# Vietnamese identity card

Citizen Identity Card (Vietnamese: Căn cước công dân), also known by the public as the previous version of the People's Identity Card (Vietnamese: Chứng minh nhân dân) is one of the main types of identification documents of Vietnamese citizens. This is a new form of identity card, effective from January 1, 2016. According to the 2014 Citizen Identification Law, people aged 14 and over will be issued an identity card.

## History

In Vietnam identity cards were used during the French colonial period (before 1945) as a passport or identification card within the entire Indochina.
According to Decree No. 175 - b dated September 6, 1946 of the President of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the Citizen Card was used instead of the ID card. The Citizen Card certifies the personal identity and specific characteristics of each citizen, including full name, date of birth, parents' names, place of origin, residence, occupation issued by the People's Committee of the commune, town or city where the citizen's place of origin or residence is to Vietnamese citizens aged 18 and over.
Since 1957, the Citizen Card has been replaced by the Identity Card. In 1964, the "Identity Certificate" was added for people from 14 to 17 years old in addition to the "Identity Card".
In the South Vietnam identity cards were widely used until the end of April 1975.
Since the reunification of the country after the war in 1976, the Identity Card has been used uniformly throughout the country. Since 1999, it has been replaced by the Identity Card according to the regulations of the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Starting from July 1, 2012, the Ministry of Public Security applied a new plastic identity card model of 85.6mm x 53.98mm, which clearly states the full names of the father and mother, with a two-dimensional barcode. The citizen's photo is printed directly on the card; the new ID number consists of 12 numbers.
Starting in 2016, the Identity Card was officially replaced by the card-size Citizen Identity Card. However, at the provincial and district police levels, the procedures for issuing, exchanging and reissuing the Identity Card were still carried out until October 30, 2017, when it will be officially abolished. From January 1, 2025, all old style identity cards are no longer be valid.
Unlike the previous ID card number, the 12-digit code printed on the identity card (officially called the personal identification number or also known as the TCC code) will never change, even if people reissue it due to loss or change of permanent residence information.
The 2023 Law on Identification stipulates the expansion and integration of many other information of citizens and people of Vietnamese origin in other databases into the National Population Database and the Identification Database compared to the 2014 Law on Identification to directly serve the application of the utility of identification cards, electronic identification, connection, and sharing of people's information. The 2023 Law on Identification also stipulates the contents on the identification card, including changing the name of the card "Citizen Identification" to "Identification". The Law has also been amended and supplemented in the direction of removing fingerprints and amending the regulations on information on the identification card number.