localities have implemented the authorization for civil servants to sign and certify copies. This helps reduce the workload for commune-level People's Committee leaders and shorten the time to process documents for people.
According to Ms. Ngoc, after Resolution 29 was passed, the Department of Justice urgently researched, collected opinions from 168 localities and advised the City People's Committee to issue a document with detailed instructions on the implementation of authorization.
The Department also regularly organizes propaganda, training and supports local civil servants in the implementation process. Up to now, localities have basically grasped and correctly applied the spirit of Resolution 29.
The leaders of each locality shall, based on the actual situation, select competent and qualified civil servants to ensure that they carry out their assigned tasks in accordance with the law and serve the people best. At the same time, they shall establish a monitoring mechanism to promptly handle any problems that arise.
After two months of implementation, this authorization mechanism has contributed to improving people's satisfaction; civil servants have more motivation, responsibility and professionalism in performing their duties. "The authorization has helped overcome the problem of backlog of documents when leaders of the People's Committee at the commune level go to meetings or work; documents are processed on time, without making people wait" - Ms. Ngoc shared.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Phuong Ngoc also said that in the coming time, the department will continue to monitor and coordinate with agencies and localities to evaluate the effectiveness of the implementation of Resolution 29; research and propose expanding the authorization mechanism in appropriate fields, contributing to administrative reform and serving people better and better.
“Delegation is a practical solution in administrative procedure reform, aiming to build a dynamic and effective urban government model. Localities need to proactively propose to the City People's Council and People's Committee to promptly issue mechanisms and policies suitable to reality. As an advisory body, the Department of Justice will continue to accompany, ensure proper implementation of the law and bring practical benefits to the people,” Ms. Ngoc emphasized.
LE THOA
Source: https://ttbc-hcm.gov.vn/cong-chuc-phuong-xa-tp-hcm-ky-sao-y-chung-thuc-giam-tai-ap-luc-1019946.html
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