The amended Notarial Law expands notarial services to non-geographical areas and reduces costs for citizens.

On the morning of April 9th, continuing the program of the first session of the 16th National Assembly, Minister of Justice Hoang Thanh Tung, authorized by the Prime Minister, presented the Proposal on the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Notarization.

Promote decentralization and simplify procedures.

Minister of Justice Hoang Thanh Tung, acting on behalf of the Prime Minister, presented the report. Photo: quochoi.vn

Minister of Justice Hoang Thanh Tung presented a summary of the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Notarial Law, emphasizing the urgent need to improve the institutional framework to meet practical requirements and the trend of digital transformation.

According to the Minister, the amendment of the law aims to institutionalize the Party's major policies on streamlining the apparatus, promoting decentralization and delegation of power, and fostering science and technology and innovation. The draft law aims to address shortcomings arising in practice and is consistent with the two-tiered local government model.

The draft law is being developed with the view of inheriting as much as possible from the 2024 Notarial Law, only amending the contents that are truly necessary, ensuring the stability of the legal system. The Minister stated that the new regulations must ensure consistency and uniformity with related laws, while also anticipating the development of notarial activities in the future.

In terms of content, the draft Law focuses on amending several major groups of issues. First, it aims to narrow the scope of transactions that are required to be notarized, avoiding overlap with specialized laws, while also creating conditions for expanding voluntary notarization when sufficient technical and infrastructure conditions are met.

A notable point is the increased decentralization of state management in the field of notarization. Accordingly, many powers such as recognizing the equivalence of notarization training abroad, appointing and dismissing notaries will be transferred from the Minister of Justice to the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee. This regulation aims to thoroughly implement the principle of "local authorities decide, local authorities act, and local authorities are responsible."

National Assembly delegates attend the session in the assembly hall on the morning of April 9. Photo: quochoi.vn

The draft law also amends regulations on the organization of notary practice to align with the two-tiered local government model, while creating more favorable conditions for the operation of notary offices in the context of promoting online public services.

Regarding procedures, the Minister emphasized a strong direction towards simplification. The draft allows the use of electronic data to replace paper documents in notarization files; reduces the requirement to present original documents in many cases; and cuts down on some unnecessary intermediate steps. The application of technology, electronic identification, and biometrics is also being promoted to enhance safety and transparency.

Notably, the draft law proposes the establishment of a unified national notarization database centrally managed by the Ministry of Justice, replacing the previous decentralized model. This database will be connected and shared with other data systems, effectively serving notarization activities and state management.

In addition, the draft also adds regulations on the use of data in processing applications, abolishes some outdated regulations, and continues to reduce and simplify related procedures.

Minister Hoang Thanh Tung affirmed that this amendment to the Law aims not only to resolve immediate obstacles but also to create a legal foundation for the development of modern, transparent, and efficient notarization activities, contributing to improving the quality of public services and better serving the people and businesses.

Expanding notarization services, in line with the two-tiered government model.

Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice, Phan Chí Hiếu, presents the verification report. Photo: quochoi.vn

Presenting the verification report, Phan Chí Hiếu, Chairman of the National Assembly 's Committee on Law and Justice, stated that the verification body basically agrees with the amendments and additions to the draft Law on Notarization. In particular, the draft Law adjusts some regulations to transfer authority from the Minister of Justice to the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee, in line with the requirements of decentralization, delegation of power, and the organization of local government at two levels.

At the same time, regulations related to the organization of notary practice have also been amended and supplemented to meet practical requirements and ensure smooth operation in the context of the new organizational structure.

The National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice also endorsed the policy of simplifying notarization procedures, thereby contributing to reducing the time and costs for citizens and businesses. Notably, the draft law expands the scope of real estate transactions that can be notarized regardless of administrative boundaries, and assigns the Government to develop an implementation roadmap. According to Phan Chí Hiếu, Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice, this is a step in line with the trend of digital transformation and administrative procedure reform, making transactions more convenient for citizens.

In addition, the draft Law stipulates that the notarization database model will be built and managed centrally and uniformly by the Ministry of Justice from the central to local levels, contributing to improved management efficiency and ensuring transparency.

Besides the consensus, the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice proposed further research and refinement of several important aspects. Specifically, regarding the criteria for transactions requiring notarization, the reviewing body suggested revising them to be more general, avoiding duplication and overlap with specialized laws. Furthermore, it is necessary to ensure the correct implementation of the direction to narrow the scope of transactions requiring notarization and to increase voluntary notarization.

According to Phan Chí Hiếu, Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice, adjusting in this direction will contribute to reducing legal compliance costs, creating more favorable conditions for organizations and individuals, while still ensuring the requirements of state management.

Furthermore, the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice proposed continuing to assess the practical impact of regulations on notarization procedures to provide a basis for improving the policy. The amendments should ensure a balance between the goals of simplifying procedures and reducing costs, and the requirements for stability, feasibility, and appropriateness of the legal system.

"It is necessary to carefully review the regulations to both facilitate citizens and businesses and ensure strictness and consistency in the enforcement of the law on notarization," emphasized Phan Chí Hiếu, Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice.

Based on the review comments, the National Assembly's Committee on Law and Justice recommends further refining the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Notarization, ensuring that when promulgated it will meet the requirements of administrative reform, digital transformation and improve the quality of public services in the field of notarization.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/luat-cong-chung-sua-doi-mo-rong-cong-chung-phi-dia-gioi-giam-chi-phi-cho-nguoi-dan-743921.html