Frequently asked questions when filing a civil debt collection lawsuit in Vietnam

1. Can I collect debt without a loan document?

Lending without a contract or loan document often occurs between relatives and friends. This phenomenon is quite common in life, so debt collection is a headache for many people.

According to Article 463 of the 2015 Civil Code, there is no provision that lending must be expressed in writing, but only an agreement between the parties, which can be agreed upon verbally, by text message, email, etc., but the loan agreement must comply with Article 117 of the 2015 Civil Code on the condition of validity, which is that the subjects must be completely voluntary and the purpose must not violate the law.

Therefore, in case there is no loan document, the lender can completely sue to collect the debt.

2. How long is the time limit for filing a lawsuit?

As stipulated in Article 429 of Law No. 91/2015/QH13, in matters of loan contract disputes, this can be an agreement between the parties in any form and the lender has the right to sue if the borrower fails to fulfill his/her debt repayment obligation. The time limit for the plaintiff to sue is 03 years from the date of realizing that his/her rights and interests have been violated, you will lose the right to sue if the time limit expires.

3. What is the procedure for authorizing someone else to collect debt on your behalf?

In case you need to authorize someone else to collect debt on your behalf, you and the authorized person must together draw up an authorization contract and have it notarized, then bring it to the commune-level People's Committee to certify the signature. After having signatures from both parties, the authorization document will be effective.

According to Article 581 of Law No. 33/2005/QH11: "The authorized party will carry out debt collection procedures on your behalf and you are responsible for paying the fee (if agreed). In case the debt collection of the borrower does not pay, the authorized party can file a lawsuit with the borrower's Court and claim rights."

4. Can I sue for debt collection via money transfer paper?

According to Article 119 of the 2005 Civil Code, transactions via money transfer or electronic data are also considered civil transactions recognized by law and electronic data is also a source of evidence according to Article 94 of Law No. 92/2015/QH13 of the 2005 Civil Code.

Therefore, you can completely sue for debt collection via transfer paper and can provide additional data evidence such as messages, emails,... to protect your rights.