In a draft amendment to the Ordinance on Preferential Treatment for People with Meritorious Service to the Revolution, currently under appraisal by the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Home Affairs has proposed expanding the scope of policy beneficiaries. This aims to more fully recognize individuals who contributed during the resistance wars, national defense wars, and international duties.

The proposed additional groups include: individuals who participated in the anti-French and anti-American resistance wars and were awarded the Resistance Order or Victory Order; individuals performing duties on the northern border front line and remote islands; and individuals who performed international duties in Laos and Cambodia and were awarded the Feat of Arms Order. The Government will provide detailed regulations on the period of service for these cases.

The Ministry of Home Affairs stated that current regulations do not fully encompass all individuals who participated in national defense wars and performed international duties. Many who made contributions and were awarded the Feat of Arms Order have not yet been recognized as people with meritorious service. The addition of these beneficiaries aims to acknowledge their contributions, especially as most are now elderly, frail, and their numbers are decreasing.

A veteran braves the rain, saluting during a military parade celebrating the 80th anniversary of National Day in September 2025. Photo: Nhu Quynh

The draft also proposes relaxing the conditions for recognizing martyrs among invalids who pass away due to recurring wounds. Specifically, invalids or those receiving benefits similar to invalids, with a body injury rate of 81% or more upon death, or those with a 61% to 80% injury rate who died due to recurring wounds, will be considered for martyr recognition. Verification procedures will be simplified by allowing certification from medical facilities or invalid care centers to replace some documents required by current regulations.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, current regulations require complete medical records from district-level medical facilities or higher, along with minutes confirming the cause of death due to recurring wounds. However, many severely injured invalids, when their health deteriorates, are often brought home by their families for care. Consequently, they do not have sufficient documentation to be recognized as martyrs, even if the cause of death is directly related to war wounds.

The draft also eliminates some qualitative conditions, such as "exceptionally brave" or "could not be timely saved," from the regulations for recognizing martyrs and invalids. This aims to reduce complications during implementation.

For law enforcement forces, the Ministry of Home Affairs proposes expanding the scope of recognition for martyrs and invalids. This would shift from cases of "directly performing duties in combating crime" to "directly performing duties in crime prevention and control," more fully reflecting the nature of work undertaken by functional forces.

Furthermore, invalids, those receiving benefits similar to invalids, sick soldiers, and resistance fighters exposed to chemical toxins with a body injury rate from 61% to 80% are proposed to receive nursing benefits annually instead of once every two years. If approved, approximately 151,000 people with meritorious service will receive more frequent nursing care.

The draft amendment to the Ordinance on Preferential Treatment for People with Meritorious Service to the Revolution is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly Standing Committee for consideration and approval in July 2026. Currently, Vietnam has over 9.2 million people with meritorious service to the revolution. This includes over 1.2 million martyrs, nearly 140,000 Heroic Vietnamese Mothers, over 600,000 invalids and sick soldiers, along with millions of martyrs' relatives and individuals involved in revolutionary activities and resistance wars.

Hong Chieu