On Friday around 40 people could be seen in front of the department's office on Tran Phu Street in Ha Dong District even before it opened.
A person's criminal record certificate indicates if they have been charged with a crime or banned from certain activities such as managing businesses after being declared bankrupted by a court.
Nguyen Hong Thuong had been waiting for her turn since 4 a.m. She said it was her fourth attempt to get the verification done. She needs the certificate as she plans to apply for jobs.
"The previous three times there were too many people and the number of tokens ran out," she said. "So this time I decided to come early."
To maintain their reputation and protect their clients' safety, businesses in the service industry, such as tourism and transport, update their employee criminal records every six months.
Government workers switching from one department or division to require verification, as do people who wish to work for foreign employers.
The gates opened at 7 a.m. and people rush in to get tokens. The center used to issue only 100 tokens a day, but is handling several times that number these days.
Foreigners living in Vietnam can file for a criminal record certificate to show they have not committed any crime in the country.
The procedures for applying for a certificate are fairly simple, requiring only an application form along with either a personal ID or a passport.
Some people eat breakfast while waiting for their turns.
Dinh Anh Hong, who lives in Long Bien District, said it used to be easier to verify criminal records as people did not have to line up.
Nguyen Anh Minh, office head of the Justice Department, said the demand to study and work abroad have been on the rise lately, meaning more people require record verification.
People get their tokens at the security guard booth. Personal ID numbers are used to obtain the tickets.
Dang Tuan Anh, from Ba Vi District, was the first one to get a ticket on Friday. He said he had been going to the department since Thursday and stayed at an acquaintance's house so he could get there as early as possible in the morning.
Seats run out due to the sheer number of people waiting, forcing many applicants to stand.
A representative of the department said around 300 records can be processed in a single day, but that the actual number of requests that needed to be dealt with in a day is around 600.
The department has to deploy more personnel to meet demand, as well as extend working hours by 1-1.5 hours each day. Results are returned to people within 10 days.
On Thursday, the Hanoi People's Committee requested the department update methods to receive requests so that people would not have to line up.
People come to the Hanoi Department of Justice to apply for judicial record verification. Video by VnExpress/Viet An, Ngoc Thanh
